LinkedIn Content Strategy for Fractional CMOs | Netwarm
LinkedIn playbook · Case study
LinkedIn content strategy for fractional CMOs: how a London fractional CMO and community founder found 43 founders and CEOs among 700 people in four weeks
We read every reaction on 28 posts from a London fractional CMO who also runs a community for fractional marketers. 700 people, 43 founders and CEOs. Here is what brings buyers, what brings peers, and the 5 posts we'd publish next.
Max Sawyer · Netwarm··13 min read
The creator in this case studyA London fractional CMO and founder of a community for fractional marketers
Followers25,758
Posts~7 a week
These numbers are from 3 November. Your audience has already moved.
New founders and CEOs turn Hot every week and others go quiet. Run your free scan to see today’s version, with the names.
Fractional CMO work for SaaS, fintech and professional services firms, and paid memberships, events and awards for fractional marketers
PeriodOct 5 – Nov 3
Ideal client: founders, CEOs and managing directors of SaaS, fintech and professional services businesses that need senior marketing leadership without a full-time CMO.The challenge: The fractional CMO asked it in a post: is pipeline the biggest challenge for fractionals? The community side works: events fill, the network grows across regions, awards launch. But a profile that talks to fractional marketers every day mostly gets fractional marketers back. Which posts still reach the CEOs who hire one?
Key takeaways
43 founders and CEOs among 700 people.They made up 6.1% of the people who reacted in four weeks. Fractionals, consultants, agencies and other marketers made up 79.9%: the community the fractional CMO built.
Brand stories bring the highest share of buyers.Brand stories: 6.8% founders and CEOs. Event invites and recaps: 4.6%. Fractional career advice: 4.9%. The best single post, a London street story, reached 14.8%.
7 buyers keep coming back.They reacted to 3 posts or more. One of them reacted to 19 of the 28.
01
Who actually reads you, and what the LinkedIn algorithm changed
The fractional CMO posted 28 times between 5 October and 3 November, about seven posts a week: event invites and recaps, community and awards news, advice for fractional marketers, and brand stories, from a pizzeria's £100 Hawaiian to the Pac-Man name.
The LinkedIn algorithm shows a post to the people who reacted to the last ones, then to people like them. When most reactions come from other fractionals and agencies, the algorithm learns that the audience is the fractional marketing world, not the CEOs who hire from it. Reach can't tell the two apart. Who reacted can. We looked at every person who reacted and sorted them by role.
28posts in 4 weeks
700people reacted
43founders and CEOs
7came back 3+ times
Audience by roleThe 700 people who reacted, by roleFree
Buyers are 43 people, about 1 in 16. Peers are thirteen times as many: 559 fractional CMOs, consultants, agency founders, outbound and lead generation providers, coaches and marketers. Many of them have founder in their headline too, but they sell marketing services rather than buy them.
That is the normal result of running a community for fractional marketers: the community shows up. The job of the content is to make sure the CEOs show up too. The next section shows which posts did that.
SeniorityAll people who reactedFree
Founder, owner, C-level40.4%
Director, VP12.4%
Manager9%
Independent9%
Other29.1%
IndustriesFounders and CEOs onlyNetwarm
Software, AI and tech companies48.8%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
See all industries and company sizes in your free scan.
Core audience7 founders and CEOs engaged 3+ times · 5 engaged 5+ timesNetwarm
7 founders and CEOs keep coming back. One of them reacted to 19 of the 28 posts.See your regulars
Engager company sizeEveryone who reacted, by company sizeNetwarm
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
Hidden in preview00%
See which company sizes your founders and CEOs work at.See company sizes
02
What to post on LinkedIn to reach founders and CEOs
Most creators judge a post by its reactions. A fractional CMO who sells should judge it by who reacted.
We tagged each of the 28 posts by topic, then measured the share of founders and CEOs among the people who reacted.
Your topicsWhat your 28 posts were aboutFree
28posts
Event invites & recaps9
Brand stories7
Fractional career advice5
Community & awards news4
Partner & tool posts3
Topics that attract founders and CEOsShare of each topic’s reactions from founders and CEOsNetwarm
Partner & tool posts9.3%
Brand stories6.8%
Community & awards news5.4%
Fractional career advice4.9%
Event invites & recaps4.6%
One topic brings 1.5x the share of founders and CEOs of another. See which.See which topics
Brand stories bring about 1.5x the share of founders and CEOs that event invites and recaps do (6.8% against 4.6%), and the topic the fractional CMO posts most, events, brings the lowest share. Partner posts score high on only 3 posts, carried by one post about paid introductions.
