Tag: Startups

A critical mistake founders make is hiring a VP of Sales who cannot independently demo the product from day one - if they need an engineer or solutions architect to run the demo, do not make that hire. Other pitfalls include misaligning marketing hires like bringing on product marketers expecting them to drive demand gen, founders exiting sales prematurely even with an experienced sales leader, slashing marketing budgets to zero which starves the pipeline, ignoring disruptive AI trends that competitors are embracing, prioritizing short-term profitability over maintaining a growth rate above 30%, hiring fractional or bitter talent lacking full commitment, hiring for prestigious logos over true startup skills fit, expecting instant ROI from longer-term marketing efforts like brand building, and turning customer success into an upsell team at the expense of retention and satisfaction