Straight Answers to the Questions I Get Asked Most

Hey, I'm JOHN LUKE, founder of JOHN LUKE and Creative Director at Imagemme. People reach out often asking about pricing, process, why choose a boutique like us over big agencies, and what fractional CMO actually means in practice. I figured I'd lay it out plainly here, just what comes to mind based on 15+ years doing this.

Q: How much does branding actually cost with you?

Most projects land between $20k and $100k+. Startups usually hit the lower end, around $20k (4k+ per month). Bigger companies with lots of touchpoints, sub-brands, or heavier production push toward the higher end. Add deeper strategy, campaigns, video shoots, talent, or packaging sourcing and it can go past the $100k. We scope everything clearly upfront. No surprises.

Q: What's your hourly rate compared to big agencies?

We charge $150 an hour for the whole team, me included. That’s on purpose. We want high-end work without crazy markups. Big places like McCann or Havas? They’re often $750 to $1,000 an hour for similar stuff. They need those rates to cover overhead and subsidize pro bono or award projects. We’ve done work where they quoted $500k+ and we delivered at $50k to $100k with equal or better results. You get founder-level attention, no layers of bloat. Plus we usually work at 5x the speed. Remember it's those companies that outsource to us to produce the work.

Q: Are you actually hands-on, or do juniors do most of it?

I’m hands-on in every single project. I lead strategy and creative direction from day one to final delivery. No bait-and-switch. You talk to me directly the whole way. That’s the main difference with a founder-led studio.

Q: What about fractional CMO or growth marketing?

This is huge for growing brands right now. Hiring a full-time CMO costs $150k to $300k+ a year, plus benefits and overhead. Bring me and the team in fractionally instead. We cover brand strategy, campaigns, creative, measurement, optimization. You get exec-level marketing at a fraction of the cost, usually 40 to 70% less than a full hire. High-quality creative tied straight to growth and revenue. No need to build an in-house team from zero. It scales with you.

Q: How much should a company budget for marketing overall?

For B2B, I usually tell people to aim for 2-5% of revenue. That keeps things steady and growing without overdoing it. For B2C, startups in growth mode, or brands pushing hard into new markets, 5-10% or more makes sense. Branding is normally the foundation of that budget. Start with a clear number and it compounds fast. Under-investing here is one of the fastest ways to stall.

If this clicks or you’ve got follow-ups, just reply or grab a quick call.

Cheers,

, JOHN LUKE