A fractional CMO provides all the experience and accrued wisdom but at a fraction of the price of employment.
Most start-ups and small businesses could benefit from a talented and experienced marketer but it can often be folly to recruit one. Good CMO salaries are upward of £125,000, plus additional employment costs, and the truth is in many cases 50% of the time that CMO will be doing the work of someone well beneath that paygrade.
>> Find the true cost of employing a CMO here
You don’t want to pay someone £130k+ a year to write blog posts or set-up PPC campaigns. But you may need someone to oversee and direct that activity.
You just don’t need them there 5 days a week.
What is a fractional CMO?
A fractional CMO is a strategic head of marketing who you hire for a fraction of the week or month rather than full time.
Fractional CMOs are slightly different to part-time employees – we have chosen a portfolio career and have the skills to quickly get up-to-speed with your business and to add value fast.
We sometimes come under different names – including ‘Portfolio CMO’ or ‘Fractional Marketing Director’.
What does a fractional CMO do?
A fractional CMO will focus on the highest value work – that might include:
- Getting your strategy right
- Ensuring the organisation (including the team and tech set-up) is optimised
- Creating and enhancing marketing processes
- Ensuring execution is on point
- Coaching, mentoring and leading the marketing team
Why use a fractional CMO?
A fractional CMO can help in a variety of circumstances – whether you are scaling or have hit a growth wall, whether you need fresh ideas or you’re just not ready for a full time CMO yet.
A fractional CMO gives you flexibility.
We are usually pretty quick to start and you’re typically tied-in for just a few months to start.
We’re cost-effective (we only do the high value work).
And we’re cheaper to hire (only pay us for the days we work, no recruitment fees, no additional employment costs such as NI, pensions or holiday pay).
What sort of companies use a fractional CMO?
While any business can use a fractional CMO, those most likely to do so often have a turnover of between £1m and £10m.
However, there are plenty of larger businesses – particularly in B2B sectors – who benefit from a fractional CMO.
Many businesses using a fractional or portfolio CMO will be going through an inflexion or major change in their business – for example:
- High growth companies – or those seeking high, fast growth
- Businesses facing a growth challenge
- Companies pivoting in their product or market approach
- A business which has a junior marketing team who need coaching from someone with experience.
For smaller businesses and early-stage start-ups, a fractional CMO could work for you but you may also want to consider coaching. I specialise in coaching founders who find themselves doing their own marketing (or managing the marketing team).
In addition, I can offer marketing mentorship – for just an hour a week.
Think of me as a “founder’s friend”, someone who can offer advice and support, not just from a marketing perspective.
Should I hire a fractional CMO or outsource marketing to an agency?
Both approaches have their merits and it does depend a little on your circumstances:
- Typically, a fractional CMO won’t execute many marketing campaigns directly (they’re too expensive for that!). Instead they will direct activity to be done by a junior marketer (who could be freelance, employed or agency-based).
- While agencies do get involved in strategy work, this is often not the best use of them. They’re also unlikely to be able to develop internal processes or build your internal marketing capability long-term. A fractional CMO will.
- If your business would benefit from working closely with an expert over an extended period of time, someone who takes a deep personal interest in your growth and success, a fractional CMO is the better route.
- And don’t forget, they’re not mutually exclusive! One key use-case of a fractional CMO is in managing your agency – this can be super-helpful if you don’t have marketing experience in-house and your agency isn’t delivering as well as you had hoped.
How much does a fractional CMO cost?
Less than an employed CMO!
>> Find the true cost of employing a CMO here
Because you’re only paying for the contracted days, you’re not paying all the additional employment costs such as:
Employer’s pension contributionsNational InsuranceLaptopMobile phoneHoliday paySick pay
What’s most important is the value you get from a fractional CMO – they only focus on the important work.
Most fractional CMOs will charge on a day-rate or retainer basis, depending on the number of days used a month. In my case, that could range between £759 and £874 a day – I’m totally transparent on rates.
There is so much to do when you run your own business so having a fractional CMO is extremely valuable. I would recommend Richard to anyone who needs to formulate a strategy to both grow and cement a business, and ensure you have an exciting story to tell!
Zoë Camper, founder Zoë Camper LLC