Question

Topic: Other

Outsource Versus Inhouse

Posted by Anonymous on 3/18/2008 at 6:20 PM ET 500 Points
This multi-part question is for marketing professionals who work for companies with inhouse departments.

Do you outsource creative assignments? If no, why not?

If yes,, what types of projects do you typically outsource and do you you use freelancers or firms?

Lastly, what challenges, if any, do you face when you outsource?
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RESPONSES

  • Posted on 3/18/2008 at 8:05 PM Accepted
    I've worked with clients who do everything in-house and those who outsource everything ... and several who use a combination. The key difference in success and quality lies in the specific individuals involved.

    When there's a great talent in-house, then that works best. When there's a brilliant creative mind at an outside agency, then that works best.

    It doesn't have anything to do with whether it's in-house or outsourced. It has everything to do with the specific individuals involved. And it doesn't hurt if the client/sponsor is very clear about objectives and requirements for the assignment.
  • Posted by melissa.paulik on 3/18/2008 at 10:20 PM Accepted
    This is a great question. For creative services, I outsource nearly everything. It allows me to keep my in-house marketing team small and agile. I have a pool of creative people I can outsource specific projects to based on my needs and their specific skill sets. And I don't have the burden of a full time headcount hitting my budget.

    I find that I do better working with freelancers than agencies. Freelancers are often less expensive, do great work, and aren't always trying to sell you the "whole package." However, the right agency can do wonders if you're really looking for a comprehsive creative package - great when you're launching a new product and need branding, positioning, etc.

    As for cautions, I would say that you should always ask for samples. if you don't like what they've done for others, you probably won't like what they'll do for you. And, it probably goes without saying that cheaper isn't always better.

    I do outsource some work to a group in India. they do good work for a really great price. However, because of the time zones work is a great deal slower. Every revision takes at least a day whereas someone closer to home could turn it around in an hour. You just have to be sure that you factor that in when deciding whether or not to outsource overseas.

    If you can't tell by now, I am a big believer in outsourcing. I have a series on this started on my blog at https://www.themarketingsurvivalist.blogspot.com/. Look under the category of "outsourcing".

  • Posted by Peter (henna gaijin) on 3/19/2008 at 1:30 AM Accepted
    I've been in situations with both cases (outsourcing and in house). Generally, we outsourced when we didn't have enough work to justify having someone in house. Sometimes we would also outsource if we couldn't come up with great ideas in house.

    Challenges - the largest one is probably that the outsource provider won't be familiar with what you have done in the past, or design standards you may have in place. But this can also be a good thing in those cases where the stuff you did in the past wasn't that great and a new standard should be set...
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 3/19/2008 at 8:49 AM Member
    Suggested reading: Madscam (by George Parker). I wrote a review for this book at: https://www.manygoodideas.com/2007/10/01/madscam/
  • Posted on 3/19/2008 at 9:30 AM Author
    Thanks Melissa. Do you typically use freelancers for copy, design or a combination of the two?

    Also you said the agencies/firms tend to try to sell you "the whole package." Can you elaborate on that a bit?
  • Posted on 3/19/2008 at 10:26 AM Accepted
    Hi. I own a Long Island advertising agency and marketing consulting firm. I serve as account executive and creative director and work with steady freelancers that I have developed good relationships with. This gives me both flexibility during slow times and the ability to fit the best person for the job at hand.

    I hope this helps.
  • Posted on 3/19/2008 at 10:38 AM Author
    Thanks Savant. Does your agency do mostly b2c or b2b?Do you use freelancers for copywriting? If so, how do you find people that have the time and talent to deliver a quality product without a lot of intervention.
  • Posted by Tracey on 3/19/2008 at 6:24 PM Accepted
    I use a combination of in-house and outsource.

    We outsource graphic design and web design. We have outsourced writing for a white paper in the past. Collateral development, including copywriting, is done in house. We've used firms for design, and a freelancer for writing the white paper.

    We don't outsource the copywriting because it's highly technical B2B material that requires a lot of internal knowledge and interaction with executives and engineers. Also, our vision is still being refined. Just too hard to get an outsider up to speed on that.

    Finding good vendors is always a challenge. We work with a graphic design firm that we love, but had challenges with just about every vendor. Some of those challenges include:

    - Inadequate project management skills (they're order-takers instead of managing initiatives soup to nuts).
    - Inadequate communication (not a clear enough understanding of what's their job vs. what's our job; plans not detailed enough)
  • Posted on 3/19/2008 at 6:44 PM Accepted
    I have worked with both in-house and outsourced creative talent. Obviously, sometimes it makes sense to outsource, particularly if you don't have full-time design needs. Overall, however, I am a huge fan of in-house design. If you select the right person(s), your design work will be done faster, with more consistency, and with a more in-depth understanding of what your brand looks like.
  • Posted on 3/20/2008 at 11:48 AM Accepted
    I have worked on a project where we were deciding whether to insource or outsource. I agree with mgoodman on the statement that it has to do with the individuals involved. Learning from my experience I would say , dont just go straightaway to the outsourcing/insourcing decision. First define your workflow, like our was defining business need, analyze/brainstorm, design, iterations and final proof/deliverable.

