According to a recent study by CMOSurvey.org, Marketing Outsourcing - outsourcing of marketing is growing fast.  (Click the link to read the original post, including the downside of outsourcing.)

This study, by Christine Moorman, Director of The CMO Survey and the T. Austin Finch, Sr. Professor of Business Administration, The Fuqua School of Business, Duke University, wanted to determine how much marketers were outsourcing. “I asked top marketers to report how much they expected their companies to outsource marketing in the next 12 months.”

The findings were interesting.

This percentage has grown over time as shown in Figure 1. In fact the last measurement, taken in August 2011, grew by over 100% over the prior year!

Figure 1: Percentage of Company Outsourcing of Marketing Expected in Next 12 Months

Wow! In just 6 months, the percentage of companies saying they were outsourcing marketing grew from 1.8% to 9.3%. What will 2012 hold? Will it grow to 25% or more?

The author pointed out some reasons companies choose to do outsourcing.

Why do companies outsource marketing?

1. Companies don’t have the expertise to perform key marketing tasks.
2. Companies don’t think the benefit of building knowledge and skills is better than the value they get from an expert partner performing that same task.
3. Companies can’t produce the same function at the same low price as they can buy it in the open market because the provider has scale, scope, and experience (and perhaps cheap labor?).
4. Companies prioritize other strategic areas more highly than doing marketing internally.
5. Companies want a new point of view. It is easy to stop learning when you are stuck listening to the same colleagues every day. An external partner can offer important insights.
6. Companies don’t understand the value of marketing.

This is a good explanation for why we formed CMO Strategy Group.  We help companies rapidly grow revenue by transforming the ways they attract, engage and win new customers.  Let us know how we can help you!