In-House Marketing vs. Agency vs. Freelancer

You know that content marketing is an important part of growing your business. And you know it’s time to start investing in your content marketing to help you find and retain your dream clients — the kind that made you want to start your business in the first place. 

But how do you decide who to hire between in-house marketing vs. an agency? Or should you hire a marketing freelancer? In-house marketing offers more control, freelancers are more affordable, and a B2B content marketing agency can take the full process off your hands. But which one is right for your business?

Let’s look into each option's pros and cons to help you determine the right approach for your business’s unique goals and needs. 

Quick comparison: In-house marketing vs. agency vs. freelancer

Option 1: In-house content marketing

You might be thinking, “Who could be better placed to market and tell my brand's story than an in-house hire?” There are several benefits of in-house marketing and keeping things “in the family.” Let’s take a look.

Benefits of in-house marketing 

• Accessibility: When choosing between in-house marketing vs. agency vs. freelancer, accessibility is key. Keeping marketing in-house means consistent and easy access to your marketing team. Think face-to-face chats and ad hoc team meetings vs. calls and emails between you and an agency. 

• Brand expertise: An in-house team lives and breathes your company. From brand values and product knowledge to tone of voice, they’ll have the time and access to build a deep understanding of your business and customers.  

• Workflow: A silky-smooth workflow is a key benefit of in-house marketing vs. agency or freelancer marketing. They’re a part of your team, focused entirely on your marketing needs, with easy access to company resources and insights. 

• Autonomy: When you keep your content marketing in-house, you control the entire process completely. You have autonomy over marketing strategies and their execution, while a content marketing agency will take more of a collaborative approach.
  

Potential drawbacks of in-house content marketing

Of course, managing your content marketing in-house does come with some potential pitfalls, including:

• High overhead costs: Hiring an in-house marketer means you’re paying for recruitment, salary, benefits, and training. Plus, you’ll have office space and marketing tools to pay for even during slow periods. That can be a major investment for small businesses without proven ROI.

• Harder to scale: Growing an in-house marketing team takes time. If your content needs suddenly increase or you shift your strategy, your in-house marketers may struggle to keep up while you recruit more people.

• Limited skill set: If you’re hiring one or two people to do all of your marketing in-house, you’re probably looking for people who can do it all. That’s great! But it can mean you miss out on deep expertise in specific areas like search engine optimization (SEO.) 
  

Option 2: Hire a marketing freelancer

If in-house marketing isn’t for you, you might want to hire a marketing freelancer. Marketing freelancers are typically self-employed and work with multiple clients, sometimes specializing in a specific niche or focusing on a few industries. Contracts are negotiated directly between the freelancer and the client and tend to be done on a project-by-project basis. 

Pros of hiring a freelancer 

Hiring a marketing freelancer can be a good option if you’re looking for help with content marketing on a budget. Some of the pros of working with an individual freelancer include: 

• Personal touch: Working with a freelancer means working one-on-one with an individual, which can help you easily build a relationship and rapport with the person handling your project.

• Specialization: Most freelancers are experts in one or two niches or industries, meaning they can often produce specialized content quickly and easily. This specialization might also mean they do one aspect of content marketing particularly well, which can be ideal if you need to outsource one part of your content to an expert in your niche (like writing technical blogs).

• Flexibility: Since you’re working directly with a self-employed individual, a freelancer can sometimes offer more flexibility than agencies or an in-house hire, allowing you to negotiate directly on price and delivery dates and commission custom projects that may not fit within an agency’s service framework.
  

Cons of hiring a marketing freelancer

Hiring a freelancer can be a good option, but it doesn’t come without drawbacks. Here are a few things to watch out for:

• Limited capacity: Freelancers can only take on so much work at once. So, if you need to scale up content production or need a project turned around quickly, they might not be able to deliver.

• Inconsistent quality or availability: There are some really talented, reliable freelancers out there. However, it can take some time to find someone you work well with who can capture your brand’s tone of voice and consistently meets your deadlines. And that might be time you don’t have to spare.

• Lack of strategy: Working with a marketing freelancer usually involves them executing your content strategy. That’s great if you’re confident strategizing in-house, but it might not be what you’re looking for if you need help creating your content strategy.
  

Option 3: Work with a B2B content marketing agency

A B2B content marketing agency lets you tap into a ready-made team of content strategists and talented writers, offering a level of expertise that’s hard to replicate in-house and hard to find in a freelancer. 

