With the ongoing budget cuts, B2B marketers are forced to do more with less. There is an increasing need to not just improve the ROI but to reduce the spending wherever possible. However, this is easier said than done. The following challenges stand in the way:
- Marketing tools are becoming more expensive. While most tools fail to deliver promises, the good ones come at a premium, leaving marketers with little flexibility when it comes to the budget.
- With rising competition, creating a mind space among ideal customers requires more investment in the form of ads and other marketing campaigns.
- Putting together a strong marketing team is also becoming more expensive with increasing employee expectations.
Given these, marketers need to think outside the box to come up with ways to optimize spending, thereby making more out of the resources they have. Hence, in this article, we look at 7 different ways B2B marketing leaders can reduce costs without cutting down on major marketing campaigns and activities.
Reducing marketing costs – 7 techniques
Doing less is not an option for B2B marketers today. So, here we look at 7 ways to cut costs without making significant compromises on various marketing activities.
1. Invest only in necessary tools
There is an increasing tendency among marketers to try out new marketing tools, especially with AI tools creating a buzz. There is nothing wrong with experimenting. But invest only in those that are absolutely necessary if you are on a budget. For example, you don’t need a Jasper or Copy AI when you can get most of the content writing related tasks done using ChatGPT.
Source: Instagram
In addition, consider investing in tools that are multi-purpose. Such tools might not be the best when it comes to certain tasks. But they can get the job done. For instance, not many turn to Canva for video editing, which is more than enough for simple video editing tasks. That’s all you need when you are getting started with video marketing. In the early days, choose to go with multi-purpose tools and opt for specialized ones when you are ready to scale (and of course when you have the budget).
Related: How To Build A Lean B2B Martech Stack For Demand Generation
2. Outsource wisely
If you have a small marketing team, it’s very likely that you have to outsource some part of your marketing. When you do it, many tend to go with multiple agencies to diversify the risk. While this is a good strategy, you don’t have to do it for every activity. For example, if you are outsourcing content writing, LinkedIn marketing, and SEO, going with 3 different agencies is not wise. This is also because some of these activities are interconnected, and using different agencies won’t give you a coherent output.
On the other hand, when you have a single marketing partner managing all the 3 activities, the cost might also go down because of the volume advantage the agency has.
Now, here is a bonus tip.
Go with freelancers instead of agencies if you are only outsourcing smaller bits of your marketing. They tend to be cheaper. However, agencies are a better choice if you are looking for an integrated marketing partner who can help you across the marketing spectrum. Freelancers can also be considered when you have someone internal who can guide them on what needs to be done. This way, you keep the costs lower while having better control over the output.
3. Hire the right way
Many B2B marketing leaders don’t even realize that hiring people with the right skills can reduce costs significantly. Here is a simple example to understand this.
Most small B2B businesses have a simple website and do not need regular code-level changes and updates. So, they don’t need to hire a developer to have the website running. Rather, hiring someone who comes with core expertise in SEO and a decent familiarity with WordPress (or whichever platform your website is built on) can help address multiple needs than just one. For any code changes or updates, you can hire a freelance developer on a need basis.
Similarly, if you want to invest in video marketing, hire a video editor who comes with graphic design skills as well (which in most cases they do). By taking this approach instead of trying to build a ‘perfect’ marketing team, B2B marketing leaders can optimize spending quite a bit.
4. Repurpose a lot
This is something I talk about a lot. Before investing thousands of dollars into creating fresh content, first build a system to make the most of what you already have. Whether you have an internal team or an agency working on content creation, content repurposing can help you achieve this.
Check out the below video to learn the right way of repurposing:
You can also refer the below article that has a ready-to-use content repurposing template.
Content Clustering And Repurposing – Building A Scalable B2B Content Strategy
5. Implement zero-cost/low-cost marketing
Cutting costs is also about avoiding unnecessary spending. Small to mid-size businesses that are constrained by budgets can explore low-cost marketing tactics instead of going for paid campaigns. Here are a few examples of zero-cost or low-cost marketing tactics:
- Free guest posts and backlink exchange
- PDF submission websites like Scribd
- LinkedIn newsletters and articles (wondering why LinkedIn newsletters? Check out this video)
- Building a community (you can get started for free using community platforms like nas.io)
- Social media (LinkedIn, X, and YouTube primarily)
- Micro-influencer marketing
6. Collaborate on events
Nothing beats an in-person connect, even in a heavily digital world. That’s why offline events are a great opportunity to build relationships. But there is one problem. Hosting even a tiny 20-people event in India can cost anywhere from INR 30K to several lakhs depending on the scale. This is where collaborating with companies with complementary solutions helps.
For example, are you a recruitment agency? Partner with an HR tech company.
Do you sell a sales intelligence platform? Collaborate with a sales training firm.
Do you offer a marketing tool? Work with a marketing agency.
Source: Pinterest
Think about businesses that have a common target audience and bring in complementing capabilities without a conflict of interest. Collaborate with them on events so that you can share the expenses. Collaborations also help amplify your reach compared to doing it alone.
7. Know your spends
This is the most underrated of the 7 tactics discussed in this article. As simple as it may sound, most marketing leaders don’t know how much they spent for the financial year. It is recommended to carry out a budget analysis at the end of every quarter. Calculate metrics like budget utilization to understand whether you have overspent or underutilized the budget. Also, identify redundant items that are not adding any value to your marketing engine. Doing this will get you into the habit of knowing your numbers, which in turn can go in as input while making critical spending decisions.
Final words
Cutting costs is not about avoiding everything that costs money. It is more about getting more done with less so that you get the best bang for your buck. With the right system in place, you can make sure your low-cost marketing engine delivers the results you need.
Now, spend some time consolidating where your marketing dollars are spent today. From the list, identify areas where you can optimize spending while ensuring the same impact. This simple exercise can help you avoid budget leaks and find money for more strategic marketing activities.
Looking to take your B2B marketing efforts to the next level? Try Skalegrow
Are you looking for a ‘no-nonsense’ B2B marketing agency? Give Skalegrow a try. No false promises. No ‘we will change the world’ narratives. We focus on simple marketing tactics that work. Moreover, we spend the time to understand your industry, however niche it is.
Visit our services page to learn more about what we bring to the table. You could also write to us at info@skalegrow.com.
About the author
Naseef KPO is the Founder and CEO of Skalegrow. He comes with rich experience across multiple areas of B2B marketing including content marketing, demand generation, SEO, account-based marketing, marketing analytics, revenue attribution, marketing technology, etc. He writes thought-provoking and relevant articles on The Skalegrow Blog and his weekly LinkedIn newsletter Elevate Your Marketing.
Prior to starting Skalegrow, Naseef led large marketing teams in multi-million dollar B2B organizations where he made significant contributions to the topline growth of the business. He has also appeared on numerous podcasts where he shared his thoughts on trending marketing topics such as the application of AI in marketing, startup marketing, ABM, and B2B content marketing, just to name a few. Being the founder of Skalegrow, he is currently focusing on helping its clients stay ahead of their competition by using innovative yet practical marketing tactics.
You can connect with Naseef KPO on LinkedIn.
