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SLDMarketing

Fractional CMO

A fractional CMO for growing UK businesses

Chief marketing officer thinking, bought by the day. You get the strategy, the judgement and the accountability without a six figure hire.

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The senior head, part time.

Sarah Ward, fractional CMO for UK SMEs

What a fractional CMO actually is

A fractional CMO is a senior marketing leader who works with you part time, usually a few days a month, on a rolling arrangement. Same seniority as a chief marketing officer, a fraction of the cost and none of the recruitment risk.

In the UK you will hear fractional CMO, fractional marketing director and interim marketing director used almost interchangeably. The job is the same one: owning the direction of marketing and being answerable for what it delivers.

I am Sarah Ward, a Chartered Marketer with more than twenty years across retail, manufacturing, property and professional services. You get me on the work, not an account manager relaying it.

From £500 per day

Strategic lead days, from one day a month up to around five. Three is typical.

See how I price everything

What does a fractional CMO cost?

Fractional CMO days start at £500. You buy the number of days the plan justifies, on a rolling arrangement, so the monthly figure is simply the day rate times the days.

One day a month

From £500 per month

Enough to keep a plan on track, review the numbers and hold the team to the priorities already agreed.

Three days a month

From £1,500 per month

The typical commitment. Direction, team leadership, agency oversight and proper board level reporting.

Five days a month

From £2,500 per month

For businesses with more moving parts, a bigger budget to steer or a launch running alongside business as usual.

Compare that with a full time chief marketing officer, where UK salaries for SMEs typically run well into six figures once national insurance, pension and recruitment costs are counted. There is no minimum engagement and travel expenses are charged separately.

Need the direction set before you commit to ongoing days? A marketing audit starts at £950 and a marketing strategy at £1,250. Full pricing sits on the cost page.

What I own as your fractional CMO

  • Marketing strategy

    One plan, grounded in what your customers actually buy on, that everything else is measured against.

  • Commercial accountability

    Marketing tied to pipeline and revenue, reported in language the board already uses.

  • Team leadership

    Direction and coaching for your marketing people, so they grow rather than just cope.

  • Agency and supplier oversight

    Briefing, challenging and reviewing the partners you pay, so the spend earns its place.

  • Budget ownership

    A budget mapped to the plan, with honest calls about what to stop funding.

  • Positioning and messaging

    A clear reason to choose you, used consistently by marketing and sales.

★★★★★

We used Sarah Ward for some extensive deep diving on a marketing plan. She was professional and very thorough. I would recommend for sure.
Jo Williams, Home Partnership

You might also want

Fractional Marketing Director

The same senior support, described the way most UK SMEs ask for it.

Marketing strategy

Set the direction first, then decide how much ongoing leadership you need.

What it costs

How I price audits, strategy and ongoing days, and what shapes the number.

Common questions

Wondering whether a fractional CMO is the right step?

Tell me what your marketing looks like now and I will say honestly how many days a month would move it, or whether you need something smaller first.

Book a discovery call