startup marketing on zero budget
DESCRIPTION
I presented this to StartupLive Prague - a Startup Weekend audience, aiming to build new products and take them to market on a low budget.TRANSCRIPT
Startup Marketing on a tiny budget
with @DaveBooth
zero
Assumptions!
Let’s assu
me you have…
• Some contact with potential end users• Zero customers• No mailing lists, CRM, lead databases• Almost no budget for marketing
• Just an incredible passion to make a difference in the lives of a key group of people
Tip #1
Do it Yourse
lf!
• Don’t hire a marketing VP until you have a decent revenue stream
> $100,000 USD annually
A little about
me..
• Consultant, Investor, Advisor, Mentor• CEO of a software startup for 2.5 years– Grew firm from 3 employees and $100k
annual revenue to 45 employees and $2.5M annual revenue
• Focus on enterprise infrastructure and tooling for software development teams
Today’s Goals
Start High, T
hen
Deep Dive
Today’s Goals
•
Get Atte
ntion
•
Find Product-Market F
it
•Convert
visitors
to custo
mers
•
Spend ZERO money on
marketing
Strategy
Product – Market Fit
Customer would be “very disappointed” if they couldn’t use
your product/service anymore
Customer proves fit by GIVING YOU
MONEY
Customer group is large enough
to build a scalable
business model
Strategy
Product – Market Fit
Customer would be “very disappointed” if they couldn’t use
your product/service anymore
Customer proves fit by GIVING YOU
MONEY
Customer group is large enough
to build a scalable
business model
First Q
uestion
?What if my product / service is free for End Users, and I make money by charging another group of people (Purchasers)? How do I know if we’ve reached the Product Market Fit?
Purchasers End Users
You can clearly show them ROI (Key Value Proposition)
Line up to use your solution
They actually receive it (your solution works)
Tell other people about it
They want to resubscribe Fit into a clearly definable market segment
Up Next: Hot
Tips
You know you’ve reached Product-Market Fit when...
Tip #2
Don’t waste
resources!
• Don’t Spend time, money or energy on:– Advertising– Exhibiting at Conferences – unless you’re
speaking– Purchasable mailing lists– Expensive CRMs– SaaS Email Marketing Solutions– A/B testing
Tip #3
Target Audience Carefully!
• BudgetB• AuthorityA• NeedN• TimelineT
Tip #4
Build a Community!
End Users
Purchasers
Enablers
Enablers?
EnablersNetwork Hubs
Media
Authors
Connectors
Group Leaders
How?
Find
• Look for groups who meet online or in person• Search for articles on relevant topics• Leaders of non-competitive companies in your space
Contact
• Approach them humbly – they’re probably very busy• Be PERSONAL• Use flattery – “I really like your article / company…”
Enlist
• Explain your vision: To solve Problem X• Make them feel like a trusted advisor – Advisory Board?• Ask them to help share your message (once in a while)
Build a list
Guard your list
Grow your list
Tip #5
Understand Success
Metrics!
• Set targets that you think will drive your business– Revenue– # of users– # of customers– Conversion rates:
• Visitor• Trial• Customer• Resubscriber
Tip #6
Content Marketing!
• Create content that is interesting for your target audience & share it through the Enablers, the groups, and ask the audience to share it with one another– Blog Posts– Surveys– Reports– Tweets– Humor– Stories
Tactic #1
(only one I have tim
e for)
NetworkHubs
Survey Collect Data
Update Website
Create Report
Promote
Report
Build Mailing
list
Post-Report Email
Customers
Marketing you can do
with almost zero $$$
• Website– Key Value Proposition & Credibility Indicators
• Blog– Content Creation, Inbound Marketing
• Community– Email Marketing, Social Sharing
Final Tip
Keep Learning!
• Email Marketing - List Building Tactics
• Search for Marketing Sherpa
Question Time &
Contact Info
Ask anything you like! (Corralejo Triple Distilled)
Feel free to connect:http://www.linkedin.com/in/[email protected]@gmail.com