After nearly two decades of digital marketing experience, I have never heard the phrase “I have too much time on my hands, I wonder what I will do today?” We all have a long list of projects, but adding to your marketing team isn’t always an option. So how do you manage growth?
Fractional or outsourced marketing consultants can make THE difference for your brand’s success. You know your company, sometimes you just need another set of hands that bring a different set of experiences to the table.
While in-house expertise is extremely valuable at understanding the nuances of product development and targeted audiences, an outsider’s view with specific expertise can also bring unexpected value. Outsourcing with a consultant or fractional digital marketing director can help your company’s marketing efforts overcome obstacles and reach new heights.
Whether you run a small business, mid-sized company, or large corporation, having access to seasoned marketing professionals (without office politics) can be invaluable. With our insights into demand generation, content marketing, and more, we’ll show you why bringing on a fractional marketing director could give you an edge over competitors.
Table Of Contents:
- Benefits of Outsourcing to a Fractional Digital Marketing Director
- Pros and Cons of Hiring vs Embedding Fractional Executives
- Short-Term vs Long-Term Fractional Solutions
- Cost Savings of Outsourcing Marketing Strategy
- FAQs for a Fractional Digital Marketing Director
- WHO Digital Strategy as part of your Marketing Team
Benefits of Outsourcing to a Fractional Digital Marketing Director
Hiring a fractional digital marketing director can provide numerous benefits for businesses looking to take their marketing strategies to the next level. Fractional directors have experience with diverse projects and can create and implement effective plans that maximize results without taking up too much of your time or budget.
A fractional director’s expertise enables them to assess complex situations quickly and deliver effective solutions tailored to the specific needs of a company. With years of experience in multiple areas, they are able to quickly identify problems and develop solutions tailored specifically for each business’s needs. This allows them to move quickly while still producing high-quality work that meets goals more efficiently than an inexperienced hire would be able to do. They understand how different tactics work together as part of an overall strategy, have developed industry contacts for additional expertise, and can bring resources together to help ensure all efforts are working towards one common goal.
Another benefit is cost savings compared to full-time hires; since you don’t need a fractional director’s services every day or week, you only pay for what you use when you need it most – saving money over traditional salaries and employee benefits packages. Plus, having access to experienced professionals means faster execution times; this helps reduce expenses associated with delays due to lack of knowledge or resources. Depending on your marketing department, internal staff members may not have had expertise in certain areas such as SEO optimization or building attribution plans and traffic projection forecasts.
Fractional directors also bring fresh perspectives into play which often leads to new ideas about how to best approach various tasks. Examples include working directly or indirectly with digital marketing activities such as customer segmentation analysis or content creation processes. These insights can open up new opportunities that could otherwise go unnoticed by those unfamiliar with industry trends and practices outside their own field(s) of expertise.
Assembling the right marketing team is critical. At WHO Digital strategy, we take pride in our work, but find we often need to outsource specific channels as a digital marketing agency. We understand that our clients’ needs can vary. Our longevity and deep relationships across the full spectrum of digital marketing provide valuable resources to our clients. We love what we do, but there’s no shame in admitting that we can’t do it all alone. For example, we know when to outsource to affiliate experts like Adam Riemer. When it comes to affiliate management, we know that Adam is the most experienced and successful leader in this field. His expertise allows us to give our clients the best possible service and achieve their desired results. With our great relationships with Adam and other leaders, we’re able to expand our capabilities and provide top-notch service to our clients when they need it.
Outsourcing to a fractional digital marketing director can be an effective way of getting the expertise you need without committing to full-time hiring. Weighing up the benefits and drawbacks of either embedding or taking on an employee is part of your company’s growth plan.
Pros and Cons of Hiring vs Embedding Fractional Executives
It’s often more cost-effective than hiring a full-time employee, since you only pay for the hours worked. This allows organizations to access top talent on demand, without having to commit to long-term contracts or high salaries.
Embedding a fractional digital marketing director into your organization is also beneficial in some cases. Having them participate as part of the team ensures familiarity with the project and continuity, thus allowing for improved results in the long run. They become an integral part of the organization’s culture and workflow, allowing them to provide valuable insights that may not be available from project specific outside consultants.
Hiring a digital marketing director offers the most continuity but requires additional effort when it comes time for recruiting and search, onboarding, and integration with teams at executives. Embedding someone into your organization can provide stability but might limit creativity if they become too comfortable within existing structures and processes.
Outsourcing can be a more economical option than hiring an in-house employee, particularly when factoring in advantages like healthcare and vacation days. However, there are other costs involved such as finding suitable candidates and training them up on new tools or technologies that need consideration before making any decisions about which approach is best suited for your company.
Incorporating an outsourced professional into your team could offer more freedom in terms of long-term resolutions.
Short-Term vs Long-Term Fractional Solutions
For executive teams, there is a growing trend towards fractional or outsourced solutions for their digital marketing needs. This can be desirable for companies needing to swiftly amplify their personnel and capabilities without recruiting permanent workers.
When considering short-term options such as freelancers or agencies, cost is often the primary factor in choosing these services. You may find that you get what you pay for with these types of arrangements; while they are cheaper than hiring full-time staff, you won’t always have access to seasoned marketing professionals or teams who understand your specific business objectives and goals. Furthermore, with shorter contracts come less loyalty from the provider; if another client comes along with a more attractive project, they may not the same enthusiasm or even switch over even if it means leaving your project unfinished.
Longer term solutions such as fractional marketing leaders offer greater value in terms of expertise and continuity of service, but may require a higher price point compared to short-term providers like freelancers or agencies. Depending on the needs, they can also bring valuable experience in managing office politics within organizations. This can help small businesses navigate complex internal relationships more effectively when launching new initiatives or products into the market place.
Ultimately, whether you choose a short-term solution like freelance marketers or longer-term arrangement like a fractional Digital Marketing Director depends on how much time and resources you have available versus how quickly you need results from your efforts.
If budget constraints require quick action then using freelance marketers might make sense but if you want consistency across multiple projects then investing in an experienced professional could prove invaluable down the line.
Cost Savings of Outsourcing Marketing Strategy
Outsourcing digital marketing services can provide a variety of cost savings for businesses.
The costs associated with recruiting and onboarding a full-time director are eliminated when you outsource to an experienced fractional director. A fractional director will already have the skills and experience necessary to hit the ground running, so there’s no need to spend time or money on training. Additionally, since they work part-time or on contract basis, you don’t have to pay them benefits such as health insurance or vacation days that come with hiring a full-time employee.
Outsourcing can prove more budget-friendly than employing personnel, regardless of the time frame involved. If your business needs help launching a new product or service quickly without investing in additional staff members then outsourcing might be the best option. This way you can get expert advice from someone who has done this type of work before without having to make any long term commitments that would otherwise be required if hiring internally. On the other hand, if your business requires ongoing digital marketing support over an extended period of time then it may be more cost effective in the long run to hire a new team member rather than paying contractors each month.
Finally, consider what kind of expertise is needed and how much control do you want over strategy decisions. Outsourcing offers greater flexibility and allows businesses access to specialized knowledge without making large investments upfront. This can lead to significant cost savings down the line compared with taking on full time employees.
FAQs for a Fractional Digital Marketing Director
What does a Fractional Marketing Director do?
A fractional marketing director is a professional who provides specialized marketing services on an as-needed basis. They develop and implement strategies that help businesses achieve their goals, including increasing brand awareness, generating leads, driving sales growth and improving customer loyalty.
Digital Marketing directors can provide tactical support such as developing campaigns, managing budgets and overseeing analytics to ensure successful execution of the strategy. They are experienced in digital marketing tactics such as SEO/SEM, and content creation. Fractional directors possess the know-how to leverage data analytics for recognizing patterns, assessing progress and making decisions based on insights.
Fractional directors usually have experience working with multiple clients and understand the nuances of each industry they serve. Fractional directors offer their services in a cost-effective manner, allowing companies to acquire temporary help with certain tasks without having to invest long-term resources.
How much should you pay a fractional CMO?
The cost of a fractional team member will vary depending on the intricacy and size of the assignment, as well as their expertise. Generally speaking, you should expect to pay anywhere from $200-400 per hour for an experienced marketing director who can provide strategic guidance and manage campaigns effectively. It is also important to factor in additional costs such as software licenses or other tools needed for successful digital marketing initiatives.
WHO Digital Strategy as part of your marketing team
Outsourcing to a fractional digital marketing director can be an effective solution for businesses of all sizes. We have worked with SMB and startups to national multi-location brands. The benefits include having access to experienced professionals, creating and implementing marketing plans efficiently, and reducing costs over the long-term.
Hire WHO Digital Strategy to develop and execute a comprehensive digital marketing strategy that will help you maximize your return on investment. Let our experienced fractional digital marketing director guide you through the process of creating an effective online project for your business or product launch.
