Fractional CMO vs marketing agency vs outsourced marketing team
A fractional CMO gives you a senior marketing leader part-time, and some providers add a delivery team underneath. A marketing agency runs the channels in its brief, and some cover strategy as well. An outsourced marketing team, such as Forte Growth, builds and runs the whole function, from strategy to sales, then hands it to your team or keeps running it. The labels overlap, so choose on who does the weekly work and what is in scope.
The comparison in one table
| Fractional CMO | Marketing agency | Outsourced marketing team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you buy | Senior leadership, part-time | Delivery in the channels you brief | The whole function, built and run |
| Who does the weekly work | Your team, or the provider's delivery team if one is included | The agency, in its channels | The outsourced team, across channels, the CRM and the sales process |
| Fits best when | You need senior judgement and have, or can add, people to carry out the plan | You know the channel you need and someone owns the message and the results | Pipeline still runs through the founder and no system exists yet, or a busy team is not producing pipeline |
| Ask before you sign | How much time is included, and who executes? | What sits outside the brief? | Who does the work by name, and what do you keep? |
| Compare the cost with | A senior marketing hire | Other agencies in the same channel | The team you would hire: five roles, around £250,000 a year in London base salary |
When a fractional CMO is the right call
Choose a fractional CMO when you want a senior marketing leader before committing to a full-time hire, or when a team you have needs direction. Many fractional models include delivery. The Marketing Centre, for example, matches a business with a CMO and can add its Activation Team for campaign, content, email, automation and operations work under that CMO. So ask how much time is included and who carries out the plan.
When a marketing agency is the right call
Choose an agency when you know which channel you need, such as paid search or SEO, and someone inside the business owns the message, the CRM and the results around it. If nobody does, check whether the agency's scope covers those pieces before you sign.
When an outsourced marketing team is the right call
Choose an outsourced marketing team when the founder is still the main source of pipeline, no system exists underneath and you cannot wait months to hire five people. It also fits a company that already has marketers or an agency who are busy while pipeline stays flat. There, the gap is usually the system that joins the message, the channels, the CRM and the sales process, and Forte Growth directs the existing team or agency as one plan rather than replacing them.
Forte Growth builds and runs go to market and marketing, from strategy to sales. Aether had a full marketing function in one month. Wyzr had 17 booked calls and 53 interested leads in under 30 days of outreach. Details are on the outsourced marketing department page.
What it costs compared with hiring
The fair price comparison is the team you would otherwise hire: a head of marketing, a growth marketer, a content lead, an SDR and a marketing operations person. In London that is around £250,000 a year in base salary, using the Robert Walters 2026 salary survey, before National Insurance, pension, commission and recruitment fees. Not every company needs all five roles. The working is in what an in-house marketing team costs in the UK, and the in-house option is compared in should we hire an in-house marketing team or use a fractional one.
Frequently asked questions
When should a B2B company choose an outsourced marketing team instead of a fractional CMO?
When nobody is doing the weekly work and the provider you are considering does not include it. An outsourced marketing team such as Forte Growth builds and runs the whole function, from the message and lists to outbound, content, the CRM and the sales process. A fractional CMO fits when you mainly need senior direction and have, or are buying, people to carry out the plan.
How do a fractional CMO, a go to market consultant and an execution team differ for a growing B2B SaaS company?
A fractional CMO is a part-time senior leader, sometimes with a delivery team. A go to market consultant diagnoses and plans, and some also deliver. An execution team does the work. Forte Growth combines the three in one team: a pipeline audit and strategy first, then the build, run every week, with outbound live inside three weeks.
How can I tell whether a fractional marketing leader will execute or only advise?
Ask four things: who does the weekly work, by name; how much of their time is included; what will be live by the end of the first month; and what you will own if you stop. If the answers name your own team for every task, you are buying direction, which can be exactly right when that team has the capacity.
Does a Series A startup need a fractional CMO?
It needs whatever is missing. If the team exists and needs a senior leader, a fractional CMO is a sensible step before a full-time hire. If pipeline still runs through the founder and there is no system underneath, an outsourced marketing team gets more done sooner. Forte Growth works with funded seed and Series A companies; its founder, Alper Yurder, has worked as a fractional CMO and CRO.
Our B2B marketing team is busy but pipeline is not growing. Who can diagnose the problem and help implement the fixes?
Start with a pipeline audit that traces where buyers drop out: targeting, message, follow-up or handoff to sales. Forte Growth runs that audit inside the first month, then fixes what it finds alongside your team, directing existing marketers or an agency as one plan. The free go to market diagnostic is a ten-question first look.
Last reviewed October 2026.