While no-code website builders and social media marketing have given startups today a solid shot at success, most of them still fail. The reasons can be various, but ineffective or misplaced marketing are two common culprits. Marketing takes time, and if not directed properly, it can be a fruitless yet expensive effort.

A CMO’s guidance can make or break a company’s marketing efforts. Thankfully, with fractional hiring, it’s never been easier to acquire it. Startups can get the expertise needed to level up without splurging out on a full-time contract or waiting for sufficient funding. A fractional CMO can help them research markets, identify marketing opportunities, and drive sales.

In this article, we’ll look into the role of a fractional CMO for startups. You’ll learn how a fractional CMO can transform a fledgling business and get helpful hiring tips. Finally, you’ll discover a platform that makes it simple to connect with fractional CMOs and other high-quality marketing talent.

What Is a Fractional CMO for Startups?

A CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) is a top-level executive and the primary decision-maker for a business marketing department.

When hired on a fractional basis, a CMO works part-time for a company. They’re employed for specific projects or a fixed number of hours but enjoy flexible schedules. They usually work for multiple employers, dedicating a “fraction” of their time to each. A fractional CMO can also step in and work full-time for one company during crunch time.

The table below breaks down the differences between fractional CMOs and those on a traditional, full-time contract:

Fractional employees are similar to freelancers because they’re considered contractors by law and work with multiple companies. Still, freelancers are engaged on a shorter-term, project basis, so their focus is even narrower. Fractional employees are involved with the company continuously and integrated into it, while freelancers provide external and temporary services. The former also have a structured salary, whereas the latter are usually paid by the hour.

Fractional employment is commonly associated with executive positions such as CMO and marketing director, but it’s also prevalent among specialists such as SEOs and content marketers.

Key Roles and Responsibilities of a Fractional CMO for Startups 

The main difference between a fractional CMO working for an established company and a new one is that the latter has to experiment to figure out what works and what doesn’t. Startups don’t have any historical data to go off of, so a fractional CMO’s expertise is the compass they need to start their marketing journey in the right direction.

You can learn more about the specific duties of a fractional CMO in a startup below:

1. Conducting market research: Identifying the target audience and understanding its preferences
2. Developing a go-to-market strategy: Understanding the business goals and devising a marketing strategy that reflects those goals and the research results
3. Establishing the brand: Creating a powerful and unique brand image and ensuring it’s consistent
4. Allocating resources: Helping make the most of the available marketing budget and workforce
5. Measuring performance: Overseeing the implementation of the strategy, tracking progress with KPIs, and coming up with improvement tactics

Key Benefits of a Fractional CMO for Startups 

When hiring a fractional CMO, startups have the following perks to look forward to:

• Cost-effectiveness: As you’re only paying for the time you need, a fractional CMO salary is much more affordable than a full-time one. This means you don’t have to wait to get funding or hire potentially low-quality talent
• Flexibility and scalability: Startups usually don’t require full-time CMO guidance since their operations are still small. Still, marketing trends shift all the time, so businesses need to remain agile. The fractional recruiting model allows them to adapt, letting them scale the CMO’s hours and get the help they need when they need it
• Fast impact: If you hire a fractional CMO early on, you’ll start on the right foot and work more efficiently toward your goals. The CMO can identify opportunities and help you achieve impressive results quickly
• Insider knowledge: Fractional CMOs are versatile and experienced professionals who can help you not only improve your marketing efforts but also stand out with innovative solutions

When To Hire a Fractional CMO for Startups 

For startups, the prime time to hire a fractional CMO is right away. Many businesses wait until they start struggling to seek a CMO’s help, so they end up wasting resources and making everyone’s job more difficult. Hiring a fractional CMO from the get-go gives you a robust foundation for future marketing efforts, seizing opportunities, and avoiding costly mistakes.

