In this article, we’ll uncover the benefits, challenges, and how to choose the right digital marketing apprentice for your business. If you’re considering whether hiring a marketing apprentice is right for your business, you’ve hit the jackpot with this article!
Founders and directors of young businesses at some stage suddenly find themselves too busy to continue to undertake marketing activities themselves, and at this point, question whether they need a digital marketing apprentice.
And this has to be very carefully considered.
For many businesses, outsourcing their social media, for example, will be much more cost-effective than taking on a full-time digital marketing apprentice.
However, if they need full support, the broad range of skills a marketing apprentice can bring to a business is considerable.
What marketing used to be vs. What it is now
Many moons ago, marketing used to be printed ads, exhibitions, mail shots, and maybe even a radio jingle or TV ad.
All had a significant cost associated with them, and so often companies would simply engage an advertising agency to look after everything for them.
Now we have websites, digital funnels, social media, PPC advertising, email campaigns, and much more… to throw into the mix.
Digital marketing can be seen to be less expensive and, often, more effective than the traditional routes – although these still have their place for sure.
A true digital marketer is a master of many skills.
They need to understand website development, the three elements of SEO, be a copy and content writer, understand the different social media platforms and their algorithms, be able to create great visuals and videos, plan campaigns… the list just goes on and on.
And that’s without mentioning the company’s customer avatar(s), values, vision, mission, purpose…
Nothing stands still in digital marketing. Changes happen constantly.
For many founders and directors of businesses, this is all too much to take on and keep up to date with (unless their company is a marketing agency, of course!)
No time and quite frankly, too close!
As a business becomes established and grows the founders and directors it is impossible for the founders and directors to do everything themselves.
Even if one of them enjoys marketing, they are often too close to the business to be able to produce effective marketing materials.
They know what they do inside out … but a prospective client who is just realising they need your product or service doesn’t need to know every detail… they just want to know what problem you solve and what benefits they’ll receive by spending money with your company.
Often, a feature that you think is really cool or important, is of no interest whatsoever to your customer.
And for this reason, it’s important you hand your marketing over to someone who is dedicated to that one function.
Outsource or employ a digital marketing apprentice?
Outsourcing your marketing can be a fantastic idea.
It can save you money, and you have experts on your team.
However, those experts have other clients to service too and so you aren’t necessarily going to get the response times you would ideally like.
And, if you end up using different companies to support different arms of your marketing, the costs can add up quite quickly, no longer being cost effective.
Ascertaining that you need a digital marketing apprentice to look after your marketing provides you with a dedicated service and because they sit in your business, they can be agile and react to things as they happen (so important with social media in particular).
Putting them through a Level 3 Multi-Channel Marketer Apprenticeship will provide the skills your business needs and provide the individual with the opportunity to embed their learning into your company as they progress through the course.
Selecting the right person
One of the first considerations when you realise that you need a digital marketing apprentice is to ensure someone in the organisation will be able to supervise them.
Here at Whyy? Change, we have had conversations with small companies who were considering a marketing apprentice but actually had no one with any expertise in that area.
We’ve also had conversations with companies who wouldn’t have anyone in the office most days and so the apprentice would be left under their own steam.
Neither of these situations are appropriate to be employing a marketing apprentice.
If employing a digital marketing apprentice is indeed right for you, you need to consider your company’s culture.
Anyone who is helping to market your business needs to be passionate about it.
They need to buy into, and live your values and your vision for the future.
And they need to be able to understand what you do and the benefits of your product or service to your prospective customer.
They also need to understand who your customers are, where they hang out, and be able to relate to them.
Selecting the right person is essential when you need a digital marketing apprentice.
How Whyy? Change can help when you need a digital marketing apprentice
If you want our support when you are preparing to employ your digital marketing apprentice, we can help you plan for the apprenticeship.
Understanding the structure and content of the apprenticeship will help you when you advertise and interview.
We have intake points onto the Level 3 Multi-Channel Marketer Apprenticeship roughly twice per year and so knowing when the successful candidate can begin their course will also help you plan.
As a Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) Accredited Study Centre, we also include three Level 4 CIM Digital Marketing Awards, to equip apprentices with professional qualifications and the practical skills to make a real difference to your business.
If you have never employed an apprentice before, the Whyy? Change team are happy to assist with the necessary digital paperwork to get your company registered and the funding applied for.
If you are feeling you need a digital marketing apprentice, then why not get in touch today? Simply fill out the form below to get started.
