A: Some organisations employ a Marketing Director who will report to a CMO. Others will have a CMO or a Marketing Director.

Marketing Directors are normally responsible for implementing an organisation’s marketing, communications, and brand strategies. Typical outputs would be annual marketing plans, a calendar of campaigns and events, a marketing budget, competitor analysis and results reporting.

The role of the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) grew in the late 2000's as organisations were challenged to think strategically about how to utilise their customer data and optimise their customer communicational channels, many of which were digital. Most CMOs now occupy the C-suite and report to the CEO. Their role is to creatively apply insights to business challenges, use data to validate decisions, create seamless customer experiences across media and revenue channels, and ensure that the customer remains at the centre of the organisation.

A: Start-ups and scale-ups require specialist strategic support to help them grow. And that's the same for organisations who are struggling to grow or who are planning major change. It's rare that these businesses have senior expertise on tap, which is where we come in.

A Fractional CMO or Marketing Director will typically join the company for the short term, usually working for a “fraction” of the work week. That enables them to work across the business, identify short, medium and long term growth opportunities. The quick wins are important, because they can fund the fractional investment. 

A: That depends on the needs of the business. I'm normally hired because my client has a specific goal. This might be to re-brand, launch a new product, break into a new market, or figure out what's blocking their sales pipeline. Or it may be as simple as "I know my marketing isn't effective. But I don't know why." 

I always start any assignment with an end in mind, agreeing when my mission will be complete, and what success looks like in terms of £ or $ increased revenue.

A: That depends on you and your needs. There may be specific times during a working week when you will need me, for example during weekly management or sales calls, team  meets, etc. With some clients, I have regular progress update calls with my stakeholder(s). So I will plan my diary with those times in mind and then build my other deliverables in around that.

The beauty of being a Fractional CMO with more than one client at any time is that I can flex the time I spend on each business, day by day. For example, I may plan to spend 4 - 5 hours on one day on one specific client. This is common at the start of an assignment. And other days I may be working on several different clients in 1 - 2 hour chunks.

A: There is no typical assignment length. Briefs are often based around a specific mission, and many internal and external factors can influence the speed of these. 

Once I understand your challenges, I will be able to advise you on how long I am likely to need and how quickly I will be able to generate additional revenue for you. 

A: I am an experienced marketer who has worked at Board level, for small, mid, and large sized businesses. Most assignments draw on the kind of skills you’d expect a Fractional CMO to utilise, such as leadership, lead generation, retention and engagement, marketing communications, brand identity, brand positioning, research, and analytics. My passions are brand marketing and digital communication. And I love a spreadsheet! 

A: At the start of the assignment we will agree a plan for how long I will need per week to support you. That is the most that you will pay.

I charge in 15 minute blocks based on a pre-agree hourly rate. That hourly rate is on a sliding scale based on the brief and the number of days booked at the start of the assignment.

I do not charge a retainer. And if I will require additional support or software then I will  discuss this with you before committing to it.

A: Me - Matt Ansell! I am the only full-time employee of Matrix Marketing. I hire specialist support as required for each assignment, with some associates such as Michelle and Paul working with me on multiple assignments, because their skill-sets tend to be more commonly required.