5 Marketing Gaps Costing Founders' Growth
Quick Takeaways
Founders often confuse marketing activities with marketing strategy; they're not the same
Trade shows cost thousands, but most have no pre-event outreach or post-event nurture plan
Product-first positioning makes you a commodity; problem-first positioning creates differentiation
LinkedIn outreach without a system feels spammy and gets ignored
Without strategic PR, you're missing free visibility at conferences and launches
"We don't know what we don't know."
I hear this from founders constantly in discovery calls, and it's one of the most self-aware things a potential client can say.
These are smart, capable people who've built innovative products, often bootstrapped for years. They know they need marketing help, but they're not entirely sure what kind.
That openness creates space for real conversation. What emerges is rarely unique to any one founder. It's a pattern I see across discovery calls: founders engaging in marketing activities while lacking the strategic infrastructure to make them work.
If you're juggling product development, sales, fundraising, and operations, marketing often becomes the thing you'll "figure out later." And when you do tackle it, it's usually reactive: a last-minute trade show booth, sporadic LinkedIn posts, maybe some email outreach that feels more like guessing than strategy.
This post breaks down the five critical marketing strategy gaps I see most often in conversations with founders, and more importantly, how to identify and fix them before your next big opportunity.
The "We're Doing Marketing" Misconception
When Activity Doesn't Equal Strategy
Most founders I talk to are doing marketing activities. They're exhibiting at conferences. They're posting on LinkedIn occasionally. They're sending emails to prospects. They might even have a professional-looking website.
But when I ask about their marketing strategy, the conversation shifts.
There's no content calendar. No lead nurture sequence. No clear positioning framework. No documented buyer journey. No measurement plan beyond "did we get any sales from that?"
Marketing activities without a strategy are like showing up to a conference without knowing:
Who are you trying to reach
What message will resonate
How you'll follow up afterward
You might get lucky, but you're likely leaving most of the value on the table.
The gap between activity and strategy is where growth gets lost.
5 Marketing Strategy Gaps Founders Don't Realize They Have
Gap #1: No Pre-Event or Post-Event Strategy for Trade Shows
Trade shows and conferences are expensive. Booth space, travel, materials, time away from the business, it all adds up quickly.
Yet most founders treat them as "show up and see what happens" opportunities.
A common scenario I see: a founder has a booth reserved and, perhaps, a speaking slot confirmed. Solid start. But when we dig deeper, there's no plan to drive traffic to the booth before the event. No segmented outreach to attendees. No media strategy. No systematic lead capture beyond taking photos of badges.
Some founders have created QR codes for on-site signups, which is better than nothing. But that's often the extent of the plan.
Here's what a real trade show marketing strategy includes:
Before the event:
Targeted email or LinkedIn outreach to drive specific people to your booth
Pre-scheduled meetings with high-value prospects or partners
Media kit prepared with product info, founder bio, and key messaging
Outreach to journalists, podcasters, or industry influencers attending
During the event:
Professional lead capture tools that integrate with your CRM (not just badge photos)
Clear booth engagement tactics: demos, value-add content, memorable interactions
Real-time follow-up system for hot leads who want immediate next steps
After the event:
Immediate thank-you emails within 24 hours
Segmented nurture sequences based on interest level (ready to buy vs. exploring options)
30-90 day follow-up cadence for leads not ready to convert immediately
Without these pieces, you're spending thousands of dollars to collect contact information that sits unused. This is one of the most common and most expensive marketing mistakes founders make.
Gap #2: Product-First Positioning Instead of Problem-First
I hear variations of this frustration from founders all the time:
"People don't understand what we actually built. They see it as just another [commodity product] when we've created a complete solution."
This is the positioning trap that costs so many startups.
When you lead with what your product is, the features, the specs, the physical thing, you're competing on the wrong terms. You're asking buyers to connect the dots themselves.
A real example: A B2B technology company had built a sophisticated solution combining hardware and custom software. But their positioning focused on the hardware component, which made them seem like just another equipment vendor. Buyers compared them to generic alternatives and missed the real value.
Their product actually included:
Proprietary software with unique capabilities
Hardware designed to work seamlessly with that software
Features that solved specific pain points in their industry
Outcomes their competitors couldn't deliver
But when positioned as a hardware product with "extra features," it got compared to much cheaper alternatives.
