Marketing-as-a-Service vs Marketing Staff Augmentation: Which Option is Right for you?

When it comes to B2B tech marketing, knowing what you need to do but lacking the resources to make it happen can feel daunting.

What if you could gain on-demand access to highly specialized tech marketing talent that works directly with your team on a part-time basis? Read on to explore some of the flexible options available for getting the expert marketing guidance your tech company needs, minus the full-time hiring costs.

Table of Contents:

1. What is Marketing-as-a-Service (MaaS)?
2. What is Marketing Staff Augmentation?
3. Which Option Is Right for You?
4. Making the Most of MDF Funds: Choosing Between MaaS and Staff Augmentation
5. In Conclusion

What is Marketing-as-a-Service (MaaS)?

“Marketing as a service (MaaS) is a business model in which companies offer their marketing expertise and services to other businesses on a subscription or pay-per-use basis. This approach allows businesses to outsource their marketing efforts to specialized professionals, freeing up time and resources to focus on other aspects of their operations.” [Dictionary Marketing]

Here are 5 key benefits for tech companies that hire a marketing agency using the Marketing as a Service (MaaS) model:

1. Scalable expertise on demand: Agencies give you instant access to veteran marketers, content creators, tech writers, designers, and digital specialists. You can ramp effort up or down as your launch cycles and budgets change (this can be far more cost-effective than hiring your own full-time marketing staff).
2. Faster time to market: With teams, tools, and processes already in place, a Marketing as a Service partner can spin up campaigns quickly, generate leads sooner, and get new products in front of customers while they’re still newsworthy.
3. Access to advanced tools and data: Most MaaS firms bring enterprise-grade automation, analytics, and SEO platforms to the table—software many tech companies can’t justify on their own—so decisions rest on solid data.
4. Better alignment with business goals: Agencies live and die by metrics like pipeline contribution, MQLs, and customer retention. Your in-house talent can stay focused on product innovation while the agency drives demand.
5. Fresh thinking and best practices: A good tech-focused agency works across multiple clients, so it sees what’s working in the market and what isn’t. You get new ideas and proven tactics without footing the bill for continuous training.

Examples of tasks that could be completed via Marketing as a Service include:

• Strategy Development
• Brand Building
• Content Marketing
• Email Marketing Management
• Social Media Management
• Digital Advertising Management
• Website Management 

Read more about how to expand your marketing resources with MaaS.

What is Marketing Staff Augmentation?

“Marketing staff augmentation involves bringing external marketing experts into in-house teams to enhance marketing capabilities and strategies. It enables companies to quickly access specialized skills and scale marketing efforts based on project needs.” (pangea.app)

5 benefits of using an agency for Marketing Staff Augmentation:

1. Close skill gaps quickly: Marketing moves fast, especially in today’s tech industry. Agencies bring in specialists with the skills you need, and you skip the lengthy recruitment process.
2. Flexible staffing: You can bring on short-term talent for a single project or longer-term contract pros for ongoing roles—whatever fits the moment.
3. Embedded support without headcount: Augmented staff work side by side with your team, yet they stay off your payroll, keeping headcount steady.
4. Scale on demand: It’s easy to add or reduce resources as priorities shift, and you can tap additional agency services for strategy or creative when needed.
5. Faster results: Vetted professionals start producing right away, so campaigns launch sooner and performance improves more quickly. 

Services include:

• Talent recruitment
• Screening and interviews
• Onboarding
• HR management (employee contract, health, benefits, PTO)

Which Option Is Right for You?

Marketing-as-a-Service (MaaS) and Marketing Staff Augmentation serve very different purposes depending on your team’s structure, goals, and resources. Understanding the key differences between the two can help you make the right choice for your business, whether you're looking for strategic support, extra hands on deck, or a combination of both.

