[Survey] About 40% of SMEs Have a Dedicated Marketing Department, While Resource and Strategy Issues Emerge | Survey on Marketing Systems and Outsourcing Utilization in SMEs

This article presents the findings of a survey on the marketing systems and outsourcing utilization of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan, conducted by PLAN-B, Inc., a provider of the SEO tool "SEARCH WRITE." The survey polled 200 marketing managers at SMEs (companies with 10-299 employees) nationwide. **Survey Results Summary** * **Marketing Structure:** Approximately 40% of SMEs have a dedicated marketing department, while 20.0% have no specific person in charge. About 40% of companies rely on limited resources, such as a single person or combined roles, for marketing tasks. * **Challenges:** The primary challenges identified are "lack of personnel/resources" (42.0%) and "insufficient marketing strategy design" (38.5%). "Lack of specialized knowledge/know-how" (37.0%) is also a significant concern. * **Outsourcing:** 35.5% of companies do not outsource marketing activities. For those that do, outsourcing is predominantly focused on upstream processes like "marketing strategy only" (25.5%) or "comprehensive outsourcing" (13.5%), with less outsourcing for specific execution tasks. * **In-house Limitations:** Companies feel their in-house capabilities are most limited in "data analysis/effect measurement" (37.0%) and "content creation (e.g., SEO articles)" (36.0%). * **Outsourcing Dissatisfaction:** The main complaints about external partners are "low feasibility of proposed strategies and measures" (26.0%) and "lack of understanding of the business/service" (24.5%). * **Efficiency Improvements:** Top methods for improving efficiency include "using marketing tools" (31.0%) and "using generative AI" (22.5%). However, 23.5% of companies report not yet implementing specific efficiency measures. **Survey Background** While the importance of marketing for SMEs continues to rise, persistent issues such as labor shortages and a lack of expertise have been pointed out for years. In recent times, the scope of required expertise has broadened to include areas like SEO, LLMO, advanced data analysis, and AI utilization, necessitating the development of more specialized marketing systems than before. This survey was conducted to clarify how companies are utilizing in-house and outsourced efforts, and to identify the limitations and challenges they face. **Survey Details** * **Survey Name:** Survey on Marketing Systems and Outsourcing Utilization in SMEs 2026 * **Survey Period:** March 27 - March 28, 2025 * **Target Audience:** Marketing managers at SMEs (companies with 10-299 employees) * **Sample Size:** 200 people * **Survey Method:** Internet survey (conducted via Freeasy) * Note: Numbers in graphs may not sum to 100% due to rounding to the second decimal place. **Regarding Citation/Reprint of Survey Results:** When quoting or reprinting survey results or images from this article, please clearly state "PLAN-B, Inc." as the source and include the following link: https://www.plan-b.co.jp/news/marketing_report202603/ **Survey Results** **■ Marketing Structure: Approximately 40% Have "Dedicated Department," While About 20% Lack Specific Personnel** A survey asking 200 marketing managers at SMEs about their marketing structure found that "Dedicated department exists (multiple people)" accounted for 38.0%. Conversely, "No specific person in charge" was 20.0%, indicating differences in the level of marketing system development across companies. Results such as "Person in charge also handles other duties" (24.0%) and "Dedicated person in charge (1 person)" (16.5%) reveal that around 40% of companies handle marketing with limited resources, either with one person or combined roles. **■ Challenges Faced: Over 40% Cite Lack of Personnel, Strategic and Specialized Skill Deficiencies Also High** Regarding "Challenges in the current marketing system (multiple answers possible)," "Lack of personnel/resources" was the top issue at 42.0%, showing that about 40% of companies recognize resource shortages as a challenge. This was followed by "Insufficient marketing strategy design" (38.5%) and "Lack of specialized knowledge/know-how" (37.0%), and "Lack of clarity in prioritizing measures" (20.5%). This indicates that challenges span from strategic planning and specialized knowledge to execution, beyond just resource limitations. **■ Outsourcing Status: Nearly 36% Do Not Outsource; Companies That Do Outsource Focus on Strategy** When asked, "Please select the option that best describes your current marketing operations outsourcing status," "No external outsourcing" was the most common at 35.5%. However, among the 60.5% who do outsource, "Marketing strategy only (e.g., marketing consultants)" was the most frequent response (25.5%), followed by "Comprehensive outsourcing" (13.5%). Companies utilizing outsourcing tend to focus on upstream processes like strategy design or comprehensive outsourcing, with relatively few outsourcing only the execution of measures. **■ Limitations of In-house Work: Over 30% Cite Content Creation and Data Analysis** In response to the question, "Which tasks do you feel are limited by in-house capabilities?", "Data analysis/effect measurement" was the highest at 37.0%. Additionally, "Content creation (e.g., SEO articles)" (36.0%) and "Marketing strategy design" (29.0%) also represented significant portions, demonstrating that burdens are widespread from upstream