7 Benefits of Customer Acquisition With Fractional CMOs

Acquiring new customers is no easy feat, especially for startups that are just getting their feet wet. One way to ease yourself into the process is to enlist the guidance and expertise of a fractional chief marketing officer (FCMO).

Fractional CMOs for startups are essential people to have on your side. Equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge in all things marketing, they are the best people to help bring in a steady stream of new customers.

This article explores the benefits of customer acquisition with fractional CMOs.

But before we get to these benefits, here’s Jason with more insights into FCMOs for startups.

What Is a Fractional CMO?

A fractional CMO is a part-time marketing professional who helps create and execute marketing strategies for a company. These experts have years of experience in everything on the marketing spectrum, including but not limited to:

• Customer acquisition
• Brand management
• Strategic marketing direction
• Market research
• Competitor analysis
• Data gathering
• ADA compliance for marketing campaigns

What Are the Benefits of a Fractional CMO?

Fractional CMOs provide guidance and expert advice to help fulfill a company’s marketing goals. They also provide a clear marketing direction and strategic guidance that leads to sustainable growth.

Unlike a full-time CMO, fractional CMOs work on an hourly contractor basis (aka a fraction of the time) so businesses only pay for the specific hours of expertise they need (a fraction of the cost) for all of their intelligence.

7 Benefits of Customer Acquisition With Fractional CMOs

A fractional CMO for your growing company is exactly what you need to achieve the results you want. Here are seven signs it’s time to hire a fractional CMO — aka your marketing superhero.

1. Marketing Expertise

Customer acquisition takes time and planning. One of the key benefits of customer acquisition with fractional CMOs is having full access to high-quality marketing expertise, including growth marketing for customer acquisition.

Fractional CMOs are true marketing professionals with years of experience. They understand the ins and outs of the field and use their wide skill set to help businesses gain new customers and exceed the ROI of their dreams.

How much time do you spend planning? Experts recommend setting aside 25% of your time to plan — what would you do if you got that time back? Your FCMO takes that job, planning and overseeing your marketing for you. 

You don’t have to worry about going in without a plan. From market research to developing tailored marketing plans, the FCMO is there to provide a clear marketing roadmap for your company and put plans in motion.

2. Increased Flexibility and Adaptability

Customer needs and preferences change daily, which requires companies to stay flexible. FCMOs offer solutions to help companies be adaptable and deal with constantly fluctuating market conditions.

By staying on top of emerging trends and market shifts, FCMOs allocate resources accordingly to accommodate these and stay competitive. They also help organizations pivot and refine marketing plans based on data gathered from market research and analysis.

After all, companies that respond well to changes and emerging trends are more likely to gain new customers (and gain/keep their trust).

3. Cost-Effectiveness

Customer acquisition on its own can be a costly process. Factoring in other marketing costs puts a big financial burden on growing companies. Fortunately, fractional CMOs provide high value at low costs without the commitment of hiring full-time. 

These cost savings allow teams to invest in more important aspects, such as customer acquisition or product development. It leaves room and flexibility for companies to adjust their resources accordingly. 

An FCMO also redirects finances to higher-performing channels while also cutting down on underperforming ones. This ensures that every dollar is spent meaningfully and reduces wastage.

4. Network Access

For growing companies, external resources are sometimes difficult to come by. With an FCMO’s help, new businesses can gain access to a wide network of resources that give them additional support in their customer acquisition efforts.

These resources include customer acquisition tools, specialized software, and industry contacts who can help provide additional input and guidance to your outreach campaigns. This network of resources helps growing companies to expand their reach and connect with customers from different demographics.

5. Brand Building

One of the biggest challenges that startups face when acquiring new customers is not finding what sets them apart from their competitors. This is where the expertise of a fractional CMO comes in handy.

Fractional CMOs are branding specialists who help with branding and developing an identity and story. They achieve this by determining a startup’s unique selling proposition and communicating this to their audiences via multiple channels.

In addition to this, FCMOs also help craft your company’s mission and vision statements. This gives customers a clearer understanding of why you’re doing what you’re doing, what you’re offering them, and how you can positively impact their lives.

6. Data-Driven Decision-Making

Customer acquisition isn’t just about casting a large net and seeing what you catch. It’s an extensive process that requires research and data-driven decision-making: This is where a fractional CMO excels.

One of the key benefits of customer acquisition with fractional CMOs is eliminating guesswork and biases and executing campaigns based on accurate, factual data. 

An example is through audience segmentation, a data-centric approach that categorizes audiences based on different demographics. With this information at their disposal, acquisition teams get to know more about their target market and create personalized marketing campaigns.

7. Analyzing Customer Metrics

Customer acquisition doesn’t end with grabbing attention; it’s an ongoing process that ensures customers remain loyal in the long run. 

An FCMO achieves this by looking at relevant customer acquisition metrics. These metrics give important insights into how successful your customer acquisition efforts are and what can be improved in the future. 

A few relevant metrics to look at include:

• Click-through rate: Number of people who clicked on your ad relative to the total number who have seen it.

• Cost per acquisition: Total cost of acquiring a new customer

• Return on investment: How much you make relative to the amount you spend.

• Return on ad spend: Revenue generated from paid ads relative to the amount spent on ads.

• Conversion rate: Percentage of users who fulfilled a desired call to action

• Churn rate: Percentage of customers lost

• Lifetime value: Average amount spent by a customer throughout their entire time with the company.

What Are the Best Customer Acquisition Strategies?

The best customer acquisition strategies combine target audience research with multi-channel, personalized strategies. Identifying your ideal customer profile through market research is crucial — focusing on the right demographics means marketing dollars are spent wisely.

Here are six customer acquisition strategies to review:

• Content marketing is a powerful tool for building trust with educational blogs, videos, and social media (PS: search engine optimization (SEO) helps you attract organic traffic.)
• Paid advertising, such as Google Ads and social media ads, can quickly reach potential customers.
• Retargeting ads help bring back those who showed interest but didn’t convert (make a purchase/sign up for a service/share their email/etc.)
• Referral programs rely on existing customers to bring in new ones by incentivizing them with discounts or rewards. 
• Personalization and automation also play a big role; customer data helps marketers write unique messages (and send them at the right time).
• Customer service, including responsive support and easy onboarding, can lead to positive word-of-mouth and higher customer retention — another customer acquisition must-have.

Talk Customer Acquisition With Our Fractional CMOs

A fractional CMO’s guidance, professional experience, and strong understanding of various aspects of marketing are instrumental in acquiring customers, especially in a tight market.

Digital Authority Partners puts the benefits of customer acquisition with fractional CMOs at your fingertips. We provide all the resources needed for you to find the best fractional CMO for your organization.

Our FCMOs provide fresh perspectives and marketing tactics that make a notable difference in customer growth and profitability for your new business.

Bring in the experts who bring in the clients: Contact us today to get started!