How much does a fractional marketing director or CMO cost?
Don’t you hate it when the answer is ‘it depends’? Me too. Let’s be frank and cut to the chase then. You can expect to pay £500-£800 per day in the UK (roughly equivalent to $600-1000 per day in the US) for a fractional marketing leader to support your business.
Now, back to ‘it depends’. Naturally, the more experience you need, or the higher degree of sought-after technical expertise required puts you at the higher end of the scale. With the experience though comes the added benefit of not wasting time (knowing what works, what doesn’t, and knowing the most effective way to drive results quickly) which means a more expensive option could actually cost you less in the long run.
Marketing Director or CMO, what’s the difference?
Marketing is one of those industries with back-to-front and often obfuscated job titles (an entry level marketing professional is typically a ‘marketing executive’). What’s more, the titles of director/VP//Head-of/CMO can seem typically interchangeable and often vary more by company type and size, than experience and responsibilities.
Firstly, let’s focus on those leadership roles. It’s worth noting that traditionally in B2B marketing, especially in larger organisations, marketing can be very functionally driven. Typically, when we say ‘marketing director/VP’, we’re referring to ‘Field Marketing’ – somebody that is responsible for designing and executing outbound marketing programmes to drive demand. These roles usually manage budgets and should be responsible for outcomes, but are very unlikely to have broader experience of branding, digital, product, pricing, or any of the other more specialised and adjacent marketing disciplines.
This means that for small to mid-sized businesses that are looking for broad marketing support, you may miss some of the breadth of experience that helps you get the most from your investment.
Heads of marketing and CMOs are more closely aligned; the CMO title being largely reserved for organisations that put marketing more squarely at the executive table. That means a ‘head of marketing’ will likely have experience in outbound field, digital, brand, social, advertising, content, and perhaps influencer marketing and have a broad skill set. A true CMO brings the added advantage of a focus on product and pricing, working at an executive level with P&L responsibility, working cross-functionally and with boards of directors on strategic business plans and investments, and the longer-term go-to-market direction of the company.
The level of experience you need to support your business will therefore largely depend on what you need the person to do, and what in-house skills you already possess. Remember though, as you consider fractional marketing support, there is the opportunity to bring in a much more experienced, senior marketer on an interim or part-time basis that you otherwise may not be able to afford to recruit on a full-time or permanent basis.
Does fractional time equal fractional value?
Think about the time you personally spend focused on actual productive work during the course of a week. Subtract all the admin, the internal meetings and calls, managing team members and building networks with colleagues (internally and externally).
According to a survey of more than 18,000 desk workers by Slack, a third of the average UK workers’ day is lost to performative tasks (things that look productive but don’t contribute to the company’s goals).
Imagine bringing in a new employee that can bypass the admin and the need to build collegial relationships while looking busy doing it, and instead they just focus on the outcomes that matter.
How much support do I need?
Another survey from vouchercloud found that the average UK worker is productive for just 2 hours and 53 minutes per day. That’s a useful yardstick to judge the level of support that is required for a fractional marketing leader. Consider 8-16 hours per week (1-2 days) is a good balance between having sufficient time to get the job done, and not being drawn into day-to-day activities that can be a distraction. Certainly, once you get over 50% of a full-time equivalent (FTE), it’s likely you will see diminishing returns, even just because it creates more hours in the day for meetings that may or may not be a productive use of time.
Also consider if you need a thinker, a do-er, or both. The more that execution of marketing activities is needed, the time quotient will need to be increased accordingly. Again, the balance to be sought is typically aided by someone that can do both, but also identify when there are quicker or more cost-effective ways to get the job done with 3rd-party or in-house support based on experience.
Where do I start with a fractional marketing leader?
We’ve all heard the stereotypes of the ‘boring’ accountant Christmas parties, the ‘nerdy’ IT department that doesn’t like human interactions, or the long-lunches of the champagne-quaffing PR teams, and we certainly don’t want to add to any stereotypes. But in our 25+ years of experience, it’s safe to say the majority of marketing types are open, curious, friendly types, and the best place to start is with a conversation. Get in touch with (more than one) agency and talk about what you want to achieve and the resources you have available. Ask about relevant experience and most importantly, find a good fit culturally with your organisation so the marketing support you need can start adding value from day one.
If you have any questions about this article or would like to talk to someone about your marketing requirements, don’t hesitate to get in touch!to
