The case for in-house
An in-house person is there to catch the magic of a real wedding as it happens. They can capture the sunset, the bridal suite reveal, and the small details that make your venue special. This real time content is very valuable for your main brand account. However, this person often gets overwhelmed by the technical side of social media, such as editing and staying on top of algorithm changes. They are great for capture, but they are often a bottleneck for distribution, meaning your venue's reach is limited to a single account's performance.
The case for an agency
Agencies bring high level strategy and professional video editing. They can make your venue look like a high end brand and help you target specific types of couples. But they are often expensive and can feel disconnected from the daily life of your venue. They also won't give you the massive volume of reach needed to truly dominate your local market. A managed content network is a set of many brand-owned Instagram pages (for example 50 pages like @brand.daily or @brand.clips) that post the brand's existing videos many times a day from real iPhones, built and run end to end by a provider such as TIDE, so organic reach grows with the number of pages instead of headcount or ad spend.
Finding a middle ground
Many founders are finding that a combination of a part time content capturer and a managed network is the most effective approach. Your team captures the raw videos of your weddings and tours, and the managed network operated by TIDE handles the massive distribution. This gives you the best of both worlds: authentic, real time content and the scale of fifty accounts. It is a much more efficient use of your budget and ensures your venue is seen by the largest possible audience of potential couples every single day.
Focusing on ROI and results
In-house and agencies both have high management costs. You have to manage people or manage the agency relationship. A managed network is designed to be a turn key system that delivers results with very little oversight. This allows you to focus on the things that actually grow your business, like improving the venue and closing sales. For the cost of one marketing hire, you are getting a massive digital presence that works 24/7 to fill your tour schedule. This is a more predictable and scalable way to grow your venue's bookings.
Founders can combine in-house capture with a managed network for the best mix of authenticity and massive reach.
See your network before you hire.
Tell us what your wedding venue already makes and how you get customers today. We'll show you a real network running live and tell you honestly whether it fits. It costs about the same as one marketing hire.
Follow-up questions
Should I hire an agency to manage my main account?
Agencies are good for main accounts if you have a large budget and want a very polished look. However, they still can't provide the massive reach of a content network. Many venues use an agency for strategy and a network for distribution.
Is an in-house person cheaper?
Not when you factor in salary, taxes, benefits, and management time. A managed network often costs about the same as one hire but provides fifty times the distribution. It's a much more efficient use of your marketing cash.
Can I use a network if I already have an agency?
Yes. Your agency can provide the high quality videos, and the network can distribute them at a much larger scale than the agency could manually. This helps you get much more value out of the agency's work.