Agency consolidation: Helping you make the most of your 2024 PR & marketing budgets

A turbulent economic climate and declining VC funding are forcing many cybersecurity to cut back on their PR and marketing budgets. So, heading into 2024, the key concern for many security vendors is how to get the most out of their marketing budgets. The answer lies in agency consolidation – streamlining your PR and marketing efforts through a singular third party to achieve better ROI in today’s restricted economic landscape.  

What is agency consolidation?  

Cybersecurity is a very dynamic industry, and so are its marketing requirements. Companies are not just promoting their products and solutions to various sales channels, but also building effective media relationships, creating analysts’ relations within the industry, creating engaging campaigns to attract new talents, developing social media campaigns, participating in trade shows, launching new research, and producing a range of text and audio-visual content.

Traditionally, companies would outsource the majority of these services to multiple agencies, each specialised in different aspects of PR and marketing. However, agency consolidation refers to bringing all of these services under one umbrella and hiring a single agency that has the ability to serve all your marketing needs.  

So, instead of working with 5+ agencies on different projects, companies can just work with one specialised agency. By bringing all these capabilities together, cybersecurity companies can find it much easier to coordinate their efforts. It can also help organisations to increase in-house productivity, as they don’t need to synchronize multiple teams across different agencies.  

As a result, companies can achieve enhanced brand consistency, a seamless customer experience, cost savings, and, of course, better results. Many organisations are missing out on their full marketing potential because they’re juggling working with multiple separate agencies, whereas those that have shifted their focus to a single, reliable strategic partner are reaping better ROI. 

Is there a need for PR & marketing agency consolidation in the cybersecurity industry?  

The push to get more value for money always increases when there are budgetary challenges. Companies naturally want to explore how far they can stretch on a limited budget as they are pressured to deliver a marketing or PR campaign to impress internal stakeholders. Correspondingly the C-suites should then proactively strategize with their agencies to meet their needs.   

So, organisations must first re-evaluate their long-term relationships with vendors. Businesses might want to consider working with the same agency or vendors and adjust their budgetary targets. Before consolidating or making a bold decision to change the agencies, it might be fruitful to re-examine the services they’re offering.  

It is essential to understand that most consolidated agencies might not be able to provide specific ‘best of the breed’ services. The chances that a single agency delivers the best of everything are very low. When budgets are greater, organisations can employ an agency that is the best in a particular field, as there are fewer fiscal decisions to be made. However, with tighter budgets in place, many cybersecurity companies now feel the need to cluster all marketing needs under one unified umbrella, thus highlighting the need for consolidation.  

But before adjusting your marketing requirements and pursuing agency consolidation, companies must consider some key factors. 

Factors to consider before consolidating services 

Companies operating across different currencies should consider the fluctuations in the exchange rate. The value of currencies varies over time, which means there is an opportunity to get a higher return on their investment. For instance, US-based companies are subject to higher prices to obtain domestic services than in other countries. So, there is an opportunity to explore other English-speaking countries that provide the services they need.  

Businesses must consider regional variations in investments before consolidating. Despite the marketing spending being damaged overall, the marketing spending in different regions could be higher. For example, while the investment value for companies in Europe seems bleak, North African and Middle East regions have a great investment value. Startups in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) continue to gain momentum, raising over $76 million in the first half of 2023.

Companies should re-evaluate their decision to either move towards consolidation or explore markets in different parts of the world.  

Overall, consolidated marketing and PR services offer numerous benefits to the cybersecurity industry, including cost-effectiveness, streamlined communication, and better brand recognition. So, at the end of the day, organisations can stay competitive, reach new markets, and stand out from the crowd even in a challenging economic environment.  

At Code Red, we understand the value of agency consolidation. That’s why our specialised team of cybersecurity PR & marketing experts is always prepared to offer a diverse range of services to our clients. Whether it’s media liaison, building journalist relations, creating engaging content, developing marketing campaigns, or conducting research, we are always committed to helping companies achieve a competitive advantage in such a dynamic industry. 

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