What Is a Fractional Marketing Manager?
If you’ve come across the term fractional marketing manager and thought, “That sounds interesting… but what does it actually mean?” you’re not alone.
It’s one of those phrases that gets used a lot, often without much explanation. And yet, for many growing businesses, it turns out to be exactly what they’ve been missing.
So, let’s have a proper conversation about it.
What does “fractional” actually mean?
In simple terms, fractional means part-time, ongoing and embedded.
A fractional marketing manager works with your business for an agreed number of hours each month. They’re not a one-off consultant, and they’re not a full-time employee either. They sit somewhere in between, taking responsibility for marketing activity, without the overheads or commitment of a permanent hire.
You’ll also hear this model referred to as an outsourced marketing manager. In practice, the two terms describe the same thing: senior marketing support, delivered on a retained basis, acting as an extension of your business.
How is a fractional (or outsourced) marketing manager different from a consultant?
This is where the distinction really matters.
A consultant will typically analyse, advise and recommend. You’ll often be left with a plan, a strategy document or a set of actions and then it’s over to you to make it happen.
An outsourced or fractional marketing manager doesn’t work like that.
Yes, strategy and planning are part of the role. But the emphasis is firmly on delivery.
That means websites get updated, content gets written, campaigns get launched, suppliers get managed and marketing keeps moving week after week. We don’t hand over a plan and disappear, we stay, implement and adapt.
Why businesses start looking for a fractional marketing manager
Most businesses arrive at this point in a similar way.
Marketing has grown beyond ad-hoc tasks, but it’s still not quite enough to justify a full-time hire. Different suppliers may be involved, but no one really owns the bigger picture. Things get done… just not always consistently.
That’s usually when business owners realise they don’t just need more marketing, they need someone to take responsibility for it.
An outsourced marketing manager provides that ownership, without the cost, risk or rigidity of employing someone full time.
What does a fractional marketing manager actually do?
In short: what a marketing manager would normally do inside your business.
Day to day, that might include managing your website, producing content, overseeing SEO, planning and delivering campaigns, managing social media, coordinating PPC, creating marketing materials, or working alongside an in-house team or apprentice.
The exact mix depends on your business and it often evolves over time, but the constant is this: there is one clear point of accountability for marketing.
Many of our clients describe it as having a marketing department, just without the overhead.
If you’d like to see how this works in practice, our case story with iX5 Pest Control shows how a relationship that started with a logo and then a website build evolved into a long-term outsourced marketing manager role
Fractional, outsourced… or one-off support?
While we specialise in working as outsourced marketing managers on a retained basis, we also welcome one-off projects.
Some clients start with a website build, a rebrand or a specific piece of marketing support before moving into a longer-term relationship. Others simply need help with a defined project and nothing more.
There’s no hard sell either way. If a one-off project is the right fit, we’re happy to help and if it naturally evolves into something longer term, that tends to happen organically.
Is this model right for every business?
Not necessarily, and that’s okay.
A fractional or outsourced marketing manager works best for businesses that value continuity, collaboration and long-term thinking. It suits organisations that want marketing handled properly, not rushed or constantly reset.
It’s less suited to businesses looking purely for short-term execution with no strategic oversight.
As with most things, it works best when expectations are clear and the relationship is built on trust.
Why the fractional model works so well long-term
One of the biggest advantages of this approach is continuity.
Over time, an outsourced marketing manager builds a deep understanding of your business, your customers and what actually works for the business. There’s no repeated onboarding, no starting from scratch and no constant handover between suppliers.
Marketing evolves alongside the business. steadily, sensibly and with far less friction.
The Last Word
A fractional marketing manager isn’t about doing less marketing.
It’s about doing it more consistently, more thoughtfully and with clear ownership.
For many growing businesses, it’s the missing link between scattered support and a full in-house team.
If you’re exploring ongoing marketing support or simply want to talk through a one-off project, we’d be happy to help.
You can read more about how we work as outsourced marketing managers here.
Or get in touch for an initial conversation about what might work best for your business. Call us on 01604 654545 or email [email protected]
