The First Marketing Hire Playbook
I've been the first marketing hire at three startups: PatientIQ, cliexa, and as a consultant at Ambience Healthcare. Each experience taught me something different about building marketing from zero.
What They Don't Tell You
1. You're not just doing marketing
As the first hire, you'll touch everything: sales enablement, customer success content, product positioning, investor materials, even recruiting collateral. Budget for 40% of your time going to "other duties as assigned."
2. You need to show value fast
Startups don't have patience for long-term brand building exercises. You need quick wins that demonstrate marketing's value to the business. At PatientIQ, my first win was creating a sales deck that helped close a major health system deal within my first month.
3. Nobody knows what they want
The job description said "demand generation" but the CEO actually wanted brand positioning. The sales team wanted collateral. The product team wanted launch support. Learn to triangulate between stated needs and actual priorities.
The 90-Day Framework
Here's the approach I now use when joining a startup as the first marketing hire:
Days 1-30: Listen and Quick Wins
- Interview every customer-facing team member
- Sit in on sales calls and customer success meetings
- Audit all existing content and materials
- Identify the one thing that's causing the most pain
- Deliver a quick win that solves that pain
Days 31-60: Foundation Building
- Implement basic marketing infrastructure (CRM, email, analytics)
- Create foundational content (pitch deck, one-pager, case studies)
- Define your ideal customer profile with sales
- Set up attribution tracking
Days 61-90: Scaling Experiments
- Launch 2-3 demand generation experiments
- Build repeatable processes for content creation
- Create a hiring plan for your first direct report
- Present a 6-month marketing plan to leadership
The Mistakes I Made
Trying to do everything at once
At cliexa, I simultaneously tried to launch a new website, start a content program, run paid campaigns, and build email nurtures. Nothing got done well. Focus on one thing, nail it, then move on.
Not aligning with sales early enough
My first quarter at PatientIQ, marketing and sales had different definitions of "qualified lead." This led to finger-pointing about lead quality. Now I start every role by defining qualification criteria with sales on day one.
Underestimating the importance of internal marketing
Your colleagues are your first audience. If the sales team doesn't understand or value what marketing does, you'll constantly fight for resources and respect. I now spend significant time educating internal stakeholders about marketing's role.
What Actually Matters
After doing this three times, here's what I've learned actually moves the needle:
- **One great case study** is worth more than ten blog posts
- **Sales alignment** determines whether marketing succeeds or fails
- **Attribution** is the only way to prove your value
- **Quick wins** buy you time for long-term initiatives
- **Documentation** saves your future self
The Reward
Despite the chaos, there's nothing quite like building something from nothing. Seeing the marketing engine you built generate millions in pipeline, contribute to fundraising rounds, and help a company scale is incredibly rewarding.
If you're considering being a first marketing hire, go for it. Just go in with realistic expectations and a framework for success.
Thinking about your first marketing hire? I'd be happy to share more detailed playbooks and templates. [Get in touch](/contact).