Here are the five main differences between MaaS and Marketing Staff Augmentation:

1. Scope of Support

MaaS delivers a complete marketing solution. It typically includes strategy, execution, tools, and analytics — essentially everything you need to run campaigns from start to finish. It’s like having a full marketing department available on demand. Staff augmentation is more targeted. It’s about bringing in specific talent, like a digital ads specialist or content creator, to help your internal team. You’re still in charge of the overall direction and strategy.

2. Ownership and Accountability

With MaaS, the provider usually takes ownership of outcomes. They manage projects, report on results, and often take the lead on optimization and performance improvements. In a staff augmentation setup, your internal team remains accountable. You assign the tasks, track progress, and are responsible for the end results.

3. Speed to Value

Marketing as a Service teams are built to start fast. They bring proven processes, tools, and resources that help you get campaigns off the ground quickly and efficiently. Staff augmentation typically takes longer to ramp up. New team members need to be onboarded into your systems, learn your workflows, and get familiar with your brand and culture.

4. Cost Structure

MaaS is usually offered through a monthly retainer or subscription. This model is more predictable and often bundles services like strategy, design, automation, and reporting under one cost. Staff augmentation is usually billed hourly or by contract. Costs can vary depending on the skills required and the length of the engagement. This table explores the differences between MaaS and Marketing Staff Augmentation.

5. Flexibility vs. Control

MaaS offers flexibility by giving you access to a full team without the need to manage individuals. It’s ideal for companies that want to stay lean while still driving strong marketing results. Staff augmentation provides more control. You select the talent, manage their work directly, and integrate them closely into your existing team.

Making the Most of MDF Funds: Choosing Between MaaS and Staff Augmentation

For firms leveraging Marketing Development Funds (MDF), MaaS is typically the better choice. Here's why:

Why MaaS Is a Better Fit for MDF-Funded Activities

1. Turnkey Campaigns That Align with Vendor Expectations: Vendors often have strict MDF guidelines around branding, messaging, and campaign outcomes. MaaS providers are used to working within those frameworks and can deliver fully scoped campaigns that check all the boxes, and fast!
2. Easier to Package and Get Approved: MDF proposals often need to include detailed plans, timelines, and projected outcomes. MaaS agencies can provide polished, vendor-ready proposals that make the approval process smoother and more successful.
3. Faster Execution Within Time-Limited Funding Windows: MDF dollars are usually “use-it-or-lose-it” with short expiration timelines. Marketing as a Service teams are built for quick turnaround and can launch campaigns rapidly, which is more challenging to do when onboarding and managing individual contractors.
4. Clear ROI and Reporting: Vendors expect performance metrics to justify the Marketing Development Funds. MaaS providers typically include analytics and reporting as part of the package, making it easy to show value and support future funding requests.
5. Less Administrative Burden: Coordinating multiple freelancers or contractors under a staff augmentation model can create more internal overhead. Marketing as a Service centralizes the effort, freeing up your team to focus on high-value work and stakeholder management.

When Staff Augmentation Might Work Instead 

If your MDF spend is already earmarked for a highly specific campaign — and you just need an extra designer, copywriter, or digital ads specialist to execute it — staff augmentation can still be viable. But you’ll need the internal bandwidth to manage the process, reporting, and compliance.

Bottom Line for Maximizing your MDF

Marketing as a service is usually the smarter, more efficient option for MDF-funded initiatives because it aligns well with how those funds are structured, managed, and evaluated. It minimizes risk, speeds up execution, and helps ensure that MDF dollars deliver measurable impact. Read more about ways to maximize your MDF.

In Conclusion

Both Marketing as a Service and Staff Augmentation offer valuable ways to support your marketing team, but they work best in different scenarios. If you need a plug-and-play solution that delivers strategy and execution, MaaS might be the better fit. If you're already running strong campaigns and just need to scale your team temporarily, Staff Augmentation could be the way to go. The right choice depends on how much control you want, how quickly you need results, and what kind of support you're looking for.

Reach out to GamePlan Marketing today to explore our fractional marketing options to get all the marketing firepower you need. We’re here to help you grow your business by lending a hand (or five) to take your marketing strategy from the page to the people.