What does a fractional team do?
Right, so. A fractional marketing team gives your business access to experienced marketing expertise, without the cost of employing a full-time senior marketing department.
It’s similar to outsourced marketing, but still very different.
Fractional can be a smart option when you need strategic direction, but don’t need, or aren’t ready for, a permanent senior marketing hire.
But what does a fractional marketing team actually do, and how does it differ from outsourced marketing?
What does a fractional marketing team actually do, though?
A fractional marketing team usually provides experienced marketing leadership for a set amount of time.
That might mean helping shape your marketing strategy, building a plan, prioritising activity, and providing direction to your existing team. Depending on the setup, they may also get involved in campaign management, content, SEO, paid media, and analytics.
Psst… we do all that, too.
They can also help coordinate your wider marketing activity, making sure everyone knows what needs to happen and why.
The exact role depends on what your business needs, honestly. The key benefit is having someone experienced enough to look at the bigger picture, make informed decisions, and give your marketing a clearer direction, without taking on a permanent senior role.
Who uses fractional marketing support?
Another great Fractional support can work particularly well for growing businesses that need experienced marketing leadership, but aren’t ready to build a full internal department.
It can be useful for start-ups finding their feet, SMEs going through a growth spurt, or businesses between marketing hires.
It can also make sense when you already have a marketing team but, you need more senior expertise to guide them.
In other words, you don’t necessarily need more people. Sometimes you need someone who knows what the people you already have should be doing.
What are the benefits?
The biggest benefit is access to senior expertise without the commitment of a permanent hire.
You get strategic thinking from someone who can help identify priorities, challenge assumptions and keep your marketing focused on the bigger commercial picture.
There’s also flexibility. Your business can access the level of support it needs without building a permanent role around a requirement that may change.
And because you’re not taking on another full-time salary and all the associated overheads, fractional support can be a cost-efficient way to bring senior expertise into the business.
Of course, good fractional marketing support should also help your team move faster and make better decisions, rather than simply adding another voice to the room.
Fractional marketing team vs outsourced marketing.
The two approaches are closely related, but they aren’t quite the same.
Fractional marketing generally gives you part-time senior expertise, often centred around leadership and strategy.
Outsourced marketing can go further, giving you a whole team of experienced marketers and specialists who can take ownership of your wider marketing function, from strategy through to delivery and optimisation.
Yep, that’s us. Want to learn more?
Which do you need?
If you mainly need senior marketing leadership, fractional support could be the right fit.
If you need a team to actually own and deliver your marketing, outsourced marketing may give you more of the capability you’re looking for.
Either way, the goal should be the same: better marketing, clearer direction and progress towards your commercial goals.
If you need more than advice and want experienced marketers taking ownership of your marketing function, let’s talk about outsourced marketing.