strategy design to practical execution. **■ Dissatisfaction with Outsourcing Partners: Feasibility and Business Understanding are Key Issues** In response to the question, "Have you ever felt dissatisfied with your outsourcing partner (external partner)?", "The proposed strategies and measures were not feasible for implementation on-site" was the most common at 26.0%, followed closely by "Lack of understanding of the business/service" at 24.5%. These results suggest that while there is a trend towards outsourcing strategy design, challenges related to "low execution feasibility" are also prominent. It appears that issues are arising in the linkage between strategy and execution, as well as in business comprehension. It is considered important for outsourcing partners not only to deliver high-quality output but also to "understand the company's business and on-site operations to translate them into implementable forms." **■ Efficiency Efforts: Tool/AI Utilization Top, But About 20% Have Not Started** Finally, when asked, "What measures are you taking to improve the efficiency of marketing operations? (multiple answers possible)", the top responses were "Utilizing marketing tools" (31.0%) and "Utilizing generative AI" (22.5%), followed by "Clarifying priorities and narrowing down measures" (20.0%). Beyond efficiency through technology like tools and AI, operational efforts such as selecting and prioritizing measures are also seen to some extent. On the other hand, "None in particular" was 23.5%, indicating a difference in the level of efficiency improvement initiatives between companies that are actively working on them and those that are not. **Conclusion** This survey reveals that SMEs face simultaneous challenges of "personnel/resource shortages" and "lack of strategy design/specialized knowledge." Furthermore, even among the 60% of companies that utilize outsourcing, issues such as "unexecutable measures" and "lack of business understanding" are frequently cited, suggesting that challenges are arising in the linkage between strategy and execution, and in business comprehension. Moving forward, for SMEs to establish marketing systems with limited resources, it is considered important to organize the areas handled internally versus those outsourced, and then adopt an approach that does not fragment strategy design, execution, and improvement. Potential options include clarifying the roles to be handled internally and then utilizing external partners for only the necessary areas, or adopting a support system that can provide consistent, end-to-end accompaniment from strategy design to execution support. In particular, when selecting outsourcing partners, it is thought that the ability to provide support that translates into actionable forms on-site, based on a deep understanding of the business, will be a key decision-making factor, rather than just simple task delegation. **** **[Supervisor Details]** PLAN-B, Inc. Business Development Department Product Marketing Manager Kengo Matsumoto Graduated from Kyoto University. Joined PLAN-B, Inc. in 2020. After approximately 5 years of experience in web marketing support, including SEO consulting and online advertising operations, he currently serves as the Product Marketing Manager for the SEO tool "SEARCH WRITE." He has a proven track record of tripling lead acquisition by leveraging his deep knowledge of self-owned tool utilization and SEO. **Regarding SEARCH WRITE's "Strategy Design & Execution Agency Plan (BPaaS)":** SEARCH WRITE's "Strategy Design & Execution Agency Plan (BPaaS)" is a supportive, all-in-one service that covers everything from SEO strategy design to measure execution. It goes beyond simple article production or task outsourcing by organizing SEO roles based on business structure and marketing strategy, and consistently supporting strategy-linked measure execution. Additionally, it builds an operational system with dedicated consultants and utilizes the SEO tool "SEARCH WRITE" and generative AI to achieve both efficiency and quality, realizing sustainable SEO operations. For details and inquiries, please visit: https://searchwrite.jp/plan/bpaas/ **About PLAN-B, Inc.:** PLAN-B, Inc. is a comprehensive web marketing company that provides end-to-end support, from strategy planning to execution. In addition to SEO consulting with over 18 years of support experience, they offer services such as LLMO consulting, advertising and promotion support, and influencer marketing support, providing optimal solutions tailored to customer needs. They also offer marketing support tools like the SEO tool "SEARCH WRITE" and the integrated in-house support tool "Cast Me!" for maximizing SNS ROI, and achieve reproducible know-how through the synergy of SaaS and consulting, supporting customer business growth in a partnership-based approach. **[Company Overview]** Company Name: PLAN-B, Inc. Business Activities: Digital Marketing Business, Marketing DX Business, Social Commerce Support Business Osaka Headquarters: 1-28-3 Shinmachi, Nishi-ku, Osaka, Yotsubashi Grand Square 6F Tokyo Headquarters: 2-5-9 Higashi-Gotanda, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo, CIRCLES with Shimazu-yama 3F Representative: Torimototo Masanori, Representative Director Established: October 22, 2003 HP: https://www.plan-b.co.jp/ **[Operated Media]** * PINTO!: A media for the latest digital marketing information, including SEO, internet advertising, and web improvement. * PLAN-B Channel (YouTube) * PLAN-B Official note