What is a Fractional CMO anyway?

The concept of a Fractional CMO is quite new in Europe but has been around for a while longer in the US. A Fractional CMO works for you a fraction of the time but for a fraction of the cost. Which saves you money and elongates runways. A Fractional CMO is a part of your team, not an external consultant, not an interim. As such they are invested in your success just as a full-time CMO would be. As they only work part-time then they typically concentrate on those things that are going to make the biggest impact for you. They are laser focused on your success, as your success is their success too.

Costs differentiation between full-time and fCMO in the UK?

 That is quite stark isn’t it? Does your company have a spare £220,000 for a single person, or would you prefer to use that £170,000 differential on more developers, junior marketers, elongating the runway? There will come a time when you want and need a full-time CMO, but for many companies in the pre-seed to Series A / B then they really don’t have enough for a full-time CMO to do. You really don’t want to be paying for a CMO to write your LinkedIn posts, that is just not cost effective, and why taking on a junior marketer with a fractional CMO gives you the best of both worlds

When would I need a Fractional CMO?

Strategic direction

Sometimes, you need the strategic guidance of a Chief Marketing Officer or Marketing Director, but you really can’t justify the salary at the moment. Maybe you are getting ready for a funding round and want to have the strongest argument possible. Maybe you have some junior marketing staff and you want to ensure you are getting the best out of them. Maybe as the founder and CEO you are just spinning too many plates you want to offload some of the workload so you can concentrate on what you do best.

Fill the gap

Maybe you are between CMOs or Marketing Directors and need someone to keep the ship steady while you recruit, as that can take 3-4 months to find someone, sometimes more, and then they could be on 3-6 months’ notice period too. Business doesn’t stop in those situations, but as the CEO do you have the capacity to take on overseeing the marketing as well?

Project Manage

You have a large one-off project where you need an external pair of hands, for example, to steer the rebranding exercise or harmonisation of messaging post-merger.  

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Flexibility- you can scale the services up and down as you need them
  2. Cost efficient expertise
  3. Ownership and accountability, unlike a consultant
No-one likes "how long is a piece of string?" answers, but it really does depend on what you are looking for. Our CMO on Demand service, you book directly here on the website. Our CMO A&D service we'd have a discovery call, then we'd schedule any workshops ahead of researching and drafting the marketing strategy. Typically a full marketing strategy is delivered in a month or so, but that depends on your availability, the number of workshops, the speed of comment on the first draft. Our CMO Retained service we'd have a conversation and ensure that you have what you need in a package that we will quote to you with a scope of work and monthly fee. That conversation also means that we can check out if there is a personality fit too. Normally, these are up and running in a week.
For full information of our packages please click here
A consultant gives you the strategy and then walks away. They don’t own the next steps. They don’t own the results of what they advised. Marketing Consultants tend to be short engagements A Fractional CMO is there with you for 6 months or more. They are a part of your team and they own results, just as they would if they were a full time employee.
A part-time CMO is an employee on your payroll. That comes with the additional employee costs, but also with employee rights, which are currently becoming more favourable to the employee and less favourable to the employer. If they do not perform, then you have to go through a formal process to remove them from position. The hours are written into the contract, so that flexibility is missing. A fractional CMO is a B2B contract for services. They are not on your payroll meaning more flexibility, but vastly reduced costs. You would have a named fCMO, but if that person is taken sick or knocked over by the proverbial bus, then it is our responsibility to find someone to cover so that you are not left high and dry.
A freelance CMO you are contracted with that specific person, not a company. There isn’t the same back-up in case they are indisposed. Contracts with freelancers tend to be shorter.
A Non-Executive Director (NED) will attend board and committee meetings but not necessarily be involved in the company each and every week. They are there for governance and compliance. A fCMO will be working with you more proactively. They will have more ownership for the actual results. Of course, they will ensure that the marketing is legal, compliant, and follows best practices too.
A Strategic Adviser tends to be reactive. You are the CEO phone with a specific issue that you need advice on, or idea that you want to sanity test. A fCMO is more proactive. They tell you the solutions to the issues as they see them being embedded in your company. They are there for brainstorming or sanity checks. They come up with ideas based on their knowledge of what will work in the market.
Interims tend to be full time and on your payroll. They are there to fill a gap, maybe caused by illness, parental leave or someone handing in their notice. A fractional CMO would be part-time, but enough to keep the ship steady in the right direction. The cost savings would allow better profitability, or rewards for members of the marketing team who stepped up and shone. Both allow handovers to be done with ease and to prevent the company from stalling on the strategy. It is about what is right for your company at that specific time.
Contact Us