Dark abstract digital background with faintly visible polygonal network shapes and connecting lines.
Quick answer

What Is a Fractional CMO?

A fractional CMO is a part time marketing executive who owns your marketing strategy, budget and results, for a fraction of what a full time Chief Marketing Officer costs.

They sit on your leadership team, set the plan, hold your team and vendors to clear numbers and report to you on what the money is producing. Your team keeps running day to day execution. The difference is that someone senior now owns the whole picture.

Ours comes with something most independent consultants cannot offer: direct access to our own SEO, PPC, content, web design and marketing automation teams. Read our small business guide to fractional CMOs for the basics.

What they own
Strategy, budget, KPIs, vendors and reporting to leadership
How much time
Scoped to the hours you need, from a project to ongoing leadership
Who it suits
Small and midsize companies that have outgrown ad hoc marketing
What is different here
An in-house execution team behind the CMO, since 2009

The fractional CMO reports to you and directs everyone who touches marketing.

+63%
Form submissions for St. Joseph's Roofing
+222%
Homepage key events for District Advisory
2009
The year we opened our doors
2012
Google Partner since

Book a fractional CMO consultation

Tell us where marketing stands today and what the business needs from it. We will tell you honestly whether a fractional CMO is the right move.

Book a consultation

Want a second opinion on ad spend?

Our PPC audit is free. It is often the quickest way to find budget your new plan can use.

Get a free PPC audit

Running HubSpot?

Get a free HubSpot audit. Clean CRM data is the base of any reporting a CMO will stand behind.

Free HubSpot audit
What a fractional CMO does

Leadership First, Then the Work

Every engagement is built around your gaps, not a fixed package. In practice, most include some mix of the following.

A plan, a budget and a calendar tied to revenue

We start by auditing your programs, tools and spend, then build a marketing strategy, budget and calendar tied to specific revenue and growth targets. The first 90 days are mapped before anything changes.

Audit of programs and spend

What is working, what is wasting budget and what is missing.

Agency and vendor oversight

Clear scopes, clear KPIs and someone who reads the invoices.

Go to market planning

Strategy for new products, services, locations or markets.

Hiring and team structure

Roles, reporting lines, interviews and RFPs for new partners.

Reporting to leadership

Performance, spend and return reported to the CEO or board.

Fractional vs full time

How to Decide Between the Two

For most small and midsize businesses, the answer comes down to scope and stage. A full time CMO makes sense when marketing needs daily, in person leadership of a large team. A fractional CMO makes sense when you need executive level strategy and oversight, but not necessarily every day.

Fractional CMO
Full time CMO
Cost
Fractional CMOA share of an executive's time, scoped to what you need
Full time CMOSalary, bonus, benefits and often equity, before any media spend
Time to start
Fractional CMOWeeks
Full time CMOOften months of recruiting
Breadth
Fractional CMOExperience across many industries and channels
Full time CMODeep in one company
Execution
Fractional CMOBacked by our in-house SEO, PPC, web and CRM teams
Full time CMONeeds a team or agencies to carry out the plan
Commitment
Fractional CMOProject based or ongoing, adjusted as you grow
Full time CMOA long term hire
Best for
Fractional CMOCompanies that need senior strategy, not 40 hours a week of it
Full time CMOCompanies where marketing is the main growth engine and needs daily leadership

Many companies use a fractional CMO as a bridge, then hire full time once the business and budget justify it. We compare the options in in-house marketing vs a fractional CMO.

Signs it is time

When Companies Bring One In

The trigger is rarely a lack of effort. It is usually a lack of direction, or a lack of someone accountable for the numbers.

  • Growth has stalled. And no one on the team can say why
  • Your marketing leader just left. You need experienced leadership in place right away
  • Too many agencies, no coordinator. Several vendors and freelancers, and nobody owning the overall plan
  • No line of sight to ROI. Leadership cannot tell whether marketing spend is paying off
  • A big moment is coming. A new market, a product launch, a raise or an acquisition
  • You have outgrown ad hoc marketing. But a full executive team is not in the budget yet

If two or more sound familiar, read the benefits of hiring a fractional CMO.

Fractional CMO services

What We Take Off Your Plate

Depending on what you need, our fractional CMO services can include any of these.

Marketing audits

A clear view of programs, tools, spend and results, with the gaps ranked.

Strategy and budgets

A plan and budget sized for your company and tied to revenue targets.

Team coaching

Your marketers get direction, feedback and a real development plan.

RFPs and vendor selection

We write the RFP, run the process and recommend partners.

SEO and content oversight

Search, local SEO and content plans that build on each other.

