1. Marketing Strategy for Start Ups
with Zero Budget
By Elena Donets

2. Marketing… What is it?
Definition:
Marketing is the process of communicating the value of a product or
service to customers.

3. Before Funding…
 Marketing is a lower priority
 Programming is minimal
 Resources are focused on BD / Product

4. You’ve got funding…
The Race Begins…

5. Marketing Strategy
 Start to build your marketing strategy before
you get the funding, it will help you to get the
investment.
Pre Post
Launch
Launch Launch
Online
Offline

6. First Step: Define
 Company goals
 Market
 Customers
 Value propositions
 Sales strategies
 Team strengths
 Resources (people, $$, time)
 Timeframe

7. Pre Launch
Put the Focus on the People, Not the Product
“I want to put a ding in the Universe.”
Steve Jobs

8. Pre Launch
Online Marketing
 Website / Landing Page (launchrock)
 Facebook Page
 Twitter
 Other social networks
 Content marketing

9. Pre Launch
Online Marketing
Website / Landing Page / Blog
Make sure that every single page on your site has meaningful
content on it. People spend less than a minute on a site before
moving on, which means your content needs to be top notch.
Facebook Page / Twitter
Create a community of followers that wants to solve the same
problem as your product.
Case study - Parko

10. Pre Launch
Online Marketing
Content Marketing
Create content that people will find interesting, and which is
more likely to be shared over social media.
Case Study: The Best Job in the World
Be Creative!!!

11. Pre Launch
Offline Marketing
Make the most of networking
Keep in touch with the people you meet. You never
know where a lead can stem from!
Participate at Pitch Night or other events
Start to tell your story / idea

12. Pre Launch
Every Startup Should Know When To Start
Marketing Its Product, maybe Pre Launch
Marketing is not for you…
“Why join the navy if you can be a pirate?”
Steve Jobs

13. Launch
Plan Your Product Launch
Apple – 1984 Video
“ You can't just ask customers what they want and then
try to give that to them. By the time you get it built,
they'll want something new.”
Steve Jobs

14. Launch Strategy
 It all starts with a story…
 Website
 Facebook / Twitter
 Video / YouTube channel
 Blog / Guest writer
 List your company on: Angel List, Crunch Base and
more
 36 places where you can submit your startup for
some coverage

15. Launch Strategy
 Turn Your Product Launch into an Event
If you have the budget for it, throw a big press event for your
product announcements. If not, at least have some kind of online
event. If you make a big deal about your product launch, both
your potential customers and the media are likely to take it more
seriously, and it’ll be reflected in your product sales.

16. Launch Strategy
 Press release
Write a good press release. A press release is content that the
media could use directly for their story. It is written in the third
person and talks about your product, team, and the advantages
of your product. Learn how to write press releases. Here are
some tips to write your press release.
 Bloggers
Write personally to bloggers – give exclusives for the big ones-
give them a compelling story. Bloggers like to write interesting
content. Make your story a coherent and a powerful one.
Request them not to leak the story till your launch day.

17. Post Launch Strategy
Many startups have the Post-Launch Syndrome, where they had
a successful launch but couldn’t keep their momentum for
continuous success. The launch is only a small part of the
journey.
“I was worth over $1,000,000 when I was 23, and over $10,000,000
when I was 24, and over $100,000,000 when I was 25, and it wasn't
that important because I never did it for the money.”
Steve Jobs
Source: http://artsyeditor.com/2011/07/60-post-launch-strategies-for-startups/

18. Post Launch Strategy
 Promotions
 Lectures / Education
 Promotion Sales / Discounts
 Give Free copies
 Be a part of a Top 10 list. #1 will be the best
 Connecting with Customers
 Case studies with customers
 Ask for feedback
 Survey your costumers before adding a feature
 Ask your customers what is the one feature that helps them the most
 Advertising
 Give away your product for free in exchange for advertisements
 Advertise differently for every possible feature.
 Be Creative!
 Advertise on exclusive one-ad sites using The Deck or Fusion Ads.
 Use advertisement as a form of testing your market.
Source: http://artsyeditor.com/2011/07/60-post-launch-strategies-for-startups/

19. Post Launch Strategy
 Social Media
 Join communities where your customers hang out and build a strong
reputation.
 Only be present at networks that your customers are a part of.
 Actively participate in relevant conversation about your product.
 Business Development
 Try to get the most respected people amongst your customers to use &
love your product.
 Focus on a small niche and get as many customers there as possible
before moving on.
 Collect email leads from people who aren’t ready to buy yet, and
follow up regularly.
 Personally email big names in your industry and show them benefits of
your product
Source: http://artsyeditor.com/2011/07/60-post-launch-strategies-for-startups/

20. Post Launch Strategy
 Interviews/Guest Posts
 Feature yourself in industry-related blogs/magazines.
 Write a fair comparison between your product and your competitor’s.
 Get in touch with the tools you utilize for your startup and do a guest
post.
 Have a unique voice in your interviews and blog posts.
 Offer discount codes as an appreciation to readers for reading your
post.
 Website
 Landing pages for different types of audience
 Shorten your checkout process as much as possible.
 Provide a fully working demo/playground.
 Compare yourself to your competitors side-by-side.
 More images, videos, lists, tables, numbers. Less paragraphs.
Source: http://artsyeditor.com/2011/07/60-post-launch-strategies-for-startups/

21. “Three Rules of Life...
1. Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's
life.
2. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of
other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions
drown out your own inner voice.
3. Have the courage to follow your heart and intuition - they
somehow already know what you truly want to become.”
Steve Jobs

22. Reading List
1. Startup Launch Reading List
2. Quora
3. 70 Creative Advertisements That Make You
Look Twice
4. The Ultimate Guide to Startup Marketing
5. How to Get to Your First 1,000 Users
6. Seven marketing mistakes most startups
make

23. Thank You
Author:
Elena Donets
VP, Operations and Strategy
StarTAU, Tel Aviv University
Entrepreneurship Center
Contact:
elenado@startau.co.il
Linkedin