Marketswell Solutions Will Strengthen Marketing Capacity Of Region’s Tech Firms
SAINT JOHN – Entrepreneur David Alston is at it again. He’s started a new business, and this time he wants to help tackle the lack of marketing talent in Atlantic Canada.
Alston’s new company, Marketswell Solutions, aims to create more than 25 tech marketing leaders in Atlantic Canada, and perhaps beyond, over the next five years. The company is primarily focused on B2B tech startups because that’s Alston’s expertise.
“It’d be great to give the Atlantic Canadian a real leg up on other regions if we have more talent here in terms of marketing,” he said.
The idea came to him a few weeks ago after getting back-to-back calls from startups looking for Chief Marketing Officers (CMOs). It’s not a new problem, he said.
“Over the last 10 years or so, I get regular calls or I’m chatting with startups, and they have the question of ‘do you know anyone that can play a senior marketing role in a company?'” he said. “There’s the same three or four people that I can think of in the region…and I know they’re all happy in what they’re doing. That means the startup then can’t find someone with that experience.”
He says marketing is key to the growth of startups and not having enough talent “means we’re stifling the growth of startups.” He likens it to the lack of tech sales talent that entrepreneur Gerry Pond has pointed out in recent years.
To help solve this issue, Marketswell Solutions is offering an accelerator for CMOs. Startups interested in grooming their star marketing talent can reach out to Alston, who will then pair up with those employees for a year. He’ll work as a sort of senior marketing counsel in the startup.
The marketers will all start in a cohort on September 21. If there’s a high demand, Alston says he might consider a winter cohort after Christmas. Each cohort won’t be more than six people.
Because the program is “deep and intentional,” Alston says he’s going to try to understand each startup strategically.
“I need to have the ability to be able to get that depth myself to feel comfortable working next to them during the process,” he said.
He’ll help the marketing talent work through issues and brainstorm, as well as coach them through spots that need growth. His goal is to ensure they’re confident in a CMO role at the leadership table. He’ll also offer marketing master class as a baseline and a deep dive for a marketing planning exercise.
“I’m going to be working side by side with each one of the cohort members on a weekly basis, for a set amount of time. And there will also be some group learning as well as group sharing throughout the year…and then they’ll build a bit of a network of professional marketers in the region as well.”
He says it’s important that startups see marketing as a key part of the company’s success.
“Marketing to me is embedded into the core strategy of the company. They’re working with all the other executives in terms of understanding how to pull it all together. To me they’re the one that drives company culture, sets the tone, so that they attract the right talent,” he said.
It’s not just about making whatever they’re building look good and get it out there, but it’s, what is the market saying? What are the sales teams saying? What are the feedback that we’re getting saying?”
“Marketing is the key leg of the stool right from the beginning or right close to the beginning” for a startup to be successful, he added. “It’s not something you just slap on at the end.”
Marketers also have to understand trends, build relationships with the people driving and building those trends, and be influencers in their industry.
They’re also the ones communicating a company’s purpose.
“I think that purpose is the bigger thing that a company should focus on,” he said. “Honestly a lot of customers will pick companies because they believe in that same greater purpose and they want to be aligned with a company that thinks bigger than just selling products.”