A friend recently asked me, “How is being a fractional CMO, managing a team of freelancers, different to being an agency with staff? Why don’t you want to build an agency?”
At first glance, it’s a fair question. After all, both roles involve leading a team of marketers to help a businesses grow through marketing. And if I built up an agency then one day I could sell it. But here’s the thing - there’s a world of difference between the two. The structure, incentives, and outcomes for the client are completely different. And those differences matter - especially if you’re trying to figure out which one is the right fit for your business.
In this post, I'll explain the pros and cons of each approach, so you can decide what kind of support your business really needs.
When marketing feels like a mystery and time is tight, it’s easy to default to the idea of outsourcing it all to an agency. Agencies can sound like a dream - experts on tap, regular reports, and you don’t have to hire anyone.
But this mindset can create more problems than it solves. You might find yourself paying a retainer for a strategy you don’t understand, activities that don’t quite feel aligned with your goals, and results you can’t measure.
And here’s the kicker: most agencies are incentivised to keep your marketing in their hands, not help you bring it in-house. It’s not that agencies are out to get you - it’s just that their business model depends on you outsourcing more, not less.
A fractional CMO is a part-time, strategic marketing leader who works within your business, not outside it. They're not there to sell you a service or deliver marketing assets - they’re there to help you build a marketing function that works.
They’ll lead your marketing strategy, align it with your business goals, and help you build and manage your internal team as well as any external marketing suppliers. They’ll guide decisions on whether to outsource or bring work in-house - and who the best supplier is for the job, without bias.
They’re not your graphic designer, your copywriter, or a glorified project manager. They are your strategic partner - and they’re invested in your business like an internal leader would be.
That's not to say that marketing agencies don't have value. A good agency can transform a business's growth trajectory. Agencies give you access to a wide range of skills under one roof - from SEO to PPC, content to design - which can be hard to build in-house. They’re also highly scalable, meaning you can increase or decrease the level of support as your needs change. And if you’ve got a campaign ready to go, they’re often able to hit the ground running quickly.
But there are downsides too. Because agencies aren’t part of your day-to-day business, they can sometimes feel detached from your goals and culture. Their strategies can be a bit templated, especially if they’re used to churning out similar plans for lots of different clients. And, understandably, they’ll often prioritise the services their team can deliver, even if that’s not the best route for your business. Since you’re one of many clients, you might also find their attention and urgency waxes and wanes depending on their other commitments.
Working with a fractional CMO comes with significant advantages. Because they’re embedded in your business, the strategy they develop is highly tailored to your goals and challenges. They’ll recommend suppliers without bias, because they’re not tied to any particular delivery team. Their focus is always on building long-term ROI and internal capability. They can also mentor junior marketing staff or manage recruitment to help you grow your in-house function.
That said, they can come with a higher daily rate than agency packages, especially for small businesses. You may still need to bring in external specialists to handle specific tasks, and they do require more collaboration and involvement from you and your team. But if you’re serious about taking ownership of your marketing strategy, that collaboration is often a strength, not a drawback.
A marketing agency might be the best option if you already have a solid strategy and just need help executing it. Whenever I hear a business owner say, "I know what I need to do, I just need someone to do it..." then I know they'd be better off with an agency. If you're not aiming to grow the business as much as maintain the size you're at, or you need additional hands for a short-term push, then an agency can be a flexible and efficient solution.
On the other hand, if you don’t yet have a clear marketing strategy - or you’re not fully confident in the one you have - then a fractional CMO could be a better fit. They’re ideal if you want to build or grow an internal team and need someone to guide that process. They’re also a great option if you want someone to take accountability for your marketing performance and connect marketing directly back to sales results.
This isn’t a binary choice. In fact, some of the best marketing setups combine the strengths of both approaches. You might have a fractional CMO leading your strategy and overseeing implementation, while outsourcing specialist tasks to a specialist agency and a team of freelancers.
This gives you strategic clarity and leadership, along with the delivery capacity and niche skills of external partners. It’s a model that brings together the best of both worlds: deep understanding of your business and flexibility in delivery, all guided by someone focused on long-term results - not just next month’s vanity metrics.
Marketing shouldn’t feel like a gamble. Whether you work with a fractional CMO, an agency, or a bit of both, the most important thing is that the decision is strategic - not reactive.
If you’re not sure which route is right for you, let’s talk it through. If I think you'd be better off with an agency instead of a fractional CMO then I'll tell you! Book a clarity call with me and I’ll help you figure it out.