The business world has become more challenging and difficult to scale over the years. The ones who come out on top are businesses with a competitive advantage over others. One of the best ways to have that edge is through effective marketing.
However, the demands of marketing are ever-changing. This has led to the development of a structural model that helps both struggling and established businesses handle their marketing challenges. This model is called fractional marketing and, in this article, we will discuss what it is all about and how it works for businesses.
What is Fractional Marketing?
If you are familiar with marketing, you may have heard about fractional marketing. If not, this section will help you understand the definition of fractional marketing and all that it entails.
To answer the question, “what is fractional marketing?” Let us first look through the traditional model of marketing for businesses. The conventional way to go about this is to set up a marketing department in your company to handle all of your marketing activities.
However, if your company is just starting up and needs to manage expenses, the traditional model may be too expensive to maintain. In a situation like this, a fractional marketing model could be the solution.
Fractional marketing is a model that allows businesses to have access to experienced marketing professionals when needed on a part-time or contractual basis. These marketing experts can help businesses with various marketing needs from strategy development to content creation and brand promotion. They provide specialised marketing services to your business without the commitment that comes with full-time employment.
Key Features of Fractional Marketing
Here are some essential features that make fractional marketing a working model.
Part-Time Engagement
One thing that makes fractional marketing beneficial is the type of engagement you might be looking for. Unlike a traditional marketing department, you can work on a short-term or part-time contract with outsourced marketing professionals.
You only work with these fractional marketing professionals for the period they are needed for and they are paid for that amount of work. This reduces overhead costs that usually come with full-time employment. The majority of fractional marketing experts work remotely, also reducing the overall costs of running an office.
Access to Specialised Services
Another feature of fractional marketing is that it provides access to highly trained and experienced professionals. Fractional marketers are usually experienced when it comes to handling marketing matters as they have been in the business for many years. They also work on various projects covering diverse industries, which exposes them to a diverse scope of marketing tactics and strategies. Hence, fractional marketing professionals are well-equipped to handle even the most difficult marketing tasks.
Customised Services
Fractional marketing offers business owners the opportunity to customise or personalise their marketing activities. This means that you can get a wide range of marketing support without the need to hire an entire department for just a single need. For example, if your company only needs executive or leadership support, you can get a fractional chief marketing officer to help. In essence, you can hire fractional marketing professionals based on the specialised help you need.
Faster Results
Another great feature that makes fractional marketing beneficial to many businesses is the short time it takes for implementation and impact. Most fractional marketing specialists have what it takes to start a project as soon as an agreement is made. Hence, you do not have to waste time on training or onboarding as you would if you were hiring an employee. This helps to get results faster and make progress with your project in record time.
How Does Fractional Marketing Work?
If you are wondering how the fractional marketing model works to enhance and grow a business, this section gives a detailed explanation to help you understand the process of fractional marketing. Let us begin with a case study of a beauty product company, AX. This company just launched a new range of beauty products and is looking to sell a total of 5,000 products in the first month after launch.
After developing a budget and comparing costs between various marketing approaches, the owner of AX decided it was best to use a fractional marketing model to market the new products. Here are the steps that were outlined to achieve this objective.
- Step one—Identify the Need:
The first step for a business owner looking to work with fractional marketers is to identify their marketing needs or the gap between where the business is and where they desire to be.
In this case, AX has a goal to sell at least 5,000 products in the first month following their latest product launch. This should always be at the forefront of every plan or strategy to be implemented.
- Step Two—Decide on Fractional Marketing Support:
Once you identify your business needs and have decided to get support from fractional marketing experts, the next step is to choose which professional to work with. Your company may already have a marketing team and you just need a bit of support with direction, leadership or execution. In this case, a fractional chief marketing officer (CMO) may be the best choice.
AX, for example, may need support from a fractional marketing consultant who will help to assess your business’s goal and determine an effective strategy to achieve it. Other fractional marketing specialists that can come into picture are fractional content marketers, fractional digital marketers, or fractional marketing directors.
- Step Three—Determine a Working Strategy:
Once you have your fractional marketing team in place, either made up of a fractional chief marketing officer or other professionals, the next step is to work with this team to determine the best marketing tactics to achieve your business goal.
The team, led by a fractional CMO or marketing director, will create a plan that helps with brand positioning, product launching, content creation, promotion, customer engagement, lead generation, search engine optimisation, and other marketing approaches to put your business ahead.
