Let’s face it, the landscape of companies developing SaaS and data solutions for life sciences is crowded, ever-changing, and marked by fierce competition. For example, there are hundreds of SaaS products in the market supporting clinical trials, all of them vying for the same R&D budgets. To gain market share and increase valuation, companies are seeking new ways to maximize valuable resources and streamline operations.
One promising trend is fractional marketing: a strategic approach that lets life science SaaS and data companies leverage top-tier B2B marketing expertise on a part-time basis. This trend is particularly relevant as companies navigate economic headwinds, a challenging funding environment, and the need for industry knowledge to strengthen the marketing function.
The Rise of Fractional Marketing in Life Sciences Tech
Fractional marketing, which is gaining momentum in life sciences technology, is not a new model. This approach involves onboarding seasoned marketing executives and specialized teams part-time, providing startups and high-growth businesses with access to expertise without the financial burden of full-time employees. This is appealing to the life sciences tech, data and analytics landscape where innovation and speed to market are critical.
“Staffing marketing teams solely with full-time employees has become less viable, prompting interest in more flexible staffing models.”
Tighter capital markets have made it difficult for many life sciences SaaS and data companies to secure funding. As a result, staffing marketing teams solely with full-time employees has become less viable, prompting interest in more flexible staffing models. Prolonged (and often unsuccessful) searches for marketers with experience in both life sciences and technology is accelerating this shift. According to a recent article in BioSpace, companies are opting to leave executive positions vacant, spreading responsibilities across existing teams or hiring fractional leaders to manage critical functions like marketing. This lean approach helps companies preserve capital while still driving essential initiatives.
The trend is expanding beyond leadership positions like fractional CMOs. Onboarding fractional teams with life sciences and B2B marketing experience allows commercial teams to place the right talent, in the right seat, at the right time, for the right duration. This approach aligns marketing talent with commercial objectives and helps de-risk marketing from the burden of funding full-time salaries.
Ellen Reilly, CEO of Sware, a startup with a SaaS software validation solution for life sciences companies and software developers, explains the advantages of adopting a lean, fractional marketing team led by a trusted CMO:
“Hiring full-time marketing talent in the past didn’t work out. But partnering with an experienced fractional marketing team has helped Sware increase market impact while creating operational efficiencies. The fractional CMO has served as a member of my staff while a flexible team has created new messaging, improved market presence, and generated leads for sales. Fractional marketing was the right choice for our business at this stage of our growth.”
Implementing Fractional Marketing
For life science tech and data companies considering fractional marketing, understanding the strategic application of this model is critical. Transitioning to fractional marketing involves more than just hiring part-time marketers; it requires a systematic approach to integrate these professionals into the existing commercial organization.
- Define objectives: Clearly outline what you aim to achieve with fractional marketing support, whether creating a cohesive strategy, refining brand messaging, growing pipeline, or expanding market reach.
- Ensure the right fit: Select a fractional team whose skills and experience align with your company’s specific needs. Cultural fit and industry expertise are critical.
- Set clear expectations: Establish well-defined goals and metrics to measure the effectiveness of the fractional team’s contributions.
- Integrate and collaborate: Ensure the fractional leader is an active participant on your leadership team, fostering alignment on business priorities at the executive level.
- Continue to adapt: Responding to competitive threats and internal company dynamics is essential. Fractional leaders must be able to adjust projects and staffing quickly.
- Communicate openly: Regular dialogue between fractional and full-time team members is crucial to ensuring visibility into commercial objectives and ongoing projects.
Life science tech and data companies that embrace fractional marketing must establish clear KPIs in alignment with the overall business objectives. These metrics could include social media engagement and website traffic, the number of qualified leads generated by marketing, and the return on investment from marketing programs.
Benefits of Fractional Marketing for Life Sciences SaaS and Data companies
The adoption of a fractional marketing model offers several advantages for life sciences tech companies:
- Access to expertise: Fractional teams bring specialized marketing knowledge and life sciences experience that may be too costly in a full-time scenario, especially for emerging companies.
- Agility and scale: As companies grow or market needs change, the flexibility of the fractional model allows for easy adjustment of marketing resources to match current needs.
- Strategic focus: Fractional leaders can drive strategic marketing initiatives effectively, ensuring alignment with the company’s long-term goals.
- Speed: Strong fractional marketing teams that truly understand effective B2B marketing and have deep industry experience can be productive right away and shorten time to productivity from months to days.
- Cost efficiency: Achieve significant savings by hiring marketing professionals on a fractional basis, reducing the cost burden of full-time hires.
Case Study
A global leader in clinical trial technology and services made a major acquisition to complement its offerings. The combined enterprise needed to ensure continuity of in-market activities to meet commercial targets while introducing a new brand and integrating two marketing organizations.
By hiring a fractional marketing team, the company:
- Increased ROI by 120% and drove over $150M in referred revenue.
- Aligned the commercial team around common goals and KPIs, resulting in a 65% sales acceptance lead rate.
- Accelerated marketing maturity by transferring knowledge from the fractional professionals to full-time staff.
- Positioned the main product line to reclaim its leading position.
This example underscores the financial and operational benefits of adopting a fractional approach in the life sciences sector.
Future Directions for Fractional Marketing in Life Sciences SaaS and data
As life sciences evolves, so will the ways in which service providers engage with this industry. These trends are broadening interest in fractional marketing:
- Demand for expertise: The increasing sophistication of clinical and commercial solutions will require specialized marketing knowledge, which fractional approaches are poised to address.
- AI and machine learning: Solution providers that use artificial intelligence to generate content, automate marketing programs, and perform advanced analytics will want the flexibility to select marketers with different skills over time.
- Global expansion: Fractional marketing can facilitate international market entry by providing flexible, cost-effective access to local market expertise.
“By selecting a B2B marketing partner that specializes in integrating fractional teams into your organization, growth companies can achieve greater market impact, increased sales, and improved valuation.”
Conclusion
Fractional marketing represents a strategic, flexible and accelerated approach for life sciences tech and data companies to enhance the value of marketing, from improving market presence to driving pipeline. The right B2B marketing partner seamlessly integrates a fractional team with a client, helping growth companies achieve greater market impact, increase sales, and improve valuation. The future of fractional marketing for life sciences SaaS and data companies looks promising, with advancements in technology and a growing pool of professionals working in this model driving adoption and relevance.