Even is never even
‘Even’ just doesn't exist. Within a good marketing strategy belongs a solid content strategy (read more about marketing here). Which, for example, guarantees in what way you communicate and with whom. Every piece of content is carefully considered and must fit within the chosen strategy. So every piece of content must also meet the guidelines that you define together in your strategy.
Because that's how you build a valuable and distinctive brand.
So content is not something you ‘just create. Indeed, creating good content is a profession that consists of several disciplines. That is why it is good for every organization to ask itself: what do I do myself and what do I outsource?
The better you know where your own strengths lie and what qualities you buy in externally, the stronger your content will be. So the question is really not ‘do you create your own content yourself or do you hire a content agency?’ but ‘what content do I create myself and what content do I buy in?’.
4 maxims for (commissioning) content creation
Of course, which content is best to create yourself and which content to buy depends on the organization, the size of the marketing and marketing communications team, the composition of this team and the available marketing and communications budget.
Still, there are some maxims you can follow. Because no matter how big your marketing team and marketing budget are, that doesn't necessarily mean it's smart to ‘just buy everything’ or just ‘do everything yourself’.
Write organic social posts yourself
Social media, you hate it or you love it. Try to find someone on your team (or hire someone for this) who loves social media. It really pays to have someone in-house who is involved in this on a daily basis. This way, you are in control of what you post and when, and you can structurally build a valuable and distinctive brand. Of course, you can have this content created externally, but an external party never knows as well as you what is going on in the organization and the market. So it is also much more difficult for an external party to respond to current events.
Do you want to be in the spotlight structurally and are less concerned with catching up on current events? Then you might consider having some of your social content created externally. This can also be a good stick for you internally, to stay focused on which topics are interesting for social media.
Finally, it does make sense to determine the social media strategy and design with a content agency. This will ensure that you present the organization in a way that fits within the marketing strategy.
Purchase video content
Video making is truly a craft. Although anyone can make their own videos very easily these days with a smartphone, it is still a craft to do it well. For most organizations, it doesn't pay to hire a videographer. Usually there are too many other things that need to be done and it does not pay enough to have someone working on this for a few days a week.
In addition, there are many different types of video styles and forms. And you often can't get away with 1 videographer for everything. Because honestly, professional videos are rarely produced by 1 videographer.
Invest in a good (in-house or external) copywriter
Ideally, you should have someone on the marketing communications team who can write well. Who has mastered the right tone-of-voice and can move quickly. Good writing is essential in the brand perception and professionalism of the organization. In many cases, there is someone who can write well but there is too much work.
In that case, look for good, outside copywriting with whom you will enter into a long-term partnership. The better they know the organization, the easier it will be to write fast, good copy.
If you're only looking for someone for copywriting, this is a great place to find a good freelancer. Now, do you want to have other types of content created on a regular basis? Think about producing flyers, posters or online content such as ads. Then it pays to hire a content agency. An agency has several disciplines under one roof and can thus ensure that all communications are in line with the marketing strategy.
Engage a content agency to stay current in field
You hire a content agency primarily to take work off your hands that you can't do yourself. Because you don't have the time. Or don't have the knowledge. An additional advantage of hiring a content agency is that you hire experts who keep track of developments in their field. This keeps them good at what they do, and so you as an organization also benefit.
Fair is fair, the marketing profession is so wide-ranging that it is impossible to keep up on all fronts.
