Questions to ask before hiring a law-firm fractional CMO.

Define the job before evaluating the person.

Before interviewing a fractional CMO, write down the decisions and responsibilities that are not being handled well today. Maybe the owner is mediating between agencies. Maybe marketing reports never reach signed-case performance. Maybe expansion is moving faster than the team's operating plan.

That list gives the conversation a purpose. The right candidate should be able to discuss how they would approach the gap, what they would need from your firm, and where their role would end. A persuasive presentation is not a substitute for a clear working arrangement.

Ask for experience that matches the responsibility.

Listen for the distinction between a result they directly managed and one they were associated with. Context matters: market, case mix, budget, team, and period. An anonymized example can still be useful if it clearly explains the problem, the work, and the limitations of the evidence.

• What did you personally own in your previous law-firm work?
• How did you coordinate marketing, intake, and leadership?
• Which outcomes can you explain with a baseline, timeframe, and your specific contribution?
• What changed during an engagement when the original plan did not work?

For context on Nick's responsibilities, review his law-firm and agency career experience.

Clarify how decisions will be made.

A CMO needs enough access and authority to coordinate the agreed work. Your firm needs to retain clear approval rights and know when it must act. If those expectations remain vague, the engagement can become another layer of recommendations without follow-through.

• Who recommends budget changes, and who approves them?
• How will you evaluate our current agencies?
• What decisions require the owner?
• How will disagreements between partners be resolved?

Get specific about delivery.

Ask what the first phase will establish, how the working plan will be maintained, and what the review cadence will look like. Request a clear distinction between executive oversight and production work. Website development, creative, media management, automation, and software administration require time and ownership.

The proposal should identify responsibilities, deliverables, dependencies, exclusions, fees, and how changes in scope are handled. Ask which internal team members need to participate and what happens if data or vendor access is delayed.

Use the first-90-days framework to discuss a practical starting scope.

Discuss how progress will be assessed.

Look for a measurement plan connected to the firm's priorities. Establish the baseline, define the terms, and account for conversion lag and incomplete attribution. A useful review should distinguish work completed, early signals, and business outcomes.

You should leave the hiring process knowing what the CMO will own, what the firm must contribute, and what evidence will guide future decisions. That clarity is the foundation for evaluating whether the engagement is useful.

Inspect an illustrative target scorecard before agreeing how progress will be reviewed.