Strategic marketing flips this. It starts with the problem, the frustration, and the outcome the buyer actually wants. Then position your product as the vehicle to get there.
Not: "Hardware device with proprietary software."
But: "Complete solution that lets you [achieve specific outcome] without [current pain point]."
Not: "Advanced features and capabilities."
But: "Finally do [job to be done] without worrying about [obstacle]."
If prospects misunderstand what you do or compare you to generic alternatives, your positioning is product-first, not problem-first.
Gap #3: Random LinkedIn Outreach Without a System
LinkedIn can be powerful for B2B and specialized markets. But most founder outreach falls into one of two categories: radio silence or spray-and-pray connection requests that feel like spam.
During discovery calls, founders often tell me they want to reach specific professional audiences, such as procurement managers, specialized consultants, educators in their niche, or technical decision-makers. But they're not sure how to do it without being pushy.
Here's what actually works:
Identify specific job titles - Use LinkedIn's search filters to find your exact target audience
Connect without pitching - Send connection requests with no sales message
Follow up with genuine curiosity - After they accept, send a personalized message that asks a question or shares relevant insight
Track and refine - Document response rates and adjust your approach
Not: "Here's what we do, want to schedule a demo?"
But: "I noticed you work in [specific area], I'm curious how you currently handle [relevant challenge]."
The key is building a repeatable system:
Defined search criteria
Outreach templates you personalize (not copy-paste)
Follow-up cadence
Tracking what works
This isn't sales. It's a relationship-building with structure.
Many founders ask about LinkedIn Premium or Sales Navigator. The premium tools give you more InMail credits and better search filters, but the real value comes from genuine connection requests followed by authentic conversations, not mass outreach.
Gap #4: No PR or Media Strategy
Most founders think PR means "write a press release and hope someone picks it up."
And when that doesn't work, they assume PR doesn't work for them.
But strategic PR is much more targeted, especially for major events such as conferences, product launches, or funding announcements.
I frequently hear from founders preparing for significant industry conferences. They're presenting. They have a booth. They might be unveiling a new product or major update.
But they have no media plan:
No outreach to industry publications
No press kit prepared
No plan to connect with journalists on-site
No podcast outreach
No pre-conference announcement to build buzz
Strategic PR for a conference includes:
Press release distributed through services like PR Newswire - with targeted distribution to relevant industry publications (not blanket distribution)
Direct outreach to niche media - industry blogs, trade publications, sector-specific journalists, specialized podcasts
Conference media opportunities - most major conferences have media rooms or designated press areas where you can schedule interviews
Pre-event announcement - building buzz before the event, so people know to visit your booth
Post-event coverage - follow-up with journalists who expressed interest
The key is being strategic about distribution. PR Newswire and similar services offer different distribution tiers. Working with someone who understands how to target the right publications makes a huge difference in results.
If you're launching something new, attending a major event, or hitting a milestone, and you're not proactively reaching out to relevant media, you're missing free visibility.
Gap #5: No Follow-Up System After Events or Campaigns
You collect 50 contacts at a conference. You send one follow-up email. Crickets. You assume they weren't interested.
But here's what actually happened: they were interested in the moment. Then they returned to the office, were hit with their backlog, and forgot.
Or they need to see you 3-5 more times before they're ready to take action.
Or they need to speak with a colleague, obtain budget approval, or wait for the right timing.
A real follow-up system includes:
Immediate thank-you email within 24 hours of meeting them
Value-add touchpoint within one week (helpful resource, case study, or relevant article—not a sales pitch)
Segmented nurture sequences over 30-90 days based on where they are in the buyer journey
Different tracks for different interest levels - decision-makers get different messaging than influencers or researchers
In discovery calls, founders often tell me they've been taking photos of attendee badges or using QR codes for signups. Good start. But there's rarely a documented system for what happens next.
Without systematic follow-up, you're losing 80% of the potential value from that event.
The leads who don't buy immediately aren't "bad leads." They're just not ready yet. Your job is to stay top of mind until they are.
How to Identify What You're Missing (And What to Do About It)
Start With the Questions You're Not Asking
The best discovery calls I have start with "We don't know what we don't know." That openness enables real strategy to occur.
If you're a founder thinking about hiring marketing help, here are the questions to ask yourself first:
Do we have a documented content strategy, or are we just posting when we think of it?
