Engagements & Pricing

Strategic leadership.
Not technician work.

Three ways to work, with explicit pricing. I take a maximum of five clients at a time. Every engagement starts with the paid Marketing Blueprint — I'm paid to diagnose before I'm asked to lead. I don't do done-for-you implementation; I direct the people who do.

Pricing at a glance

Flat fees. Published. No "we'll send a proposal" theatre.

  • Marketing Blueprint$7,500 · one-time paid diagnostic
  • Strategic AdvisorStarts at $7,500 / month · for $1M–$5M operators running multiple marketing vendors with no single owner
  • Fractional CMOStarts at $15,000 / month · for $5M+ operators — sweet spot vs. a $150K–$250K+ full-time hire

Flat monthly retainers. No hourly billing. No "we used X hours this month" math. The price is the price; the value is the seat, not the time.

The paid diagnostic · start here

The Marketing Blueprint

$7,500 · one-time
2–4 weeks · 3 phases

A fixed-scope diagnostic and 90-day plan, delivered in 2–4 weeks. I'm paid to diagnose before I'm asked to lead — every retainer engagement starts here. If a CMO seat isn't the right next step, you walk with the plan.

Standard Scope

Confirmed before kickoff.

Phase 1 · Intake

  • Financial, marketing-spend, and lead-source data reconciled
  • Stakeholder interviews — owner, sales lead, CSR, current marketing person if any
  • Recorded sales/CSR calls reviewed and scored
  • Tech stack and vendor inventory — what you're paying, to whom, for what

Phase 2 · Diagnostic

  • 7-zone teardown: acquisition, conversion, retention, attribution, vendors, CSR/booking, follow-up
  • Cost-per-booked-job math by channel — the number nobody calculates
  • Conversion-path teardown: speed-to-lead, CSR script, booking flow, follow-up gaps
  • Vendor scorecard — is each one earning their retainer, by booked-job math

Phase 3 · Blueprint delivered

  • One-page scoreboard, built in your stack and connected to your data
  • Written 90-day execution roadmap with named owners on every line
  • Live readout with you and your leadership team
  • Clear recommendation on which retainer tier (Strategic Advisor or Fractional CMO) is the right next move — if any
  • Async follow-up window for clarification questions on the plan
Not For
  • Owners who want the work done for them today — this is a plan, not done-for-you execution
  • Anyone unwilling to share real numbers, recorded calls, and vendor reports
  • Sub-$1M operators — start with the community on-ramp instead
Strategic Advisor · $1M–$5M

Strategic Advisor

Starts at $7,500 / month
6–12 month minimum

For $1M–$5M operators with multiple marketing vendors in motion and need a North Star, not another hand on the wheel. This tier makes sense when decision quality across channels has become the growth constraint — and you have someone (internal or vendor) who can run execution. I set the strategy, review the scoreboard, and own the direction. Standard scope below — exact terms are agreed in writing.

Standard Scope

Confirmed before kickoff.

Monthly cadence

  • Two strategy calls per month with the owner and key staff
  • Written monthly scoreboard review — scale, fix, cut, or investigate calls by channel

Standing access

  • Slack and email access for the leadership team between calls
  • Vendor brief and accountability templates
  • Coaching for the owner or office manager who runs marketing execution
  • Strategic backup on vendor and hiring decisions

Quarterly

  • Strategic Sprint — one big problem identified, scoped, and sequenced
  • Quarterly plan reset with KPI roll-forward
Not For
  • Operators without anyone (internal or vendor) to run the plan
  • Owners who want someone to hold the marketing seat for them (see Fractional CMO)
  • Anyone looking for done-for-you implementation
Fractional CMO · $5M+

Fractional CMO

Starts at $15,000 / month
6–12 month minimum · scales with company size
Most Common Fit

The sweet spot: $5M+ operators where a serious fractional CMO engagement pays for itself clearly. I hold the marketing seat on your leadership team — own the strategy, direct your team and external agencies, run the quarterly Strategic Sprint, and own the number. A full-time CMO costs $150K–$250K+ before benefits and equity. This is the same leadership at a fraction of the headcount cost. Standard scope below — for $10M+ operators the seat scales accordingly.

Standard Scope

Confirmed before kickoff.

Weekly cadence

  • Weekly leadership-team meeting — Sam in the marketing seat
  • Weekly scoreboard review and decision call per channel
  • 1:1s with key marketing team members and agency leads

Standing ownership

  • The marketing seat on your leadership team — present, accountable, on the org chart
  • Marketing team management — hiring, onboarding, performance
  • Direction and accountability for every external agency (SEO, LSA, ads, web)
  • Budget ownership and channel allocation across the stack
  • Slack presence with the leadership team and marketing team

Quarterly

  • Strategic Sprint — one big problem solved every 90 days
  • Board-style quarterly report
  • Tooling and stack decisions reviewed and consolidated
Not For
  • Businesses that want a done-for-you agency
  • Owners not willing to back their team and vendors being held accountable
  • Anyone looking for hands-on technical implementation (that's vendor work)
How we work

Premium engagements run on simple rules.

Payment
Paid upfront, on the 1st of the month, before the work begins. Net 0. No invoicing dance. The retainer is the price; predictability for both sides is the point.
Term
6–12 month minimum on the retainer tiers. Marketing leadership doesn't show its math in 30 days. If you're not ready to commit a quarter, start with the Marketing Blueprint instead.
Tools
Unified toolset. I bring the scoreboard, the cadence, the operating system. Your team adapts to it — not the other way around. Simplicity over custom workflows.
Communication
One channel: Slack (or email for Advisory). No after-hours texts, no "got a sec?" calls. Async by default; scheduled when we need depth. Boundaries are how the work stays sharp.
Capacity
A maximum of five clients at a time. When the roster is full, you join a waitlist or start with the Blueprint. Depth is the product.
What I won't do

I'm a fractional CMO, not a technician.

The role is leadership and strategy. Technical implementation — SEO updates, ad account management, web development, posting, copywriting, design — is your team's or your vendors' work.

If your LSA is broken, I identify it, brief whoever runs it, and hold them accountable to a number. I don't log in and change the bid. That's not the seat. If you want a done-for-you agency, I'm the wrong call, and I'll tell you that fast.