3 Key lessons from being a “Starter”

I've learned 3 key lessons from being a “starter”.

But first, what do I mean by “starter”? In every job I’ve had, I was the first full-time marketing leader or working on marketing for a new brand. I’ve been at the start of new marketing initiatives and able to shape strategy, define structure, and influence outcomes my whole career.

So what have I learned that might be beneficial to you as an entrepreneur or growing business?

🎯 Define the goal.
If you don’t know what you’re aiming for you’ll miss 100% of the time. At Burt’s Bees, I worked on a new fragrance-based line of personal care products. Because it was wholly new to the market, our goal was to grow our audience and drive brand awareness. Because we were super clear on that, we were able to curate aligned experiences for our customers including a celebrity sponsorship and influencer campaign that drove 10M impressions in 3 months.

📊 Manage your KPIs.
If you don’t track performance, you’ll never understand how well your marketing activity performs and why. That last piece is key - the why. By tracking various metrics from impressions to CAC to LTV you begin to see what levers to pull to drive the brand forward. Don’t just write them down, understand them, notice how they interact with one another, and don’t be afraid to cut out an activity if it isn’t performing. This is about testing and learning what works best for your brand in a cost-effective manner.

🔎 Comparison is the thief of joy.
AKA, don’t compare your day 1 to someone else’s day 100. All brands grow at their own pace and if you get too caught up in what everyone else is doing you will lose focus of your own goals. Your secret sauce is in connecting with your audience in a way that is authentic and delivers value. There is no cookie cutter solution that every brand can follow for success because every brand is different. Yes, we can learn from others and adopt best practices, but your story is yours alone and to build a sustainable long-lasting community of loyal customers/clients, you have to stay true to your vision.

Sound like something you could use Marketing support with as you get started? Let’s schedule a FREE 30 min chat to see how we can work together.