How freelance marketing support can drive growth for small businesses and start-ups

In today’s dynamic digital landscape, small businesses face many challenges, including (but certainly not limited to) distinguishing yourself as a brand, effectively engaging your target audience, growing your brand online, managing limited budgets, adapting to evolving market trends, and keeping up with the rapid pace of technological advancements. All of these can make it difficult to maintain pace and efficiency and often we’re having conversations with potential clients around the topic of if you should even consider freelance marketing support for your business.

Freelance marketing support offers flexible, cost-effective solutions tailored to the unique needs of your small business, enabling you to access specialised expertise without the overhead associated with traditional agencies. Think of freelancers as external team members you can pull in when you need additional support. Yes, there’s still an element of contracting, cost and ways of working, but generally speaking, freelancers and boutique digital marketing agencies can be fantastic options for small businesses.

In this blog post, we’re exploring how your small business can unlock growth opportunities and revenue channels, increase brand authority and awareness, and achieve measurable results in a way that works for you.

Why choose freelance marketing support?

Freelance marketing support provides a scalable and cost-efficient alternative to hiring a full-time in-house team or partnering with a large agency. Here are some key reasons why freelance marketing support could be the right choice for your small business:

Cost-effective expertise

Hiring an in-house team or a full-service agency often requires significant investment, which, without substantial financial backing, can be challenging. Freelancers allow you to access specialised skills on a project-by-project basis, enabling you to manage costs while ensuring that your marketing needs are met by experienced professionals. Notably, in a recent study shared by Exploding Topics, 37% of small businesses outsource at least one business process (a figure that’s increasing year on year!), highlighting the growing trend toward flexible staffing solutions.

A tailored approach

Freelancers excel in creating bespoke strategies that align with your business goals. Unlike agencies that may use more standardised models and solutions, freelancers can customise campaigns and activities to reflect your brand’s unique identity and resonate with your target audience in a less ‘cookie-cutter’ approach. Often, you’ll find that boutique agencies or freelancers are less time-bound and care more about your satisfaction and results as a client (as they are likely trying to grow their client portfolios), rather than rigidly focusing on how long it took to get there.

Fresh perspectives

Freelancers bring diverse industry experience, having worked with multiple businesses across different sectors. Although we’re not saying that more traditional agencies don’t share this, this broad exposure enables third parties to identify opportunities, tackle challenges with innovative solutions, and apply insights from various industries to your small business that you otherwise wouldn’t have access to. At The Business Tea, we often find ourselves discussing other client experiences that relate to your challenges or journey, offering examples of why we recommend particular paths or priority actions. Sometimes, having a second pair of eyes alone can uncover beneficial opportunities for your business.

Flexibility and scalability

Whether you need support for short-term campaigns or activities, or ongoing strategic guidance, freelance marketers offer unparalleled flexibility compared to larger agencies. Naturally, more start-up sized teams can often act quicker than larger teams with more complex processes and account management structures. In regard to the support you receive, you can scale your marketing efforts up or down as your business needs evolve, in our opinion, a little more flexibly working with freelancers and smaller agencies, ensuring you always receive the appropriate level of support.

Driving small business growth through digital marketing

Digital marketing is the cornerstone of business success in today’s online-driven world. Freelance marketers possess the skills and knowledge to harness the power of digital platforms to drive growth and have become a sought-after resource in corporate environments. Slowly but surely, global businesses are recognising that marketing teams are not glorified arts departments but are revenue-generating teams that should be integrated cross-functionally to drive success. For your small business, here are some areas where freelance digital marketers can make a significant impact:

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

SEO is crucial for driving organic traffic to your website. Freelance SEO experts can audit your site, identify technical issues, and implement strategies to improve your search engine rankings. For example, at The Business Tea, we’ve worked with global teams where website traffic increases exceeded 200% year on year, by implementing strategic, SEO strategies. For your business, outsourcing SEO can save countless hours of learning and experimentation, delivering a higher ROI and faster results.

Social Media Marketing

Social media is one of the most accessible marketing tools available for your business, and regardless of whether you’re utilising social media marketing organically or through paid activity, it can be a time-intensive process and requires a clear strategy to yield results. Freelance social media marketers can help you build a strong presence on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn: working with you to create tailored campaigns that showcase your brand’s personality, engage your audience, and drive meaningful interactions. 

