Top 10 Insights from 10 Episodes of Diary of a Fractional 🎙️

We just hit 10 episodes on Diary of a Fractional 10, So instead of just making this post of, thanks and moving on, I actually wanted to share the top 10 insights from from our first 10 episodes on our podcast.

I looked back through all of our 10 episodes and saw the patterns and overlapping insights that our guest speakers, our fractionals, have been saying.

When that many veterans are saying the same thing, it's worth the observation and sharing it with you guys in this video.

and with quick context before we dive into the insights, I want to let you know that these are veteran fractionals.

These guys have been in the space for 5, 10, some of them even in 2005, 2008, as a fractional, before that was even a term.

They've been building their own agencies and have written books about their work.

So it's worth noting that they are very credible.

This is not theory.

This is not fluff.

This is actual true lessons coming from their own experience and journey as a fractional.

So let's dive right into it.

Takeaway number one is this Referrals are not a pipeline and this one came up constantly.

Your network and referrals are not a pipeline strategy no matter how good they feel.

Our first guest, neil anderson, fractional cmo puts it very bluntly.

he says that relationship dependent pipelines is just luck wearing systems clothing.

Likewise Dan Aladev told me flat out that for every hundred of referrals he gives out, he just gets one using that rate, he'd had to spend a whole day job just trying to get people referrals in order for him to get one back his network.

So insight number one is very clear.

You can't rely on your referrals to build your practice.

You need an actual system that generates leads.

not just good old colleagues and co workers from your previous corporate job.

Number two in using doctor's analogy.

Here, you need to describe the problem and symptoms before you prescribe the solution and start pitching.

in my episode with Michael Johnson, a fractional CEO, towards the end he put it very clear.

Businesses don't hire fractionals because of your proof points and history and what you say you can do.

What they want to know when you're talking to them initially is how well you can understand their problems and what they want right now.

And in our 10th episode with Mark Powers, a fractional CMO, he puts it very clear that his sales process doesn't even talk about selling his marketing system and methods.

Yet All Mark wants to do in the first meeting is genuinely understand what is the problem and if he can solve it.

Insight 903 and this one's really quick across the board is to productize your service.

jared tilton, a fractional cmo, built out the j3 momentum method.

Going back to Mark Powers.

He built out the marketing engine room.

Even Mike Mahoney, a fractional CTO, has his 21 day NetSuite reporting sprint there's three reasons why fractionals are doing this.

Number one is you're defining the outcome in which you bring the company.

You define the scope and the deliverables through your method.

And number three, it simply is easier to remember than just saying a simple service.

And Insight number four is close related to Insight number three, where not just being specific on how we serve, but we're also specific on who we serve.

So insight number four is niching down.

Drew Bedford, a fractional cmo, for example, built his entire roster of clients solely on the industry that he loves and has a passion for, which is outdoor and lifestyle brands.

now here's the thing.

Fractional COO Manisha Longacre shares a totally different way.

She niches down and filters for the right clients instead of focusing on one specific market like Drew, she's looking for a specific type of business.

for example, niching down in just nonprofits or niching down to only work with series A, series B type of companies.

While these are different ways that our fractionals like Drew and Manisha are niching down, the underlining principle is the same.

They're filtering for an ideal client profile that they know they can help and who they want to work with.

Insight number five is you're fractional in time, not in mind share.

now to illustrate the point, Neil Anderson did a good job sharing that even at the grocery store, even at the checkout, he's still thinking about his clients and actually delivering value in thinking of ways to improve their company.

Drew Bedford has a similar reminder where he constantly checks himself to make sure that he's not starving one client only because they're part time so that he as if he was a full time person in their company, what would the value be?

And then just performs on that.

insight.

Number six is what veterans really understand that a lot of new fractionals don't yet, which is that the craft isn't the hard part.

Fulfilling is what you've been doing prior to becoming a fractional.

Where it really is a hard part is filling in the gap.

Specifically the pipeline issue.

With Daz on my podcast, a fractional cmo.

He puts it bluntly how even though he's at full capacity, he still worries day and night about where his next client will come from and how he'll fill that gap Monisha talked about the same discomfort as well, that there's going to be ebbs and flows.

and so what she's doing and all these other fractionals are doing is with the quiet hours that they have where they're not focused on their clients yet.

