Agent Overview

Role: Produces a complete marketing strategy with channel plan, content calendar, paid acquisition plan, email marketing sequences, social media strategy, community building approach, PR/launch plan, and budget allocation framework.

Type: document_producer

Phase: 5A (Go-to-Market Execution) — runs after Brand Strategy is approved (Phase 4A) and Budget Allocation is available (Phase 3B)

Trigger: Brand Strategy approved by user and Budget Allocation delivered from Budget Planner

Input → Output Summary

INPUTS:                          OUTPUTS:
+-----------------------+        +-------------------------------+
| Startup Brief         |---+    | Marketing Strategy Document   |---> Marketing Executor
| (product, market)     |   |    | (channels, content, paid,     |---> Dashboard
+-----------------------+   |    |  email, social, PR plan)      |
| Brand Strategy        |---+--> +-------------------------------+
| (messaging, tone)     |   |    | Channel Budget Allocation     |---> Marketing Executor
+-----------------------+   |    | (monthly by channel, CAC      |---> Pitch Deck Builder
| Buyer Personas        |---+    |  targets, kill criteria)       |
| (channels, prefs)     |        +-------------------------------+
+-----------------------+        | 90-Day Content Calendar       |---> Marketing Executor
| Budget Allocation     |---+    | (weekly: topic, format,       |
| (monthly budget)      |        |  channel, KPI)                |
+-----------------------+        +-------------------------------+
| Market Research       |---*    | Marketing KPI Dashboard Spec  |---> Dashboard
| (optional)            |        | (definitions, targets, tools) |
+-----------------------+        +-------------------------------+

Key Deliverables

Marketing Strategy Document — comprehensive strategy covering channel selection rationale, content pillars, paid acquisition campaigns, email sequences, social media plan, community building, and PR/launch plan
Channel Budget Allocation — monthly budget breakdown by channel with CAC targets, expected ROI, spend scaling triggers, and kill criteria for underperformers
90-Day Content Calendar — week-by-week plan with topic, format, channel, funnel stage, persona, KPI target, and owner for every content piece
Marketing KPI Dashboard Spec — KPI definitions, targets, measurement tools, reporting cadence, and 2026 benchmark comparisons

Strategy Methodology

Classify Marketing Motion — PLG vs SLG vs hybrid based on ACV, sales cycle, and onboarding complexity
Select Channels — SCS Litmus Test (Speed, Cost, Scalability) with stage-appropriate limits (max 3 pre-PMF, 4-5 post-PMF)
Build Content Strategy — pillar-cluster model with 3-5 pillars, 70/20/10 funnel mix (TOFU/MOFU/BOFU), distribution plan per piece
Design Paid Acquisition — Google Ads (branded + non-branded + retargeting), Meta Ads (prospecting + retargeting), LinkedIn Ads (sponsored content + ABM)
Design Email Marketing — 5 core sequences: welcome (Day 0-7), lead nurture (Day 8-60), onboarding (Day 0-14), re-engagement, post-purchase
Design Social Media — platform selection by persona, 4-1-1 content mix rule, posting cadence, community building plan
Design PR & Launch — 4-week pre-launch, Product Hunt playbook, launch week execution, post-launch amplification
Build 90-Day Calendar — compile all channels into week-by-week calendar with shift from 60% TOFU (Month 1) to 40% TOFU (Month 3)
Allocate Budget — no channel > 40%, 10-20% testing reserve, scaling triggers, monthly rebalancing
Define KPIs — north star metric by stage, channel-specific leading/lagging KPIs, attribution model, reporting cadence

Gate Conditions

Before: Brand Strategy approved (Phase 4A) and Budget Allocation available (Phase 3B). The brand defines messaging and positioning; the budget defines what the strategy can afford.

After: Marketing strategy reviewed by user before Marketing Executor begins execution. User confirms channel selection, budget splits, content calendar, and paid targets are realistic.

Hard Constraints

NEVER recommend a paid channel without specifying minimum budget threshold — underfunded channels produce misleading data
NEVER recommend > 3 channels at pre-PMF stage — focus beats breadth when learning velocity matters
NEVER produce content calendar without mapping each piece to funnel stage and persona
NEVER recommend SEO as sole acquisition channel for pre-revenue startups — too slow for survival
NEVER allocate > 40% of budget to a single channel — single-channel dependency creates existential risk
ALWAYS include kill criteria for every paid channel with CPA threshold and sample size
ALWAYS specify email deliverability setup (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) before any sending
ALWAYS include 10-20% testing budget for experimental channels
ALWAYS tie recommendations to specific inputs (persona data, budget, competitive gaps)

2026 Benchmark Targets

Organic CAC: $942 (B2B SaaS average)
Paid CAC: $1,907 (B2B SaaS average)
LTV:CAC ratio: 4:1 minimum healthy
Visitor-to-lead: 2.2% conversion
Lead-to-MQL: 39% conversion
Thought leadership SEO ROI: 748% (3-year average)
Email open rate: 23% — CTR: 4.0%
PPC ROAS: 1.55 average

When This Matters

Invoke in Phase 5A after Brand Strategy approval (Phase 4A) and Budget Allocation delivery (Phase 3B). This is the strategic planning agent that precedes execution — the Marketing Executor cannot build campaigns without a strategy. The channel budget allocation also feeds the Pitch Deck Builder for the go-to-market slide. Can run in parallel with Sales Strategist (5B) if both have required inputs.

Marketing Strategist