I started my marketing career almost 20 years ago, and am so grateful to have experienced the marketing world of the last two decades. I won’t go into how much has changed, we all know it has. Perhaps it’s because I’ve reached a new “milestone” age wise, or perhaps it’s because of my recent career shift, but I find myself increasingly excited for what’s to come - and there is no context more thrilling than the startup landscape.
Having recently co-founded a Seed Through Series, I’ve been deeply immersed in this world. It’s a refreshing change from big tech in the sense that I’m personally invested in helping emerging companies (that will be shaping our future) succeed.
Startups have always been Marketing Pioneers
I’ve always found that constraints lead to the best creative thinking. Startups are inherently bound by budget and resource limitations, and in the early 2000s they were the ones blogging, experimenting on social media, and building passionate and engaged communities in unexpected ways. Companies like AirBnB, Warby Parker, Slack, and Pinterest were all startups back then and wizards at driving organic growth. Now, organic growth levers are a mainstay to any marketing strategy. But advertising has also come a long way, and is more accessible than ever before for companies of all sizes, including startups.
So, when we meet with Founders, one of the most common questions they have is “Should I invest in paid media or organic growth?” and my short (and probably annoying) answer is “it depends, and likely both”. Before we even have this discussion, it goes without saying that we need to have established their ICP and business objectives. Once that’s in place we can dive deeper into how these two sectors of marketing work together to drive better outcomes.
Organic Marketing: Best for Cultivating Trust and Long-Term Value
Phrased differently,organic marketing simply means building a loyal community through engagement and authentic content. Content like blog posts, webinars, social media interactions, and video content all need to be unique, personal, and consistent to drive the most impact. And Organic is not synonymous with Free. Creating quality content takes time and money to do well. Here are some of of the latest organic trends we recommend experimenting with:
- Testing out Podcasts: Over 504 million people will be listening to podcasts by the end of 2024 at an average of 7 hours per week. By nature, podcasts foster intimate connections with users and allow for powerful, in-depth storytelling. If you don’t have the bandwidth to host your own podcast, consider being a regular on one or a few of the millions of active podcasts out there.
- Foster community-driven growth: Building engaged communities can be one of the most powerful ways to convert free users to paid customers. You can differentiate yourself quickly and have full control over the experience by creating your own in-platform community. FinTech disruptor Public has done a great job of this. Instead of a stock ticker, the app’s main page is actually a social feed where users can talk about the latest investment strategies.
- Work with Micro-influencers: Influencer marketing is here to stay, and it can work as well for startups as for brands that can afford the Kim Kardashians’ of the world. I guarantee you, there is someone out there with a sizable enough following in your niche that can authentically promote your brand. And the good news is: micro-influencers cost very little to test out. Note: A common misconception: UGC content is not the same as influencer marketing. Read more here. If you’re gaining traction organically, leverage both UGC and influencer content for your paid campaigns.
Personally, I’m passionate about organic marketing. I think it truly is the most effective way to achieve sustainable growth, but it’s not without its downsides:
- Slower results: Building organic traffic takes time and consistent effort. Don't expect overnight success.
- Highly competitive: Ranking high in search results or garnering social media attention requires standing out in a crowded market. There’s no guarantee that your efforts will garner results.
- Resource intensive: SEO, content creation, and social media management demand specific skills or require agency partnerships.
Paid Marketing: Best For Boosting Your Visibility and Conversions
Paid marketing is still the tried and true way to inject your brand directly into your ICP’s sightline. If your goal is primarily awareness or conversions, or if you want to experiment quickly to gather new insights, paid media is a great option. And AI is making it easier than ever to manage your paid campaigns from creation to management to measurement. However, I don’t recommend trying to figure this out by yourself or even hiring a dedicated resource if you’re early on. There are an increasing number of platforms and advertising agencies out there that are catering to the needs of startups. Two I’ve personally vetted are Audyence for lead generation and Bell Curve for advertising.
There are a few considerations you have to be prepared for before you go down this road:
- Upfront investment: Running successful ad campaigns requires enough budget to learn what’s working and what’s not, so you have to be willing to lose in the early stages of your campaign to see ROI over time.
- Competition for ad space: Bidding wars for popular keywords can drive up costs, especially in competitive industries. Some channels are more cost effective than others, but the main consideration is to go where your audience is.
- Short-term impact: Impact goes away when spend goes away, making it less sustainable for long-term gains.
Why “both organic and paid” is usually the best answer - and a few ways they can work together:
- Start with organic: Lay the foundation with high-quality, SEO-optimized content, community engagement, and email marketing for long-term growth.
- Boost and test with paid: Use targeted ads to drive initial traffic and reach specific high-value audiences.
- Nurture leads: Convert paid ad clickers into loyal customers with authentic, personalized content and continued community engagement.
If you want to hear more about how Seed Through Series supports marketing for startups looking to spur growth and increase revenue, reach out to me!
