7 Reasons to Get a Monthly Retainer for Business

Are you interested in purchasing a monthly retainer for your business agreements? We’re telling you why it’s a good idea and how important it is for business.

As you grow your business, it can be helpful to hire third-party resources to help fill any operational gaps. From marketing to customer service, there are myriad ways outside contractors can make a big difference in your workflow.

This personnel can provide a valuable service, often at a fraction of the price of hiring an entire internal team to perform the same task.

There are two ways you could approach this setup. First, you could establish a monthly retainer, paying a set sum up-front for future work. Or, you could pay on a per-project basis upon work completion.

While the latter option may give you a sense of more control, you could be hit with invoices you’re not prepared to pay, shaking your financial security among other business aspects.

Today, we’re breaking down seven reasons why it pays to create a monthly retainer for your outsourced business endeavors.

Ready to learn more? Let’s go!

1. You Know What to Expect

Sure, everyone loves a good surprise. Yet, the best kind of surprise usually involves your friends and family jumping out from behind a couch holding balloons.

On the other hand, you don’t want to be surprised by your bottom line at the end of the month.

A monthly retainer allows you to set predetermined contracts with your external providers. This way, you know the price of your project, such as your digital marketing campaign, right at the beginning and aren’t shocked by a big-ticket item in the middle of it.

2. You Can Avoid Overcharge

When paying by the hour, you’d be surprised at how quickly time adds up, and what minimal tasks contractors can find to charge you for.

By setting a firm price and drawing a line in the sand before the work even begins, you’ll avoid being overcharged.

Some firms could even charge you extra for certain tasks, or include add-on fees you weren’t aware of at the onset. If you’re already knee-deep in the project by the time you realize this pay scheme, it could be too late.

3. You’ll Create a Big-Picture View

Chances are, your business endeavors aren’t individual. Each one ties into the other and is an important and intricate part of your overall platform.

That said, hiring a contractor on a per-project basis could disrupt this seamless flow. Someone who doesn’t know how things run, who does what, and what you expect could produce work that’s not quite aligned with what your brand represents.

Hiring a team under a monthly retainer ensures that for a set amount of time, they’ll be engrossed in your company culture. They’ll learn the ins and outs of your marketing campaigns, your security initiatives, your IT goals, or any other project you assign them to.

The result? Deliverables that represent your company’s image and fit right in with your in-house work.

4. You’ll Create Long-Term Relationships

Using a monthly retainer allows your business to form beneficial relationships with contractors that could span even longer than the contractual timeframe.

Entering into this type of agreement requires commitment from both parties. It also requires a leap of faith and dedication to see each project through to completion.

Over the course of working together, you’ll find that your contractors begin to almost feel like part of the work family. They’ll know your accounts and understand your company lingo.

When paying an outside agency on a per-hour basis, you could call that agency and reach multiple people before landing on someone familiar with your project.

Under these types of setups, it can be difficult to find someone you “click” with and who is dedicated to putting in the extra time and effort to form that bond.

5. A Monthly Retainer Builds Trust

Depending on your project, you could use a monthly retainer to hire someone who will be working with highly sensitive or confidential information. You’ll need to guarantee that the person handling that data is credible and has your company’s best interests in mind.

A paid-per-hour contractor might not be as tethered to your company as someone who’s already accepted payment and is committed to delivering what you need.

This type of agreement helps create trust and transparency.

You’ll be able to reach your contractor at any time to check in on progress and communicate any concerns. Likewise, your contractor (or team of contractors) is encouraged to reach out to you with any questions to make sure the project is done both ethically and effectively.

6. You Can Focus on Staying Busy

Hiring a monthly retainer at the beginning of your project can help support your company when things really kick into high gear.

Consider, for instance, if you hire a digital marketing agency to help with a new campaign. You can pay the agency at the beginning, then set the guidelines for scheduling, delivery, reviews and more.

Everyone is on the same page from the get-go and while issues may arise during the course of the project, for the most part, everyone understands what’s expected of them and is prepared to perform.

This means that as a business leader, you’re free to focus on getting the work done. You’ll improve productivity when you don’t have to spend time reiterating to your contractors what you need and how you need it.

7. You Can Track Results More Easily

With disparate contractors, it can be difficult to form a complete picture of how each project is measuring up.

Yet, it’s important to track continual progress to make sure you’re getting the most return on your business investment. Patching a perspective together from multiple sources can make this process time-consuming at best, and inaccurate at worst.

By allowing you to focus your efforts on one singular group, a monthly retainer gives you a straightforward glimpse into how your project is doing, who’s overseeing which portions, and what kind of results they’re producing.

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