Fractional head of growth, agency or first hire: what should a seed-stage startup choose?
Three ways to get marketing and sales moving after a raise, what each is good at, and how to choose based on where your business is today.
After a seed round, most founders face the same decision: who’s going to do the marketing and the selling? There are three common answers, and each suits a different situation.
Option one: your first marketing hire
A full-time person who knows the business inside out and is there every day. The right choice once you know what works and need someone to run it and build on it.
The risk is hiring too early. A single hire is often expected to do strategy, content, ads and sales support all at once, and it can take months to find the right person. If the positioning isn’t settled yet, they spend their first quarter working that out.
Option two: a fractional head of growth
A senior person for a few days a month who sets direction, builds the plan and often manages freelancers. Great for strategy and for holding the team accountable.
The gap is usually execution. Someone still has to write the content, build the website and send the outreach, so you end up hiring freelancers or an agency anyway.
Option three: an agency or studio
A team that brings strategy and execution together, with several skills available from day one. Good when you need things built and moving quickly, and don’t yet know which channels will work.
The things to check are who actually does the work, whether they understand selling as well as marketing, and whether you can see what’s happening each week.
For a side-by-side view, see our honest comparisons: Kyndra or your first hire, Kyndra or a fractional CMO and Kyndra or a traditional agency.
How to choose
If you don’t yet know who buys and why, start with positioning work before anything else. Whoever you hire next will need it.
If you need things built and pipeline moving in the next 90 days, a senior-led studio usually gets there fastest.
If a channel is already working and needs someone to own it, make your first hire and give them a clear brief.
Many founders combine them: a studio for the first six to twelve months to get the message, website and pipeline working, then a hire who takes it on. That’s how we work with clients. We set things up so your first Head of Growth walks into something that already works, and then we hand over.
Common questions
Should a seed-stage startup hire a marketer or use an agency?
If you don’t yet know which channels work, a senior-led studio usually gets things built and moving faster. Once a channel is working and needs an owner, make your first hire.
What does a fractional head of growth do?
A senior person for a few days a month who sets direction and builds the plan. Execution such as content, the website and outreach usually still needs freelancers or an agency.
Get clear on your position before you spend.
Our two-week Positioning Sprint gives you a sharp message, website copy and a sales deck your whole team can use.
From £2,400 per sprint