Agency vs Fractional: What They Mean and How to Choose
What's the difference between Fractional- and Agency work
Over the last few years, the “fractional” role has taken hold in sales, marketing, and several other functions (HR, finance, etc). This term, however, has created a ton of confusion about the actual scope of work, decision-making power/abilities, and the type of commitment required to answer the question, “What does done look like?”
How Nomad defines these terms:
An agency relationship requires a partnership with a leader, either in the C-suite or overseeing sales and marketing. Generally speaking, agencies should be largely focused on execution (while still able to provide guidance). In short, an agency is there to amplify marketing efforts, securing media placements on agreed-upon topics, creating social media posts that align with company initiatives, generating event traffic, and more.
A fractional engagement gives the firm more autonomy. It’s akin to bringing the firm in to serve as an employee, coming up with more strategy, ideation, concepts, and more. A fractional engagement means deeper engagement with leadership and decision-makers, but also the ability to move quickly and adjust more rapidly.
The simple question (how most companies think about agency vs fractional):
Is there a marketing leader?
The easiest way to think about agency vs fractional is to ask, “Is there someone internally dedicated to marketing?” If a company is creating the marketing function from scratch or replacing a marketing leader, then fractional approaches will likely be the most effective.
If a company has a marketing leader, the agency model is typically the right approach, with the agency following an agreed-upon scope of work aligned with the marketing leader’s vision.
An aside: There is one place where this question falls apart, and that’s in the case where a company has a dedicated marketing person who’s junior in their career. In this case, a fractional engagement can include “on-the-job training” and sharing best practices to deepen the junior person’s capabilities.
A better question:
The real question you should consider when selecting an agency or fractional approach is which matters more: the output or the outcome.
In an agency engagement, the output is what’s measured. Did we deliver the agreed-upon number of deliverables? Did we meet (or exceed) the vision and requirements the marketing leader asked us to meet?
In a fractional engagement, however, it’s the outcomes we measure. Did we bring in the right number of leads? Did we hit the expected revenue and return on investment we signed up for?
As an external resource, a fractional approach means greater responsibility, which can be achieved only when the team has the flexibility to shift gears, change tactics, launch new initiatives, and respond to market dynamics.
Is Nomad fractional or an agency?
Yes.
In reality, we’ve served in both capacities and been highly successful for our clients. Our approach is to work with a small group of clients and exceed their expectations, regardless of whether we’re tracking outcomes or outputs.