And sometimes the first few hours in the morning of the day, they're giving it to their pipeline, their first client, which is themselves.

Insight number seven, build something that outlasts you.

You see, the difference between a freelancer and an agency to a fractional model is that you're building something that the company can last without you necessarily having to be in there all Mike Mahoney, the fractional CTO I was talking to on our podcast, said it very well in one of his stories that he was spending 105 hours a week working.

Working on some of his clients.

And as he put it, the 105 hours wasn't proof that the company needed his system.

Rather, it was evidence that the system itself was dependent on him.

And Jarrett's response to my question on this was a more direct approach.

Again, when a freelancer leaves, so does a value.

But when we're talking about having a model like a fractional, when you leave, the value stays there.

And they thank you for it.

insight number eight is clearly said across all 10 episodes.

And that is you charge by the value, not by the hours, because hourly billing is basically a freelancer's trap.

Neil Anderson, who's been a fractional for over two decades, clearly stated that he never charged by the hour, only by value and by retainer.

mark Powers operates on a 12 month retainer commitment, not hourly.

And Daz talks about this really being part of how you represent yourself in the sales process when you're talking to a CEO or founder looking to bring you on.

Because a lot of times when you call yourself a fractional, they will start to think, okay, I can lower my overhead just simply because of the model and who you are.

Fractional.

So sometimes a CEO will try to talk you down to a lower rate, almost hourly rate.

Daz's solution is very simple.

It's just to hold your ground, understand your value, and don't let the label fractional be the excuse that someone can underpay you.

Insight number nine has a similar vibe to when you're talking to potential clients of yours, and that is to set expectations bluntly.

Now, if there has to be a single failure point that all my fractionals on the episode said, it's this one, that they didn't set the right expectations with their clients up front, and that led to awkward disengagements.

Jared said it really well that you have to be crystal clear on day one how you're going to operate and what success looks like.

Drew Bedford, on the sales process when he's bringing on a new client, potentially talks about what the client wants to see in six months, 12 months, and, and understanding that he's only going to be here as a fractional, so that, as he said it on his episode, they don't pitch him on becoming full time afterwards.

Now, Stan Aldev has a great story where he shared that in one year he fired four clients because they crossed the line of his ethical values.

And he had to, especially as a fractional CFO dealing with numbers in their business.

Because as Stan said, being blunt about your expectations prevents a lot of mess happening in your own business.

And last but not least, insight number 10 is to play the long game with your visibility, specifically your fractional brand.

now practically most of the companies you're going to get in touch with initially aren't going to be ready to pull the trigger and bring you on just quite yet.

So what you need to do is stay visible as you wait.

Neil Anderson calls it the 95 rule.

While only 5% are ready to buy, you still have to sell to the other 95%.

So that when they are ready to be that 5% and who are ready to pull the trigger on a fractional, you're on their short list on who they remembered that gave value, that educated them and ultimately that they can trust.

now a fractional that exemplifies this is Robert Gilbreath.

He's been posting on LinkedIn for years now with over 30,000 followers simply because he's been giving value.

now Robert in his story mentioned that he did take a break from posting on LinkedIn for a while but that didn't stop others from finding him because for the years that he's been posting it became an asset when people search for a fractional cmo.

his name was on top of the list.

so don't look for solutions and shortcuts just for today or next week.

Look at the long term, especially as a fractional who's planning to be here for years to come.

because as Neil Anderson and Robert Gilbreath are sharing here along with the other fractionals is that when you play the long game you build a more consistent practice.

So those are the 10 overlapping insights I got from the 10amazing podcasts I did with these phenomenal veteran fractionals.

From COOs to CTOs to CMOs and CFOs.

If you have questions, drop it in the comments below.

But most importantly, if you found this insightful, I wonder what watching those other 10 full videos would do for you too.

They share a lot of insights, a lot of context, and most importantly, stories that only us fractionals would really understand.

So I highly recommend checking it out.

I'll, link it down below in the comments below this post.

Guys, we'll come out with episode 11 very shortly.

Might become season two, so stay tuned.