Fractional CMO
Services
Take command of your marketing without carrying the cost of a full-time executive. Stealth puts a fractional CMO and the team behind them into your marketing seat, so strategy, execution, and accountability finally sit with one owner.
What is a fractional CMO?
A fractional CMO is a senior marketing leader who owns your marketing strategy and execution part-time, for a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire. You get executive-level direction, vendor and budget accountability, and a plan tied to revenue, without a six-figure salary, equity, or a long search.
The model works because most growing companies do not need a full-time CMO’s hours. They need a full-time CMO’s judgment. A fractional CMO gives you the judgment on the schedule the business actually requires.
Where Stealth differs: you are not renting one person’s calendar. You are putting a team in the seat, led at the CMO level. See why a team beats a solo fractional CMO.
What a fractional CMO actually does
The whole marketing-to-revenue path, not a single channel. At Stealth that breaks into four areas.
CMO Strategy
The high-level calls. Where to spend, what to stop, what to prioritize, how marketing ladders to revenue. We own the seat and the decisions that come with it.
Accountability
Agencies, retainers, and tools held to outcomes instead of activity reports. If a vendor cannot show its contribution, we find out why.
MarTech & Tracking
Attribution and reporting kept accurate as you scale, so the numbers you decide on are real. Most reporting breaks quietly. We keep it honest.
Roadmap Execution
Your roadmap run in priority order, not a wish list. First thing first, next thing next.
We take the seat, or back your leader.
How much of this we run depends on what the audit uncovers, and whether you already have a marketing leader in the seat.
You have a leader: we run execution underneath them, so they keep the seat
No one owns marketing: we step in as your fractional CMO and run all four
Fractional CMO vs. full‑time hire vs. agency
| Fractional CMO (Stealth) | Full-time CMO | Marketing agency | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost | $5,000 to $15,000+/mo market range | $200,000 to $400,000+/yr total comp | $3,000 to $50,000+/mo |
| Time to start | 2 to 4 weeks | 3 to 6 month search | 2 to 6 weeks |
| Owns strategy | Yes | Yes | Rarely |
| Owns execution | Yes | Through a team you still build | Yes, their scope only |
The gap an agency leaves is ownership. An agency runs its piece and reports on its piece. A fractional CMO sits above the vendors, not beside them.
Cost figures: 2026 industry benchmarks from external research. Market ranges, not Stealth rates.
How much does a fractional CMO cost?
A fractional CMO costs $5,000 to $15,000 per month for most companies, rising to $15,000 to $40,000 per month for companies with larger ad spend and broader scope. A full-time CMO runs $200,000 to $400,000+ per year in total compensation before benefits, equity, and recruiting.
$5K-$15K
Per month. Fractional CMO, most companies.
$15K-$40K
Per month. Fractional CMO, larger spend and scope.
$200K-$400K+
Per year. Full-time CMO total comp, before benefits and equity.
How Stealth prices it
We do not quote a monthly retainer before we understand your marketing. We start with a paid audit, then scope and price the engagement off what it finds. The audit is paid. If we don’t find opportunities to help during the audit, you get a full refund.
Benchmarks: 2026 external research (MarketerHire, Built In, and other published 2026 pricing guides). Market ranges, not Stealth’s rates.
Why a team beats a solo fractional CMO
A team can own strategy and execution at the same time. The leader owns the decisions. The team owns the work.
One person caps what gets owned.
Most fractional CMOs are one person. Strategy gets attention, execution waits, and the moment that person is heads-down on another client, your marketing stalls.
A team owns the whole path.
Stealth puts a team in the seat, led at the CMO level: spend, channels, site, tracking, CRM, intake, revenue, and reporting, plus the vendors and tools layered on top. At most companies, everybody owns a piece and nobody owns the whole thing. That is the gap we built Stealth to close.
Proof from companies that spend to grow.
Stealth runs marketing for growth-stage companies across legal and home services, among others. Clients average 10 to 20% first-year revenue growth.
$1M+
Found in the first two weeks.
Mike Morse Law Firm
60+
Signed cases a month, up from 30 to 35.
Scott Pryor Law Group
+300%
Qualified opportunities.
Minc Law
$500K+
Monthly revenue, up 160% year over year.
Alliance Painting
66%
Year-one revenue growth.
MotorCity Hotshot
★★★★★
“Stealth isn’t just a partner, they’re friends of the firm.”
MIKE MORSE, FOUNDER, MIKE MORSE LAW FIRM
How a Stealth engagement works.
It starts as a conversation, not a pitch.
01
Audit
We go into your marketing and find where money and attention are leaking. The audit is paid. If we don’t find opportunities to help, you get a full refund.
02
Findings and roadmap
You get the leaks, the fixes, and the order to run them in. Yours to keep, whether or not you work with us.
03
Execution
If it is the right fit, we take the seat or back the leader already in it, and run the roadmap. Scoped and priced off what the audit found.
Frequently Asked Questions.
What is a fractional CMO?
A fractional CMO is a senior marketing leader who owns your marketing strategy and execution part-time, at a fraction of the cost of a full-time hire. You get executive judgment, vendor and budget accountability, and a plan tied to revenue, without a full-time salary or a long search.
How much does a fractional CMO cost?
Most fractional CMO engagements run $5,000 to $15,000 per month, rising to $15,000 to $40,000 per month for companies with larger ad spend and broader scope. A full-time CMO runs $200,000 to $400,000+ per year in total compensation. (2026 industry benchmarks, external research.) Stealth prices its ongoing engagements off a paid audit, so you pay for what the business needs.
What moves the cost of a fractional CMO?
Three things. Scope: strategy-only advising sits at the low end, and a CMO who also owns execution, vendors, and tracking sits higher. Hours: most retainers buy 10 to 20 hours a week. Company stage and spend: the more you spend on marketing, the more there is to own, and the more the seat is worth.
Is a fractional CMO cheaper than a full-time CMO?
In almost every case, yes. A fractional CMO delivers executive marketing leadership at a fraction of a full-time CMO’s $200,000 to $400,000+ annual cost, with no equity, no recruiting fee, and a 2 to 4 week start instead of a 3 to 6 month search.
What does a fractional CMO do?
A fractional CMO owns the full marketing-to-revenue path: strategy and spend decisions, vendor and agency accountability, martech and tracking, and roadmap execution in priority order. They sit above your vendors, not beside them.
How is Stealth different from a solo fractional CMO?
Stealth puts a team in the seat, led at the CMO level, instead of a single person’s part-time hours. You get one accountable party for the entire marketing-to-revenue journey, with the capacity to own strategy and execution at the same time. More on our approach to fractional marketing leadership.
How does the Stealth audit work?
We go into your marketing and find where spend and attention are leaking, then hand you the findings, the fixes, and the order to run them in. It is a paid audit: if we don’t find opportunities to help during the audit, you get a full refund. See how the audit works.
What size company is a fractional CMO right for?
Companies serious enough about marketing to be spending real money on it: typically $15,000+ a month in ad spend, or $30,000+ for law firms. Fit is spend, not org chart. If you are spending at that level and nobody owns the outcome, start with the audit.
Take Command of
Your Marketing.
The audit is paid. If we don’t find opportunities to help during the audit, you get a full refund.
Your objective. Our mission. Go Stealth.