1. What a fractional sales specialist does
A fractional sales specialist owns part of your sales motion on a part-time or project basis. That can mean building outbound pipeline, setting up a sales process and CRM, supporting SDRs and account executives, or closing deals directly. AI-assisted sales is now central to the role: using tools to research accounts, draft personalised outreach, and surface the next best action.
2. What Rafiki's sales specialists deliver
- Outbound systems, including lists, sequences, and AI-assisted personalisation.
- A sales process and CRM setup the team will actually use.
- SDR and AE support, from booking meetings to closing deals.
- Sales enablement, including scripts, objection handling, and call reviews.
- Reporting on conversion at each stage of the pipeline.
3. How the managed model works
You send one brief. We return a vetted shortlist within 72 hours, drawn from a bench where fewer than 1% of applicants are accepted. The average specialist brings 15 or more years of experience, and the wider network has delivered 50+ international projects.
Your specialist embeds in your tools and standups, working your business hours. Billing runs through Petl Pay, so cross border payments settle without SWIFT fees.
4. Engagement options
| Option | Best for | Team | Typical start |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single specialist | One sales workstream | 1 specialist | Within 72 hours |
| Micro-squad | A full sales build or new motion | 2 to 4 specialists | Within 1 week |
| Embedded fractional | Ongoing sales leadership | 1 to 2 part-time | Within 72 hours |
5. Why fractional plus AI beats an early full-time hire
Hiring a full-time sales specialist is a slow, expensive bet, usually made before you know whether you need the role or how that person works. A managed fractional sales specialist removes that risk: senior, AI-leveraged output from day one, a commitment you scale up or down as the work changes, and a permanent hire only once you have validated the need.
Because our specialists run on best-in-class AI tooling, a single fractional engagement covers what used to take a full team. You pay for senior judgment and outcomes, not for headcount you are not yet sure about.
Our bench spans a core group in South Africa, where Rafiki's founders are from, plus vetted fractionals across the UK and Europe, all working your business hours with strong overlap for standups.
6. Frequently asked questions
What is a fractional sales specialist?
A senior sales professional who works part-time or by project, owning outbound, process, enablement, or closing without being a full-time hire.
What is AI-assisted sales?
Using AI tools to research accounts, draft personalised outreach, summarise calls, and surface the next best action, so a seller spends more time selling.
How fast can Rafiki place a sales specialist?
We return a vetted shortlist within 72 hours of receiving your brief.
Is this a freelancer marketplace?
No. Rafiki is a managed service. We vet, match, and support every specialist, and you work with people who have cleared a screening fewer than 1% pass.
How much does it cost?
Pricing is set per brief, based on scope and seniority. A fractional sales specialist costs a fraction of a full-time hire, and because they run on best-in-class AI you get senior output from a flexible, lower-risk commitment instead of carrying permanent headcount before you have validated the need.
Explore the fractional AI bench: Managed Fractional AI Squads · GTM · MCP & Agent Engineers · Chat-based builds · Forward-deployed
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