Fractional vs. Full-Time: How to Know Which Marketing Leader You Need

You need someone who can own the strategy, make decisions, align your team, and connect marketing to revenue. You're done with the patchwork approach.

Now you're facing a new question: Should you hire a full-time VP Marketing/CMO, or bring in a Fractional Head of Marketing?

Both can work. Both have trade-offs. And the wrong choice is expensive–either because you're paying for more than you need, or because you're not getting enough leadership to move the needle.

Here's how to think through the decision.

The Core Question: How Much Leadership Do You Actually Need?

Most founders frame this as: "Can we afford a full-time leader?"

But that's the wrong question.

The right question is: "How much strategic marketing leadership do we need right now to achieve our goals?"

Because here's the thing: At different stages of growth, you need different amounts of leadership.

• Early stage: You need someone to build the foundation–ICP, positioning, strategy, first campaigns. That's a 10-15 hour/week job.

• Growth stage: You need someone leading ongoing strategy, managing a small team, implementing a martech stack, optimizing channels. That's a 20-30 hour/week job.

• Scale stage: You need someone in leadership meetings daily, managing a team of 5+ marketers, making real-time strategic pivots. That's a full-time job.

If you're in the first or second category and you hire full-time, you're likely paying for capacity you don't need yet. If you're in the third category and you hire fractional, you won't get enough leadership to keep up.

The key is matching the amount of leadership to your actual needs.

When Fractional Makes Sense

Fractional marketing leadership is the right choice if you're in any of these situations:

Scenario #1: You're Building the Foundation

Your situation:

• Revenue: $3M-$15M

• Marketing team: 0-2 junior people, or outsourced execution

• Current state: Patchwork marketing with no clear strategy

• What you need: Someone to define ICP, positioning, strategy, and set up infrastructure

Why fractional works: You don't need someone full-time to build the foundation. You need 10-15 hours per week of strategic work over 3-6 months to:

• Audit what's working and what's not

• Define ICP and personas

• Build positioning and messaging

• Create a marketing roadmap

• Set up processes, metrics, and accountability

Once the foundation is built, you can decide: Do we need this person to stay fractional? Transition to full-time? Or hand off to a junior leader?

Investment: $8K-$10K/month
Duration: 3-6 months typically, with option to extend

Scenario #2: You're Not Ready to Commit Full-Time

Your situation:

• You know you need marketing leadership, but you're not 100% sure what "good" looks like yet

• You've had bad experiences with full-time hires in the past

• You want to test before committing to a $200K+ full-time salary

Why fractional works: Fractional gives you flexibility. You can:

• Test the relationship before committing long-term

• Adjust scope as your needs evolve

• End the engagement if it's not the right fit (without the cost and complexity of terminating a full-time employee)

Think of it like dating before getting married. You're not committing forever; you're figuring out what works.

Scenario #3: You Need Strategic Leadership, Not Daily Execution

Your situation:

• You already have a marketing coordinator or small team handling execution

• What you're missing is someone to set strategy, make decisions, and coach your team

• You don't need someone in the office every day; you need strategic direction

Why fractional works: A fractional leader can:

• Own the strategy and roadmap

• Run weekly or bi-weekly check-ins with your team

• Review campaigns and make optimization decisions

• Manage agencies or vendors

• Coach junior marketers on how to think strategically

Your team handles the day-to-day execution. The fractional leader provides the strategic direction they need to be effective.

This is actually the most common scenario where fractional makes sense.

Scenario #4: You're Between $5M-$25M and Growing

Your situation:

• You're past the startup phase but not yet at scale

• Marketing budget: $75K-$300K annually

• You're growing but not fast enough to justify a full-time CMO yet

Why fractional works: At this stage, you need strategic leadership more than you need someone sitting in meetings all day. A fractional leader working 15-20 hours/week can:

• Own the strategy

• Optimize your spend

• Build the systems and processes you'll need as you scale

• Prepare you for a full-time hire when the time is right

You're not paying for a full-time salary when 60% of that time would be spent on meetings and admin work that don't move the needle yet.

