How Can Your Business Benefit from a Fractional CMO? A Comprehensive Guide.
Admittedly, when I started my consulting practice in 2023 the concept of a fractional executive was new to me. But with the rise of remote work and the gig economy, the flexibility offered by an experienced executive willing to work on a part-time, contract basis is a no-brainer for small to medium-sized businesses in need of a growth leader.
If the concept of a fractional executive is new to you as well, we hope this article serves as a helpful guide when considering how your business can benefit from a Fractional Chief Marketing Officer. Read on to learn about:
What a Fractional CMO is
Why you should consider hiring a Fractional CMO for your business
How you know when you are ready to hire a Fractional CMO
The marketing focus areas a Fractional CMO can address
Typical cost for a Fractional CMO
Typical length of a Fractional CMO engagement
What is a Fractional Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)?
A Fractional CMO is a part-time, contract-based executive who provides embedded marketing leadership to a business. The Fractional CMO provides the same strategic guidance as a full-time CMO, overseeing all aspects of growing the brand, representing the voice of the customer, designing and/or optimizing the customer journey, and launching revenue-driving marketing initiatives, without the cost and overhead of a full-time hire.
Why should I consider hiring a Fractional CMO for my business?
If you are looking to expand your business, a Fractional CMO can offer in-depth marketing expertise, a fresh perspective on executing your vision, the knowledge and experience to design marketing infrastructure, and the ability to articulate your brand at every stage of the customer journey. A Fractional CMO can also provide hands-on leadership and mentorship of your in-house team, helping to develop their expertise and scope in line with your business’s growth.
How do I know when I am ready to hire a Fractional CMO?
There are various inflection points in your business where hiring a Fractional CMO could be beneficial. Here are a few examples:
You need to clarify your strategic direction. Perhaps you have an existing marketing strategy but are finding that it’s not serving your long-term vision for the company. Or, you’re at the beginning phases of contemplating a marketing strategy that can accelerate your business’s growth. Regardless of the maturity of your marketing approach, a Fractional CMO can design marketing objectives and KPIs that are built to serve your top-level business objectives to ensure alignment between marketing and overall business strategy.
You are navigating a new growth phase. You have developed a great product and revenue engine, possibly through a scrappy, bootstrapped approach. Now, you are ready to scale your business and have recognized the need for brand and marketing investment to ensure that your company stands out amidst the competition and fosters strong, enduring relationships with your customers. If you're considering how to take your growth to the next level, it may be time to bring in an experienced marketing executive to develop sustainable, revenue-generating marketing infrastructure for your business. And if you’re not quite ready for a full-time CMO, a Fractional CMO will provide the experience and perspective your business needs, for a fraction of the cost.
Your business’s growth has decelerated. Growth can plateau for a variety of reasons, including market changes, rising competition, lack of innovation, and poor customer retention. A Fractional CMO can examine your customer funnel and provide focused recommendations to spur business growth.
You need guidance through a specific business transformation. An experienced marketing leader can help you navigate major business transformations, such as launching a new product, changing or expanding your distribution strategy, rebranding, and restructuring your organization. It’s likely that your Fractional CMO has led a team through the exact transformation you are contemplating or facing, and can help you look around corners to lessen the impact on your customers and internal team.
Your existing leadership is transitioning. While a Fractional CMO can help build marketing infrastructure from the ground up, they can also step in to provide turnkey support during existing leadership transitions or gaps. The Fractional CMO not only provides strategic guidance to business leaders, but also acts as a leader and mentor to marketing resources and external agency partners.
How much does a Fractional CMO cost?
Expect to spend between $200 and $350 per hour for a Fractional CMO. At Cara Verwholt Consulting, our Fractional CMO Service costs $8,000 per month for 10 hours/week, with a 3-month initial agreement. Compare this to the cost of a full-time hire; according to Salary.com, the average CMO salary in 2024 is between $317,474 and $431,623 per year.
What focus areas can a Fractional CMO address?
A Fractional CMO provides leadership in the same focus areas as a full-time CMO, which includes effectively articulating the company’s brand mission and values, advocating for the customer, increasing a company’s brand awareness and positive sentiment, driving revenue growth through customer acquisition and retention tactics, building marketing technology infrastructure, and managing marketing resources (in-house personnel, external agencies, and budget).
In our Fractional CMO Service, the first month of the engagement focuses on discovery and recommendations. We will:
Examine your business goals and current performance through stakeholder interviews and hands-on analysis.
Review your customer profile(s), competitors, brand guidelines and messaging, customer journey through owned and paid channels, and marketing technology infrastructure.
Summarize observations and recommendations in a strategy deck so that we can align on the key business priorities for marketing to address.
Develop a working roadmap to guide initiative prioritization and implementation.
Months two and three then focus on strategy development for the key items identified in the discovery phase. Focus areas can include brand identity, marketing objectives & KPIs, marketing budget allocations, customer acquisition channel planning (organic & paid), creative planning, agency evaluation & onboarding, customer retention and lifetime value initiatives, sales team enablement, and marketing technology infrastructure.
Following the initial three-month engagement, we focus on strategy implementation and ongoing leadership. This can include marketing team leadership & mentoring, process development, agency negotiations, onboarding & management, in-house resource identification & onboarding, marketing technology evaluations, vendor negotiations & onboarding, strategic partnership evaluation, and implementation guidance.
How long does a typical Fractional CMO engagement last?
A Fractional CMO engagement can last from a few months to several years.
Our Fractional CMO Service is structured with an initial 3-month engagement and then renews on a month-to-month basis. While our typical engagements span from six to twelve months, the ideal length of engagement will depend on your business's needs and budget. Our goal is to build sustainable, revenue-driving infrastructure that can ultimately be managed by an in-house marketing hire.
Learn more about Fractional CMO services
To learn more about whether a Fractional CMO is right for your business, please book a complimentary consultation call or contact us to get started. We’d love to hear from you.