Posts that brought the most founders and CEOsShare of founders and CEOs in each post’s reactions1 of 5 open
#1Not everyone walks14.8%
#2Should customers sometimes have to adapt to the people serving them?13.2%
#3Should you get paid for making a recommendation?11.1%
#4If I've learned anything since going fractional three years ago9.7%
#5Fractionals aren't just hired for what they've achieved in the past9%
For comparison, the biggest post of the period, the regional growth announcement (151 reactions), brought 3.1% founders and CEOs. So did the Decathlon NOLHTACED story (122 reactions): a brand story written for marketers, not for the CEO.
6 rules for LinkedIn engagement from founders and CEOs
These rules come from what worked on the fractional CMO's own profile, and from the best-performing posts by fractional CMOs and B2B marketers on LinkedIn over the last 3 months.
1
Tell a story you saw yourself, then ask the business question. A scene from this week in London (a coffee bar, a crossing, a meeting) reads like a conversation, not like content. Ending on a question a business owner would argue about brings the owners in.On this profile: the sign-language flat white post brought 13.2% founders and CEOs, more than twice the 6.1% average.
Challenge an assumption the whole market takes for granted. "Just because something has always been done a certain way doesn't mean it's the right way." That is what a CEO hires a senior outsider for. A post that questions one familiar thing shows the habit in action.On this profile: "Not everyone walks" had the highest share of buyers of the period, 14.8%.
Write the brand story for the CEO, not for the marketing team. A clever campaign told to marketers gets applause from marketers. The same story, ending on what it cost, what it earned and what an owner could copy on Monday, speaks to the person who signs.Across the niche: Will Poskett's Hiscox red wine mailer post drew 927 likes and 77 comments, with three lessons any business can apply.
Talk about the CEO's belief in marketing, to the CEO. Fractional CMOs know the pattern: marketing works when the CEO believes in it. Said to the CEO, with what that belief changes in budget meetings and sales alignment, it becomes the reason to hire someone senior.Across the niche: Pranjalee Lahri's "CEO conviction" post drew 785 likes and 200 comments, one of the most engaged fractional CMO posts of the last 3 months.
Tell CEOs what a fractional CMO is not. Many businesses hire a fractional CMO as if they were buying a whole marketing team in one person. Saying what the role is and isn't helps the CEO write a realistic brief, and shows who has done it many times.Across the niche: Paul Mills's "Fractional CMO ≠ Unicorn" post drew 70 likes and 32 comments on 7.1K followers.
Turn the event into one idea a CEO can use. An invite speaks to the people who might attend: other marketers. A recap that leads with one sharp idea from the room ("AI doesn't read your org chart") travels to the business leaders who weren't there.On this profile: the Hotwire recap that opened on the org chart line brought 7 founders and CEOs, the most of the 9 event posts. The event posts averaged 4.6%.
When founders and CEOs read: the best time to post on LinkedIn for fractional CMOs
We compared the share of founders and CEOs by the day and the hour each post was published, in London time. 21 of the 28 posts went out in the 8 a.m. slot.
Share of founders and CEOs by posting dayAmong the people who reacted to each postFree
6.0%
Mon
6.0%
Tue
4.5%
Wed
7.5%
Thu
4.7%
Fri
5.9%
Sat
6.1%
Sun
Best time to post, by hourShare of founders and CEOs among people who reactedFree
5.5%
8:00
3.8%
12:00
Thursday brought the highest share of founders and CEOs, 7.5% over 4 posts, and the most per post: 5.8 against 2.7 on Wednesday, the lowest day (4.5% over 6 posts). Monday and Tuesday came next at 6%.
By hour, the 8 a.m. slot brought 5.5% over 21 posts, and the three lunchtime posts at noon brought 3.8%. Keep 8 a.m., put the brand stories and CEO-facing posts on Thursday and Monday, and move event reminders to Wednesday, where they cost the least.
05
5 posts ready to publish to target founders and CEOs
Each post follows the rules above, in the fractional CMO's voice. Swap in your own details before posting: the real scene and the real numbers are what make it land.
1Ready to postBrand story
The ugly carrotRule 3: write the brand story for the CEO, not for the marketing team. Modelled on Will Poskett's Hiscox post and on the Decathlon story, rewritten to end on the owner's decision.
Hook
Would you pay full price for an ugly carrot?Most supermarkets assumed you wouldn't.So for years, fruit and vegetables that looked a bit odd never made it to the shelves.Wonky carrots. Twisted aubergines. Lemons with a bump.Perfectly good food. Thrown away because of how it looked.Then in 2014, French supermarket Intermarché tried something different.They gave the rejects a name."Les fruits et légumes moches". Inglorious Fruits and Vegetables.They gave them their own aisle, their own posters, and a price 30% lower than the perfect ones.And they sold out.Same product.