Benefits of using a content marketing agency 

Here are some key benefits of using a content marketing agency: 

• Expertise: An established agency has years of invaluable industry experience and the knowledge and tools required to do in-depth keyword research, assess your on-page SEO, measure the success of your content marketing efforts, and more. 

• Specialist skillsets: Hire an agency, and you’re not just getting a copywriter. You’ll have access to an entire team with expertise in SEO, content strategy, social media, and campaign management — all at a simple monthly cost. 

• Creativity and perspective: Creativity also comes into play when you’re choosing between agency or in-house marketing. An agency offers a creative collective that can bring new ideas and a fresh perspective to your content. 

• Scalability and flexibility: Agencies can quickly scale content output to match your business needs. Plus, an agency is better able to adapt to fluctuations in demand than an in-house team or a freelancer.

• Cost efficiency: If the cost of maintaining an in-house content marketing team feels prohibitive for your business, an agency is a cost-effective solution. Hiring an agency means you skip the costs of recruiting, training, and retaining an in-house team. And while a freelancer might be fractionally cheaper, you’ll also lose access to the level of support an agency can offer. 
  

Cons of working with a content marketing agency

While we may be biased since we are a content marketing agency, it’s important to acknowledge that working with an agency isn’t right for every business. Here are a few potential drawbacks:

• More expensive than freelancers: Working with an agency will be more expensive than working with a solo freelancer. While the investment is usually worth it in the long run, that higher upfront cost can be daunting.

• Less direct control than in-house: Content marketing agencies have their own workflows and processes in place — they’re running a business just like you! That means you’ll have less control over their day-to-day management of your content compared to an in-house hire.

• May take time to align on brand voice: Even the best content marketing agency will need some time to learn your brand voice, messaging, and goals. That means initial projects and drafts may require more feedback to get things right.

• Varying levels of transparency: Some agencies are essentially “black boxes” where you don’t know who’s executing your work or how they’re doing it. Knowing how an agency communicates is essential if you’re looking for transparency.

Should you hire a marketing agency? 

Is a content agency, an in-house hire, or a freelancer a better fit for your business? Well, that really depends on the unique nature of your company. Here’s what to consider:

Do you want full control or strategic support? 

If you’re happy to hand over a little (or a lot!) of control to a content marketing agency, you’ll free up time to focus on other aspects of your business. While you will need to get your agency up to speed at the start, your involvement can be minimal once they’re up and running. 

Do you want financial flexibility?

When comparing in-house marketing vs. agency vs. freelancer options, an in-house team offers more control but comes with high costs — especially for smaller businesses. A B2B content marketing agency offers access to a broader skillset without the overhead of in-house hires. 

While a freelancer might be a cheaper option upfront, you may need to hire multiple freelancers to get the same level of service you can get through an agency. 

What level of expertise do you need?

Agencies bring cross-industry experience and up-to-date knowledge. Unlike solo freelancers or small in-house teams, they can pool their collective experience and insights to create more effective strategies and content for your business.

How do you want to manage workflows?

Hiring an in-house team gives you direct control over content workflows, but that comes at a price. Meanwhile, working with freelancers can mean managing unknown workflows and adapting to their invoicing and delivery processes, making it more complicated when juggling multiple projects or pieces of work. 

A good content agency will have proven processes that make content production quick, smooth, and scalable. At Scribly, we’re happy to adapt our workflows and processes to fit your business’s ways of working. 

Are you looking to scale your content marketing quickly?

When you’re choosing between a marketing agency vs. a freelancer vs. an in-house team, you need to know your short-term and long-term content marketing goals.

Looking to scale up soon? An in-house team can be a good option but will be limited by company resources. Freelancers may have less capacity, making quick scale-ups harder. Meanwhile, agencies are designed to scale up or down based on your needs. 

In-house marketing vs. agency vs. freelancer: What’s the right choice?

There’s no simple answer to this question. It all comes down to your budget, goals, and how involved you want to be in the content marketing process. However, if you’re looking for a partner who’s prepared and passionate about your marketing success, a B2B content marketing agency may be the right fit.

At Scribly, we combine extensive experience, strategic thinking, high-quality content, and a flexible approach to help you meet your content goals. If you’re just starting out with content marketing or you’re looking to scale, Scribly can help you reach your goals better, faster, and with less stress. 

Get in touch today, and let’s see what we can do together.