原创 Disregard marketing at your own risk

It wasn’t always this way. When semiconductor startups were trendy and well-funded, marketing had a cache of programs to position the company. Many of the savvier startups took a one-two approach to launching themselves and their products.

First came the company rollout that seeded the market with the company’s positioning. The corporate news release included high-level positioning and salient facts, such as investors, board members, and key staff members. It was common to divulge the problem area that the new company was addressing. All this was staged to pique the curiosity of potential customers and competitors. It was a great recruiting tool as well.

Anywhere from two to six months later the company’s first product was rolled out. Between these two points, trade and online publications often published commentaries and technical articles contributed by the company to set the stage for the product launch. The wave of announcements continued, and the industry was conditioned to see customer-adoption news releases and, perhaps, news on the health of the company through year-end releases reporting growth.

Obviously, the world has changed, with many companies being bootstrapped, lacking the resources for this proven marketing strategy. Scarce funds are now reserved for product development and sales. Customer support, news releases, articles, whitepapers, and case studies are still valued.

The main motivation for rollout campaigns is no longer the articles they might generate in online publications, but the fresh information they bring to a company’s website and the boost they provide search engine optimization (SEO) results. Blogging and social media are now essential components of a balanced marketing strategy.

I contend, however, that the two-phase strategy still makes sense. In fact, there’s no reason not to implement it in a well-conceived, cost-effective marketing program employing a variety of elements including SEO, blogging, and social media.

Another important aspect of marketing is product marketing. In the early stages of a company’s development, this means product definition -- in other words, helping the engineering team understand and solve the customer's problem, and then succinctly articulating the company’s position.

Once again, the lack of funding has profoundly changed the dynamics of product marketing in startups. Technologists who witnessed the shortcomings of existing solutions now found most startups. They may have been on the user side or on the supply side, but they recognized the need and the opportunity to develop a better solution. Given its deep understanding of the target market, the founding team is unlikely to enlist the help of a marketing team.

Let’s not forget that the benefits of marketing still exist after a successful launch. One marketing executive repeatedly encouraged his team to remember that marketing was one-to-many communication, while sales was one-to-one communication. The practice of flying under the radar and relying on sales for broadcasting the company message and position can work for a while, but it’s not a long-term strategy, nor is it particularly effective. Nothing is worse than allowing a competitor to position the company, which can happen. Once a reputation –– good or bad –– is established, it’s hard to sway opinion.

Marketing is an important element of growth and the most significant means of building brand identity. Don’t neglect it. A startup founder may think the company cannot afford marketing, but ignoring it is worse. The semiconductor industry is full of experienced consultants. Online marketing resources are a Google search away. A phone call to a trusted advisor can quickly identify a qualified consultant.