Getting the Most Out of Your Fractional Marketing Partnership

So you’re thinking about hiring a fractional marketing partner…great! 

Working with a fractional CMO or fractional marketing team can really take your business to the next level…but only if you set the stage for success. When you hire at the right time, set strategic objectives, work to build trust, communicate clearly, and stay open to new ideas and tools, you can maximize the benefit your fractional marketing partner brings to the table.

Here are our best tips for getting the most out of your fractional marketing partnership.

Choose the Right Timing

To get the most out of your fractional marketing partnership, it’s important to hire your fractional CMO or marketing team at the right time. For example:

• Your business is growing and your marketing staff is overwhelmed, but you aren’t ready to hire more team members
• You’re between marketing staff and need temporary (short or long-term) help 
• You’ve reached a plateau with your marketing and you need fresh ideas and an outside perspective
• You need additional marketing team members to get a new project off the ground
• You want to streamline or automate your processes
• You need help defining a cohesive marketing strategy

These are all great times to bring in some fractional marketing help! 

On the other hand, if you’re going through a major change, such as a technology update (website, CRM, etc), it’s important to hire your fractional marketing partner before the change happens so they can help you navigate that process. You’ll find their expertise to be invaluable during a major change like this.

FREE download: Top 7 Reasons To Outsource Your Digital Marketing ebook

Build Trust

If you want to see the best results possible, you need to be intentional about building trust with your marketing partner from the beginning. Building trust takes time, of course, but it’s crucial that you’re willing to let go of some control over the work you give them to do. 

After all, micro-managing your fractional marketer’s work won’t make your business more efficient or successful. Instead, clearly lay out your expectations and goals for each project, make sure they have everything they need to accomplish those goals, then trust them to do their job.

Read: Doing Better Business With Fractional CMO: A Case Study

Commit to Clear, Prompt Communication

Communication is key in any relationship, and your partnership with your fractional CMO or marketing team is no different. 

With so many details going back and forth between you and your partner, make sure you don’t become the bottleneck in the communication process. Do your best to respond to their requests within a day or two, especially when it comes to reviewing or approving content. Delays in sharing data, approvals, or input will limit their ability to execute your marketing strategy.

It’s also important to:

• Designate a point person—one person on your team who will handle most of the communication with your fractional marketing partner
• Ensure your communication (written, voice, video, etc) is clearly worded and to the point
• Meet regularly to review performance and KPIs (and make those meetings a priority!)
• Practice active listening during discussions
• Share brand messaging guidelines with your entire team so everyone is on the same page

Making effective communication a priority will not only ensure your desires are heard and acted on, it will also help build trust between your in-house team and your fractional marketing team.

Be Willing To Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

One of the biggest benefits of hiring someone outside of your organization to handle your marketing is that they come with an outside perspective. They’ll be able to see new ways of reaching your goals.

A good marketer is someone who asks questions, generates new ideas, and looks for novel ways to create value for your business. 

But to get the most out of these benefits, you have to be open to change. You need to be willing to step outside your comfort zone and take a new approach to get where you want to go.

Read: Fractional Marketing for Small Health Clinics and Hospitals: A Case Study

Be Ready To Adopt New Technology

To be as effective as possible, your fractional marketing team needs a robust platform of tools that enable them to have a strategic impact on your marketing goals. 

The right technology provides you with speed, optimization, measurement, communication, and the ability to scale. If the tech tools you’re currently using can’t support the marketing goals you’ve set, you can’t expect your marketing partner to be able to accomplish them. You’ll need to upgrade to a marketing tech stack that includes a CRM, marketing automation (including email and social media), user-friendly website, sales enablement, and a content management system. (At Wild Fig, we’re big fans of HubSpot!)

Your fractional marketer should be able to help you put together a tech stack that enables increased productivity, data-driven decision-making, and client relationship building. 

Read: 15 Must-Have Tech Resources To Make Your Work Easier

Set Goals and Choose Your KPIs

It’s important to define what success looks like to you and to communicate that to your fractional marketing team. Set clear goals and agree on which KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) to track to determine whether you’ve reached those goals.

Right off the bat, set 30, 60, and 90-day goals to prioritize which tasks to tackle first. Setting goals and choosing KPIs will help ensure your fractional marketing team’s time is focused on the things that will make the most impact for your business.

FREE download: Key Metrics To Track for a Successful Digital Marketing Strategy

Fractional Marketing With Wild Fig: What It Looks Like

When you hire Wild Fig as your fractional marketing partner, we’ll lead you through a five-step process to create and implement a sales and marketing plan tailored to your needs. Here’s what that looks like:

1. Discovery. We’ll learn about your goals, target market, and the top product or service you want to grow.
2. Analysis. We’ll provide a SWOT analysis, marketing benchmark report, website analysis, and a review of your marketing and sales processes.
3. Development. We’ll build a comprehensive sales and marketing plan to help your business move forward.
4. Implementation. We’ll start implementing the deliverables outlined in the sales and marketing plan (bringing in leads, writing monthly content, etc.) and identify KPIs to track.
5. Training. If you choose to hire an internal team member to implement your marketing strategy, we’ll train your new staff member for you, ensuring no disruption to your marketing.

If this sounds like something you’d benefit from, let’s talk! Schedule an exploratory call with me to discuss your needs and see if Wild Fig is a good fit for your business.