New story.
Different result.Here's the bit I think most CEOs miss......This wasn't a marketing campaign bolted on at the end. It was a commercial decision. Someone in the business decided the problem was worth solving, gave it a name and backed it.Most businesses have their own ugly carrots.
The product line nobody talks about. The customer segment everyone ignores. The service that "doesn't fit the brand".What's the ugly carrot in your business?
Visual · Single imageA photo of a wonky carrot next to a perfect one, with the two price tags. No logo.Check before postingCheck the Intermarché details (2014, the 30% discount) against a source you trust before posting, and add a real example from your own client work if you can name one.
What the Slicer Awards winners had in commonRule 1: tell a story you saw yourself, then ask the business question. Modelled on the sign-language flat white post, the second best share of buyers on the profile.
Hook
Last Wednesday I watched a room full of fractional marketers clap for each other. And I noticed something about the winners.The first Slicer Awards. The UK's first awards for fractional excellence in marketing and communications.12 months ago I didn't think it was possible.But reading the entries, one pattern kept coming back......The best results weren't only about the fractional.
They were about the CEO who hired them.A CEO who gave them access to the numbers in week one.
A CEO who let them say "stop" to something that had always been done.
A CEO who sat in the room when marketing presented to sales.Fractionals are often sent in with limited resources and big expectations.The ones who win BIG usually have someone at the top who believes in marketing.So if you're a CEO thinking about bringing in a fractional CMO, here's my question.Are you hiring someone to do marketing?
Or someone to change how your business thinks about it?The second one only works if you're in the room too.Congratulations again to all our winners 🏆
Visual · PhotoOne photo from the awards night: the winners on stage, or a winner with the trophy. Real photo, no graphic.Check before postingUse the real patterns from the entries and the judges' notes, and tag the winners only if they agree to be named.
Why the CEO wants more leads firstRule 2: challenge an assumption the whole market takes for granted. Modelled on "Not everyone walks", the best share of buyers on the profile, and written to the CEO instead of the fractional.
Hook
Why does almost every CEO ask for more leads first?It feels like the obvious place to start.Pipeline is down. Sales want more. The board wants to see growth.So marketing gets one instruction.
More leads. Faster.I've had that brief more times than I can count since going fractional three years ago.And it's rarely the first thing to fix.Because when I look under the bonnet, the problem is usually somewhere else......The leads you already have aren't being followed up.
Nobody agrees what a good lead actually looks like.
The website says something different from what sales say on the call.
Customers can't explain what you do when someone asks them.Add more leads to that and you just get more of the same problem.So before you ask for more, ask three questions:How many leads did we get last quarter, and what happened to them?
Could our best customer explain what we do in one sentence?
Do sales and marketing agree on who we're for?If the answers are uncomfortable, that's good news.
It means the growth is already in the business.Just because we've always started with more leads doesn't mean we should.CEOs, what's the first thing you'd ask a new CMO to fix?
Visual · Text onlyNo visual: the question in the first line does the work, like "Not everyone walks".Check before postingSwap in the three questions you really ask in the first weeks of an assignment.
What a fractional CMO is notRule 5: tell CEOs what a fractional CMO is not. Modelled on Paul Mills's "Fractional CMO ≠ Unicorn" post.
Hook
A fractional CMO is not a cheaper full-time CMO.I meet a lot of CEOs who are thinking about bringing one in.And I meet a lot of fractionals at The Slice Network who've been hired for the wrong job.So here's what a fractional CMO is not......❌ Not a marketing team in one person
They'll set the direction. They won't write every post, build every campaign and run the CRM as well.❌ Not a magic fix for pipeline in month one
The first weeks are about finding out what's really going on.❌ Not an agency with a senior title
They work for the business, not for a retainer of deliverables.❌ Not someone you brief once a quarter
They need access to the numbers, the sales team and you.❌ Not a stopgap until you find "the real one"
Many businesses never need a full-time CMO. That's the point.What they are:👉 Senior marketing leadership, for the part of the week your business actually needs it.Often sent in with limited resources and big expectations.
And at their best when the CEO knows exactly what they've hired them to do.What would you add to the list?
Visual · CarouselOne slide per "not", then a final slide with what a fractional CMO is. Slice Network colours.Check before postingKeep the five points that match the assignments you've actually seen go wrong.
The CEO's brief for a fractional CMOThe lead magnet pick below, built on the "CEO wants more leads" post and rewritten for the CEO who is about to hire.
Hook
Before you hire a fractional CMO, answer these 5 questions.Most fractional assignments that go wrong were set up wrong in week one.Not because the CMO was bad.
Not because the CEO was difficult.
