A fractional CMO has limited hours, and a clear page on day one saves the first weeks of guessing. This guide covers what goes in the brief, what to leave out and how to write it so it reflects the business as it is.
Picture the owner of a small electrical contracting company on the first morning with a new fractional CMO. She forwards a folder: a logo pack, an old website proposal, a few spreadsheets, a competitor's brochure and a note saying to see what can be done. The CMO spends the first two weeks reconstructing what one page could have said in an afternoon.
What the brief is for
A fractional CMO works a limited number of hours each week, so the first hours decide a lot. A one-page brief lets them skip the guessing and start on decisions: where to spend, what to say, what to stop doing. It also forces you to settle questions you may have been carrying around unanswered.
One page is a hard limit on purpose. If the business will not fit, the CMO learns which parts you have not decided yet, and that is worth knowing on day one.
What goes in the brief
Give each of these a few sentences and no more.
- The business in two sentences: what you sell, where you sell it and who does the work.
- Your best customers: the jobs you would happily do ten times more often, and what those customers have in common.
- The goal for the next twelve months, written so you could check it later, such as booked jobs or qualified calls per month.
- Your limits: what you can spend each month and how many hours of your own time the work can have.
Add a line on who approves decisions. A CMO who has to wait a week for every sign-off will plan differently from one who can move the same day.
Describe the customers you want more of
Small service businesses often take whoever calls, so the customer list is a poor guide to the customer you want. Name the last few people you were glad to have and write what they shared: the type of property or company, the event that made them call, how they found you and how long they took to decide.
A CMO can build a channel plan around a pattern like that. A full list of every service you offer gives them nothing to aim at.
What you have already tried
List each past effort with what you did, how long it ran and what you saw. Include the agency you let go and the reason. Say so if you stopped something early or never tracked it.
A one-line verdict such as ads did not work hides the difference between weak ads, a weak landing page and a phone nobody answered. The CMO needs the detail to avoid repeating the mistake or abandoning something that only needed a fix.
What to leave out
Leave out the founding story, the mission statement, the full service menu and any tactics you have already chosen. The first three are real and matter to you, yet none of them changes what a CMO does in month one.
The fourth deserves a closer look. A founder who writes that we need a TikTok account has handed over a solution before stating the problem. Write the problem instead, for example that referrals are slowing down, and let the CMO propose the tactic. Attachments such as old reports or competitor screenshots belong in a shared folder with one line describing each, outside the page itself.
How to write the honest version
The honest version names the weak spots. If the website brings in few inquiries, say so. If most of your work comes from one referral partner, say so. If you will not change your service area or your pricing model, write that down as a constraint, because a plan that ignores it will fail in your hands.
Separate what you know from what you believe. Mark guesses as guesses. If you do not know your close rate or what a lead costs you, write that you do not know. A CMO can set up tracking in the first weeks, but cannot recover from a number that was invented to look good.
Before you send it, read the page aloud to a partner or your office manager. A line that makes them wince is usually a true one you softened, and it usually belongs back in its plain form.
What happens after you hand it over
Expect questions. A good CMO marks the gaps, asks for access to the website analytics, ad accounts, customer records and call tracking, and sends back a short reading of the page: what they understood, what they will check first and what they would change in the brief.
Treat the page as a living document. Revise it when the goal or a constraint changes, and the CMO's work stays tied to the same facts you are using to run the business.
Questions owners ask about the brief
These come up most often before a first engagement.
Can the brief run longer than one page?
Supporting material can sit behind it, but page one should stand alone. If the CMO could read only that page and still start work, it is doing its job.
What if I do not know my numbers?
Write that they are unknown. Finding them then becomes the first task, which is more useful than a rough figure that sends early decisions in the wrong direction.
How long does it take to write?
The typing takes an hour or two. The thinking about your best customers and your real constraints may take longer, and that is where most of the value comes from.
Should my team see it?
Yes, at least the people who answer calls and book jobs. They often know where leads are lost and can correct a line you got wrong.
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See Fracmo pricing →Keep reading
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