    Now here one may have an important decision to make, where do you want the brainstorming to be done, in your organisation or outsource it. Stakes are that more you outsource at this stage, lesser you have competency of core product with you and you end up being a manager rather than a creator. On other hand, it gives you a professional design and hence lowers the cost. If you hire freelancers (depending upon the project size) the whole deal is quite cheaper.

    If you are just outsourcing the production, then i don't think it would impact you in any major way. Hope it helps!
  • Posted on 3/20/2008 at 4:43 PM Accepted
    Hi,
    I've been an inhouse marketing manager for years but also worked at an agency - and I freelance as well, so I have a multi-faceted POV.

    I think the key to your decision should be simply what your strength is. I have outsourced mostly web when I am inhouse, but have also outsourced some artwork (illustration-type). I always try to hire those that complement my strengths so together we're stronger than individually - and this will also work for freelancers.

    Personally, I only hire freelancers in the U.S. - too many headaches between time zones and language barriers.

    Specific to copywriters, I've not outsourced that, but I do get the input from others on the team and one or two "outside" the creative group that I respect - they tend to notice things that I easily overlook because I'm paying too much attention to other things. Feedback is always good!

    When looking, ask for samples/portfolio and ask them how much input they had - did they assist, were they the lead, the only one, the specifics they did and software they used (if applicable) why did they choose that particular theme, words, etc. and what the outcome was re: sales went up by x%, they won a big client, whatever. And always ask for references, then CALL them! Ask about meeting deadlines, response time, how they interacted with others on your team/in your office.

    You can also try places like guru.com that are specifically for people looking for freelancers. You get reviews that may help you in choosing a freelancer.

    Hope this helps!
  • Posted on 3/21/2008 at 7:00 PM Accepted
    I have been on both ends of project outsourcing and remain a firm believer in it. Three things immediately come to mind on this subject:

    1. I outsource when the project does not best suit our skillset. Sure, we can all handle a lot of work that is typically outsourced, but are we best suited for the project?

    2. When I hire staff it is because of the talent they bring to the table. Why would I want to bog them down with tasks that do not fully utilize their talents?

    3. Does keeping the project(s) in-house bog us down from from more important projects?

    When I take my shirts to the cleaners it isn't because I am incapable of the task, it simply isn't worth my time. I liken this to a lot of outsourcing responsibilities.
  • Posted on 3/24/2008 at 9:35 AM Author
    Thanks for all your responses.
  • Posted on 3/24/2008 at 9:49 AM Member
    Hi spaterson,

    In regard to your question-"Thanks Savant. Does your agency do mostly b2c or b2b?Do you use freelancers for copy writing? If so, how do you find people that have the time and talent to deliver a quality product without a lot of intervention."

    Savant Creative Group does both b2b and b2c work. I have found people through networking, www.craigslist.com, www.elance.com and buy posting in forums. Finding and keeping good people can be challenging so when I find talent I try to establish long term trusted relationships with them and that reduces but does not eliminate the intervention.

    What kind of work do you do?
  • Posted by melissa.paulik on 3/26/2008 at 1:40 PM Member
    In answer to your question, I originally used an agency to create templates for all of our materials. This made sense at the time since we were launching a product and needed logos, design guidelines etc. I had them create templates since I knew I wouldn't have the budget to keep going back to them everytime we needed a new piece.

    Now, we have a couple of people in-house who are pretty good at design. One is our web designer/site manager. I leverage her insights into our collateral since she has an eye for the asthetics - plus we want our look and feel to match our web presence. I leverage an intern for the layout. I love interns! This intern may not be great at the asthetics, but we tell him what we want and he makes it happen. BTW, we do pay our interns.

    If I didn't have these two individuals I would outsource the basic layout. Or look for an intern that could specifically do design. I don't want to bog down my budget with a full time designer. We just don't need it. (other than for the web)

    My background is as a writer, but since I manage the team I can't afford to take the time to do as much writing as I would like. A couple others on the team have some writing skills, but to keep us moving quickly, we outsource a lot of writing to a couple of freelancers. It took me awhile to find one that I really liked, but it was worth the effort.

    As for your questions on agencies - they often try to over complicate things. I don't want to go into too much detail because I don't want to seem like I am anti-agency. They do a great job at pointing out things you might have missed like creating a style guide. However, their priorities are not always my priorities. Many of their proposals reflect that in the complexity of what they recommend. There's an old saying - "Make it simple as possible - but no simpler."
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