Executive Spotlight: Silvi Specter

Silvi Specter is a fractional CMO who specializes in working with early-stage tech companies on go-to-market and demand generation. She began her career working for the startup insurance company Lemonade in Tel Aviv, Israel, where she built their content and brand strategy from scratch, initiating a viral Instagram campaign. From there, she moved back to the U.S. and worked at multiple early-stage companies. Eventually, she tapped into her entrepreneurial spirit, took a leap of faith, and decided to pursue fractional and consulting work; “I started last year, and I do not see myself doing anything else.”

Q&A: Fractional CMO, Silvi Specter

Q: When you begin a fractional engagement, what initial steps do you take to get acclimated to the company and understand their dynamics, especially coming in full force for a defined period?

A: It's so important to gather as much data and information as possible in those first two weeks. I open a Google Doc and that usually ends up being anywhere from 30 to 40 pages of notes.

It's important to me to familiarize myself with their target audience. That’s number one. Who are they? What are their pain points? What are their needs? Who are the competitors out there? What alternatives are they looking at? Do they know they have this need, are they motivated by this need, and are they actively looking for a solution? And then, getting into the product as deeply as possible. 

I also think there is something special about coming in as an objective third party. I dig into their performance metrics and how things have been going. At the same time I try as much as possible to keep a fresh perspective.

Then, of course, meeting with every member of the team to really bond. Especially starting my career in Israel, there was really no separation of boundaries between who you are outside of work and who you are in the workplace. I take that into all my relationships with my clients, and I'm just my honest true self. I get to know them, how many kids they have, what they do for fun…

It's building that rapport in addition to doing all of the research and digging to make sure that I can build the best strategy possible.

Q: You mentioned taking a leap of faith, what was that leap like?

A: It was so funny because I felt it was the biggest risk I'd ever taken in my career, but at the same time, it was the most confident that I had ever been in a career change.

I felt that while I'm young, it's time to do something totally different, totally new. I hardly knew any other people in the U.S. that we're doing something like this, just people in Tel Aviv.

It was scary, and I felt very alone. I had so many different meetings with people trying to get a lay of the land. That's why I ended up starting a community for marketing consultants about two months into my consulting called The Growth Tribe; I realized many of us are struggling with the same questions and things. That sparked me to get everyone in a Slack channel and help each other.

Q: How does your approach to marketing change when operating within the healthcare industry, or is there a change?

A: With healthcare, it's similar to when I worked in insurance at Lemonade. Healthcare is unfortunately something people view so negatively, and it's so intimidating. There are a lot of confusing terms, and I really like to use as simplistic, clear, and approachable language as possible to dispel any myths or clear any confusions around the product. In some other industries, it's okay to use very technical language, but here I like to make it surprisingly delightful and surprisingly simple because the industry is so confusing.

Q: What attracted you to fractional roles in the first place, and how do you believe it benefits not only you as an individual but the companies you serve?

A: I am a natural born leader. I'm the oldest of four sisters, so I've always felt like one.

Something I didn't like about working in-house is that there's always going to be somebody above you to tell you no or stunt your growth. Being a young woman, it was a little bit difficult in that way. Going off on my own was a natural way for me to be my own boss and be a marketing leader in the way I had always wanted.

The autonomy is also so nice. My schedule is more natural. I exercise in the middle of the day because that's my best work break — if you're working in house, you probably don't feel comfortable doing that.

I'm also very autonomous in the way that I work –  give me a project, and I'll get it done. I loved working on teams for the social component, but I actually am a very independent worker. It really works for me to be a fractional consultant because I do most of my own work.

And then, I'm just a curious person. I love trying out new industries. I end up in healthcare, insurance, and HR quite often, but I'm doing some projects in industries that I've never worked in. It's so much fun to learn something new. Every company is different, and I am always very intrigued by different dynamics and issues.

Q: Are there specific things that you see companies benefiting from in hiring fractional versus bringing in someone full time?

A: It's definitely more efficient for them in that they don't have to pay for benefits, health insurance, things like that.

Also, since I'm working for early stage companies, it's a lower commitment for them. If they aren't ready for full time leadership but know they want leadership, it's a way to dip your toes in high level leadership without having to pay a premium for it.

Then of course, because so many people are remote now, it works for their workflow. I think that's really beneficial for them.

Q: What's the best piece of advice you've ever received?

A: It's from my dad. He's a professor and a lawyer. He has a bunch of students and is always giving me his words of wisdom.

When thinking about your career and your job, the easiest thing to use as measurement for success is money because it's a very clear, concrete metric that is consistent. But, it can come at the expense of valuing professional satisfaction and being happy and happy in what you're doing.

When you're measuring  your career, focus on intangible professional satisfaction over being so caught up in the numbers.

Q: How do you think you measure that?

A: It's a good question. The context for the conversation was I was getting a bit overwhelmed with having too much work and demand. I was so focused on growing those dollar signs because that's what I knew how to measure–so that's how I was measuring myself. It was a reminder of needing to make sure I had a balance. 

So that’s my message to others - make sure that you are not scaling at the expense of your own happiness and satisfaction. Focus on the latter instead of the former, and make decisions based on the latter.

Sometimes you're operating in a scarcity mindset like, oh my gosh, I don’t have enough work. Sometimes you're operating in the opposite perspective. Finding that balance is so hard.

What he reminded me of is to use your intuition and what you actually want. Don't get so caught up in the numbers because at the end of the day, it's all going to work out if you put that professional satisfaction first.

Q: Is there anything you'd like to share that you think could be helpful for other people who are shifting to  fractional work?

A: I think one of the most common questions I get asked from new freelancers or fractionals is about how they can go about getting new clients.

I have an answer I've developed over time based on my experience. Number one is, especially when you have fewer clients than you would want and you're looking to scale, lean into your network as much as possible. Go through all your LinkedIn connections. Reach out to anybody who is either working at a target company or a VC, who’s a connector, who's working at an agency that can use your service, who's working at a company that has parallel but complimentary services to you.

So many more people in your network will have a connection or relationship to the type of work you want to do than you think. Reaching out to them, scheduling these chats to catch up and develop that relationship is so useful. 

Posting on LinkedIn is also my favorite thing. I know people are really afraid to post on LinkedIn, but I think getting over that fear and forcing yourself to do it twice a week is seriously the best way to build, not only clients, but build your personal brand.

And then lastly, join as many industry Slack groups as you possibly can, like The Growth Tribe. They are such great places to find clients.