CHRIS LINN - FRACTIONAL CMO
Fractional CMO for businesses needing sharper growth direction
I help founders work out what’s actually holding growth back, then turn that into sharper strategy, better decisions and a more joined-up way of working.
Growth rarely fails because one channel is underperforming. It fails because the business is trying to scale with unclear priorities, loose positioning, weak reporting or too many disconnected moving parts.
15+
Years' experience
across start-ups, scale-ups and established brands.
£4M
Avg. budget
across acquisition, retention and brand.
B2B/B2C
Leadership experience
in SaaS, health, fintech, ecommerce and more.
Global
Experience across borders
working with founders, C-Suite and growth teams.
HOW I WORK
Senior enough to shape the direction, close enough to keep the work connected.
View selected experience
Expertise
The problem is rarely solved by 'just doing more marketing'
Most teams already have enough activity. What they need is a clearer view of what matters, what is missing, what to stop and what should happen next.
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Clearer growth strategy, sharper priorities and a practical plan for the next stage.- Stronger positioning and ICP clarity, so teams understand who they help, why buyers care and where to focus.
- A better experimentation and reporting rhythm, turning ideas into structured tests and commercial learning.
- Joined-up channel and specialist orchestration across paid, SEO, CRM, content and sales activity.
Services
Different levels of support for different growth challenges
Some teams need a senior marketing lead. Others need a focused diagnostic, clearer positioning, or a better operating rhythm across channels and specialists. The work is shaped around the stage you’re at and the problem you’re trying to solve.
Fractional CMO
Senior marketing leadership for teams that need clearer direction, sharper priorities and more joined-up execution, without hiring a full-time CMO.
- Growth strategy and planning
- Team and agency orchestration
- Reporting and decision-making
Growth Audit
A focused diagnostic for founders and leadership teams who need to understand where growth is actually stuck before committing more time, budget or headcount.
- ICP, messaging and positioning assessment
- Funnel and channel review
- Prioritised 90-day roadmap
Growth Strategy & Experimentation
A structured way to turn ideas, channels and campaigns into a more focused growth engine, with clearer priorities, better tests and stronger commercial learning.
- Experimentation roadmap
- KPI and reporting rhythm
- Acquisition and retention planning
Not sure what level of support you need? Let’s start by understanding where growth is getting stuck and what needs to change.
WHERE I CAN HELP
When growth feels harder to manage than it should
The work usually starts when there is plenty of activity, but not enough clarity around what is working, what matters and what should happen next.
You have momentum but not enough focus
There are opportunities everywhere, but no clear view of which audience, message or channel should lead the next stage.
Your marketing is active but disconnected
Channels such as paid, SEO, content, CRM, sales and agencies are moving, but not always from the same commercial plan.
You're about to make a bigger move
A launch, funding round, repositioning, hire, expansion or new growth target means the current setup needs more senior direction.
Growth work across start-ups, scale-ups and established brands
I’ve worked across B2B and B2C growth challenges, from early-stage positioning and go-to-market planning through to acquisition, retention, lifecycle marketing and larger-scale campaign delivery.
Who it’s for
SaaS, health, fintech, ecommerce, tech, professional services, wealth, consumer subscriptions and more.
Outcome
Positioning, GTM, acquisition, retention, experimentation, reporting, team structure and specialist orchestration.
30+ clients
Across start-ups, scale-ups and established brands, where I've helped teams make better marketing and growth decisions.
View My Experience
ThE Process
A practical rhythm for making strategic decisions to drive business growth
STEP 01
Understand what's really happening
We look at the business model, audience, offer, funnel, channels, reporting and team setup - not just the visible marketing activity.
STEP 02
Separate noise from constraints
The aim is to work out what is genuinely limiting growth, what is just distraction, and what needs senior attention first.
STEP 03
Turn decisions into movement
From there, we build the operating plan and keep the right work moving across people, channels and specialists.
Testimonials
Trusted by founders and leadership teams
A few reflections from people I’ve worked with across growth strategy, positioning, marketing leadership and execution.
Prem Sharma
CEO, Tandem Vet Care
“He combines powerful insight into marketing performance drivers with a clear big-picture perspective. One of the best marketers. To be recommended unreservedly.”
Richard Guest
CMO, Babylon Health
"If you get the chance to work with Chris, take it! He was instrumental in the strategic launch of Babylon, shaping both the digital and offline marketing plan to drive growth from a standing start."
Gareth da Cunha
CRO, Allio Capital
“After Chris provided strategic guidance, he translated a complex GTM strategy into measurable results. A leader who combines client-first mindset with operational execution.”
James Terry
Co-Founder, Dishpatch
“Chris is an experienced and analytical growth strategist. He can spin up marketing campaigns and lead teams well. Pragmatic, level-headed and a pleasure to work with!”