- Step Four—Implementation:
Fractional marketing professionals differ from freelancers or consultants in that they are actively involved in the implementation stage of the marketing strategy developed. Even as an external employee, they work hand-in-hand with other teams in the company and even collaborate with external stakeholders to achieve your business objectives.
- Step Five—Monitoring:
After implementing the strategies planned with your fractional marketing experts, the next stage is to monitor and analyse results using data analytic tools. This helps you measure the success of your marketing strategies and make adjustments for better optimisation.
Challenges of Fractional Marketing
While fractional marketing is known to have great benefits for businesses, it is not without complications. Understanding the common challenges that come with getting fractional marketing support can help a business owner plan accordingly and take measures to fully maximise the benefits from this fractional marketing model.
Here are some potential challenges with fractional marketing support:
- Communication Gap:
Effective communication is one of the common problems that business owners have with fractional marketing specialists. Most fractional marketers work remotely, and the best way to deal with this is to establish a structure and channel that allows for clear and regular communication.
- Brand Consistency:
Brand consistency is a vital aspect of marketing, especially when engaging with outsiders or potential customers. A consistency problem can come up when shuffling between your in-house marketing team and an external fractional marketing specialist. You should take care of this by bridging the gap between your existing team and the professionals you are hiring from outside with a proper onboarding process. Ensure that there are open channels for communication and feedback.
- Timing:
Another form of inconsistency in fractional marketing that could pose a challenge to your business is a time mismatch. Fractional marketers work part-time and with various clients in the same period, this may limit their availability when you need them. To deal with this, you have to be clear on the best working hours and schedule meetings ahead.
- Integration:
As fractional marketing specialists are seen as an external part of your business or marketing team, there could be a challenge in integrating with your business and its values. Make sure your fractional marketing team has regular discussions and check-ins to ensure that your goals and milestones are aligned at all times.
- Finding the Best Fit:
Finding the best fractional marketing expert to meet your company’s marketing demands is an issue that business owners may face with the fractional marketing model. While there are several fractional marketing experts available, finding the one that has the right industry knowledge, experience, and work style to match your business’s needs can be a challenge. Hence, you have to be clear with your vetting process and consider all the factors before committing.
How to Choose the Right Fractional Marketing Specialist for Your Business
Once you understand how essential fractional marketing can be to the success of your business, the next thing you have to consider is how to find one that suits your preferences. You can get recommendations from other companies who have had fractional marketing support in the past. You can also look through online freelance platforms or check out marketing support agencies.
Here are some factors to consider when choosing the right fractional marketer for your business.
- Cultural Fit: It is important that your choice of marketing professional is one that aligns with your company’s mission and goals. This aids the integration of the fractional marketing specialist into your existing marketing team.
- Budget: Another thing you should consider is your budget. Ensure that you get the best service at a cost that does not affect your business’s daily operations.
- Skills: The fractional marketing model can only work for your business when the fractional marketing expert in question has the required skills to help achieve a business’s marketing goals. Carefully vet that your potential fractional marketer has the right skills and experience to back it up.
Bottom Line: Fractional Marketing as an Effective Marketing Model
Fractional marketing is a smart, cost-saving, and effective marketing model that helps businesses get expert marketing solutions without the burden of full-time employment. The features of fractional marketing include timely access to specialised services, quick implementation, and customisable services.
While fractional marketing has several benefits for businesses, it does not come without its challenges. However, finding a fractional marketing specialist that aligns with your business goals and values can help to make it easier to cross the hurdles. On your search for marketing management solutions, ensure that you do not ignore essential factors like your budget and business objectives as this will help you make the right choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a fractional marketing director?
A fractional marketing director helps a business in executing marketing tasks with high-level expertise. They move from assessing business needs to providing expert insight that can cause significant growth.
What is a fractional marketing manager?
A fractional marketing manager works in the marketing department of a business to develop and plan marketing strategies and oversee its implementation. The engagement of this manager is typically not a full-time commitment, but can be customised based on your preferred hours.
What is a fractional chief marketing officer?
A fractional CMO works with a marketing team on a contractual or part-time basis to provide executive-level leadership or direction on the execution of a project.
What is fractional content marketing?
Fractional content marketing is a cost-effective and flexible way that business owners take charge of their content creation and marketing needs by hiring professionals to develop and carry out content strategies for business promotion and growth.