Fractional CMO for your Oil Field service company: what to look for.

5 minute read

Oil and gas struggles to leverage marketing in a way that works. It usually feels like a waste of money. Why? I’m going to elaborate on that and then I’m going to talk through why a fractional CMO could be your answer.

Most marketing feels like a waste of money because there is no strategy behind it. Typically, marketing for oil and gas is put on the sales staff to order hats, koozies and sponsor golf tournaments. Those aren’t bad ideas but there what everyone else does. Real strategy consists with hiring a professional who can view your business from the customers prospective. That’s where a fractional CMO can step in and make a difference.

First lets define it:

Fractional Chief Marketing Officer (FCMO): an outsourced marketing executive who performs the function of a Chief Marketing Officer without your company having to commit to a full-time, in-house marketing leader. With a fractional CMO you can get expert marketing professional at a fraction of the cost.

Here’s what to consider:

Why hiring a fractional CMO is a good decision:

1. They’ll grow your business. Companies utilizing these services report an average revenue growth rate of 29%, compared to 19% for those without (Geisheker.com). Not only do they grow your business, they can do it 50% to 75% cheaper than hiring a full-time CMO.

2. They can lead your team. Most oilfield service companies are too bust to lead an effective marketing campaign. With a FCMO you can trust them to lead your marketing assistants in a collaborative effort to earn more business.

3. They set your sales staff up for success. I personally believe that marketing and branding should bring in calls/meetings for your sales staff. Having a FCMO to unite both marketing and sales can be a formidable combination.

4. They can set and manage your marketing spend. It can be difficult to know what to spend on marketing. With a FCMO they can provide you a budget and a plan on how to maximize performance with that budget.

What to look for in a fractional CMO:

1. Understanding your industry. Effective marketing required an in depth understanding of the industry you work in. This is even more true in the oil and gas industry. 99.9% of marketers can’t tell the difference between a drilling rig, work over rig or pulling unit. This is important to understanding your customer and the culture of your industry.

2. Expertise. Marketing is a very general term that covers a lot of bases. Your FCMO should primarily be skilled in strategy, planning and the ability to manage a team.

3. Network. As I mentioned above, marketing requires skill in several different disciplines. It’s important to consider a CMO who has a strong network of individuals who are highly skilled in every area. For instance, a FCMO may decide that more web traffic could increase brand awareness. To accomplish this they may want to reach out to their SEO (Search Engine Optimization) specialist to audit and fix performance.

Marketing can seem ineffective in oil and gas due to a lack of strategy. A fractional CMO can change that by providing expert direction at a fraction of the cost. A good FCMO understands your industry, provides a strategy, and sets your sales staff up for success. Hiring a fractional CMO is key to turning your marketing into a powerful tool for success.

If this is something you think could benefit your business, feel free to email me here: rick@bergman.marketing