Marketing is a classic art and science. Businessmen have been doing it since the beginning of trade, albeit using different channels in various stages over time. When Indian and Chinese tradesmen set up the world’s first companies some 3,000 years ago, they probably relied on word of mouth to sell their products.
While WOM remains one of the most sustainable marketing methods today, it’s not the fastest, and we luckily don’t have to rely on it completely. In 2023, we have digital marketing to build us empires at half the time.
A US Chamber of Commerce study shows technology helps up to 94% of small businesses run their processes more efficiently. Imagine what it can do for large companies with tenfold the technology and human resources.
Then again, a dainty mom-and-pop shop and a bullish corporate behemoth will hardly have the same needs – even if digital marketing channels seem to level the playing field for them.
It’s convenient to believe that everyone is equal on the digital arena. However, the facts don’t agree. This is also where appropriate digital marketing mentorship proves crucial.
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Big Business Marketing: The Crucial Differences
There is, in fact, a common ground between small business and large business marketing: the cycle. It will probably never change, from analysis to planning to implementation and control. Beyond that, it’s two different worlds.
Budget is the first and most obvious factor in this disparity. While a small business makes do with a couple hundred dollars a month for ads, a multinational can go for a couple hundred thousand.
Another strategic difference involves human resources. Large companies can pay people to plan, implement and supervise their campaigns to ensure they meet their goals. For small businesses, the owners (with a little help from others) are their own staff, whether or not they have the goods.
Also, when a company is large, marketing often shifts the focus from products and services to brands. It takes rare talent to pull that off, and that’s why big companies pay top dollar to work with the most brilliant copywriters and marketing agencies for their campaigns.
Large companies historically leave all of their marketing cares to their agencies. However, it remains crucial for them to know exactly what’s going on, especially if they have recently transitioned into the big-ticket arena. In that case, understanding the unique requirements of multi-million business marketing is always the first port of call.
Why Mentorship
At the outset, digital marketing mentorship and large companies are oxymoronic. Top-rated marketing agencies almost come by default for corporate giants, after all. Does mentorship even have a place in this equation?
Things they hide
First, there’s so much digital marketing agencies don’t want their clients to know. On-the-ground expertise is often short of what is sold at the initial pitch, for one, and the sales honchos making the pitch are certainly not the ones delivering the goods.
The secrets go on, but they always end with agencies winning contracts only to win their own money, whether or not their clients do too. Of course, they won’t say that, but that’s why it’s a secret.
The worst part is large businesses giving their agencies near-autonomy over their marketing campaigns. The relationship becomes excessively codependent and thus unhealthy, especially during conflict. When ties must be severed, the business usually suffers as the agency walks away with all the learned knowledge.
The business needs to build a new relationship with a new agency and learn the ropes again. Not only is this time-consuming and expensive, but it can also be detrimental to the business’ market position. A company can prevent such a scenario through mentorship.
Regaining control
There are several advantages to hiring a digital marketing mentor, even for a $20 million business, but the overarching benefit is control. A mentor keeps the company up-to-date with the progress of its marketing campaigns and whether or not it has remained in the direction best aligned with its goals.
It can continue to retain an agency, but it will be more empowered to make crucial digital marketing decisions with the knowledge gained from its mentor. There is reduced dependence on outsiders (the agency) and more satisfaction from self-reliance.
Most importantly, a digital marketing mentor can equip a company with the ability to assess its agency’s performance. It’s easy to believe that results are being made, especially on digital channels.
Massive followings on Facebook and Instagram are positive indicators, but they cannot speak for anything other than that the company is doing good on those channels. And there are more channels beyond the bling of social media.
Beyond numbers
Working with a digital marketing agency can quickly turn adversarial because of the endless back-and-forths between investments, results, and ROI. An agency can deliver good outcomes and bad outcomes, but it can’t always hold the fort in meeting client expectations, especially in terms of returns. Here is where a mentor makes a huge difference.
An agency can offer numbers, but a mentor will give perspective. With the big picture as the foundation of the relationship, the company can transcend monthly deadlines, quotas, and retainer fees and get started on attaining real, qualitative, sustainable goals. In this way, mentorship can offer a long-term advantage no agency can give.
The Investment
Like most other professionals, digital marketing mentors get paid contingent on their experience and the number of hours rendered in service. Another factor might be travel and meeting costs for companies that require in-person mentoring.
Generally, mentoring done purely online is less expensive but not without its small set of costs, such as video conferencing software and equipment.
While mentors will charge varying rates for their services, good ballpark figures to consider are $300 to $400 weekly, $800 to $900 monthly, $2,400 to $2500 quarterly, and $8,000 to 9,000 yearly.
Actual rates vary from one mentor to another, but these are good starting points for determining how much is reasonable. Anything higher is extortionate unless fully justified.
Finding the Right Mentor in 2023
The title “digital marketing mentor” gets tossed around a lot these days for good reason. These professionals currently enjoy a high demand, and the good news is supply is not a problem.
In fact, there might even be an oversupply of people identifying as digital marketing mentors they cloud up the actual picture of who’s legitimate and who’s not. Nonetheless, here are helpful tips on finding the right mentor in 2023:
Research
As digital marketing mentorship is an unregulated industry, just about anyone can call themselves a “mentor.” Digging into the field’s different niches will reveal who’s the real deal. Seeking references is another excellent route, and so is learning who has penned a few books.
Attending digital marketing events
The digital marketing sphere is abuzz with events all year round, from conferences to seminars to meetups and the like. Attending these gatherings is one of the surest ways to meet a potential digital marketing mentor.
Join online communities
Online communities are some of the fastest and easiest routes to finding a digital marketing mentor. However, online communities can be a jungle. Sites like LinkedIn, Nexxt, and Indeed are usually helpful, but it’s often wise to pay attention to users’ reviews and comments.
Big business digital marketing specialty
Running a large business is usually complex, and so is implementing a successful digital marketing campaign. Whether establishing brand consistency, creating market trust, or selling a story, a good mentor will have in-depth knowledge, years of experience, and, most importantly, a solid track record for running successful large business marketing campaigns.
Sign up on a mentorship site
A mentorship site is often the best solution for large businesses at risk of getting lost in the web of working with a marketing agency. Through mentorship, especially coupled with execution, a large company has access to the best of digital marketing and priceless knowledge that keeps it in control and self-sufficient.
Big-Business Digital Marketing Mentorship Without Compromises
Digital marketing can be a maze even for people running a huge business. For this reason, mentorship plays a crucial role. Marketing agencies can offer monetary returns, while mentors provide sustainable direction, clarity, and confidence.
A large business may or may not decide to retain an agency. Either way, a digital marketing mentor can ensure the company is on track to meet its goals. As an option to hiring an agency, a company can work with a mentor equipped with modalities and resources to execute plans and strategies.
In any case, a mentor can make the difference between a large business comfortable with its perceived success and one that is constantly innovating and scaling to higher heights. This difference is particularly essential as digital marketing continues to evolve at increasing speeds.
After all, digital marketing technologies are born every day. With the rise of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Metaverse, Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR), and Web 3.0, the mentorship of a well-credentialed, technology-forward digital marketing mentor is not only important but critical.
