Jacki Brown is the founder and CEO of Jacki Brown Marketing, LLC, a consultancy that helps hospitality and travel technology companies navigate growth by identifying and crafting their positioning and messaging, then scaling that across digital channels and into lead-generating marketing campaigns.

With nearly two decades of experience in marketing, Brown honed her skills working with renowned brands such as Amadeus Hospitality, Demandware (now Salesforce Commerce Cloud), Shark Vacuums, and Nexxus Haircare, where she shaped global marketing strategies that significantly impacted pipeline growth and sales.

In an exclusive interview with Women Leading Travel & Hospitality, Brown shared how years in corporate marketing left her burned out and anxious, and detailed her path to a more sustainable life as a fractional marketer for travel and hospitality brands.

“When I reflect on it, I think it really comes down to control,” Brown says. “We’re not in control of our careers in most cases, we’re not in control of our time, we’re not in control of who we work with or what kind of work we’re doing, and I needed to take some of that control back.”

As a mother of two children, Brown was working 50-hour weeks, working every night after putting the kids to bed. She felt frustrated by the slow pace in which decisions were made in the corporate world, despite the long hours.

Brown wanted to reduce her hours to 40 a week. She considered work at a smaller startup where she could make more of an impact and the pace would be faster, but knew that would again mean long hours.

Then she stumbled upon the term “fractional marketing” and discovered a path to a unique form of consulting.

“I find that being a fractional marketing leader, I can make much more impact because I’m part of the organization,” notes Brown. “I’m meeting with the leadership teams in product, in sales, the founders, so I know and have a much better pulse of what’s going on in the organization. I then can create an overarching strategy for the business.”

Reflecting on the move to fractional marketing a year later, Brown said it was the best decision she ever made because it allowed her to prioritize her mental health and her family.

“I was really burnt out [working for corporations], and the way my burnout impacts me is it creates severe anxiety,” Brown says.

In this new role, Brown has protected her mental health in other ways, including turning off notifications for work apps on her phone.