Commentary

Are Marketers More Important Than Developers?

by dave.b , Max Kalehoff , October 16, 2009

"In tech startups, marketers are more important than developers."

That's what one aspiring Web entrepreneur and software developer told me the other night in a huddle at Charlie O'Donnell's NextNY "NYC Media: Meet the Startups" event at Sun Microsystems' New York City office. After learning that I was a marketing guy, three other young entrepreneurs at early-stage startups nodded their heads in agreement about that assertion. I was surprised, honored and a little embarrassed.

While I love to celebrate my art and craft, I disagree. In the case of these fledgling entrepreneurs, who admitted being one-dimensional engineering types, marketing was their weak spot. They believe they were penalized as a result. Therefore, they overvalued marketing's relative importance.

Yet here's the truth: Marketing and product development are mutually dependent competencies in any successful Web startup -- and in any business, really. It can be that both competencies come organically to a single person, or separately via multiple people on a team.

Product development and engineering must lead, for without it, there is nothing beyond an idea. But development also needs marketing to identify opportunity, reconcile development with that market opportunity, and channel development in a way that creates extraordinary value. Without marketing, development is nothing beyond a science project.

That's why it's important to be multidimensional -- as individuals as well as teams. But being multidimensional doesn't just happen. For individuals, it comes through conscious investment in things like education, cultural enrichment, social activities and environment. In the case of teams, it comes through hiring choices and openness.

At Clickable, our startup, multidimensionality is one of our three core values. We refer to it as being an "and" culture. We wouldn't be where we were if we weren't multidimensional.

It's not easy to be multidimensional, but it's critical to success.

commentary, marketing

4 comments about "Are Marketers More Important Than Developers?".

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Mark allen Roberts from Out of the Box Solutions, LLC, October 16, 2009 at 3:25 p.m.
Kind of a loaded question…
Marketing must find the unresolved market problems, and Development must solve those products thoroughly. One without the other you have nothing.
Far too often we see Development throwing something over the wall to marketing …as if saying “create a need for this brilliant idea” and we all know how those work out.
My preference is everyone is aligned as one team, winning and losing as a team. Or , you can continue to have Silo’s that add little value and hurt efficiency and effectiveness as I discuss in my blog : http://nosmokeandmirrors.wordpress.com/2009/08/14/silos-are-great-for-shooting-missiles-not-for-growing-market-leading-organizations-tear-down-your-dysfunctional-silos-and-become-a-market-leader/
Mark Allen Roberts
www.outbsolutions.com
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Mike Patterson from WIP, Inc., October 16, 2009 at 4:37 p.m.

Thanks Max - I've been wrestling with this issue in my own mind personally and it's great to have a balanced viewpoint and a reinforcement of the idea that the two are not mutually exclusive. As I think you've written before, marketing has to be woven into every level of the organization and I agree. It appears however that Aaron doesn't, he makes the claim that when it comes to valuation, every marketing guy is worth -$250,000, great minds can disagree: http://tinyurl.com/ydr375o
@mpattyfly

Kris Obertas from KOCopy, October 17, 2009 at 6:47 p.m.

I agree about the balancing act and ability to 'wear many hats'. Been there, experienced the joys and frustrations!

In startups the idea flow and communications between product and marketing have to be open and unobstructed. And if you understand enough about the other area, you can step in their shoes. Understand their challenges (based on allocation of scarce resources in many startups) and you have a better chance of succeeding.

But like Mark Allen Roberts commented, doesn't matter how good the marketing is or could be if not enough people really want to use or pay for what you're offering.

Kris Obertas - KOCopy.com

Bruce Weissman from Bruce Weissman, October 18, 2009 at 1:27 a.m.

All you're really saying, it seems to me, is that really successful start-ups need two things. One is a product/service that meets some real need in a novel and desirable way (a developer who developed something of value). Item two is that the novel and/or desirable solution be communicated to those who'd benefit from that solution (i.e. a marketer).

I would observe that it is also true that, three weeks from next Thursday, there is a 97.8% likelihood that it will be lighter in the day than it will be in the night.