Marketing no longer requires a huge budget

AI killed the excuse of "we don't have the budget." You don’t need more money. You need a smarter plan.

Here’s the 5-phase blueprint I’m using (and seeing work) right now:

Phase 1: Research

You must understand your audience and where they spend their time. Once you find that information, tailor your strategy to those platforms. Go where your customers are talking and actually listen. Reddit, forums, YouTube comments—it’s all data.

Don’t build your strategy on assumptions. Utilize AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity to analyze competitors, trends, and audience behavior in hours, rather than weeks. You can also use ChatGPT’s Deep Research and Manus to uncover competitor insights and identify ways to differentiate yourself from them.

Don’t forget to look at your own channels and past marketing efforts to understand what worked and what didn’t.

Phase 2:  Focus on metrics, not budget

Forget likes. Forget views. What’s the one metric that pays your bills? CAC? SQLs? MRR? Every tactic needs to move that metric. If it doesn’t, kill it.

Speaking of budget, start small and focus on low-impact tactics that will pay off. An example is ranking for high-intent/low-competition keywords. Develop an experimentation mindset, find what works, and double down when you do.

What if your budget is zero? Pay in sweat equity. Put in the time to create the best content that rivals your biggest competitors.

Phase 3: Master one channel

What’s the secret that one marketers share? They’re experts at one channel.

Spreading yourself across 10 platforms just guarantees you’ll suck at all of them. Dominate one. Go deep. Build authority. Then scale.

How do you choose a channel? Identify where you’re comfortable, look at your data, and be where your competitors are.

Pro tip: Start with email. It’s your only truly owned audience.

Phase 4: Build a content machine 

Stop posting at random. Use a content calendar to build a repeatable system. Identify where your audience is and where organic reach is still strong (LinkedIn, YouTube, X). Then double down. Repurpose. Scale. Multiply.

Phase 5: Experiment relentlessly 

Most campaigns will flop. That’s the point. Run fast experiments. Test angles, offers, hooks. One winner out of 8 can create exponential growth. But only if you’re iterating fast.

Marketing in 2025 is about leverage. And AI gives you more leverage than ever before.

To marketing smarter,
Eric Siu

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