Is It Time to Hire a Fractional CMO? 7 Signs Your Business Has Outgrown Its Marketing Setup

Most growing businesses don’t need a full-time Chief Marketing Officer.

But many absolutely need marketing leadership.

There’s a big difference.

If your revenue has plateaued, your agencies are busy but results feel unclear, or you’re making marketing decisions reactively, you may not have an execution problem.

You may have a leadership gap.

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7 Signs You’ve Outgrown Your Current Marketing Setup

Revenue Has Plateaued

You’re still spending.
You’re still active.
But growth has slowed or stalled.

That’s usually a structural issue,  not a traffic issue.

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You Have Agencies, But No Clear Direction

Agencies execute what they’re told.

If no one internally owns the strategy, campaigns become fragmented.

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You Don’t Fully Trust the Reporting

You receive dashboards.
But you’re unsure what’s truly driving profit.

That’s a leadership and attribution issue.

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Marketing Decisions Are Reactive

Competitor launched something?
Increase spend.

Sales slow?
Try a new channel.

Without a framework, marketing becomes emotional.

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Paid Media Is Expensive. But You’re Afraid to Reduce It

If performance dips the moment you pull spend, your foundations are weak.

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Your Founder Is Still the Marketing Decision-Maker

Founder-led marketing works early on.

At scale, it becomes a bottleneck.

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You’re Spending More. But Margins Aren’t Improving

Growth without margin is just busyness.

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Full-Time CMO vs Fractional CMO (Cost Reality)

A full-time CMO in the UK typically costs:

• £100k–£160k salary

• Pension

• Bonus

• Benefits

A fractional CMO delivers similar strategic impact at a fraction of that cost, with flexibility and no long-term employment risk.

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Who a Fractional CMO Is NOT For

It’s not right if:

• You’re pre-revenue

• You need someone to “run your social media”

• You’re not ready for a strategic challenge

• You want someone to agree with every decision

Leadership means accountability.

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The Real Question

The question isn’t:

“Do I need more marketing?”

It’s:

“Do I need better direction?”

If your business is turning over £1m–£10m and growth feels harder than it should, it may be time to bring senior marketing leadership into the room.