Successful Leadership Doesn’t Require a Full-time Job

A recurring problem in the fast-paced industries of tech and hospitality is when a business knows it needs a high-level, strategic approach to marketing, but it doesn’t have the funding to hire a full-time head of marketing. As a result, accountability is placed on a junior marketing staff member, the head of sales, or another executive who lacks the necessary time or experience to give marketing the attention it requires.

Consequently, marketing becomes disoriented. Brand communications lack coherence and strategic direction. Things take an eternity to be delivered and authorized. In the meantime, the content becomes stale and the few leads that do come in are mostly junk.

Building brand awareness and trust, producing sales leads, and promoting business expansion are all made possible by marketing. There is a limit to how long a company can operate on autopilot before its sales start to lag behind its competitors and its market positioning becomes unstable.

The Solution: A Fractional Head of Marketing 

Hiring a fractional head of marketing is becoming a more and more popular choice for businesses. Perhaps it’s a franchise hotel with little marketing requirements, a start-up in the hospitality tech space funded entirely by Bootstraps, or a travel agency in need of short-term assistance with creating a marketing strategy.

An executive who manages a company’s marketing department part-time or temporarily is known as a fractional head of marketing, sometimes known as a fractional chief marketing officer or vice president of marketing. For a small fraction of the expense of a full-time CMO, the company gains access to senior-level marketers’ knowledge and expertise.

Of course, fractional hiring is nothing new. For many years, companies have outsourced everything when there isn’t enough work to warrant a full-time staff, from tech support to human resources. Companies often contract with agencies and freelancers to handle website administration, social media, content generation, and public relations.

Executive-level outsourcing, including that of fractional chief financial officers, chief marketing officers, and even fractional chief executive officers, is new. Technology advancements, the gig economy, and the move toward remote and hybrid work have all contributed to this trend. Retiring from full-time jobs, successful CEOs are working on their own and consulting for several brands. Companies can now acquire elite talent that they otherwise wouldn’t be able to afford or recruit.

The hospitality industry is particularly affected by the trend of fractional hiring.

Fractional VP of Marketing Services

A fractional CMO’s services will change according to the demands of the business, the contractor’s availability, and the scope of the commitment. The person may receive a retainer, hourly, or daily payment.

Roles can be divided into two main areas:

1. A Short-Term Consultative Role

Occasionally, a company requires short-term assistance to address a particular issue. In this case, someone might be brought in for a defined period, like a few months.

Short-term fractional service examples are as follows:

• Auditing the positioning and marketing initiatives of the business
• Creating a plan for strategic marketing
• Supervising unique initiatives like content strategy, rebranding, or website makeovers
• Covering until the company is prepared to hire a full-time CMO
• Assisting a lower-level worker to take over the leadership role
• Helping to hire and train a vice president of marketing, among other roles

2. A Long-Term Leadership Role

Many companies require more than a temporary solution. A fractional CMO could be hired in this situation for a year or perhaps permanently, on a part-time basis. The person will be more involved and a vital member of the team than in a typical consulting function.

Among the longer-term fractional service examples are:

• Supervising the implementation of the marketing strategy
• Giving the marketing team support and direction
• Nurturing and generating leads to drive growth
• Matching company objectives with marketing initiatives and content
• Using resources and techniques to boost productivity (including making good use of AI)
• Hiring marketing staff and contractors
• Monitoring performance and sending the leadership team progress reports

Having held several full-time and part-time vice president of marketing jobs, say with certainty that most companies eventually require a full-time head of marketing, although smaller and transitioning companies may not always be able to afford one. When this happens, a fractional CMO can assist in building the brand to the point where a permanent, full-time head of marketing is needed.

Benefits of a Fractional VP of Marketing

The following are a few benefits of having a fractional head of marketing:

• Expert insights. An experienced executive can get started right away, offering knowledgeable direction and candid feedback to help the company save time and prevent expensive errors.
• Cost efficiency. For a fraction of the expense of a full-time CMO, the company gains access to the expertise and understanding of a seasoned marketing professional.
• Adaptability. The organization can engage with the contractor on a month-to-month basis for as little as a few hours per week, scaling up or down as its needs change, rather than committing to a full-time position.
• Leadership. The marketing staff is given the direction, encouragement, and mentoring it requires to succeed.
• Concentrate. Fractional VPs avoid wasting time in drawn-out meetings or being entangled in office politics. They commit all of their time to finishing the task.
• Accountability. With marketing in competent hands, the executive team may concentrate on their respective divisions.

What to Look for in a Fractional CMO

Not every marketing professional looking for part-time work will be a good fit. These are some of the most important characteristics for travel and hospitality tech startups to consider.

• Leadership abilities. a highly accomplished strategic thinker who motivates the marketing team to reach its full potential and inspires colleagues with confidence.
• diversity of skills. extensive background in technology, hospitality, marketing, and, as a bonus, sales.
• A gatekeeper for a brand. a creative thinker with outstanding communication abilities, a keen eye for detail, and a results-oriented mindset.
• Effectiveness. A person with great organizational skills and productivity who can complete a lot of work quickly.
• Drive to produce results. Someone with the ability to swiftly reorganize the marketing division and significantly boost output.

Companies no longer have an excuse for letting marketing go adrift with the increasing availability of fractional marketing experts. When the proper person is employed, they can accomplish their marketing goals without sacrificing quality or going over budget.