In today’s business climate, many companies opt to hire a fractional marketing director (fractional CMO) instead of hiring the role in-house – at least in the short term.
A fractional CMO is an outside marketing consultant, or team, that provides experienced strategic and operational marketing leadership on an as-needed basis. They are usually brought in to help with a specific project or challenge, and work closely with the company’s existing marketing team.
The average salary of a full-time CMO is over $175,000 per year, not to mention the cost of benefits, retirement, and other associated expenses. As a result, some businesses feel that they can’t justify the expense of a full-time CMO.
So, is a fractional chief marketing officer right for your business? If you find yourself in one of these common scenarios, it may be time to give us a call.
- Your CMO has Recently Retired or Left the Company
If your leadership role is suddenly open due to retirement, firing, or resignation – a fractional CMO can instantly fill the position as you plan the next steps.
Finding the right person to fill the role of your business’ Chief Marketing Officer is crucial. Otherwise, you run the risk of making a hasty decision and spending too much money on someone who doesn’t fit your needs.
With a fractional marketing director, you can avoid the stressful and costly process of recruiting and training a new CMO right away. Instead, you can focus on finding the right long-term candidate. All while still having an experienced marketing professional seamlessly fill in the gaps and lead your team to success in the meantime.
- You Need Help Implementing a New Approach or Structure
When preparing to implement a new marketing strategy or structure, it’s often helpful to have an experienced fractional CMO team onboard. They can provide an objective, unbiased view and help you determine the best way to move forward.
Say, for instance, that you’ve decided to use a new channel that your team has never used before. Whether it’s programmatic advertising, chatbots, or anything else – a specialized fractional marketing director can help you launch it successfully. They’ll develop an implementation plan, create the necessary materials, and train your team on how to use the new systems.
Or, if there’s been a shake-up with internal structure and your team needs guidance, a fractional marketing director can help with that too. These situations often don’t require a full-time commitment so a temporary CMO is the perfect option to get you on the right track.
A fractional CMO will come in and help you create a roadmap for success, avoid common pitfalls, and measure the results. With their help, you can take the lead with a more confident and knowledgeable team.
- The CEO is the One Handling All of Your Marketing
If you’re a new or small business, the CEO or owner might be handling most, if not all, of the marketing tasks. Yet, as the company grows, it becomes less and less feasible (and healthy) for one person to wear all the hats.
Hiring a fractional CMO can be a great way to take some of the load off the CEO’s shoulders. They can handle the majority of the marketing leadership responsibilities, while the CEO will still have the final say over direction and approval.
A fractional marketing director can help with anything from crafting strategies, managing the budget, analyzing data, and more. This level of support will free up your time so you can focus on other areas of the business, like product development or raising capital. Not to mention, it will also help to legitimize the company in the eyes of investors, customers, and partners.
If you do have a marketing team, but the CEO is still very involved, a fractional CMO can serve as an intermediary. This allows the marketing team to focus on their work and produce better results. Most importantly, this will give the CEO peace of mind that a qualified individual is overseeing everything.
- You Need a Fresh Perspective
Even the best marketing teams can get stuck in a rut. If you feel like your team has lost its edge, it might be time to bring in a fractional marketing director with a fresh pair of eyes. This can sometimes be necessary whether you have an in-house CMO or not.
An outside perspective from a fractional CMO service can do wonders for a team that’s lost its way. If you are not seeing results from your current marketing efforts, they can come in and assess your situation to see what might be holding you back – whether it’s anything from an outdated website to a lack of focus on the proper channels.
A fractional CMO can help you get to the root of the problem and devise a plan to turn things around. First, they’ll work with you to set new goals and objectives that are realistic and achievable. Then, they’ll help you create a strategy to hit those targets.
This is an important step because it’s easy to get caught up in day-to-day tasks and lose sight of the big picture. A fractional CMO will help you take a step back and make changes that will have a real impact.
The Wrap
As you can see, there are many reasons why you might want to consider hiring a fractional CMO instead of a full-time one.
Fractional CMOs can benefit businesses of any industry or size. They could be the answer if you need help with anything marketing, from developing a new strategy to simply getting a fresh perspective.
To learn more about what a fractional CMO agency can do for you, contact River Avenue Digital today.
We’ve helped countless businesses reach their marketing potential and can do the same for you. Our team specializes in all things digital marketing and is ready to take on any challenge. Let’s chat today!