I build the marketing system your startup doesn't have yet.
Not a strategist who hands off a deck. Not a manager who needs a brief. The person who does both, across channels, from ICP to first experiments, until the system runs without me.
They have rusted me with their goals.
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THE DISTINCTION
What makes a founding marketer different from a fractional CMO
A fractional CMO is a strategic leader. They manage, allocate, and own the function at scale. At seed stage, that means paying senior-level compensation for someone who will spend most of their time on work that does not yet exist.
A marketing manager executes. They run what you give them. They need direction, a brief, a system to operate within. Hiring one before the system exists produces activity without outcome.
The founding marketer fills the gap between the two. They arrive before the playbook and write it. They hold strategy and execution simultaneously, not because they are unusually talented, but because that is the only job at this stage. Every growing B2B company needs one. Most never hire for it directly.
The role appears on job boards under several titles: founding marketer, founding growth marketer, first marketing hire. The function is the same: build the marketing system before it exists.
Fractional CMO
Founding marketer
Marketing manager
Primary activity
Strategic leadership
Building from zero
Executing within a system
Best stage
Series B+
Seed / early Series A
When the system exists
Delivers
Direction, team oversight
Marketing foundation + SOPs
Execution output
Builds independently
No, needs a team
Yes
No, needs a brief
Justine’s offer
Not offered
Core service
Not offered
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THE SYSTEM
What the marketing system includes, and what 90 days actually means
Ninety days is not the finish line. It is the foundation layer: the decisions made, the infrastructure built, the first experiments running. What comes after depends on your market, your sales cycle, and how fast the signal comes in. Here is what the foundation covers.
ICP definition
Not a persona document. A precise description of the customer who buys fast, retains well, and refers, built from your existing customers and the gaps between them. Firmographic criteria, behavioural signals, disqualification logic. Without this, everything else is noise.
Strategic positioning and messaging architecture
The language that makes your ICP stop scrolling, built from customer interviews, tested against real copy, documented as a system everyone writes from. This is not a tagline. It is the architecture that sits under every channel.
Channel prioritisation
You have limited budget and limited time. The work is deciding what not to do. One channel built properly beats three running at half-effort. This means cutting before adding, and committing before optimising.
Full-stack channel execution
Once channels are prioritised, I build and run them: outbound sequences, content infrastructure, SEO foundations, paid experiments, community presence, whatever your ICP actually uses. Not handing off a recommendation. Running it.
MarTech stack
The minimal stack that tracks what matters without adding operational overhead: CRM, capture, analytics. Nothing else until the basics work. Built for the team who inherits it, not for the consultant running it.
First experiments and decision framework
The first experiments, prioritised by expected signal and cost to run. With a clear decision framework for what to keep, kill, or scale. Not a backlog. A running system.
SOPs and handoff documentation
Every process written down. If you hire after me and cannot run the system independently, something is wrong with the system.
Timeline
90 days to a working foundation. Fractional ongoing for iteration, expansion, and first hire readiness.
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FIT CHECK
Who this is for, and who it is not for
Project-based engagements are available for defined scope: GTM audit, ICP definition sprint, messaging architecture. Timeline and output agreed in writing before we start.
2-3
DAYS PER WEEK Fractional. Embedded in your Slack, your tools, your meetings. Not a vendor relationship.
3+
MONTH MINIMUM Most run +1,5 year. Some continue on a reduced basis to support the first hire and transition out.
100%
FOR THE RIGHT MISSION I work fractionally. For the right mission, I go full-time.
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QUESTIONS
Common questions about hiring a founding marketer
Can a founding marketer also do execution, or just strategy?
Both. That is the point. I do not hand off a strategy deck and disappear. I run the outbound sequence, set up the CRM, write the messaging, and run the first experiments. Strategy and execution are not separate services — they are the same role at this stage.
What does 90 days actually deliver?
A working foundation, not a finished system. After 90 days: documented ICP with firmographic and behavioural criteria, one to two prioritised channels with first experiments running, a minimal martech stack (CRM, attribution, capture, analytics), and messaging architecture built from customer interviews. Pipeline and revenue outcomes depend on your market and sales cycle, not on the foundation alone. The foundation is what makes the next phase possible.
What happens when the engagement ends?
Every process is documented. Every decision has a rationale. The handoff includes working SOPs, a fully configured martech stack, and a 30-day onboarding guide for whoever comes next. If your next hire cannot run the system independently after onboarding, something is wrong with the system.
What if I already have a junior marketer in place?
That is a common situation and it works well. I act as the strategic layer and build the system alongside them. They gain direction and a framework to operate within. You gain a senior operator without a full-time salary. The junior hire is often more effective after 90 days than they were before, because they are running a system instead of improvising.
Do you work with bootstrapped startups?
Yes, if budget is committed. Bootstrapped versus funded is not the relevant question. The question is whether you have allocated real budget to building a marketing system — not just testing ads. The minimum engagement is €4,000 per month. If that requires approval from a board or investor, that conversation should happen before we talk.
Do you work with companies outside Europe?
Most of my engagements are with companies targeting European markets or expanding into them from the US. If you are US-based, remote engagement is possible. The European market context, ICP assumptions, channel mix, sales cycle length, is where the value is sharpest.
What if I am not sure whether I have product-market fit?
If you are asking the question, you probably do not have it yet. This engagement is not the right tool for validating a product. It is for building the marketing system around a product that customers are already buying. Come back when the signal is there.
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ENGAGEMENT STRUCTURE
How a Seedli engagement works
This is for you if:
You are a seed or Series A B2B company with product-market fit signals, or close to them. You are doing marketing yourself, or you have a junior hire who needs direction. You know a system needs to be built but are not ready to commit to a full-time marketing salary.
You are willing to be challenged on your ICP assumptions. You understand the first 90 days will produce more questions than answers before they produce clarity. You want a system, not a report.
This is not for you if:
You need brand work before GTM. You are still validating an idea (that is founder work, not marketing work). You already have a functioning marketing team and need management, not construction. You want someone to manage a campaign calendar.
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MY COMMITMENT
What it is like working with me
