The legal sector is operating in an increasingly competitive environment. Whether you are a regional firm looking to differentiate your services or a national practice seeking sustainable growth, your marketing plays a significant role in how effectively you stand out. Yet many firms still struggle to balance strategic direction with day to day delivery. This is where a Fractional Marketing Director can make a genuine difference.
A Fractional Marketing Director provides senior level marketing leadership on a part-time, flexible basis. For many law firms, this model offers all the benefits of an experienced marketing director without the long-term commitment and cost of a full-time appointment. Crucially, it gives you access to someone who can shape your marketing strategy, develop your brand and ensure your marketing activity delivers measurable value.
The value of legal sector experience
Choosing the right Fractional Marketing Director matters. Legal sector marketing comes with its own nuances, expectations and regulatory considerations, so it is essential to work with someone who understands how this world operates. From the rhythm of directory submissions to the sensitivities around promoting regulated services, a seasoned legal marketer brings context that cannot be learned overnight.
Another advantage of working with a Fractional Marketing Director who has legal sector experience is their familiarity with the Legal 500 and Chambers and Partners processes. Directory rankings remain influential for clients and referrers, and improving or maintaining strong positions requires a strategic, well-managed approach. Someone who has overseen submissions before, understands the criteria and knows how to gather evidence from partners can help firms avoid common pitfalls and produce stronger, more compelling narratives.
Legal sector experience also ensures a better grasp of professional services buying behaviours. Unlike consumer markets, legal clients are often influenced by reputation, expertise and trust, rather than traditional promotional activity alone. An experienced Fractional Marketing Director will know how to adapt positioning, messaging and campaigns so they resonate with both existing clients and new prospects. They will be able to guide partners in developing thought leadership, engage fee earners in profile building and introduce a more consistent approach to business development.
A flexible model that drives commercial value
Law firms have unique structures, with operational responsibilities spread across partners, practice heads and support teams. Senior marketers coming from outside the legal sector can sometimes underestimate how relationship driven and consensus led the environment can be. A Fractional Marketing Director with legal experience will understand these dynamics and can navigate them effectively, gaining trust and ensuring smoother implementation of initiatives.
Crucially, the fractional model also offers flexibility. Many firms want access to high-level strategic thinking but do not need, or cannot justify, a full-time Marketing Director. A fractional approach allows firms to bring in strategic support when required, whether that is to set the direction for the year ahead, lead a rebrand, introduce better reporting or deliver a stronger digital presence. It can also act as valuable support for small in-house marketing teams, helping them stay focused and providing senior oversight that might otherwise be missing.
For firms in growth mode, a Fractional Marketing Director can be a bridge between where you are now and where you want to be. They can help establish processes, build capability and lay the foundations for a future full-time marketing leader if that becomes the ambition. They bring fresh perspective, objective challenge and a commercial lens that keeps activity aligned to the firm’s strategic goals.
At Number 34 Consultancy, our Fractional Marketing Director, Hannah Dimech, blends first-hand experience as Head of Marketing in a top 50 law firm with a practical, hands-on approach, providing both strategic insight and day-to-day delivery if required. This gives legal practices the best of both worlds and ensures their marketing function genuinely drives growth. To find out more, contact us.