The marketing strategy that built one company could sink another.

One of the most-read chapters in I Need That is called You’re Not Apple.

The point wasn’t that startups shouldn’t admire Apple. Many do, and that’s cool.

It was that trying to copy Apple’s marketing strategy without Apple’s products, reputation, loyal customers, distribution, and billions of dollars is a fast way to blow a marketing budget.

The same applies to Coca-Cola, or any other big brand.

Lately I’ve seen a number of articles arguing that marketers obsess too much over ROAS and performance marketing while neglecting brand building.

For Coca-Cola, that might be true.

For a startup, it can be dangerous advice.

When you’re introducing something new, your first job isn’t to become famous.

It’s to find out whether anyone wants what you’re selling.

Revenue starts with validation, not views or fame.

Every sale tells you something. Like who buys. What wins them over from other options. Which messages resonate. Which channels convert. And if (or not) you’ve actually created a product people will change their deep-set habits to adopt.

THAT is why early-stage companies often invest heavily in marketing that produces immediate feedback. They’re reducing uncertainty before they scale certainty.

As confidence grows, the balance shifts.

Brand marketing gets increasingly valuable because it lowers future acquisition costs, creates familiarity, and makes every campaign more effective.

Eventually you might even become the next Coca-Cola.

But until then, you’re ridiculously different from a big brand.

The smartest marketers don’t try to mimic the marketing of successful companies.

But they might study the sequence, and take away relevant lessons.

That’s the idea behind You’re Not Apple, and it’s just as true here.

If you’d like help creating and marketing products people feel compelled to buy, the product marketing consultants at Graphos Product can help.