But because nobody wrote down what success looked like.Since going fractional three years ago, I've had a lot of first conversations with CEOs.The good ones always cover the same ground:1. What do we need marketing to change in the next 6 months?
2. What have we already tried, and what happened?
3. Which numbers will we both look at every month?
4. Who does the fractional CMO work with, and who do they manage?
5. What will they need from me, the CEO?So I've turned them into a one-page brief.The questions, what a good answer looks like, and the red flags to watch for on both sides.Comment BRIEF and I'll send it over 👇No pitch. Just the page.
Visual · Single imageA photo of the one-page brief on a desk, the five questions readable.Check before postingBuild the one-page brief before posting, and put your Netwarm Reveal link in the reply so you can see which CEOs open it.
Free forever: unlimited scheduling through LinkedIn’s official API, with images, video and PDF carousels.
06
LinkedIn lead generation: lead magnets that work to target founders and CEOs
A reaction tells you someone liked a post. A download tells you they have the problem. Among fractional execs and B2B marketers, the resources that pull hundreds of comments are the ones they already use with clients: the model, the team setup, the event write-up.
The fractional CMO already runs the raw material every month: events, spotlight interviews and the first conversations with CEOs.
Format 1The client tool, given awayThe thing a fractional exec normally builds for a fee, offered free. It works because a founder can use it the same day, and it shows the standard of the paid work.
Format 2The event, written upA live session turned into a long written deep dive, with the numbers. The people who missed it get the value, and the write-up keeps working long after the event.
Format 3The marketing team, as a kitA ready-made set of roles or prompts a founder can run without hiring. It speaks to the CEO who has no marketing team yet, which is often the one who later hires a fractional CMO.
Format 4The 30-second checkA short diagnostic a founder can run on their own document. It is about the reader's business, so they keep it, and it opens the conversation about what to fix.
Our pick for you: the CEO's brief for a fractional CMO
Our pick for you: “Our pick for you: the CEO's brief for a fractional CMO”A one-page brief built from the first conversations the fractional CMO has had with CEOs since going fractional, and from the "CEO wants more leads" post: the 5 questions to answer before hiring, what a good answer looks like, and the red flags on both sides. Offer it in the fifth post above with "Comment BRIEF", and send it through a Reveal link to see which CEOs open it.With a Reveal link, every person who downloads it is shown by name, with their role and how warm they are. Your first Reveal link is free.Create your free Reveal link
07
From reactions to clients: who to message, and when
Most of the 43 founders and CEOs never commented. They reacted, and moved on. Among 559 peers, they are easy to miss, and the moment passes.
A buyer turns Hot when they react to several posts in a short time. Right now that's a short list.
Hot right now5 founders and CEOs · not contacted yetNetwarm
5 founders and CEOs are Hot. See who to message first.See who’s Hot
First messageAn opener for each Hot person, based on the posts they readNetwarm
You've been following the posts on fractional leadership for a few weeks. Is bringing in senior marketing help something you're weighing up?Saw you liked the post on what to fix before asking for more leads. Which of the three questions is hardest in your business right now?Happy to send you the one-page brief we use before a fractional CMO starts, if it's useful.
A first line for each of them, ready to send.See the openers
Message them while the post is still on their mind: within the week they reacted, about the topic they reacted to.
08
FAQ
Posts written for the CEO who hires, not only for other fractionals: a story you saw yourself that ends on a business question, an assumption worth challenging, and what a fractional CMO is and isn't. On this profile, brand stories brought 6.8% founders and CEOs, against 4.6% for event invites and recaps.
On this profile, Thursday: 7.5% of the people who reacted to Thursday posts were founders and CEOs, and 5.8 per post, against 4.5% and 2.7 per post on Wednesday. Most posts went out at 8 a.m. London time.
This profile posted about seven times a week. Volume keeps the community engaged, but the share of buyers depends on the topic: two or three posts a week written for CEOs matter more than a daily event reminder.
Look at who reacted, not how many. Sort the people who react by role, count the founders and CEOs, and watch which of them come back to three posts or more.
Yes. The reactions on a post are public, and this kind of analysis needs no LinkedIn login, so there is no risk for the account.
How we made this playbook
Period: 5 October to 3 November 2026, 28 posts (one deleted post and one duplicate were left out). 700 people reacted, 1,914 reactions read (the first 100 reactors of each post), 2,175 reactions on LinkedIn in total.
Comments were not counted. Roles come from each person's LinkedIn headline and are approximate: buyers are founders, CEOs, owners and managing directors, minus fractionals, consultants, agencies, coaches, lead generation providers and other marketers.
Niche rules and lead magnet formats come from the most engaged fractional CMO and B2B marketing posts on LinkedIn over the last 90 days.
