The complex nature of B2B enterprise software naturally lends itself to an ecosystem of US-based digital agencies, consultancies, and tech service partners—on top of hiring and retaining talent to keep it running. But when it comes to getting the most out of your Adobe Marketo Engage investment, not all options are created equal. Here’s a comparison to help you weigh your options.

Capacity

In-House

Limited resource : Shrinking marketing budgets mean skeletal in-house crews must take on both strategy and execution work, often resulting in robust strategies getting shelved due to limited capacity to execute them.

US-Based Agency

Temporary resource : Capacity is limited to the period of engagement, which is often on a short-term or per-project basis.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Full-time resource : A full-time team is dedicated to day-to-day execution work, freeing up internal teams to take on higher-level, strategy work. Options are available to increase capacity and cater to expanded marketing priorities.

Impact

In-House

Inconsistent : As brand custodians, in-house marketers are, in theory, positioned to create the most impact. In reality, they wear multiple hats and lack the bandwidth for regular campaign monitoring and optimization.

US-Based Agency

Setup and forget : While the adoption of Marketo is robust at the start, as scope of work is limited to implementation only, day-to-day platform management is left to in-house marketers after contracted period.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Lasting : From the setup and development of processes to day-to-day platform management, the MaaS model is built to meet long-term marketing objectives and create predictable revenue. Full-service expertise also ensures a more unified marketing effort across functions.

Training

In-House

High effort : New hires take an average of six months to ramp up. Existing team members must spend significant time and effort to train them.

US-Based Agency

Lack of knowledge continuity : In-house teams need to constantly ramp up new agencies, especially those hired on a per-project basis.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Fully-trained team at your fingertips : Marketo-certified talent hit the ground running with minimal ramp-up. Easy access to pool of other highly skilled MarOps professionals fosters information exchange, regular upskilling, and adoption of industry best practices.

Stability and Standardization

In-House

Up in the air : Fully trained talent may go on sabbatical or quit, leaving sudden gaps and inconsistencies in day-to-day platform management.

US-Based Agency

Guidance needed : Requires close monitoring. As the engagement period is often short, agencies lack time to familiarize themselves with the brand’s marketing objectives, target audience, and existing processes.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Consistent quality : Long-term engagement allows for a deep understanding of the brand’s marketing objectives, target audience, and existing processes, ensuring consistency across all marketing efforts. Employee turnover does not affect service quality as a wide pool of Marketo-certified talent immediately closes the gap.

Adaptability

In-House

Slow to adapt : In-house teams may be slow to respond to industry changes and challenges due to limited resources.

US-Based Agency

Hampered by limited scope : Agencies may lack a holistic plan of attack when responding to industry changes as their capabilities are limited to Marketo implementation.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Highly adaptable : Quick to implement holistic plans of attack and respond to industry changes with the help of a full-service team. Having a talent pool versed in a wide range of platforms also means as your tech stack evolves, new MarTech investment gets easily integrated with Marketo.

Cost

In-House

High and easy to poach : Due to the shortage of Marketo-certified professionals, B2B employers must pay top dollar to hire talent. An internal Marketo-certified hire costs upwards of $125,000. The high risk of poaching also means employers have to fork out even more to retain talent.

US-Based Agency

Very high : Hiring a US-based Marketo-certified consultant can cost $130/hour.

Offshore MaaS Partner

Most cost-effective : A MaaS Marketo-certified resource costs only $20-$35/hour due to its unique offshore model and exchange rates that work in your favor.

Overall Winner: Marketing-as-a-Service Firm

OK, maybe we’re biased. But our growing list of enterprise clients can attest to how the MaaS model has helped them overcome the challenges of finding and retaining Marketo talent as well as regaining control over instability and staff turnover.

In the worst cases, this means you need to pause your engine until you find someone adept at leveraging Marketo’s capabilities to create high-impact marketing. With MaaS, you simply plug and play.

Visit 2x.marketing to find out more ways an outsourced Marketo managed services team can help you do better with less.