The importance of marketing for startups in pre-seed, seed, and early-stage
If you search online “what is a startup,” you might face a hard time. There are a lot of different definitions; some of them are controversial, others too strict, and sometimes too complicated. I like to simplify things, so for now, let’s focus on two words: start and up.
If we follow the semantics of the word, we could say that a startup is something new that has just started and is willing to go up, in other terms, seeking growth – which makes sense, until some point of startup stages.
As humans, startups also need time to achieve their maturity level. The startup’s growth consists of stages, and the most commons are three: Early-stage, Venture-Funded (Growth) Stage, and Late Stage; the Silicon Valley Bank explains each of them in this article. There are a variety of divisions in each stage, and therefore there is no established consensus about it. Here is one that can bring together the startup journey:
- Pre-seed
- Seed Stage
- Early Stage
- Growth Stage
- Expansion Stage
- Exit
As a baby needs to learn to stand up and walk, startups also have challenges. Forbes published an article describing the five significant challenges to launch a startup:
- Limited resources.
- Just knowing what to do.
- Finding the “right area.”
- Hiring and managing a team.
- Attracting buyers.
Some people might think marketing is only related to attracting buyers; however, it associates with all of the five challenges stated by Forbes. As Philip Kotler explains in his book Marketing Management, “Marketing is an administrative and social process through which individuals and groups obtain what they need and desire by the generation, offering and exchanging valuable products with their equals.”
To get what you need, you may first understand what that “need” is.
Marketing for startups in pre-seed, seed, and early stages can work as a department in charge of the following:
- Understand your portfolio, define a positioning, a name, why that startup exists, and its contribution to society. These answers can lead to a conclusion of the “right area.”
- Understand the target audience and study it. If you know who your audience is, you’re able now to find where they are, analyze what they do, shape the communication, and define channels to reach them. Knowing your audience is the key to planning what you have to do next.
- Marketing your idea is an excellent start to hiring the correct people. When you clarify your message, people will get connected and inspired by working towards that dream.
- Marketing also supports reducing internal costs, such as CAC (customer acquisition cost), but the main contribution from marketing is market analysis and data visualization. Marketing can help reduce the risks of an unsuccessful strategy by providing relevant information to base the company decisions. Startups with limited resources should mitigate risks and base actions on accurate data.
- Attracting buyers will end up being a combination of the previous topics with a good marketing plan! If you have the right people, know the right area, know your public target and dominate your numbers, that’s the first step to reach your buyers!
In a world where we are bombed with information 24/7, starting a new company can be overwhelming. A good marketing strategy exists to support this process, simplifying messages and guiding the company through this growth journey. If you want to grow safer and faster, invest in a good marketing team.
Are you interested in knowing more about marketing plans for startups in the early stage?
Check out this: how to create a marketing plan for startups in the early stage.