Episode Summary
In this episode of Content Logistics, host Baylee Gunnell sits down with Justin Brown, founder of Marketers in Demand. They explore what it means to build a true marketing roadmap and why small B2B teams need more than just ideas to see growth.
Justin breaks down the gap between having a “strategy” in your head and having a documented plan with real goals and actions. He explains that most teams think they have a strategy but lack a written roadmap that outlines what needs to happen and why. Without this, teams chase tactics—like paid ads or new messaging—without tying them to outcomes, which wastes time and budget.
The conversation focuses on the power of starting with clear business goals, then building tactics to support them. Justin shares why teams should prioritize content creation and test internally before spending on outside help. He closes with simple advice: if you can’t send someone your marketing strategy in a document, it’s time to create one.
Key Insights
Write It Down: A Real Strategy Lives on Paper
A marketing strategy shouldn’t just live in your head or in a string of meetings. When teams skip the step of documenting their goals, tactics, and outcomes, they end up with a list of ideas, not a plan. Real clarity comes from putting strategy down on paper, setting annual or quarterly goals, and outlining the actions to reach them. This simple act helps teams stay aligned, avoid confusion, and measure progress over time. Without a written roadmap, memories fade, goals shift, and it’s easy to waste resources on tactics that don’t add up. Even for small teams, taking the time to document strategy is the first sign that marketing is a real business priority.
Start With Outcomes, Build Tactics Around Them
Chasing the latest channel or tactic leads to scattered effort and poor results. Instead, start every marketing plan by defining the outcomes you want—like more leads, revenue, or lower costs. Only after setting specific targets should you choose which tactics to pursue. This approach keeps teams focused and helps avoid the trap of letting vendors or trends dictate your next step. It also forces honest conversations about what’s realistic with your current budget and resources. By building every action around clear business outcomes, you create a more agile, effective marketing engine that avoids wasted spend and delivers measurable results.
Test Internally Before Spending on Tactics
Small teams often feel pressure to invest in paid ads, agencies, or consultants with the hope of quick wins. But without a clear plan and enough resources, these experiments rarely deliver. Instead, start by testing new ideas and content internally. Use free tools, experiment with messaging, and focus on thought leadership. This approach helps you learn what resonates with your audience and what drives results—without burning through your budget. Only after you see what works should you invest in scaling up with outside help. By treating marketing as an ongoing experiment, you build a foundation for growth that’s rooted in data and real experience, not hope or hype.
Episode Highlights
Why Most Teams Only Think They Have a Strategy
00:00:37
Many marketing teams believe they have a strategy when, in reality, they operate on loosely defined ideas rather than concrete plans. Without a written roadmap, conversations get lost and goals become fuzzy over time. This lack of documentation leads to confusion, missed targets, and wasted effort. True strategy means having a clear, documented plan that spells out what the team will do and why. The difference between having ideas and having a strategy is simple: only one can be handed off, measured, and improved.
“I ask them if they have a marketing strategy, and their response is always, yes. Can I see it? And they’re like, well, we have a strategy. Everybody has a strategy. I have a strategy for how I get up in the morning and brush my teeth and get my coffee, but I don’t have it written down. I don’t have goals for how I wake up and brush my teeth and get my coffee.”
Chasing Tactics Without Clear Outcomes Wastes Budget
00:04:31
Teams often jump from one tactic to another—like new messaging or paid ads—without tying these actions to clear business goals. This approach makes it easy to burn through budget and see little return. The real danger is letting vendors dictate the plan or focusing on surface-level changes that don’t move the needle. Sustainable growth starts with asking, “What outcome are we driving toward?” Only then should specific tactics follow.
“You either need to go to someone like us who’s going to be more consultative in the way that we make recommendations, or you need to do this yourself, which is you need to look at the outcomes that you’re driving toward. That is where you need to start. What are we trying to do with marketing?”
The Flywheel Effect: Make Content Work Across Channels
00:10:18
A strong marketing roadmap lets teams get more mileage from each piece of content. Instead of staying stuck in silos, teams can turn a podcast episode into a video, a blog post, or social content—maximizing reach and value. This flywheel approach amplifies results and keeps content working harder. Without a roadmap, efforts stay fragmented and fail to build momentum.
“When you have this roadmap laid out, you are able to look at things that play off one another. So I’ll just use an example. We do a lot of podcasts—we’re on one right now. Take this podcast episode. You can create a video out of it, you can create a blog post out of that video, you can use that video on organic social, as well as you can use it on paid.”
Stop Paying for Marketing Experiments—Test Internally First
00:11:44
Small marketing teams often spend money on paid ads, agencies, or consultants hoping for quick wins. But without enough resources and a solid plan, these investments rarely pay off. Instead, teams should experiment internally, using free tools and low-cost channels to test ideas before scaling up. This protects limited budgets and builds skills in-house. Spend only after you know what works.
“If you want to go out and try things, do them yourself. Stop spending money to go out and experiment with little tactics; they’re going to fail. It’s like when somebody says they want to try out paid and they want to do $500 a month. You’re just going to take $500 and throw it in the trash can.”