Over the past few months, loads of articles have landed with the same message: CMOs are facing a make‑or‑break moment. The MarTech report summarising Gartner’s 2024 CMO study captures the mood clearly, if a little click-baity, that digital channels are 'collapsing' in effectiveness, personalisation is stalling and AI is reshaping the role faster than most leaders can adapt.
All fair points but what does that mean for start-ups and scale-ups?
Well, for early and growth stage tech companies, this isn’t just interesting reading. It’s a strategic warning and an opportunity.
Unlike enterprise organisations with legacy systems and established processes, start‑ups and scale‑ups have something more valuable than budget: flexibility and speed. While established brands wrestle with structural change, smaller tech firms can reset, rebuild and outperform.
This piece breaks down the core challenges highlighted in the Gartner research and crucially, outlines what practical actions tech founders and CMOs can take now to win.
Gartner reports that CMOs are seeing diminishing returns across once‑reliable digital channels. Noise has increased, cost per acquisition is rising and algorithms are tightening.
For start‑ups, the takeaway is not to abandon digital, it’s to stop assuming digital channels on their own deliver growth.
1. Shift from volume to precision
Instead of broad campaigns, design micro‑audiences and highly specific use‑case messaging. In B2B, this can reduce wasted spend dramatically.
2. Rebuild your channel mix from zero
The "zero‑based mentality" Gartner references is only useful when translated into action:
Identify your top three customer segments
Map the 2–3 channels where each segment actually pays attention
Eliminate everything else for 90 days
3. Combine digital with human-led interactions
For B2B especially, digital alone rarely closes deals. Pair digital content with human content and interaction - founder videos, webinars, community Q&As or customer referrals.
Gartner notes that personalisation efforts have plateaued. This makes sense: you can’t personalise effectively when your data is fragmented or your audience is too broad.
The opportunity for tech start‑ups? Build relevance into your marketing from day one.
1. Personalisation does not equate to relevance
Most scale‑ups don’t need advanced personalisation, they need laser‑sharp positioning and messaging.
2. Build simple data foundations
Instead of complex Customer Data Platforms (CDPs), create:
One clean CRM
A single source of truth for customer segments
Two or three behavioural triggers you act on consistently
3. Use AI to scale insight not noise
Where B2C brands often rely on AI for mass personalisation, B2B brands can use it to:
Analyse customer conversations
Identify friction in the buying journey
Test message variations quickly
We know this but it still makes for difficult reading that Gartner’s study shows 65% of CMOs believe AI will dramatically change their role in the next two years. For start‑ups, the shift is even sharper.
AI isn't just a tool, it is exposing inefficiencies in marketing organisations and closing the gap between small agile teams and slower enterprise competitors.
1. Build a marketing engine not a content factory
AI can generate content; it cannot replace judgement. CMOs must refocus on strategy, customer insight and experimentation.
2. Redefine what "good" looks like and prioritise
A clear proposition
Repeatable campaigns
Proven acquisition channels
A data loop that informs decisions weekly
3. Stay founder‑close
In early‑stage companies, the CMO’s core value is to translate founder vision into market impact. AI accelerates this but only if your strategic foundations are strong.
The instinct might be to assume B2B has more time because cycles are slower. In reality, the opposite is true.
B2B buyers are behaving more like consumers. They research independently, expect immediate clarity and won’t tolerate complexity. Something we see many founders forget.
Legacy tech brands are particularly vulnerable. Their marketing processes - channel‑heavy, slow and broad - are built for a world that no longer exists.
This is exactly where start‑ups can win.
1. Maximise direct founder presence
Celebrate the people who made the business happen, tell their story, put them in front of customers, investors and influencers and let them humanise the business in a way enterprises simply can't.
2. Shorten the distance between product and marketing
Turn product update cycles into marketing content cycles. Test your messaging regularly and quickly adapt marketing to product and customer evolution.
2. Build clarity that beats scale
Legacy brands often drown audiences in messaging and dirty data. A start‑up with one strong proposition and clean data, can cut through.
3. Use AI as leverage not a crutch
B2B teams can automate insights, draft content and analyse patterns faster, all while keeping the human expertise that differentiates them.
This is what we've learned working with start-ups and scale-ups:
Audit your channels and cut 30–50% that don’t serve your top three targets.
Rewrite your value proposition into one clear line and three supporting messages.
Create a simple data foundation: one CRM, clean segments, three triggers.
Design one "killer" campaign, supported by "pillar" campaigns and ongoing "filler" content.
Integrate AI into your insight workflow not your identity.
Test, learn, adapt every 14 days.
Our clients are not behind, they are in pole position. The brands that win next year will be the ones that rebuild quickly and intentionally.
If you’d like help applying this framework to your own business, Rowntree² partners with early and growth‑stage tech companies to refine their story, sharpen their strategy and build marketing engines that scale.