The Ultimate Marketing Liability

On Friday, right before leaving the office for the weekend, the phone rang. On the other end was a voice who said “I’d like to speak to whomever is in charge of making marketing decisions.” Right away I knew it was a lead generation company looking to “wow” me with a “cutting edge” new lead program to drive more customers to my business…blah…blah…blah.

To make a long story short, the company offered an array of services designed to find customers for other businesses, all of course aimed at lead generation. The call lasted ten minutes.

Okay, maybe somewhere in my heart lies a soft spot for marketing reps. I did it in my later teens and know just how grueling it is. It’s not for the meek, that’s for sure. Maybe that’s why I cut them more slack than most.

But on the car ride home I couldn’t help to think how scary it would be to allow a lead generation service to have full control of your marketing. Talk about the ultimate internet marketing liability!

One Sews, Cultivates and Harvests; The Other says “Here, Borrow my Crop”

There’s a huge difference between hiring an seo company to help manage and build your online presence as opposed to hiring a lead generation company who basically feeds leads to you through their own separate seo efforts. Bottom line is if you don’t control the source of how you’re marketing online, you really have no crops, no command and no harvest.

Marketing Dictates Flow

Think about it. Marketing controls every facet of your business, especially online. Whether its promotions, conversion rates, momentum, or growth, the entire livelihood of your business depends on the effectiveness of your marketing. Without it, you don’t (or won’t) exist.

3 Reasons biz owners find comfort in relinquishing control of their marketing to a lead generation company

1. It’s safe- Playing it safe is a dangerous way to approach anything, especially in business. Of course no one said to go crazy either (refresh my memory: do industry leaders win big by playing it safe?)
2. It’s easier- Yes designating an outside company to feed you leads is easier. Keep drinking that milk, and your business might even see a huge growth spurt. (but what happens if your third party company’s crop doesn’t harvest?)
3. They don’t have time- Some people are so busy running the day to day operations, they simply don’t have time to devote to their marketing. (if you don’t have time, well, then your business doesn’t have “time”)

There’s a HUGE Difference Between Lead Generation and SEO

Unless you’re already an expert in SEO then bringing in outside consultants to help navigate marketing goals is as sound a step you can take to ultimately control your own marketing. The nuances of seo (link building, blog marketing, social media marketing etc…etc…) are a full time commitment. Bringing in a team to help you manage it is just good business.

Walking A Tightrope Without Knowing

On the other hand, hiring a lead generation company to funnel you leads is like playing Russian Roulette. Lead generation companies are a smoke screen. They lead you to believe all is well, when in reality you’re marketing is constantly one misstep from a long fall down a steep cliff. Thanks and have a great day.

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