Darren Goode
CMO & Board Member
“Chris is an incredibly strong growth marketer. He's knowledgeable, insightful, and goes above and beyond to find new and innovative ways to deliver the results needed.”
Fergus Barnett
Managing Partner, PHD
“Chris is a great growth specialist, offering advice & running campaigns differently from the usual approach. Channel agnostic, outcome-led, and agile in the way clients want.”
Robert Brock
CPO, HomeHero
“Chris united stakeholders behind a new GTM strategy, bringing a strong mix of strategic thinking, judgement and growth instinct. A real asset in driving new propositions forward.”
Alex Rees
Director, Minicabster
“This guy is the real deal. Chris is one of the best marketers I have encountered for creating concepts, developing these concepts into projects and then delivering results.”
Prem Sharma
CEO, Tandem Vet Care
“He combines powerful insight into marketing performance drivers with a clear big-picture perspective. One of the best marketers. To be recommended unreservedly.”
Anna M.
CEO, Logoipsum
“Their guidance gave us clarity at a time when every decision felt high-stakes. We still use the playbook they built”
Marcus Thompson
CEO, Logoipsum
“This trip felt like it was built around who we are — not a checklist of places. Every day flowed naturally, and nothing felt rushed”
Chloe Bennett
CEO, Logoipsum
“They moved faster than any consulting partner we’ve worked with—and actually integrated into our team”
Erica Perazza
Head of Social, Dext
“Chris has always demonstrated a deep understanding of marketing. He thinks outside the box and has an incredible ability to find solutions where others only see problems.
Stuart Lowe
Director, Dext
“Chris is creative and commercially minded, with a strong understanding of website performance, customer behaviour and lead gen. I’d jump at the chance to work with him again.”
Prem Sharma
CEO, Tandem Vet Care
“He combines powerful insight into marketing performance drivers with a clear big-picture perspective. One of the best marketers. To be recommended unreservedly.”
Gareth da Cunha
CRO, Allio Capital
“After Chris provided strategic guidance, he translated a complex GTM strategy into measurable results. A leader who combines client-first mindset with operational execution.”
Fergus Barnett
Managing Partner, PHD
“Chris is a great growth specialist, offering advice & running campaigns differently from the usual approach. Channel agnostic, outcome-led, and agile in the way clients want.”
Robert Brock
CPO, HomeHero
“Chris combines strategic and tactical thinking with a strong instinct for growth. Unitign the team behind a new GTM strategy, he is a great asset when launching new propositions.”
Strategy is only useful if it changes what happens next.
I work close enough to the business to understand the commercial reality, but senior enough to help founders and leadership teams make better calls on where to focus, what to stop and what to move forward.
I work close enough to the business to understand the commercial reality, but senior enough to help founders and leadership teams make better calls on where to focus, what to stop and what to move forward.
Sharper decision-making
Embedded in your team
Better-connected execution
Flexible engagement models
FAQs
Useful things to know about Fractional CMO engagement
A few common questions about how I work, what fractional support can involve and where I tend to add the most value.
Get In Touch
How is a fractional CMO different from a full-time CMO?
A fractional CMO gives you senior marketing leadership without committing to a full-time hire. It is often a better fit when you need strategic direction, team alignment and commercial focus, but not five days a week of senior marketing time.
When does fractional CMO support make sense?
Usually when the business has ambition and activity, but needs stronger senior direction. That might be before scaling spend, hiring a team, repositioning, launching a new proposition or trying to connect existing channels around one plan.
What does a fractional CMO actually do?
It depends on the business, but the work usually sits across growth strategy, positioning, planning, channel performance, reporting, team rhythm and specialist coordination. The aim is to make marketing more commercially useful and better connected to the wider business.
What does a growth audit include?
A focused review of your growth model, positioning, funnel, channels, reporting and current activity. The output is a clear view of where growth is being held back and a practical roadmap for what to fix, test or stop.
What do we get at the end of a growth audit?
You get a clear diagnosis, prioritised recommendations and a practical roadmap. That might include what to fix first, what to test next, what to stop doing and where senior attention or specialist support is most needed.
What happens after the growth audit?
Some teams use the audit as a standalone piece of work. Others use it as the starting point for fractional support, experimentation planning or more hands-on support with channels, specialists and execution.
Do you replace our agencies or internal team?
Not usually. The role is often to make the existing setup work better - aligning agencies, freelancers, internal marketers and leadership around clearer priorities, better reporting and stronger decisions.
How do engagements usually work?
Engagements can be advisory, project-based or ongoing fractional support. The right shape depends on the problem, the stage of the business and how much senior involvement is needed.
Get Started
Need a clearer view of what to do next?
If growth feels harder to manage than it should, let’s start with a conversation about where things stand, what needs to change and what kind of support would be most useful.
