Why the softening market is the perfect time for MGAs to think fractionally

If you run a London Market MGA, you know the struggles - capacity is getting harder to secure, margins are thinner, and every line on the P&L is under review - including marketing.

But even in a soft market, perception still drives performance. Brokers and capacity providers notice which MGAs look professional, communicate clearly and maintain visibility. They also notice which ones disappear.

The tension is familiar: you know marketing matters, but a full-time senior hire feels out of reach. So marketing becomes everyone’s side job - ops handles LinkedIn, an underwriter writes a flyer, and the EA tries to coordinate it all between board meetings.

When marketing becomes an afterthought

Most MGAs start lean, and that’s a strength. But as they grow, the cracks show:

• Communications feel inconsistent

• Product launches land quietly

• There’s no clear message about what makes the MGA different

• No data or CRM process to track who’s actually engaging

And without someone whose role is to own it, the work gets done in pockets rather than as a plan.

Marketing is equally important for the insurance industry throughout the market cycle

The limits of traditional solutions

A full-time CMO feels unjustifiable in this climate. Agencies can deliver creative, but they need direction. Junior hires are great executors, but they can’t set strategy or communicate at board level.

The result is a cycle of tactical activity - social posts, brochures, events - without the commercial thread that links it all back to growth.

The fractional alternative

A fractional CMO bridges that gap. It’s a senior marketing leader you can hire part-time, usually for a few days a month, to build and guide your marketing strategy. You get the structure, direction and board-level experience of a full-time CMO, but without the overhead of a full-time role.

For MGAs, that means:

• A clear value proposition that brokers can understand in seconds

• Messaging that supports your distribution and capacity strategy

• A plan for launches, events, and content that feels joined up

• Better visibility of ROI through simple frameworks and reporting

The fractional model is already proven in finance, HR, and technology. It works because it gives businesses access to expertise they wouldn’t otherwise afford - or need full-time - at a time when efficiency matters most.

Why it fits the MGA model

MGAs are, by nature, agile. You run lean, move quickly and collaborate well. The same flexibility applies to marketing. Fractional leadership lets you scale your marketing investment up or down as the market shifts, keeping control of spend while still moving forward.

It also means you’re not dependent on external agencies to translate insurance nuance.

A fractional CMO who knows the London Market already, understands the broker ecosystem, the capacity pressures, and the regulatory guardrails means less onboarding and more impact.

Soft market, strong signals

A softening market inevitably means trade-offs, but cutting marketing often costs more in missed opportunities than it saves in salary. The smarter move is to find a model that gives you expertise at the right scale.

The MGAs that emerge strongest are those that keep investing in reputation, even modestly, while others pull back. They keep their broker relationships warm, refine their propositions, and show the market they’re stable and confident.

Fractional support makes that possible without stretching budgets. It provides senior-level marketing direction, only when and where you need it.

If you’re an MGA looking to maintain momentum in a softening market, and want to explore how fractional support could work for you, get in touch - I’d be happy to help, email cara@ooshkaconsulting.com