Paid media oversight

Google Ads, Microsoft Ads and paid social held to cost per lead.

KPIs across channels

One scorecard for every channel, so you can compare like for like.

Board level reporting

Performance and ROI reported to ownership or the board.

Need the team as well as the leader? Our outsourced CMO option pairs leadership with full execution, and our marketing strategy work suits companies that need a plan more than a person.

Our process

How a Fractional CMO Engagement Runs

The first month is about understanding. The second and third are about proving the plan works.

1

Discovery and audit

We review performance, tools, team structure and spend to see exactly where you stand. Gaps in analytics and call tracking are listed first, because every later decision depends on them.

2

Strategy and budget

A marketing strategy and budget tied to your revenue goals, with targets for each channel and a 90 day calendar.

3

Implementation and oversight

We put the plan into motion, directing your team, managing vendors, or handing work to our own specialists.

4

Reporting and refinement

A monthly scorecard against clear KPIs, and a plan that moves budget toward what works.

Cost

How Much Does a Fractional CMO Cost?

The cost depends on scope: how many hours a month you need, whether it is a project or ongoing, how many channels and vendors are involved and the size of your current team.

For comparison, a full time CMO's total compensation often runs well into six figures a year before a dollar goes to media or tools. A fractional engagement is scoped to the leadership you actually need. We quote after the consultation, once we know the scope.

Our goal is a program that pays for itself in better marketing return, not just added oversight. For a deeper look, read the true cost of a fractional CMO.

Ready for Senior Marketing Leadership?

Book a free consultation and find out what a fractional CMO could change in your first 90 days.

FAQ

Fractional CMO FAQs

1. What is a fractional CMO?

A fractional CMO is a part time marketing executive who owns your strategy, budget and results without the cost of a full time Chief Marketing Officer.

2. How is a fractional CMO different from a marketing agency?

An agency carries out campaigns. A fractional CMO decides what the campaigns should be, sets the budget, manages every vendor and reports to leadership. With us you can have both under one roof.

3. How does a fractional CMO work with my team?

Through regular meetings, video calls and shared project tools. Your team keeps day to day execution, and the CMO provides direction, reviews and course correction.

4. When should a business hire a fractional CMO?

When growth stalls, a marketing leader leaves, several vendors have no coordinator, leadership cannot see ROI, or a launch, raise or acquisition is coming.

5. How much does a fractional CMO cost?

It depends on hours, scope, channels and team size. We quote after a free consultation, once we understand what you need.

6. Can a fractional CMO work short term?

Yes. Engagements range from a single project or audit, to interim leadership after a departure, to ongoing strategy.

7. Will the fractional CMO manage our other agencies?

Yes. Vendor oversight is a core part of the role: clear scopes, agreed KPIs and honest reviews of what each partner returns.

8. Can the fractional CMO help us hire?

Yes. We define roles and reporting lines, interview candidates and recommend internal hires or outside partners.

9. Do you offer a free audit?

Our PPC, HubSpot, CRO and Google Business Profile audits are free. A full SEO audit is a paid engagement. The fractional CMO consultation is free.

10. How do I get started?

Book a free consultation with the form on this page or call 877-877-0542. We will discuss your goals, your team and what the first 90 days would look like.

Book Now

Schedule A Free
Consultation Today!

🇺🇸
Thanks for submitting the form.

What Our Clients
Say About Us

01/06
JK Enterprises
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

I went through 3 different online marketing companies for training and marketing services before finding Conversion Pipeline. They built my website and manage my email and online marketing activities. They continually make us money.

01/06
Tulane University School of Public Health & Tropical Medicine
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

Conversion Pipeline greatly improved and expanded our online marketing strategy. We found new locations to promote our school, increased student enrollment and raised our brand awareness among distinguished members of the academic and medical communities.

01/06
Industrial Security Integrators
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

Conversion Pipeline’s redesign of our website and digital marketing services have made a significant, positive impact on our business. We’ve seen impressive increases in website conversions, leads and new business as result of their efforts.

01/06
My Exterminator
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

When I started My Exterminator, I called Conversion Pipeline to build my Google AdWords campaign from the ground up. Competing with much larger, national exterminator companies, I needed to ensure my Ad was found.

01/06
Moss Building & Design
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

We participate in Conversion Pipeline’s SEO Training Program once a year. We saw immediate results once we implemented the strategies we learned in the SEO training program.

01/06
The Law Offices of Robert Weed
  • Branding
  • Remarketing
  • Web Design
  • Web Development

Conversion Pipeline has done much better work for me than large companies with a supposed national reputation. I’m top in Google for bankruptcy lawyers in Northern Virginia and their work has helped me stay there.