When Full-Time Makes Sense

Full-time marketing leadership is the right choice if you're in any of these situations:

Scenario #1: You're at Scale

Your situation:

• Revenue: $35M+

• Marketing team: 5+ people

• Marketing budget: $500K+

• Current state: Marketing is mission-critical to growth

Why full-time works: At this scale, you need someone who:

• Is in leadership meetings daily

• Can make real-time strategic decisions

• Manages a full marketing team

• Owns the P&L for marketing

• Represents marketing in board meetings

Fractional doesn't give you enough bandwidth or integration at this level.

Scenario #2: Your Market Is Intensely Competitive

Your situation:

• You're in a crowded, fast-moving market where positioning and messaging change frequently

• Your competitors are heavily investing in marketing

• Speed matters–you need someone who can pivot quickly

Why full-time works: In highly competitive markets, you can't afford to have your marketing leader part-time. You need someone who's fully immersed in the market, watching competitors, adjusting strategy in real-time.

Scenario #3: You Need to Build a Team from Scratch

Your situation:

• You're ready to build an internal marketing team (hiring 3-5 people over the next 12 months)

• You need someone to own recruiting, onboarding, and team development

Why full-time works: Building a team is time-intensive. You need someone who can:

• Define roles and hire the right people

• Onboard and train new team members

• Build team culture and processes

• Manage performance

This is hard to do at 15 hours/week.

Scenario #4: Marketing Leadership Is Part of Your Executive Team

Your situation:

• Marketing decisions need to be made in real-time alongside product, sales, and finance decisions

• You need marketing represented in every leadership conversation

Why full-time works: If marketing is core to your business strategy (not just a support function), you need someone full-time in the room.

The Hybrid Approach: Start Fractional, Transition to Full-Time

Here's what I recommend for most companies in the $5M-$25M range:

Phase 1: Fractional (Months 1-6)

• Bring in a fractional leader to build the foundation

• Define ICP, positioning, strategy, infrastructure

• Optimize existing spend and prove ROI

Phase 2: Assess (Month 6)

• How much has marketing matured?

• Are we ready to scale the team?

• Do we need full-time leadership now, or can we continue fractional?

Phase 3: Decision

• Option A: Transition the fractional leader to full-time (if they're interested and the fit is strong)

• Option B: Use the fractional leader to help recruit and onboard a full-time VP of Marketing

• Option C: Continue fractional for another 6-12 months

This approach lets you:

• Move quickly (fractional leaders can start in days, not months)

• Build the foundation without over-committing

• Make an informed decision about full-time when you're ready

The Investment Comparison

Let's talk numbers.

Fractional Marketing Leadership:

• Cost: $8K-$10K/month ($96K-$120K annually)

• Time commitment: 10-20 hours/week

• Start time: Days to weeks

• Flexibility: Can scale up, down, or end engagement

• Best for: $3M-$25M companies building or optimizing marketing

Full-Time VP Marketing:

• Cost: $150K-$250K salary + 20-30% benefits + equity ($200K-$325K total comp)

• Time commitment: 40+ hours/week

• Start time: 2-4 months (recruiting + onboarding)

• Flexibility: High commitment, harder to change

• Best for: $25M+ companies with established marketing functions

The math: Fractional costs 35-50% of what full-time costs. If you only need 15-20 hours/week of strategic leadership right now, fractional is the efficient choice.

Common Objections (And Real Answers)

"Won't a fractional person be less committed?"

A good fractional leader is deeply committed to your success; their reputation depends on it. They're not "phoning it in." They're focused, strategic, and accountable.

The difference is time, not commitment.

"What if we grow fast and need more than fractional?"

Great problem to have. You can:

• Increase their hours (many fractional leaders can flex up to 30 hours/week)

• Transition them to full-time

• Bring in a full-time leader and have the fractional leader help with the transition

Fractional doesn't lock you in; it gives you options.

"Will our team take them seriously if they're not full-time?"

If you position them as your Head of Marketing (which they are), your team will respect them. It's about how you frame it, not how many hours they work.

The Bottom Line

Most companies in the $3M-$25M range don't need a full-time CMO yet. They need strategic marketing leadership, and fractional gives you that at a fraction of the cost.

Full-time makes sense when you're at scale, managing a large team, or in a hyper-competitive market. But if you're still building the foundation, fractional is the smarter choice.

And here's the best part: Fractional doesn't prevent you from going full-time later. It actually prepares you for it.

What to Do Next

If you're trying to decide between fractional and full-time, let's have a conversation. I can help you figure out what's right for your stage, your goals, and your budget.