This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t hire a fractional CMO later on—their expertise can come in handy in many situations, such as when:

1. You have a skills gap: A fractional CMO can be a temporary stand-in for your absent full-time CMO or a CMO you’re still looking for
2. Results aren’t showing: They can identify problems with your current campaigns and strategy and help sort them out
3. Your team is inefficient: They can reorganize work and introduce you to cutting-edge tools to help your team move faster
4. You lack innovation: They can breathe creativity into your marketing initiatives, helping you stand out from competitors

What To Look For in a Fractional CMO for Startups 

Above all, your fractional CMO should be a well-rounded marketing professional with a long history of guiding startups to success. They should be highly knowledgeable in the following fields:

• Lead generation
• Customer experience
• Storytelling and public relations
• Brand positioning

Here are the main soft skills and traits you should look for in a fractional CMO for startups:

• Strategic thinking: They need to be able to develop complex strategies that consider all relevant factors, including business goals, resources, and trends
• Data-driven approach: They have to be analytical and use the power of data to make informed decisions that yield tangible results
• Resourcefulness: They must be able to work with startups’ limited resources and allocate them to drive maximum ROI
• Communication skills: They need to be able to communicate their ideas effectively to all levels of the organization
• Adaptability: They have to adapt to schedule changes, resolve problems quickly, and keep up with industry trends

To make sure your fractional CMO has all these qualities, you need to conduct multiple interviews, evaluate their skills with assessments such as case studies, and check their references.

Optimizing the Relationship With Your Fractional CMO 

Follow these three golden rules to ensure the collaboration with your fractional CMO is successful:

Challenges of Hiring a Fractional CMO for Startups

The biggest challenge with hiring fractional CMOs is finding a compatible and reliable individual. Sourcing, screening, and interviewing for such a high-impact executive position is resource-intensive.

It’s also risky—if the chosen CMO doesn’t deliver on their promises, you’ll be in a difficult position. They may prove to be a waste of resources and do more damage than good, leaving you with no choice but to conduct another costly recruitment process.

The best measure against these issues is to partner with an on-demand recruiting agency or platform that vets candidates extensively and has quality assurance practices to ensure your satisfaction—like MarketerHire.

Why Is MarketerHire the Best Choice for Hiring a Fractional CMO for Startups?

Instead of losing sleep over the hiring process, delegate it to MarketerHire and let proven experts find you the best fractional CMO for startups.

MarketerHire specializes in marketing-focused matchmaking and does a good job at it, which is evidenced by over 25,000 matches it has made so far. It can connect you with pre-vetted expert marketers who’ve worked for some of today’s best-known brands, such as Uber, PayPal, and Unilever.

All you have to do is meet with your dedicated marketing manager and describe your needs, and MarketerHire’s experts will handle the rest. They use a proprietary MarketerMatch algorithm that combines AI and hand-matching to single out the most suitable candidate from their network of vetted experts. The marketing manager will provide support even after your CMO starts working with you.

The vetting process is elaborate and consists of multiple steps, including in-depth skill assessments, live interviews, and test projects. Only the top 1% end up passing it, so rest assured you’re connecting with the industry’s best.

You get a free trial week with every hire to assess fit. In case you’re not satisfied with your new hire, let your manager know and they’ll provide a replacement for free.

If you’d like to expand your marketing team beyond a fractional CMO, MarketerHire is there for you. It supports a wide range of marketing roles, including marketing analysts and growth marketers. You can engage them for full-time, part-time, or hourly work.

How MarketerHire Works

Many household brands trust MarketerHire with their recruiting needs, including Netflix, Lyft, and Forbes. To join their ranks, sign up and complete the simple onboarding process:

1. Discuss your needs: Describe your startup or project and explain what you need from your fractional CMO
2. Meet your marketer: MarketerHire’s team will tap into its talent pool to identify the most compatible candidate within 48 hours
3. Start collaborating: Your new fractional CMO can begin work within three days

Feel free to scale up, scale down, or cancel whenever you want to since MarketerHire’s contract is short-term and flexible.

Besides recruiting for senior-level and specialist roles, MarketerHire allows you to connect with full-time Expert Assistants. As carefully vetted as all other marketers, the assistants can take over any repetitive tasks your marketing, design, or sales team is dealing with.

Whether you’re hiring a CMO or an assistant, reach out to MarketerHire and conquer your market with the help of its A-list marketing talent.

Other Fractional Hiring Resources To Check Out

Take a look at the other articles we’ve written on fractional hiring in marketing: