Is it better to have an “innie” or an “outie?” For belly buttons the answer is clearly an innie (sorry, but you shouldn’t have picked at it). For your digital customer experience the question is far more difficult to answer. This session will dive into the considerations for deciding whether a digital experience should be handled internally or outsourced, and how to effectively communicate a winning strategy to your boss.

1. IN- HOUSE DIGITAL EXPERIENCE VS. OUTSOURCING
orlNNIE
OUTIE
.
@ trump29

2. Did you
redesign
internally or
use an
external
agency?
Survey of 164 in-house marketers

3. This presentation is full of generalizations. Your situation may
be entirely different (though it probably isn’t).
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”
–Mark Twain
WARNING

4. n idea is always a generalization,
and generalization is a property of
thinking.
To generalize means to think.
-Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel
A

5. trengthsS

6. In-house
• Cost per hour
• Strong business understanding
• Design shepherding
• Ability to change directive

7. Outsourced
• Up on trends and innovations
• Built for speed
• Attractive to strong talent
• Not as subject to entrenchment
• Ability to house niche skillsets

8. is not which to choose,
but how to balance the
relationship.
T
he real question

9. Implementation Shops

10. Strategic Partners

11. Move toward a
single supplier for
any one item, on a
long-term
relationship of loyalty
and trust. -W. Edwards Deming

12. -W. Edwards Deming
The result of long-
term relationships is
better and better
quality and lower
and lower cost.

13. hese may make theT
decision for you

14. COMPANY SIZE
Small companies will benefit from outsourcing,where large
companies have an opportunity to hire internal teams.
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”
–Mark Twain

15. TEAMAVAILABILITY
Digital team demands tend not to be consistent.Even large
in-house teams will have overflow.
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”
–Mark Twain

16. RECRUITINGAPPEAL
Many in-house corporations don’t have the cool factor to
recruit top talent at reasonable cost.
“We don’t need your money, money, money. We just wanna
make the world dance.”
–Jessie J, Millennial

17. TURNOVER
High turnover eliminates much of the value of having internal
teams handling your digital experience.
“All generalizations are false, including this one.”
–Mark Twain

18. Fast Good
Cheap
Pay for
quality
Low
priority
Low
quality
Pick two:

19. astF

20. • Are there internal politics that will slow internal
teams?
• Is there high user or business complexity that will
require longer ramp-up time for an external team?
FAST

21. heapC

22. • Is the need consistent?
• What is more important? Cost per man-hour or cost
predictability?
• Is niche expertise required that would require training
of internal resources?
CHEAP

23. oodG

24. • Is the product customer-facing?
• Does your company have the“cool-factor”to attract
top talent?
• Is this a long-term initiative (e.g.a product that is
intended to continuously evolve)?
GOOD

25. Fast Good
Cheap
Pay for
quality
Low
priority
Low
quality
Pick two:
Strategic
Partner
Hire upImplementation
Shops

26. Speedtomarket
Budget
Desireforquality
• This project is the business’s main source of revenue

27. HIGH VISIBILITY
LOW VISIBLITY
HIGHUSERCOMPLEXITY
LOWUSERCOMPLEXITY
STRATEGIC PARTNER
OUTSOURCE
IMPLEMENTATION
SHOPS
IN-HOUSE

28. Speedtomarket
Budget
Desireforquality
• We’re behind, and it’s hurting us

29. HIGH VISIBILITY
LOW VISIBLITY
HIGHUSERCOMPLEXITY
LOWUSERCOMPLEXITY
STRATEGIC PARTNER
OUTSOURCE
IMPLEMENTATION
SHOPS
IN-HOUSE

30. Speedtomarket
Budget
Desireforquality
• We have moderate turnover and recruiting struggles

31. HIGH VISIBILITY
LOW VISIBLITY
HIGHUSERCOMPLEXITY
LOWUSERCOMPLEXITY
STRATEGIC PARTNER
OUTSOURCE
IMPLEMENTATION
SHOPS
IN-HOUSE

32. ips for
partnershipsT

33. • Don’t choose… partner
• Also outsource bad news
• Outsource your weaknesses
• Find a partner locally
• Limit the number of partners
• Choose a partner with scale
who can implement end-to-end

34. • Don’t rely on reports
• Bring content owners in-house
• Core business should be created
internally
• Use design reviews and
workshops to combat
entrenchment

35. AKE TRUEMPER
J
@ trump29
-- truemper@ gmail.com