The spooky season is upon us, and it's time to hide under the covers and quake in fear—at these horrifying startup marketing mistakes! Marketing is a vital part of any new business's growth strategy and works hand in hand with excellent brand messaging. Avoiding the following terrifying traps helps you cement your position in your market and fight off the monster of stagnated growth or—shudder—the haunting specter of an unseen brand.

The Ogre of Overhiring

You’re not raising an undead army, so stop hiring zombies! The Great Resignation was certainly still ongoing into 2022, with at least 50 million Americans quitting their jobs and looking for something better. This could represent a tempting talent pool to dive into, but savvy startups should really focus their hiring efforts on quality over quantity. A massive team of averagely skilled marketers cannot replace a single, highly qualified marketing expert. That’s why many companies focus their startup marketing recruitment budget on a fractional CMO who guides their marketing efforts in the early stages of growth.

Fearsome Revenue FOMO

Scrabbling for every scrap of revenue can cause a failure to focus on the clients who really want to work with you over the long term. We call this Revenue FOMO or the fear of missing out on revenue, and, ironically, FOMO can lead to you missing out on so much more. Instead of reacting to every interested party, be proactive in creating your ideal customer profiles and target audiences.

The VOC Void

VOC, or Voice Of Client, is one of your most powerful tools. Speaking to clients about what they like about your app or platform, what they don't, and what they want from you as a provider gives you critical data that you can put straight back into your marketing and R&D efforts. If you decide to drop VOC into the void? That means you don't ever get to understand how your product or service is impacting real end-users within your industry.

Avoid the Void: Read our 5 Tips for Conducting Voice of Client Meetings

Final Word

Avoid scary strategies and embrace the sweet treat side of marketing this Halloween. All startups can benefit from an overview of their current marketing efforts to see what's going well and what could be tweaked to encourage lasting growth. Book a 15-minute introductory call with Arch Collective and ask about our startup marketing audit services.

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