In an era where organic reach on social is ever declining, running paid ads is essential if you want to capture the attention of potential customers. Less straightforward, however, is how you would go about producing these ads.
The age-old debate of agency vs. in-house still has no clear answer, and there’s now a third option in the form of Creadits – the world’s leading ad creative platform.
So what are the advantages and disadvantages of each, and which should you be picking? Here’s a quick breakdown before we dive into the details:
Ad Agencies – Quality comes at a steep price
The very first option that comes to mind when you need ads is most likely an advertising agency. After all, they are traditionally the experts at developing ad creatives of high production value to market every kind of product and service.
Pros: You can be assured of a certain level of quality when you engage an agency to produce your ads. From videos to motion graphics and 3D animation, agencies have a diverse set of capabilities to meet different marketing needs. Having worked on clients from various industries, they also have a broad knowledge of what works for each category.
Cons: On the flip side, the large number of clients an agency serves means the attention of their creative team is always split between many projects at any point. Their understanding of what your brand or company stands for is limited to the guidelines you provide them with. While they have probably done work for a brand or company similar to yours, it is difficult to find an agency which specializes in your vertical.
Conclusion: If you’re looking to get your ads in time for a launch, you might want to look elsewhere. Agencies are notorious for their slow turnaround time, which is a result of multiple layers of approvals and bureaucracy across account servicing and creative teams.
The price per project charged by an agency can easily run into tens of thousands, and may not be feasible for companies operating on a smaller budget. It can prove difficult to justify the high costs as well, given the lack of transparency when it comes to billing for services. Producing ads on a project basis also means agencies rarely review performance to learn from past work and improve upon future creatives.
In-House – Knows your brand best, but limited by time and skills
On the other side of the spectrum, you can choose to bring the production of ads in-house by hiring a creative or team of creatives.
Pros: An internal team would know your brand and products best, and save you the trouble of having to brief someone else to do the job.
Another reason you might consider in-house creatives is cost. At first glance, the monthly wages of a designer seem affordable (approximately US$62,920 annually in the US according to Piktochart.) as compared to an agency. Do the maths though, and you’ll find the costs adding up over time.
Cons: There are many skills required for the production of an ad creative. A basic static ad, for instance, could involve a photographer, image editor, graphic designer and copywriter minimally. Unless your in-house team comprises hundreds of unique, talented specialists, you may not have all the necessary capabilities to produce ad creatives in multiple formats for each platform.
Conclusion: Your business can only grow as fast as the number of ads you are running. However, the finite time and resources of an internal team don’t allow for the production of creatives at scale. This may inadvertently put a damper on your performance marketing campaigns.
Working on the same brand or product for months or even years has its downsides as well. In-house teams can suffer from a creative block over time and run out of new approaches when it comes to producing ads. Ad creatives start to look and sound the same, losing effectiveness as target audiences lose interest.
Creadits – Cost-effective and scalable solution for every need
The duopoly of agencies and in-house teams has ceased to be with the introduction of Creadits to the scene. Creadits may be relatively new, but we have already won over an impressive roster of clients – including eBay, Nike, PayPal, Tencent and Spotify – with our creative quality.
Dedicated team for every client
An in-depth understanding of your business and its marketing objectives is critical to produce ad creatives which hit the mark and deliver results. Creadits assigns a dedicated team of designers to every client and invests time to conduct a thorough onboarding from the start. Unlike in agencies where designers handle multiple clients at once, your team at Creadits gives undivided attention to your project.
Every ad format, creative insights and global expertise
With experience working on a diverse mix of verticals, Creadits’ designers know what works best for your industry and can translate this knowledge into highly effective ads. For every possible type or format of ad creative you would like to produce, you can easily acquire the necessary creative talents or skill sets via Creadits. Our global team of creative strategists are also on hand to provide insights and guide your marketing efforts for success in new markets.
Fast turnaround
Your campaign performance doesn’t need to be limited by the slow turnaround of agencies or low output from in-house teams anymore. Creadits’ unique subscription model gives you the flexibility to scale your ad production according to your needs and receive fresh creatives within just five working days.
Cost-effective
At less than one-tenth the cost of agency or in-house equivalents, Creadits is the most cost-effective option for advertisers from small and medium businesses to multinational corporations. Depending on your ad production needs and budget, we can build a customized plan to provide you with the best value.
