Does a marketer need to understand your industry to be successful?

Sometimes, companies believe there’s an advantage in hiring a marketer who has experience in their field. There are a couple of problems with this strategy.

Keeping Secrets

I’ve heard companies believe that working with marketers already involved in their industry means they can leverage the secrets they’ve learned from others and apply them to their clients. However, if your marketer is willing to share secrets from their other clients, they may also be willing to share your secrets with others.

Is that a risk you’re willing to take?

Working on both sides of the conflict

Even if you have an (enforceable) non-disclosure clause in your contract, working with a marketer who works with others in your industry might put them in the awkward position of working with your competitor at the same time. If they are working with your competitor, inevitably, conflicts will arise. In those cases, which company will they choose? The one they worked with longer? The one who pays them more? How will you know if you’re the one benefiting from this conflict- or suffering as a result?

Find a marketer for your audience: B2B or B2C.

Industry-specific knowledge can be learned. What’s more important is that your marketer understands the difference between marketing for B2B companies and B2C audiences. These two audiences are very different- and reaching them involves different skills and tactics.

However, if you look for a marketer with this kind of experience (B2B or B2C), you gain basic knowledge of your audience without the risks associated with industry-specifics.

For example, a B2B-focused marketer has already discovered several different manufacturing websites and directories to help promote their clients. They don’t need to find one specific to your industry to help (at least, at first). In fact, using the same skills to find general, B2B sites will help them find ones specific to your industry.

Unfortunately, a marketing company without specific knowledge in your industry might (initially) have a hard time writing content for your company. However, someone working specifically in your industry might struggle to come up with unique content for your website, about which they’ve never written before. If you know SEO (and LLM-optimization), distinctive content is essential for success. On the other hand, if your marketers are experienced in B2B marketing, they will understand the unique perspective of writing for this audience and be able to learn your industry. After all, B2B audiences are very different than B2C.

The next time you interview a company to help with your marketing, feel free to ask if they have experience in your industry. However, consider the risks that can arise from such specialization. At the same time, ask if they specialize in B2B or B2C- and choose a marketer with that experience. You might find it more advantageous to your overall marketing goals.