(The good, the bad, and the ugly)

I learned more in my time as a marketing director at a startup than I did in 15 years of marketing roles at other companies.

Some of it was exciting. The variety was cool. But sometimes it can be frustrating, and burnout is common.

If you're thinking about stepping into a senior marketing role at a startup, especially one where the "department" is you (and maybe one other person), this is the honest version of what to expect.

1. Your network expands by one million percent

As a marketing leader, you’re suddenly in rooms you would’ve never been in at a larger company. Investors, board members, advisors, strategic partners, customers, suppliers… you meet so many new people because small teams can’t afford silos, so marketing gets pulled into everything. I wasn’t just “doing campaigns”—I was on sales calls, investor updates, product conversations, partnership discussions. My LinkedIn connections went from 350 to 12,300. The challenge is maintaining all these connections/ figuring out which are valuable.

2. Strategy is temporary. Expect it to change.

You can spend weeks mapping out a brilliant plan, only to have it rewritten after one sales call, one board meeting, or one quarter that didn't go as hoped.

This is normal at a startup, because things are constantly changing. I used to take it personally, like the work I'd done didn't matter, or I didn't do a good job in the first place. Constantly starting from scratch or redoing a plan is frustrating, but it’s just part of the job.

I have a whole list of initiatives that died a sad death after the company spent months/years working on them. The company was great at selling B2B as an ingredient in a finished good, but not great at selling the actual finished good to consumers. Sometimes, you only figure out your core competency after a series of failed initiatives, and thats’' ok.

Your job is to move the company forward, even if it means sacrificing projects you worked hard or direction keeps changing (and it will).

3. Marketing can't solve everything

Oftentimes, marketing is blamed when problems emerge. Some things I've experienced in my career:

Sales cycles are longer than expected, so the value proposition and messaging must be off. Buyers don’t get it. TRUTH: this might be accurate, but you have to consider other things too. B2B sales cycles are looooong because there are multiple layers of approvals and stakeholders.
The company missed its Q1 revenue forecast. Marketing must not be doing enough to build pipeline. TRUTH: missed forecasts are often caused by deals slipping a quarter or late stage bottlenecks (pricing, legal, supply issues).
A customer decided not to renew the contract. Marketing isn't working or this wouldn't have happened. TRUTH: lost contracts are usually due to product gaps vs. expectations, customer cost constraints or a change in the customer’s business priorities.

What I learned is that marketing is not the answer to everyone's problems. Sometimes it's a product issue, sometimes it's pricing, and sometimes it's just the reality that things take longer than you expect.

4. A marketing team of one means everything is your job

Startups are lean, and everyone has multiple responsibilities. There's no separation between "strategy" and "execution" when it's just you. As a marketer, you’re often deeply embedded in biz dev, sales, customer meetings, and product strategy in addition to your day job (PR, social media, email, website, investor relations, etc.)

There's no one to pick up the work when I'm on vacation. It's a 24/7 job that can quickly lead to burnout if you don’t set healthy boundaries.

5. The workload is relentless, even when things are going well

When marketing “works”, expectations increase. When it doesn't, scrutiny increases.

There's always another request, another shiny object, another "quick thing" that isn't quick at all. Learning how to prioritize without burning out becomes just as important as being good at marketing.

I set monthly/quarterly objectives (called rocks in the startup world) with my manager, and I stick to them. If something comes up outside my rocks, we discuss it and how it does (or doesn’t) fit into my work plan. This helps me manage my time and effort toward the things that drive revenue vs. the "nice-to-haves."

6. Frustration builds when effort and outcomes don't line up

When you put your all into building and executing a plan, sales revenue doesn't always reflect that effort. In the same week, I've been praised for outstanding marketing performance and questioned on whether marketing was moving the company forward. Even though I've helped close dozens of deals, when revenue isn't coming in as projected, every role/function is scrutinized.

This gap between effort and results is one of the hardest parts of the role. Especially when you're the only one in marketing and there's no one else who fully sees the work that went into every initiative.

7. Marketing budgets come, marketing budgets go

When I first joined a startup, I took a card from my P&G/Mars Wrigley days and created a kick-a*** marketing strategy, annual plan, KPIs, and budget. Everyone nodded their head "yes." A co-worker later laughed at my attempt to lock in a marketing budget, and I didn't get why at the time. That's what I had always done when working for big companies.

I learned quickly that budget requests are fluid. The plan was nice in theory, but sometimes there is no money to execute it. It could be "wait until we raise capital" or "wait until a deal comes in." But when those things happened (or didn't), the cash was sucked into operating costs.

You have to learn to operate on a zero-based marketing budget, which isn't an easy task when the demands are high. Luckily, I'm thrifty and resourceful by nature, so I found other ways to build the brand without spending money.

8. Speed matters more than comfort

Ever heard the term "fire drill?" Welcome to the world of startups, where fire drills are the norm. Your day will get derailed more often than not, and you just have to go with it.

You won't always have enough time to think things through the way you want. Decisions get made quickly, and you move forward without all the info.

It's uncomfortable, but it's also how progress happens in early-stage companies.

9. Your emotional state sets the tone

When I'm stretched thin, it shows. I'm crabby, short, and not in the mood for a casual conversation about someone's dog. I have s*** to do!

This was one of the hardest lessons for me, because managing your own energy is harder when the workload never really lets up.

When I don't take time to build and nurture relationships with my co-workers, it's harder to get things done. And I have this annoying desire to be liked. So, tell me all about how your dog was sick and you had to go to the emergency vet; I'm here for it.

10. You come out changed

When you leave a startup, you're a true generalist. You've worn hundreds of hats, and you understand what marketing can and can't solve. You get better at prioritizing and saying no.

Most importantly, you learn what kind of support, team size, and leadership style you need to do your best work.

Being a marketing director at a startup, especially as a team of one or two, is not about perfect plans or clean execution; it’s about navigating constant change, carrying a lot, and figuring out how to going without losing your mind.

In the end, it's worth it. I think everyone should work at a startup at some point in their lives. The variety, fast pace, and opportunity to learn things are a huge advantage for any career.

10 Things I Learned as a Marketing Director at a Startup