Why Early-Stage Companies Should Split "Marketing" into Two Disciplines

Quick story: When I was CEO of Bridgevine, our entire business model was built around customer acquisition—and we were very good at it. Every year, we pulled over 30 million consumers and small businesses into our funnel and converted nearly 10% into paying customers. We knew how to drive growth, test channels, optimize spend, and hit performance targets. But while our acquisition engine was world-class, our brand positioning was just… average.

It took me longer than I’d like to admit to understand why. The skillset required to acquire customers and the skillset required to shape perception are fundamentally different. Different mindsets, different strengths, different outcomes—even if they both fall under what most people call “marketing.”

Now, as an investor reviewing hundreds of early-stage companies each year, I see this same pattern repeat itself consistently. Founders consolidate both into one role or outsource them indiscriminately—and then wonder why nothing’s working.

It’s time to rethink the structure. Instead of viewing “marketing” as a single function, early-stage companies should treat it as two distinct disciplines:

1. Customer Acquisition

2. Brand Positioning

Let’s break them down—and more importantly, and provide an alternative view on what to prioritize and how to resource them.

Customer Acquisition: The Revenue Engine

Customer Acquisition is the function that drives measurable growth. It’s built around data, iteration, and funnel efficiency. It includes:

• Paid search and social

• SEO and content for lead gen

• Landing page optimization

• Referral and affiliate partnerships

• Email automation and outbound

• Measurement: CAC, LTV, funnel velocity, ROAS

This is the function responsible for putting points on the board. If you're sub-$20M, this is your oxygen.

One critical opinion: Customer Acquisition should almost never be outsourced. At this stage, it’s too important and too nuanced. You need someone inside the business who:

· Understands your unit economics

· Can run rapid-fire experiments

· Is accountable for growth

Agencies often move too slowly, aren’t aligned in your goals, aren’t embedded in your context, and default to playbooks that don’t fit scrappy, early-stage companies.

Brand Positioning: The Foundation for Scale

Positioning is how the market perceives your company. It’s your narrative, your differentiation, and your long-term trust builder. It includes:

• Brand strategy and messaging

• Public relations and thought leadership

• Category design and market framing

• Visual identity and tone of voice

• Competitive analysis and differentiation

Strong Positioning doesn’t necessarily drive leads tomorrow—but it’s the groundwork that makes future acquisition cheaper, sales cycles shorter, and investor conversations easier. It also helps with talent acquisition, commercial partnerships, exit options, and more.

Unlike Customer Acquisition, Positioning can often be outsourced effectively, especially in the early stage. A great strategist, brand consultant, or PR partner can help shape your story while your internal team focuses on driving revenue.

Three Potential Paths Forward for Founders

Instead of defaulting to a generalist “Head of Marketing” or agency-of-all-trades, consider one of these paths:

1. Separate the Functions

   If resources allow, build out Customer Acquisition and Positioning as distinct functions with different leaders and KPIs. This provides clarity and accountability, especially as you scale.

2. Start With a Leader Who Skews Toward Acquisition

   At the earliest stage (sub-$5M), you don’t need a brand steward—you need someone who can build a funnel and drive growth. Hire for that first, then bring in brand support later.

3. Outsource Brand Positioning, Own Acquisition

   For most early-stage companies, this is the most practical and effective path—but also the one they tend to overlook. My strong advice: own Customer Acquisition in-house. It’s too core to growth and too nuanced to delegate. But when it comes to Positioning—your narrative, brand identity, and strategic perception—that’s where external specialists can add real value without compromising execution speed or clarity. Build the engine internally; shape the story with support.

Final Thought

Marketing isn’t broken. It’s just mislabeled.

If you treat “marketing” as a single function, you’ll likely under-resource what matters most—or hire the wrong person to do the wrong job.

Instead, build around what actually drives growth:

• Customer Acquisition: immediate, measurable, iterative

• Brand Positioning: strategic, foundational, scalable

Two disciplines. Two priorities. One smarter way to grow.