Crux Advisory

What's the right way for #founders and #startups to start their journey in paid or performance marketing after achieving product-market fit? As with so much else, you should 𝗖𝗥𝗔𝗪𝗟 before walking or running. What does that mean? 1️⃣ How many channels? Start with 𝗼𝗻𝗲 channel first, preferably one that is intent-based. 2️⃣ How much to spend? Start with 8-10% of your target or projected revenue. 3️⃣ How do I know which channel to pick? ▶️Prioritize based on 𝗜𝗖𝗣 / 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝘁 and consider 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗲 vs. your available resources [e.g., you need to be able to rotate creative assets more frequently on TikTok vs. Meta] ▶️A simple rubric: If you're operating in a need-based [financial services, lawyers] or high involvement [travel] category, start with paid search. If you operate in a 'want' or desire-based [fashion] or inherently disruptive category, start with paid social. 4️⃣ What are the key questions you should answer? *Can this channel generate a 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲 of users/units/revenue? *Is it 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲? Can it scale? 💡Note: this is a step change from the pre-PMF mindset. In that stage, you may have tried many fragmented or organic routes to acquire the first cohort of users and gain traction; many of these tactics were not necessarily scalable or repeatable. With paid ads, focus on scaling one channel vs. spreading yourself too thin. 💡Only when you feel confident about channel volume should you think about becoming more efficient [e.g., improving ROAS or reducing CPA], not the other way around. I’ve seen many founders get this order wrong. Your energy is precious; it must be devoted to a broader surface area first vs. a cost-efficient niche with limited room to grow. Learn more at https://lnkd.in/g4VNnNAH and stay tuned for WALK and RUN stages! #marketingforstartups

This is a great [albeit gated] reminder of the valuable impartiality that a #Fractional #CMO can bring to any business via the folks at Digiday. A few quotes: *The variety of experience, as well as the “impartial” viewpoint, allows the fractional CMO to 𝗮𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆’𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 and make suggestions to improve as well as suggest vendors that would be a good fit for the company’s goals - Kevin Simonson, CEO of AdMixt and former fCMO. *The Fractional role is becoming more relevant with the 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹-𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗖𝗠𝗢𝘀 and rudderless marketing groups. Fractional CMOs are a good way to 𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗺 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝘁 rather than a makeshift internal compromise - Dipanjan Chatterjee, vice president and principal analyst, Forrester More here: https://lnkd.in/gGvP_nyR

💡We're starting the week strong with Chapter 2 of #Fractional #FAQs. A few of the pertinent issues that we tackle today: 🌟 How do I know if I 𝗻𝗲𝗲𝗱 a Fractional CMO? 🌟 How much does a Fractional CMO 𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘁? Are there any benchmarks? How should I think about this? 🌟 This Fractional concept sounds familiar... Is it known by any other name? ⬇Read Chapter 2 of #FractionalCMO FAQs below ➡Missed Chapter 1? Catch up at https://lnkd.in/gXw-YX8m ➡Visit https://lnkd.in/gbuJ2RQA for the entire set. ⬇If you have more questions, drop them in the comments.

💡 #Fractional hiring is still unchartered territory for many founders and startups in Asia-Pac. It's so critical to set the correct baseline so that both sides are clear on what it is, and more importantly, what it isn't. In it's truest sense, a Fractional CXO should be accountable for key business outcomes and be a valued member of your leadership team. This is 𝗻𝗼𝘁 the task-based contractor you hire on Upwork or other freelance talent platforms. ⬇Check out Chapter 1 of #FractionalCMO #FAQs below to get started. ➡ Stay tuned for the next chapter or hop over to https://lnkd.in/gbuJ2RQA for the entire set. ⬇If you have more questions, drop them in the comments.

📈 Making the leap from traction or stickiness with a initial user base to a scalable engine for #growth is easier said than done. That's precisely why it’s so critical to start with a solid foundation to set yourself up for success. In my experience as a Fractional #CMO advising #startups and #founders, I’ve seen extremes at all ends - often with good intentions but without a clear strategy: 1️⃣ The business is off to a good start with a small, but highly engaged user base - courtesy the founder’s personal network. The founder wanted to stay lean & assumed a healthy rate of referrals via this initial cohort would suffice, but that hasn’t taken off. Acquisition is low and there are limited upsell/cross-sell opportunities with existing users. 2️⃣The founder goes in 100% on organic or inbound channels (SEO, email, content) because he/she read somewhere that it’s “free”, but is frustrated at the slow pace of growth. 3️⃣ The founder invests 100% of the budget in performance marketing. He/she is overjoyed with quick scale and healthy ROI initially with a high intent audience (the joys and perils of last click attribution, #IYKYK), but the bottom of the funnel is now dried up and CAC is creeping up. ⬇ Here are a few critical steps to structure your thinking process and start strong. Learn more at https://lnkd.in/gTgpfNrf

