I find out what your marketing spend is actually producing, build the plan and budget, and do the work with a small bench of specialists. You get a head of marketing without hiring a full-time CMO.
Companies I've worked with
I start by finding out what's actually going on in the business. Then we decide what kind of marketing you should be doing, and I help you do it.
I work as your head of marketing. First I look at what you're spending and what you're getting for it. Then I make a plan, hire the right specialists, and update you every week.
I look at what you spend on marketing and what you get back. Then we decide who to sell to, what to tell them and where the money goes.
I build and run your website, emails, ads and sales materials, with your team and my specialists.
I track where your leads come from and what each one costs. Every quarter, you see what worked.
Founder-led B2B companies that sell something complex, where buyers take time to decide and the founder is still the best salesperson in the building.
You need ads running next week.
If the plan is already clear and you just need campaigns built, hire an agency. You'll get there faster and pay less.
There's no budget to act on a plan.
My fee covers the thinking and the managing. The website, ads and specialists cost extra. If that money isn't there, a plan just sits in a folder.
You want someone in the office every day.
I work a set number of days a month across a few clients. If you need a full-time leader on site, I'll help you hire one instead.
Most clients start with a three-month roadmap. If you want me to run the plan after that, I stay on as your fractional CMO.
For founders who know marketing isn't working but can't see why.
I review your buyers, story, website, sales materials, competitors and channels, then hand you a prioritized plan your team can run.
For companies spending real money on marketing without a plan or a way to measure it.
I own the marketing function: the plan, the budget, the campaigns, the vendors and the reporting. I work with your team every week and answer to you.
For companies with a marketing lead who wants a senior second opinion.
I meet with your marketing lead every month, review plans and work in between, and help them make the bigger calls.
The three get mixed up a lot. They cost different amounts and solve different problems.
| Question | Full-time CMO | Agency | Marketing Spark |
|---|---|---|---|
| What you pay | A senior salary, bonus and often equity, plus months of recruiting | A monthly retainer, usually tied to the channels they run | A fixed fee for the roadmap, then a monthly retainer if I stay on |
| Who decides the strategy | Them, once they learn the business | Usually you. They carry out what you ask for | Me, with you, based on what the research shows |
| What they work on | Everything, full time | The channels they sell, like ads, SEO or social | The plan, the budget, the vendors and the reporting |
| How fast they start | Three to six months to hire, then time to ramp up | A few weeks | Within a couple of weeks |
| Best when | You have the revenue and a team to manage | You already know what to do and need hands | You know marketing isn't working and need someone to figure out why and fix it |
Most clients start with the roadmap. This is how it usually goes.
I go through your spend, channels, website, sales materials and results. I talk to you, your sales team and your customers about why people buy and why they don't.
We pick the buyers worth going after, the reason they should choose you over the alternatives, and the words to say it. Then we test it on your website and with your sales team.
You get a plan for the next 120 days: what to do, who does it, what it costs and how we will know it is working.
Your team runs the plan with a monthly check-in, or I stay on as your fractional CMO and run it myself with my specialists.
Months before production, Mitrex had no real website, sales materials or positioning. I built the positioning and the launch plan.
Read the case study →"We launched our website with his help, and we now have a good plan for the future."
I repositioned Wingmate around field sales teams, then rebuilt the website, sales materials and emails. Demo requests went up.
Read the case study →"Any company seeking CMO-level guidance without hiring a full-time CMO would benefit greatly from Mark's hands-on expertise."
Positioning, a new brand identity and a plan to reach interior designers, plus outreach for design shows.
Read the case study →"Mark helped to build a marketing engine that attracted and engaged the right prospects."
Not ready to talk yet?
Paste your website and get a score out of 100, the three fixes that matter most and a new headline to start from. It takes about a minute.
What founders usually ask before hiring me.
You get senior marketing leadership without a full-time executive salary, and you can scale it up or down as the business changes. Most of my clients aren't ready for a full-time hire yet.
If you're spending on marketing and can't say what it's producing, or the founder is still doing all the selling, it's probably time.
An agency runs campaigns. I decide which campaigns are worth running, then manage the agencies and freelancers who do the work.
The roadmap is a fixed fee we agree on before we start, so there are no surprises. If I stay on after that, it's a monthly retainer. Ad spend, website work and specialists are paid separately, and I'll tell you up front what the plan needs.
Yes. I work with your marketing and sales people every week and bring in specialists only where there are gaps.
No. Many of my clients start with the founder doing the marketing. I bring in freelancers and specialists for the work, and I'll tell you when it's time to hire your first marketer.
Yes. Run the free website audit to see where your homepage stands, or book a 30-minute call. You will leave the call with an honest read on what to fix first, whether we work together or not.
I help you write the role, interview candidates and hand the plan over, so your new hire starts with a strategy that's already working.
Mark's strategic marketing leadership was instrumental in establishing a rock-solid foundation for Maneva, ensuring that our brand is positioned as a leading force in AI-driven industrial automation.
Rae JeongCEO, ManevaMark quickly understood our business and how it could tell a differentiated story that engaged and educated prospects. It was a very successful engagement that I'm confident will deliver strong ROI.
Kia KahhaliFounder, APS Compliance ConsultantsOur story is complex, and unproven at the scale we are seeking to deploy, so it was a blessing to be introduced to Mark and his unique combination of marketing savvy and journalistic storytelling expertise.
Vern FotheringhamChairman and CEO, Ruralink BroadbandI started as a technology journalist, co-founded a startup, and have spent the last two decades running marketing for B2B companies. More than 100 of them so far.
The Globe and Mail
National Post
Bloomberg NewsYou'll leave the call with an honest read on what to fix first, whether or not we work together.