Content Marketing

From blog posts and email newsletters to research papers, ebooks, and everything in between – content marketing is a powerful tool for building trust and credibility with your audience. Freelancers skilled in content marketing can craft compelling pieces that speak directly to your audience’s needs, helping you establish authority in your industry. For example, publishing well-researched blog posts optimised for SEO can attract more visitors to your website and nurture them into leads. By sharing useful, educational content, you’ll position your business as a go-to resource for your audience.

Paid Advertising

Freelancers skilled in paid media can manage cost-effective advertising campaigns on platforms like Google Ads and Facebook. Paid ads can deliver immediate results by driving website traffic, generating leads, and boosting sales. A successful freelance marketer will work within your budget to create highly targeted campaigns that maximise ROI. For instance, they might help you use retargeting ads to re-engage website visitors who didn’t convert initially, turning potential customers into paying clients. Usually, freelancers who support with paid advertising operate on a project by project basis, or a retainer agreement – giving you even more flexibility when it comes to managing paid media expenditure. 

Comparing freelancers and marketing agencies

When deciding between hiring a freelancer or working with a marketing agency, it’s essential to weigh the pros and cons of each.

Freelancers

Pros:

Cost-effective and agile

Freelancers often operate at lower rates than agencies and can offer agile, tailored solutions that are perfect for smaller budgets and niche needs. This allows you to allocate resources to other critical areas of your business.

Personalised attention

Freelancers typically work one-on-one with you, meaning the person you’re communicating with is often the same person doing the work. This ensures that your vision and feedback are directly reflected in the output without layers of communication filtering.

Access to specialised skills

Many freelancers focus on specific areas of expertise, such as SEO, content creation, or social media marketing, allowing you to find a professional who excels in the exact area you need help with.

Cons:

Limited bandwidth

Freelancers are individuals or small teams, meaning they may not have the capacity to handle large-scale or multi-channel campaigns simultaneously. This can lead to delays if their workload becomes overwhelming.

Varied availability

Like agencies, freelancers often juggle multiple clients, however, their schedules may not always align perfectly with yours like an agencies could. Projects requiring quick turnarounds could face challenges if their availability is limited.

Self-management required

Hiring freelancers often means you’ll need to oversee coordination between different freelancers or manage project timelines yourself, which can be time-consuming.

Marketing Agencies

Pros:

Comprehensive resources

Agencies often have larger teams with specialists in various fields, allowing them to handle complex, multi-faceted projects. They’re more equipped to manage end-to-end marketing efforts without the need to consult a further third-party.

Established processes

Agencies typically have structured workflows, quality assurance processes, and project management systems in place, ensuring a consistent level of service. Due to freelancers being more of a ‘sole trader’ nature, they may not have the same level of infrastructure an agency could offer.

Scalability

Marketing agencies can quickly scale up efforts for large campaigns or new initiatives, providing the manpower and expertise needed to meet tight deadlines.

Cons:

Higher costs

The overheads associated with agencies, such as office spaces and administrative staff, are often reflected in their pricing, making them less affordable for smaller businesses.

Less personalised service

With larger teams, your account may be handled by multiple people, such as account managers or junior staff, which can dilute the personal connection and deep understanding of your business.

Potential for longer turnaround times

Agencies often juggle multiple clients and may need longer lead times to deliver projects, especially if they’re working through structured approval processes.

For your small business, the choice often depends on your specific needs, budget, and desired level of involvement. Freelancers and boutique agencies excel at offering tailored, results-driven solutions that are often more accessible for smaller budgets. At The Business Tea, we’ve designed our services to bridge this gap, combining the flexibility and cost-effectiveness of freelancers with the reliability and expertise of an agency. If you’re feeling stuck, we would love to hear from you to help you overcome any blockers and start improving your business. We work with small businesses and entrepreneurs to grow their businesses online, and often share free tips and advice on our social media channels, as well as directly to your inbox through our newsletter. For more hands on consultancy or implementation support, you can check our our services and packages here. Likewise, if you would like to read some of our other blog posts, you can click here.