Fractional CMO or fractional head of digital?
Someone senior to own your digital, without the full-time hire.
For Australian businesses that have outgrown their digital setup but can't justify a full-time head of digital. I own the roadmap, the vendors, the data and the delivery, inside your business, 4 to 8 days a month.
You'll work with me, AnthonyNot an account manager or a junior. I reply to every enquiry myself.
What is a fractional head of digital?
A senior digital leader who works inside your business part time and owns the digital function: the website and platforms, the agencies and vendors, the data, and delivery. Unlike an adviser, they're accountable for whether it works. Unlike a full-time hire, you only pay for the days you need.
Fractional CMO or head of digital
Most businesses search for a fractional CMO. Check which seat you need before you brief anyone. If it's a CMO or a CTO, I'll say so on the first call.
| Compared on | Fractional CMO | Fractional head of digital | Fractional CTO |
|---|---|---|---|
| Owns | Brand, marketing strategy and demand generation | Websites, platforms, integrations, analytics and the vendors who build them | Engineering architecture, the product codebase and the engineering team |
| Sounds like | “Our marketing isn't producing leads.” | “Our agency relationship has gone sideways.” “Our analytics don't match our CRM.” | “Our product has technical debt and the engineering team is stuck.” |
| Choose it when | Positioning or pipeline is the problem | Software is how you sell and operate, and nobody senior owns it | Software is your product |
What the role owns
Digital strategy, carried through to delivery. Inside your business, at leadership level, on an agreed scope.
Is this right for you?
It's usually right when:
- Nobody owns digital end to end. It's split between marketing, IT, an agency and the GM.
- A big call is coming. A rebuild, a new platform or a new agency, with nobody senior to run it.
- Digital runs the business but isn't the product. Your website, platforms and data matter, but software isn't what you sell.
- There's enough work for someone senior. Just not five days a week.
It's the wrong call when:
- You'd need more than 10 to 12 days a month. A full-time hire is better value, and I'll tell you so.
- You already have full digital and marketing teams. A fractional role would duplicate one you already have.
- You only need hands. If you know exactly what to build, hire a delivery partner or a senior freelancer.
- You're pre-revenue. A retainer is the wrong place for that money.
What it costs
Prices in AUD, ex GST.
How it works
4 to 8 days a month on a monthly retainer, with a 3 month minimum.
- FreeA 20-minute callHow digital runs today, what's stuck, and whether a fractional role is the right fix.
- 2 hoursPaid discoveryAn honest read on your current setup, and a proposed scope and number of days.
- Month oneHeavier by designAccess, documentation, governance and an evidence-based picture of how digital really runs.
- Every quarterA reviewProgress against the agreed deliverables, and the days adjusted to suit.
Case study · Large residential home builder
I've done this job full time. As Head of Digital I owned the platform, the agencies and the data: I ended a three-year stall, ran the tender for the rebuild, cut agency spend by an estimated $250K in my first year and launched eighteen months after the brief. Conversion rate up 75%.
Read the case studyCommon questions
What is a fractional CMO?
A senior marketing leader who runs your marketing part time: positioning, channels, the agency roster and the numbers. If your gap is the website, platforms, vendors and data rather than marketing, you need a fractional head of digital instead. How to tell which one you need.
How much does a fractional head of digital cost in Australia?
$4,500 to $8,000 a month, ex GST, for 4 to 8 days a month depending on scope. It's billed monthly in advance, with a 3 month minimum.
How many days a month do you work?
4 to 8, agreed up front and reviewed every quarter. If the role needs more than 10 to 12 days a month for any length of time, you should probably hire someone full time, and I'll tell you so.
Is there a minimum term?
Three months. Anything shorter is a diagnostic, not a change. After that, the scope and days are reviewed every quarter.
Fractional head of digital or digital strategy consultant?
A digital strategy consultant usually writes the strategy and hands it over. A fractional head of digital writes it and then owns it: the roadmap, the vendors, the budget and the results, inside your business, 4 to 8 days a month. If all you need is the plan, I'll tell you on the first call.
Is a fractional CTO the same thing?
No. A CTO owns engineering: the product codebase, the architecture and the engineering team. I own the digital platforms your business sells and operates through, and the vendors who build them. If software is your product, you need a CTO, and I'll say so on the first call.
Fractional CMO or marketing agency, which do I need?
An agency sells you delivery: campaigns, content, ads and builds. A fractional leader decides what should be delivered and holds the agency to it. Plenty of businesses need both, with one senior person briefing and checking the agency's work.
Do you work outside Melbourne?
Yes. I'm based in Melbourne, so Melbourne clients get in-person time for leadership meetings and vendor workshops. Everything else runs remotely, the same way, for clients anywhere in Australia or New Zealand.
Is digital everyone's job, and nobody's?
Tell me how digital runs in your business today on a 20-minute call. I'll tell you honestly whether a fractional head of digital would fix it, or what would. No pitch, no obligation.
Call me on 0466 977 253 or send me a message. I answer both myself.