⚠Have you spent the last year chasing unsustainable growth? Are your customer acquisition costs (CAC) on the rise and is your LTV/CAC benchmark ratio worsening with time? Engage a Fractional #CMO [ex-Google APAC Performance Marketing lead] to build an optimization roadmap for your business: 1️⃣ Align marketing goals and KPIs (CAC, ROAS thresholds) to business objectives & unit economics. 2️⃣ Review channel spend mix, revenue and ROI contribution. Audit E2E user experience to understand conversion drop-offs. 3️⃣ Identify optimization opportunities across channels, creative, user journey and measurement. 🌟 [Bonus] Invest in enablers to reduce CAC over time and make your marketing more productive. 📈 Stop spending on ineffective channels; extend your financial runway. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gYiyS7dS

You've nailed Product-market Fit. Congratulations! What's next? 🎯 The journey from initial or founder-led traction to a scalable acquisition engine. Engage a Fractional #CMO and advisor to help: 1️⃣ Create an integrated acquisition plan that's aligned to your business goals, capabilities and resources. 2️⃣ Build a comprehensive roadmap to revenue with prioritized channels, audience targeting and messaging. Supervise execution; pivot with test-and-learns as necessary. 3️⃣ Invest in new skills and capabilities to future-proof your business as you scale. 📈 Build a strong foundation for growth to hit critical milestones and secure your next funding round. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/g5KwGnAr

A useful guide to the evolving #Fractional trend and in a larger sense - the future of work. It's not a one-size-fits-all or an overnight fix: both startups / SMEs and fractional CXOs will need to be crystal clear on strategic priorities and expectations, the mechanics of engagement and ultimately what success looks like.

One of the trends I’ve discussed recently with founders and peer marketers is the evolution of community-based platforms, specifically #Reddit & #Quora. A few factors that have contributed to this rising interest: 1️⃣ More visibility in the SERP = More Traffic.  *Both Reddit and Quora results frequently appear on page 1 of the SERP, below featured snippets and AI overviews. *Why? Google’s algo favors helpful and unique content; the reciprocal nature of #UGC & communities generally weeds out bad actors. [Note: In this case, bad = spammy, not satirical...but more on that nuance later.] 2️⃣ [Reddit specific] Launch of new ad formats with improved contextual relevance and intent. *Reddit recently launched Conversational Ads - offering placement opportunities within the highly coveted discussion thread itself. This comes on the back of Dynamic Product ads similar to shopping ad formats offered by Google and Meta.  *In general, there’s also more automation, campaign management and reporting functionality available, although Reddit Ads Manager has a long way to get to feature parity with larger rivals. 💡 How should brands react to this trend? ✅ As a first step, check if Quora / Reddit discussion results show up for searches your business wants to rank for.    Remember, it’s not just B2B. I’ve seen subreddits show up prominently for ‘summer makeup for Asians’ searches. [r/AsianBeauty: as expected Korean brands dominate]. ✅ Scan through conversations to understand ICP behavior: Are they in early stages of unpacking a problem? Using the wisdom of the crowd to evaluate or compare solutions? Does your brand surface? Other brands? What’s the sentiment? ✅ If you have evangelists or spokespeople for your brand, encourage them to participate and engage organically first. They should be helpful to the community above all else and transparent about commercial associations. Respect the nature of the platform; this is not a livestream, so don’t peddle your wares every chance you get. ✅ If you’re open to test paid ads, here are a few ways to start: *Deploy the Reddit/Quora pixels on your site and retarget your audiences on these platforms to validate fit & scale.  *Reddit: Target first at the keywords or subreddits level. *Quora: Target keywords or questions. ⏸ A word of caution: Gauge the volume of satirical content for your category and assess the risk of your ad appearing next to this. Remember that brand safety filters (keyword / topic exclusions) are effective for the obvious issues, but satire (or tonality in general) flies under the radar and can’t be detected as easily. This was the key reason behind some of the recent Google AI Overview #epicfails: eg. The suggestion to use edible glue to make cheese stick to pizza was pulled from a subreddit.

Excited to finally get this off the ground after months of planning! Kudos to Elise Yee Ling Tan and Feihong Chen, ACC for leading the charge and Singapore Global Network for the support. As a newly minted #FractionalCMO, I know that the pure #Fractional approach [CXOs, not freelancers or midlevel contractors] still needs bespoke education and engagement both on the demand and supply side in SEA/APAC. This is the heavy lift that the ecosystem needs before it can evolve to an efficient marketplace model seen in the West. Thank you again Sandeep Pal for your participation & leading the way for many CMOs here [+ Vykundh Ravichandran for the connection]. Much appreciated. Asia Startup Network CaFei.Space Crux Advisory Moritz Kaffsack Portfolio Careers in Asia