A fractional CMO and an outsourced marketing agency offer similar benefits. Each can inject a fresh perspective, fulfil specialist needs that you can’t meet in-house, and give additional marketing support when you’re ready to ramp up. But the differences between them are like hiring a business consultant (the ‘thinkers’) versus an operating team (the ‘doers’). 

To give you a real example, we’ve been providing both services to a customer recently. Our senior strategist was brought on as a fractional CMO to support with a business-wide strategic repositioning and the development of a new product.

Then, the team realised they needed more hands-on support too. So, our outsourced marketing team tagged in to plan and deliver sector-specific marketing campaigns, as well as to provide extra agile resource. 

So, we promise we aren’t biased either way! In this blog, we’ll outline the value of both, and when you should consider a fractional CMO or an outsourced marketing package.

What is a fractional CMO? 

A fractional CMO is a freelance marketing expert. Fractional CMO responsibilities include providing advice and training, shaping your marketing strategy, creating operational processes, and optimising your marketing investment. Essentially, they are part-time marketing leaders who will set up a strong infrastructure for your marketing function. 

What is outsourced marketing? 

Outsourced marketing agencies are external organisations that will perform all of your marketing. This differs from an agency that provides a specific service, such as an SEO agency or social media agency. Therefore, outsourced marketing packages will often include a wider range of marketing services. 

Learn everything you need to know about outsourced marketing

When you need a fractional CMO

Fractional CMO services are often used by smaller companies, scaling companies, or companies with fluctuating marketing needs. This option offers the leadership skills to help you set up your marketing function, and the vision to help you build a strategy. All at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire. However, most CMOs are focused on consultancy, not delivery.  

Here are some scenarios where a CMO provides the most value: 

No one internal owns the marketing strategy  

A CMO will be a huge help if you need to define business goals, your proposition, or your strategy. They’ll lead you to answer these big questions and steer you away from the ‘random acts of marketing’ trap. 

You want to optimise the business’s marketing spend 

Maybe your marketing operations aren’t efficient, or you want to improve ROI.  

A CMO is well-positioned to direct your resources. A CMO knows where best to invest to improve the brand and your commercial return on marketing. Plus, they know how a marketing department should run to make the most of your money. 

You don’t have the budget for full-time hires 

If you need to drive growth, but don’t have the budget for an experienced marketing director, a fractional CMO is a great choice. You’ll get c-suite level skills and thinking, but at a much lower cost.  

You may also only need temporary support. For example, if you have a business transformation project, new strategy launch, or a large-scale campaign on the horizon. A fractional CMO can provide the extra support you need to manage your in-house marketing team and keep them aligned with the rest of the business.

Compare the costs of outsourcing marketing with hiring in-house using this calculator

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You already have the capacity to deliver 

As mentioned, you’ll only reap the benefits of a fractional CMO if you can continue marketing efforts after they’re gone. In other words, a CMO brings the most value in these three scenarios: 

1. You already have a team for them to lead  
2. They are helping you to build a team and prepare the department to keep running after they transition out 
3. They come with a small team who can action their strategy 

If you don’t have a full-time marketing function, or don’t have the budget to hire a small team, then a consultancy-based CMO may not be the right choice.

When you need an outsourced agency 

An outsourced marketing package is suitable for a range of businesses, but most often it’s scaleups who see the biggest benefits. For them, outsourced marketing packages are a cost-effective alternative to hiring a full department. This option helps scaleups to implement a marketing strategy to help them reach the next stage of their growth. Plus, an outsourced agency can help put in place a consistent infrastructure and processes to support marketing activity long term. 

You want a team who can deliver

Sometimes, organisations hire a fractional CMO expecting a multi-skilled delivery unit. This isn’t really what this role is designed to do. A CMO will have diverse expertise in all areas of marketing, but from the perspective of an advisor, not a ‘doer’. This is similar to the common mistake of hiring a marketing manager and expecting them to do the work of a social media manager, content writer, designer and more.

What would be better in this scenario is an outsourced marketing agency. They offer multi-disciplined teams, ideally with a strategy expert in the mix.

You need additional resource support

If you’ve got a project coming up that needs more resource than you have to offer, an outsourced marketing team can pick up the slack. Either they can share responsibilities with your existing team, or you can give them control over a special project, while your usual team looks after the everyday operations.

This can be particularly useful if your project requires knowledge or skills that you don’t currently have in-house. For example, if you’re targeting a new region or industry, or want to start running paid ads for the first time.

You don’t have the budget to hire a full-time team

If you don’t have the budget to hire a marketing department yet, you may have considered getting a fractional CMO instead. But, once they’re gone you’ll be back to square one. Without a team to take over, many of the changes they make will likely lose momentum.

Instead, you can get an outsourced marketing package for the same monthly cost as a CMO. This way, you can kickstart your marketing, and keep it moving consistently, until you’re ready to hire in-house.

The best of both worlds

Do you want strategic direction, with execution capabilities? Do you need specialised skills and knowledge for an upcoming campaign? Is your business growing, but your budget hasn’t quite caught up yet?

A fractional CMO that comes with a small team may be your perfect solution. Combining strategic insight and leadership with reliable delivery skills helps you initiate marketing, supplement resource and upskill your team, and give you confidence as your business changes direction.

Other things to consider

• Make sure your fractional CMO introduces a long-term strategy and doesn’t just focus on short-term wins.
• Check your CMO’s experience. Do they have senior, c-suite level insight or have they mostly worked in junior positions?
• Beware of hidden costs. Some fractional CMOs outsource work to other agencies which can quickly add up.
• Equally, remember that costs like ad payments, web development and branded merch will be additional in both scenarios.
• Mentorship is another great service that either a fractional CMO or an outsourced agency can provide to upskill your team.

Want to explore outsourced marketing services?

This free guide gives you an insight into what outsourced marketing at EV looks like, including services, monthly packages, costs and more.

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