Fractional CMO services help small and mid-sized businesses scale without tying up valuable resources. Hiring a fractional CMO can be a strategic solution for businesses that need expert marketing leadership without the financial commitment of a full-time executive. Marketing, advertising, and sales are all vital to increasing revenue, and fractional CMOs help improve the ROI of these initiatives. In this blog, we cover the basics of fractional CMO services—including when it’s time to hire these services.
What Is a Fractional Chief Marketing Officer?
A fractional chief marketing officer (CMO) shares the same purpose as a full-time CMO: to improve your business’s revenue. To achieve this goal, fractional CMOs fulfill many of the same roles as a traditional CMO, such as:
- Guiding strategies for marketing, advertising, and sales efforts, including the company’s marketing strategy
- Coordinating marketing, advertising, and sales initiatives and leading specific marketing initiatives
- Optimizing resource use for marketing, advertising, and sales efforts
- Expanding and developing the marketing department
- Coordinating campaigns with organizational branding goals, ensuring effective marketing campaigns
- Negotiating contracts with third-party service providers
The key reason to work with a fractional CMO over a full-time CMO is the flexibility. Instead of signing up your business (and budget) for all of the above functions, you can choose which ones are the highest priority. In other words, a fractional CMO provides the exact services you need when you need them without the costly overhead.
Contact us to see which fractional CMO services your business could benefit from.
What Is the Difference between a CMO and a Fractional CMO?
A fractional CMO pursues the same goals as a traditional CMO, but there are some key differences. While both positions work to increase your business’s revenue through optimizing marketing efforts, the scope and budget are vastly different. Let’s take a closer look:
- Scope: When you hire a traditional full-time marketing executive, you gain access to the entire set of CMO functions. Whether you’re launching new campaigns, growing your marketing team, or researching a new customer base, full-time CMOs are there to take charge. However, these positions are also on your payroll even during calmer parts of the year when you may not need as many functions performed. In contrast, fractional CMOs work on a per-project or retainer basis, so you can more effectively target exactly which initiatives you need C-suite level leadership for. Fractional CMOs are experienced marketing professionals who bring high-level expertise to your business without the need for a full-time commitment.
- Budget: Because traditional CMOs are on your team full-time, they are compensated through a yearly salary and a benefits package. On the other hand, you have more flexibility with fractional CMOs. If you just need to restructure your marketing team, then a fractional CMO can see that initiative through. Or, if you need to level up the analytics for a series of campaigns, a fractional CMO can provide the insight you need. With a fractional CMO, you pay for exactly what you need for exactly as long as you need it.
These differences are critical when searching for a small business or start up CMO. If you’re developing a lean, growth-oriented organization, then having access to executive-level leadership without draining all of your resources is a must. Get in touch to learn more.
What Is the Average Rate for a Fractional CMO?
The average hourly rate for a fractional CMO ranges between $200 and $350 per hour. If you were to work with a fractional CMO for 10 hours per week, you would need to invest between $104,000 and $182,000 annually. For an agreement covering 15 hours per week, you would need to invest between $208,000 and $364,000 per year.
Compared to the average annual salary of a full-time CMO, which ranges between $312,387 and $424,721 (as reported by Salary.com), working with a fractional CMO could result in game-changing savings.
What Should I Look for in a Fractional CMO?
Experience and process are two of the most important qualities to consider when searching for a “fractional CMO near me.” One of the advantages of working with a fractional CMO is that these professionals work with organizations across a variety of industries and growth stages. As a result of this experience, fractional CMOs can bring the lessons they’ve learned elsewhere to help drive your organization forward.
It’s also important to make sure that a fractional CMO candidate’s process is compatible with your organization’s needs for strategic marketing guidance. While there’s value in exposing your business to other styles of operation, you don’t want to have to restructure your entire business model to accommodate a fractional executive. Find professionals that meet you where you’re at, then push you to do better.
Many fractional CMOs also have expertise in digital marketing, providing specialized knowledge in areas like SEO, social media marketing, and content creation.
For fractional CMO services, you can trust and contact SMB.
Should I Hire a Fractional CMO?
When to hire a fractional CMO depends on your business’s goals, resources, and the current state of your company’s marketing efforts. For organizations with ambitious goals and leaner budgets, fractional CMO services provide valuable access to executive-level leadership and can help develop and implement an effective marketing strategy. Here are some other signs that it’s time to consider a fractional CMO:
- You’re looking to scale.
- You’re searching for new markets to break into.
- You have a growing team that needs leadership.
- You need to improve your marketing ROI.
Do any of the above situations resonate with your organization? Contact Us Digital Today!
