Distribution isn't optional

Good morning. Welcome back to This Isn’t a Marketing Problem, a 7-part series on how most startups burn money not because of bad marketing, but because of bad messaging. (Didn’t read Parts 1 or 2? Shame on you…go read them here and here before you read Part 3).

In Part 3, No One Knows You Exist:

🕵️‍♂️ What early-stage startups need to focus on
🔁 How to create a compounding growth loop that gets in front of the right people
📣 The tactical stack for low-budget awareness

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🕵️‍♂️ What early-stage startups need to focus on

It's hard to scale when you're in early traction. You don't have any inputs yet. You haven't validated product-market fit. It's not that your conversion rate is bad, it's that no one is seeing you in the first place. You can't optimize a system that doesn't have enough signal. At this stage, the goal is to collect evidence. Ask yourself:

• Is anyone talking about you?

• Are people sharing your stuff without being asked?

• Are strangers opting in, clicking through, replying?

You've (hopefully) just cleaned up your positioning and you've started speaking in outcomes. If not, here's a quick recap.

• Positioning Statement: "We help [specific person] solve [painful, obvious problem] by [doing what, specifically]."

• Messaging Statement: "We built [X feature] so you can [Y outcome]."

But here's the kicker: you can't "just turn on marketing" and expect the orders to come in. People are not going to just show up and buy. We're not dealing with magic dust, and there's certainly no "traffic fairy."

This stage is about repeatedly getting noticed by the right people in the right places. You have to get in front of real human beings who might want what you're building.

🔁 How to create a compounding growth loop that gets in front of the right people

How do you get in front of real human beings who might want what you're building? You install a compounding growth loop that creates awareness, trust, and tests with minimum spend. Here's how it works:

Deconstruct 

Ask: What must be true for someone to care?

• What do they believe right now that your product challenges?

• What anxiety, inefficiency, or pain are they living with?

• What's the job they’re trying to get done?

Think: "Nobody else is solving X for people like Y in a way that feels like Z."

Diagnose 

Ask: Where is the choke point (visibility, clarity, or trust)? This step helps you avoid the knee-jerk move of blaming "marketing" when no one's converting.

• No clicks? → Visibility problem.

• High bounce rate? → Clarity problem.

• No replies, shares, or signups? → Trust problem.

No data? Use pattern detection:

• Are people DMing you with questions?

• Are they sharing your stuff?

• Do they keep asking the same thing?

Early signal lives in repetition.

Design 

Ask: What's the smallest possible test that could earn you signal this week? Don't plan out six months of content or build a 10-email funnel. Design for velocity:

• Can you ship one pain-based post this week?

• Can you send 10 cold emails to real humans?

• Can you drop one teardown or insight where your audience hangs out?

The key is testable outputs.

Deploy 

Ship it fast. Log what happens. Build a "what worked" folder in Notion, Slack, or a Google Doc. Look for:

• What got replies?

• What got shared?

• What made people click?

• What got ignored?

Don't over-interpret. Don't automate yet. Just observe. Build a memory bank of what pulls.

Why This Matters 

Early growth is all about insight and learning speed. If you repeat this every week:

• You'll know what to double down on

• You'll avoid guessing when it’s time to scale

• You'll build your go-to-market muscle in real time

• And eventually, those quick tests become the system.

📣 The tactical stack for low-budget awareness

1. Nail Your Positioning + Message Hooks

Root your messaging in your core belief → benefit → proof loop:

• "We believe everyone should be able to [do X] without [pain Y]."

• "That’s why we built [product] to deliver [clear outcome]."

• "Here’s proof: [1-line case study or testimonial]"

Create crisp copy blocks to test across platforms.

2. Niche Content + Earned Media

Pitch founder podcasts, niche newsletters, and substack writers in your category.

Hook them with angles like:

• "What I learned spending $0 to get 100 beta signups"

• "5 startup marketing myths we broke building [Product]"

• "The anti-growth-hack playbook for pre-PMF traction"

Submit to:

• HARO / Featured / Help a B2B Writer

• X threads with journalists

• Niche LinkedIn creators looking for collabs

⚠️ Focus on credibility over quantity. A single well-placed feature > 20 irrelevant backlinks.

3. Early User Content Loops

Turn your first 10–20 users into your first 10–20 marketers.

Ask for:

• 15-second testimonial videos

• "Why I tried it" or "Before/after" posts

• Screenshots of results (with permission)

Remix that content into:

• Social proof blocks

• Lightweight ad creatives

• Retargeting content

Incentivize with affiliate codes, founder calls, or swag from your Notion merch page.

4. Community Hijack (Ethical Version)

Find 2–3 high-signal communities:

• Reddit (your niche, not /r/startups)

• Slack groups (ask for invites)

• Niche Discords or X chats

Drop:

• Value posts, teardown guides, "Ask Me Anything" threads

• Mini templates, tools, Notion docs

• Personal stories or behind-the-scenes posts that invite DM convos

⚠️ Plug sparingly. Deliver value like you're already a moderator.

5. Weekly Hook Sprint

Test 3–5 content angles per week using the Hook → Proof → CTA format.

Examples:

• Hook: "We got 22 beta signups from a cold DM."

• Proof: "Here’s the copy we used, and why it worked."

• CTA: "Steal the exact template here."

Track what earns shares, replies, and saves. Double down weekly.

6. “Proof Engine” Micro-Campaign

Build one 7-day campaign that proves your value fast:

• Day 1–2: "X people use [product] to solve Y."

• Day 3: Short demo or walkthrough

• Day 4: "What didn't work before we figured this out"

• Day 5: User quote or story

• Day 6: Offer (free audit, early access, discount)

• Day 7: Recap + social proof dump

Run it on email, LinkedIn, or X. Spend $50–100 boosting the top performer.

7. Scrappy Partner Collabs

Find 2–3 non-competing tools or creators in your lane.

Run:

• Bundle giveaways

• "Build with us" AMA collabs

• Guest swaps on email or podcast

8. Minimum Viable Experiment

Run one small, public "aha-moment" campaign:

• Free teardown

• "Behind the scenes" thread

• Screenshot breakdown of a real result

The goal is to make the invisible obvious.

All of these tactics are meant to collect data and turn them into learnings about your product and your customer.

Next week: Part 4 – Turn your awareness data into a ride-or-die customer profile
We walk through how to turn those clicks, likes, and lurkers into actual users who stick around, come back, and tell their friends.

This newsletter is for you. What marketing challenges are you facing in your startup journey? Reply directly to this email with your questions or topics you'd like to see covered in future issues.

Until next week,

Adam

P.S. Found this helpful? Forward it to another founder who might benefit—we're all in this together.