Do we know our conversion rates at each funnel stage, or are we guessing?
Are we driving traffic to our booth/webinar/launch, or hoping people find us?
Do we have a lead-nurture system, or do leads go cold after a single touchpoint?
Is our messaging focused on what we built, or the outcome it delivers?
If you can't answer these clearly, you have gaps. And that's okay—most founders do. The question is whether you're going to keep guessing or bring in someone who can build the system.
When to Consider Fractional Marketing Support
Not every founder needs a full-time CMO or a long-term retainer. Sometimes you just need someone to get one thing right: a trade show strategy, a content calendar, a LinkedIn outreach system, a lead magnet, and a nurture sequence.
During my call, I suggested starting with a project to establish value and mutual understanding. That allows both sides to see what's possible without a massive commitment.
But here's when you need ongoing fractional marketing consultant support:
You're fundraising and need consistent content and positioning work
You're launching new products regularly and need campaign infrastructure
You have trade shows or events every quarter and need repeatable systems
Your sales team is hungry for leads, and you don't have a generation engine
Be honest about where you are and what you actually need right now. A fractional marketing consultant can provide strategic guidance without the overhead of a full-time hire.
Look for Curiosity, Not Just Execution
When you're hiring marketing support—whether fractional, consultant, or full-time—look for someone who asks good questions, not just someone who says "I can do that."
The best marketers I know start with:
"Tell me about your buyers. What do they care about?"
"What have you tried? What worked and what didn't?"
"What does success look like to you?"
If someone jumps straight to tactics without understanding context, they're executing, not strategizing. And execution without strategy is just an expensive activity.
Conclusion: Fixing Marketing Gaps Starts With Awareness
Here's the truth: most founders aren't bad at marketing. They're doing it without the infrastructure, systems, and strategic clarity needed to make it work.
You don't need to become a marketing expert. You need to recognize what you're missing, ask better questions, and bring in the right support at the right time.
If you're preparing for a conference, launching a new product, or trying to scale beyond word-of-mouth, take an honest look at the five startup marketing mistakes I outlined. Chances are, at least two or three are costing you growth right now.
The good news? These are fixable. And once you have the strategy and systems in place, marketing stops feeling like a guessing game and starts feeling like a growth engine.
Ready to identify your biggest marketing gaps?
I offer discovery calls where we walk through your current approach, identify what's missing, and figure out whether working together makes sense.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
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The five most common startup marketing mistakes are:
(1) confusing marketing activities with marketing strategy,
(2) having no pre-event or post-event trade show strategy, (3) using product-first instead of problem-first positioning,
(4) lacking a systematic LinkedIn outreach approach, and
(5) having no follow-up system after events or campaigns. -
Founders should consider hiring a fractional marketing consultant when they're preparing for major events, launching new products, fundraising, or noticing that marketing activities aren't translating to consistent lead generation. Fractional support is ideal when you need strategic guidance without the cost of a full-time CMO.
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Marketing activities are tactical executions like posting on social media, sending emails, or exhibiting at trade shows. Marketing strategy is the documented plan that includes target audience definition, positioning, messaging framework, content calendar, lead-nurture system, and measurement plan, which aligns activities toward business goals.
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Beyond the obvious costs (booth space, travel, materials), founders without a trade show marketing strategy waste the opportunity cost of leads that could have converted. With proper pre-event outreach, on-site lead capture, and post-event nurture, the same booth investment can generate 5-10x more qualified leads.
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Effective LinkedIn outreach follows a system: (1) search for specific job titles, (2) send connection requests without a pitch, (3) after they accept, send a personalized message that asks a question or offers value (not a sales pitch), (4) track response rates and refine. Focus on relationship building, not immediate sales.
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An effective post-event follow-up system includes: an immediate thank-you email within 24 hours, a value-add touchpoint within one week (resource, not pitch), segmented nurture sequences based on interest level, and an ongoing 30-90-day cadence for leads not ready to buy immediately.
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A fractional CMO provides ongoing strategic leadership and is embedded in your team (typically 1-3 days/week). A fractional marketing consultant is better suited to specific projects or shorter-term needs, such as developing a trade show strategy, creating a content calendar, or addressing a positioning problem. Start with project-based work to establish fit.
