We’re back for part three in our series to explore the basics of fractional marketing. In the past couple of weeks, we’ve covered what fractional marketing is and the top 5 benefits of this popular model that high-growth companies are using. How do you know if it’s right for your business? Today we’ll cover the top FOUR questions to ask. Let’s get started!
- Does your marketing team have strategic leadership?
If your organization doesn’t have a strategic marketing plan in place that is tied to your business objectives and sales goals, chances are the marketing execution is tactically driven, which usually ends up in wasted time and money. In addition, you are likely missing strong product-market fit, your messaging may not be resonating with buyers and your holistic brand experience may be off. Another thing to consider is if your sales team tends to make their own marketing materials. If there is inconsistency in your brand identify and messaging, it weakens your brand, creates confusion and could impact the valuation of your company.
A fractional CMO brings senior level experience and works with your team to deeply understand your business, then crafts the optimal integrated marketing plan, recommending the right mix of strategies and supporting tactics to grow your business and support the larger objectives of the business.
- Is your marketing team overwhelmed all the time?
Your marketing team is likely working hard – very hard. But are they too overwhelmed and lack time to focus on things like results tracking, analysis, campaign testing that they can’t get to, simply because there is too much, well, work? Or are deadlines missed due to the volume of requests coming in from all angles and stakeholders? This typically comes from a lack of guidance around prioritizing against growth drivers and lack of alignment against key business initiatives.
A fractional CMO can help create alignment, set priorities and make recommendations for things like MarTech tools that automate certain tasks, streamlining marketing, freeing time for your team to focus on more strategic work and helping to ensure your talent doesn’t burnout.
- Do you have a gap in internal skill set or a special project your team just doesn’t have bandwidth for?
Perhaps you have a new product launch coming but your team is already maxed out or you want to double down on digital marketing but don’t know a backlink from a keyword.
The fractional model is flexible and on-demand, allowing you to bring in a team of specialists when and where needed. You only pay for the services you need, avoiding the overhead of an agency and the costs of bringing on more full-time employees. Most fractional CMOs have complete networks of specialists they carefully pick and choose for projects, providing experienced experts in any given area, all macro-managed by the fractional leader. Fractional teams work as an extension of your in-house team for seamless execution.
- Are you looking to grow your business and realize you need the experience and expertise of a seasoned marketing leader, but can’t afford the high salary and benefits?
A full-time chief marketing officer will cost $250,000 or more in salary, plus benefits and equity. The fractional model provides senior-level experience needed to help your business reach new heights at a discounted rate for only the capacity needed.
You won’t need an extensive budget like you would when hiring full-time staff. Your fractional marketing team can implement your marketing and exceed expectations, without exceeding your budget.
Fractional Marketing is For All Business Sizes and Industries
Do you think your business is too small for fractional marketing? Or too big for fractional marketing? The fractional model can be a fit, regardless of your size or industry.
If you are a large-scale organization that needs to add bandwidth when and where it’s needed, have a project that requires expertise your marketing team doesn’t have in-house, if you require strategic marketing planning, or are looking for a marketing leader to fill a gap as you conduct a search, fractional marketing can be a good fit.
Maintain your in-house team while leveraging an experienced marketing leader and/or team to fill execution gaps or manage projects or people as needed.
If you are a mid-size business looking to grow and need the expertise of specialized marketing talent but cannot yet justify the cost of an enterprise-level, fully staffed organization, a fractional team can serve as your on-demand marketing department, or can complement your existing marketing staff.
Bring in A-level talent when you can’t afford to hire a full-time CMO or if you have gaps within your internal team and cannot execute specialized tactics.
If you are a small business and may not have the time or money but want to do things properly, fractional marketing can help you build a marketing foundation to scale. If you don’t set up your marketing correctly to start with, you could waste a lot of effort and time and get nowhere.
A fractional leader can help ensure you have sustainable growth through the right customer acquisition channels, deep understanding of your buyers and their buying cycle, appropriate traction channels, and MarTech tools.
If you are a business looking to increase valuation, marketing is one of the primary considerations. Strong brand equity increases the value of a company. It serves as the basis for the perception of a company’s reputation, recognition, and loyalty, adding to the intrinsic value of a company and building financial value. If you are looking to gain investment, be acquired, or IPO, being perceived as more valuable will strengthen your position. The greater your brand value, the better the financial return.
Experienced fractional CMOs offer valuation marketing packages for just that reason.
Where to Find Fractional Marketing Services
You want to make sure you work with a strategic marketer who has deep experience as a proven leader, has contributed to the level of growth that your company is working towards, has managed teams and budgets of a similar size as yours and has a deep network of experienced specialists so that the team is tailored to your specific needs to help you get the most out of your marketing investment.
