We are so excited to introduce our audio series, Fuel Up, where we surface the strategic and tactical marketing challenges that young companies face and the techniques and best practices that these early- stage startups use to grow. In this series, we’re inviting the marketers and sales leaders who’ve been in the trenches to share what they’ve learned and by the end of each episode - leave you a little wiser in all aspects of marketing.
In our very first installment of the Fuel Up audio series, Matt Trifiro, Vapor IO’s Chief Marketing Officer, talks naming, category creation, and the secret power of the future perfect tense. This wide-ranging conversation is a crash course in strategically positioning cutting edge products, and a necessary listen for any early-stage company looking to build a marketing function from scratch.
Matt dropped countless knowledge bombs. Below are some of the highlights:
Pay attention to the passion: When talking to customers and internal stakeholders, listen for the passion. Where is the energy? What are they most excited about? How do they describe their problem and what type of solution could solve that problem? Follow that because that tells you a lot your target customer and the unique value of your product or service.
Look for the patterns: You don’t need to conduct a massive customer research study to understand your customers. Patterns and common threads start to appear after speaking with 10 or so objective and knowledgeable customers. These patterns are where the gold lies.
Hiring your first marketer: When hiring your first marketer, understand what assets already exist in the organization. Then, hire to fill in the skill gaps. Look for a utility player or generalist who can do a little bit of everything yet is happy to do the grunt work.
Marketers need a relentless curiosity - almost a naïveté - to truly understand their customers and ultimately derive the most accurate positioning for their brand.
You can listen to the full interview below.
Stay tuned for new Fuel Up episodes in the coming weeks and subscribe on Apple Podcast.