Fractional Growth Lead: A Fractional CMO Who Ships, Not Just Advises
You don’t need another agency invoice for work nobody can tie back to revenue. You need someone senior enough to know which three things matter this quarter, and hands-on enough to make sure they get done. That’s what a Fractional Growth Lead engagement is.
On this page
The short version
- Part-time senior marketing leadership for a fraction of the cost of a full-time CMO.
- Strategy and hands-on execution: I get into the accounts, the site and the campaign builds when that’s what’s needed.
- One point of accountability across paid, SEO, email and content.
- Built for e-commerce and music industry brands already doing meaningful revenue.
- From £2,500 a month, with no long-term lock-in.
What “fractional” actually means here
Most businesses that look for a fractional CMO are stuck in one of two places: too big for founder-led marketing to keep working, and too small to justify a £70k+ full-time hire. A fractional growth lead fills that gap, but only if the person in the role actually does the job, rather than turning up to a monthly call with a slide deck.
The difference: unlike most fractional arrangements, I don’t just sit in strategy meetings. I plug in as your marketing leadership, part-time, and get hands-on where it counts.
What you get every month
- A standing view of performance. What’s working, what isn’t and what to do about it, reviewed against revenue, not vanity metrics.
- Direct oversight of your channels. Paid, SEO, email and content, so nothing drifts without anyone noticing.
- Hands-on execution capacity. Work gets done where it’s needed, not just recommended for someone else to build.
- A single point of accountability. No more chasing three freelancers or an account manager who’s never seen your dashboard.
Fractional growth lead vs agency retainer
Agencies are built to sell hours and channels. The incentive is to keep every channel running, because that’s what the retainer covers, whether or not it’s the best use of your budget this month. A fractional growth lead has the opposite incentive: to tell you the truth about what’s working, including “we should turn this off”, even when that means less billable work.
| Agency retainer | Fractional Growth Lead | |
|---|---|---|
| Paid for | Hours and channels | Judgement first, execution second |
| Incentive | Keep every channel running | Put budget where it earns most |
| Reporting | Channel metrics | Revenue, margin and acquisition cost |
| Access | An account manager | Direct access to me |
| Commitment | Often a fixed term | No long-term lock-in |
Who this is for
This works best for e-commerce and music industry brands already doing meaningful revenue, where marketing has outgrown ad-hoc management but a full-time senior hire isn’t the right next step yet.
Not a fit: if you’re pre-revenue or still validating the offer, start with a Growth Audit instead. And if you just need someone to “run the ads”, a specialist freelancer or media-buying agency will serve you better and cost less.
How we’d start
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Scoping call | What’s actually happening in the business right now, not just the marketing |
| 2. 30-day priority list | The three things that matter most, in order, before anything else gets touched |
| 3. Monthly cadence | Reporting against revenue, not impressions, with direct access to me rather than an account manager |
What it costs
Fractional Growth Lead engagements start from £2,500 a month, scoped to your team size, channel mix and how much hands-on delivery you need compared with the in-house capacity you already have.
| Option | Price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Growth Audit | From £1,500 | A fixed-price, lower-commitment way to see how this way of working plays out |
| Growth Roadmap | From £4,000 | A prioritised 6–12 month plan with numbers attached |
| Fractional Growth Lead | From £2,500/month | Ongoing senior leadership and hands-on delivery |
Fractional growth lead FAQs
How is this different from hiring a marketing manager?
A marketing manager executes a strategy someone else sets. A fractional growth lead sets the strategy and has the seniority to know when it’s wrong, at a fraction of the cost of a full-time senior hire and without the recruitment risk.
Do you replace my existing team or agencies?
Not usually. Most engagements direct and improve what’s already in place, whether that’s your in-house team, freelancers or an agency, rather than replacing it.
What if it’s not working after a few months?
There’s no long-term lock-in. If the engagement isn’t earning its keep, we end it. That’s consistent with the diagnostic-first approach it’s built on.
How do you measure success?
Against the numbers that matter to your business, such as revenue, contribution margin and customer acquisition cost, agreed upfront rather than channel-level vanity metrics.
Do you write content or build custom features?
No. I set the direction, briefs and priorities and work hands-on in your ad, analytics, email and site platforms. Copywriting, photography and custom development stay with your team or specialists.
Ready to talk?
Book a short scoping call to talk through where your marketing is now and whether a fractional growth lead is the right next step.