In today’s world, everyday people idolize the idea of DIY aka “Do It Yourself.” From dedicated social media accounts to 5-minute crafts to self-help books that can teach you the ins-and-outs of pretty much everything, why would you ever feel the need to hire a professional marketing agency? In many people’s mind, it’s easier to do take it on yourself to 1. Save money, 2. Save time, and 3. Have full control of your brand.

I’m here to tell you that out of all three of statements, number 3 is probably the most true statement. Having full control of your brand is a great feeling, but it’s not necessarily always worth it. It can be stressful, time consuming, and flat out frustrating to take on every aspect of managing your brand. Here are five reasons why you shouldn’t DIY your brand and marketing:

1 – Focus on what really matters: your business

The initial feeling of opening and investing in a business is great! Learning how to run it, design the logo, determine the target audience, and curating what to sell can be exhilarating. But, when you throw social media marketing, SEO, design, and public relations all on top of that, it can get very stressful very fast. By hiring a marketing agency, you are giving yourself time to effectively run your business while also giving yourself time to relax and disconnect.

2 – It can be hard to stay consistent

When you have to worry about multiple facets of marketing, it’s honestly hard to stay consistent. If you want your business to have prettiest Instagram feed that posts consistently along with design that stays true to the brand, it’s better to hand it off to the professionals. Posting inconsistent pictures on social media every week and creating flyers in Microsoft Word can only get you so much engagement and traction. In the end, it can hurt your business because you won’t see the likes and comments you hoped for which can lead to slower sales.

3 – Professionals are trained to have a detailed eye for design and marketing aesthetics

I agree that everyone can put together a pretty graphic on Canva to advertise their next event. But, I do not believe that everyone becomes an effective designer or social media manager in a day or a few months. From typography and type pairings to color palettes and hierarchy, design by itself involves so much theory. It takes someone years to become an effective graphic designer. As for social media marketing, it’s one thing to post your products everyday on your Instagram feed and call it good. But, effective social media marketing not only advertises the best version of your brand, but it drives sales, induces emotion, and establishes personal connections with your audience. Not only does investing in a marketing agency save time and stress, but it also makes you look more seasoned and professional in your chosen industry.

4 – Coming up with new content and events by yourself = stressful

As I mentioned before, solely posting pictures of your products on social media everyday will only get you so much traction and engagement. As your business grows, you eventually need to come up with ways to keep people engaged and interested in what you’re selling. This can be in the form of events, pop-ups, infographics, campaigns, and magazine features. Curating a social media content calendar that will guarantee increased sales and engagement is time-consuming. Additionally, planning an event with a high success rate is also very overwhelming. Why figure it out yourself when there are trained professionals that are happy to help make your marketing goals successful?

5 –  Hiring a marketing agency is an investment

When you finally decide to hire a marketing agency, it’s easy to not follow through or become scared-off by the price tag. But, I wholeheartedly believe that good brand and marketing is worth the money! It’s an investment to make your brand the best that it can be. Investing in a marketing agency may seem overwhelming, but it’s important to think about the end goal. With good marketing, branding, and public relations, you can elevate your brand to a whole new level. Think of it this way: increased engagement -> increased traffic -> increased sales -> increased long-term customers and networks -> a happy, successful business!

So, what are you waiting for? DIYing is great for five-minute crafts or repurposing your empty water bottles into pencil holders. However, DIYing your brand? This will most likely cost you stress and time that will last much longer than five minutes. Let’s ditch the idea that you need to figure out everything yourself. Invest in you, invest in your business, and invest in your future!