Marketing Week report: Skill gaps, shrinking teams boost marketing outsourcing
LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM — An increasing number of marketing departments are turning to outsourcing, driven by shrinking team sizes and a notable lack of in-house skills.
According to Marketing Week’s latest Career & Salary Survey, nearly half of the marketers surveyed (46.2%) reported outsourcing at least one marketing element to agencies, specialists, or consultancies within the past year.
This shift towards external support is attributed to several factors, with 48.7% of marketers pointing to a lack of necessary skills within their teams. Additionally, 28.7% cited reduced team sizes as a primary reason for outsourcing, while others mentioned the efficiency of not needing full-time staff for certain tasks (28.9%) and cost-saving measures (14.4%).
The survey highlights a significant reliance on consultancies and freelancers, with 24.5% of marketers embracing this approach in 2024 to mitigate the skills shortage.
The trend is more pronounced in the B2B sector, where 53% of marketers have outsourced business elements, compared to 40.6% in the B2C realm. Mixed B2B/B2C businesses reported a 43.5% outsourcing rate.
Digital marketing emerged as the most outsourced function, with 28.2% of marketers delegating this role externally. This preference spanned across B2B, B2C, and mixed business models, with content creation and public relations following closely behind.
Marketing Week’s latest data underscored the growing challenge of maintaining a skilled, comprehensive in-house marketing team, prompting a strategic pivot towards outsourcing as a viable solution for many businesses.
