Fractional content marketers for lifestyle brands in 2024

There has been a steady rise of fractional hiring. Fractional is, in this usage, a fancy new term for part-time. These workers, often hired at the C-level in small businesses, bridge the space between consultants and full-time employment.

A fractional Head of Content’s job description is to lead the entirity of brand content across channels. This may includ web/ecommerce, automation/email, and social/PR.

A fractional Content Marketing Manager’s job description may be more limited to certain brand marketing function’s.

While titles and specific responsibilities vary, fractional content marketers can lead marketing efforts as diverse as: 

• Blog strategy

• White papers

• Case studies and customer stories

• Influencers campaign briefs

• Social media strategy and captions

• Catalog writing

• Copywriting

• Integrated campaign management

• Brand copy like annual reports 

They can also be responsible for managing teams, collaborating with other external agency partners, and bringing on freelance talent.

Agencies vs freelance content marketers

There are plenty of pros and cons to consider with outsourcing your content marketing. Often, agencies feel like a safer choice because they come with airtight contracts and entire teams devoted to generating content from start to finish. One danger in hiring an agency is that you’re overpaying because you don’t actually need to outsource every single thing. If you have a talented designer or marketing analytics expert already, you don’t need to pay for those services.

On the other hand, freelancer content marketers may only tell your in-house team what to do, or may only execute certain functions themselves, while leaving you with a to-do list for the rest.

It’s important to assess your in-house talent to help figure out exactly what needs outsourcing.
Another thing to note is that just because a marketer’s name is on their business, doesn’t necessarily mean they’re a solo operator. They may well be coming in with their own team of sub-contractors or a list of freelancers they routinely work with to save you time and ensure you have all the talent you need, without overpaying. And smart fractional content marketers have their own contacts, payment systems, and processes in place. So make sure you ask about those details during your interview process.

What do look for in a fractional content leader

Experienced HR leaders will always tell you it’s better to hire slow and fire fast. Of course, slow hiring is meant to help prevent the ugly business of firing altogether. Keep an eye out for these qualities and skills when considering a fractional content marketer:

Project management experience

Can they bring a project to life? Can they get the buy-in of reluctant stakeholders?

Account management experience

Has this individual worked in fractional or freelance roles before? Client-facing skills are put to the test when a team doesn’t work together 40+ hours a week. A skilled content leader will be adept a setting a vision and relaying updates to executives without any hand-holding.

A strong portfolio

Have they put together content campaigns that fit the channels, format, or audience of your brand?

Team chemistry

This isn’t a position that should be assessed solely by the hiring manager. Designers, developers, and other marketers should be brought into the decision making process.

Why companies choose the fractional route for content marketing

Fractional content marketers come with a host of benefits including:

Flexibility

The reality of business in 2024 means that companies need flexibility to grow and contract when the market conditions change. Rather than locking in full headcount, a part time W-2 or 1099 content marketer gives them flexibility to get more work done without fear of commitment.

Expertise

Many experienced content leaders are hesitant to take full time in house roles where they can feel constrained by corporate life. And small companies may not be able to afford their level of expertise at the rate a full-timer would demand.

A simpler alternative to agencies

Companies spend thousands of dollars every month to outsource specialized marketing work, without batting an eye. Yet often agencies turn out to be a disappointment. High turnover, unclear scope, and late deliverables can all make agencies less than great working partners. A fractional content marketer, on the other hand, gives you one point of contact. One person to take accountability. And a much simpler management structure.

Common sense

Raise your hand if you know think every single one of your full time employees is doing creative, value-added work every minute they’re in the office. Yeah, I didn’t think so. Why pay a full time salary when you can get a good chunk of the same work done for less?

So why doesn’t every lifestyle brand already have a fractional head of content?

Like everything, fractional hires have drawbacks. For employers, the biggest drawback is not having access to 100% of your hire’s time. As you scale you may decide that a part time head of content isn’t enough. Or, if you’re used to running a lot of last minute projects, you might get frustrated with a fractional hire’s inability to drop everything and respond at your beck and call when they’re dealing with other clients’ issues.

For the content leader, the biggest drawback is the loss of security and benefits that come with a full time in-house marketing role. That means many content marketers would prefer to stay in corporate roles and make less.

In the foreseeable future, more and more companies, and professionals, will the benefits outweigh the negatives with fractional content leaders.