5 Start-Up Challenges We See Every Time (And How to Fix Them)
February 17, 2026
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Launching a start-up is thrilling, but it comes with big pressure. You’re stepping onto the stage for the first time, introducing your business to the world, and competing for attention in a market full of noise.
First impressions matter, and as a newcomer, your task is twofold. First, to prove your value: why you’re here and why your solution is better than your competitors'. Secondly, to reach your target audience and quickly gain traction to prove to investors you are worth their investment.
InPlanet, a B2B carbon removal start-up using enhanced rock weathering, was preparing to face these challenges. They needed clarity in their positioning and a go-to-market roadmap that would set them apart in a competitive field. That’s where we came in.
We created their first marketing strategy, including conducting marketing research, competitor analysis, target audience research and persona creation, KPIs and budget. Then, we built an omni-channel content strategy that positioned them as a trusted industry leader.
InPlanet emerged with a clear, memorable identity and engaging communications to cement the business as a key player in the carbon removal industry.
The right mix of research, strategic thinking, and creativity can position you in the market successfully.
The formula for a strong launch = a well-researched strategy + effective messaging.
For many start-ups, acquisition often steals the spotlight—it's what investors want to see in those early years after all. Eventually, founders come to recognise the massive opportunity in retention, especially when they face the dreaded ‘leaky bucket’ problem—where you keep filling the top of the proverbial bucket with leads, but they keep slipping through the cracks of the bucket instead of being retained.
Take Abound, a B2B e-commerce marketplace for independent retailers. They saw rapid growth but struggled to keep the customers they worked so hard to acquire. When we stepped in to manage their lifecycle marketing, we revamped their entire approach—from content and segmentation to email design and tone of voice. We also introduced a new post-purchase program that directly targeted customer loyalty.
Monthly customer retention more than doubled, with a staggering 145% year-over-year improvement.
Retention is not only cost-effective but crucial. Start prioritising it from day one—it's far cheaper to re-engage a current customer than to chase down a new one.
Many start-ups are faced with growing pains when trying to scale. This is often caused by relying too much on manual tasks and not having processes and clear responsibilities documented.
That was the challenge faced by a start-up in the blue ecosystem that manages multiple workstreams and was in constant firefigthing mode.
First, we ran a workshop to identify pain points within the team. We then used flowcharts to map processes and customer journeys, and finally created a roadmap with recommendations to allow the team to work more effectively, leveraging tools and AI automation where it made sense.
Secondly, we audited at the CRM the team had chosen but were not sure how to leverage. We cleaned and restructured the data to match the team members' individual use cases and ensured all data is in one system rather than spread across multiple systems, spreadsheets, and Airtables.
The team now feels on top of everything, as they have an effective way to prioritise competing priorities and manage their multi-stream backlog.
They also have a CRM that can be leveraged as their single source of truth, it can be used every day as a powerful tool and features automations and AI-driven solutions that save time.
Scaling may be about doing more, but it’s certainly about doing it better.
Customers ghosting you? It happens—and figuring out why is the key to unlock growth.
Various reasons can be the culprit, ranging from technical frustrations, to competition and cost. The key is uncovering what your audience's unique reasons are.
This was something Ecosia, the search engine that plants trees found themselves facing when they approached us to help them get 2 segments of their app users to re-engage.
After devising a re-engagement strategy with the team, we recommended conducting surveys and interviews to investigate the reasons for these customers’ behaviour.
We were able to address pain points and highlight the value of Ecosia over their competitors, by crafting appropriate content and sharing it via Ecosia's ecosystem, as well as other channels the customers were on.
Meeting customers where they are and speaking directly to their pain points can re-engage them and drive loyalty.
You are a busy founder and have a small and mighty team. Some things fall through the cracks. It's natural.
One of these things is often the health of your email channel, caused by factors like poor segmentation or low deliverability.
But low deliverability means your emails aren’t reaching inboxes. So you’re practically leaving money on the table and standing in your way of your business growth.
Roshambo, a sustainable eyewear company for kids, was facing this exact issue when we came on board to help.
To address it, we conducted a comprehensive audit of their email account—looking specifically at segmentation strategy, data quality and structure, and campaign performance. We also audited the full customer journey to identify gaps and opportunities.
We agreed it was necessary to warm up their IP again, so we deployed a daily emailing schedule, monitoring results closely and adjusting segmentation strategy according to the performance. We also implemented fresh templates, introduced new content pillars, and streamlined the database structure.
This holistic approach of improving data + segmentation + content boosted engagement and revenue from the email channel. We increased Roshambo's email deliverability score from 50 to 80 in two months and revenue from email grew +10% year-over-year.
Deliverability often isn’t just a technical issue, as it creates tangible business problems. An optimised email channel can be a game-changer for nurturing relationships, and ultimately closing deals.
Every start-up faces its fair share of challenges, but the solutions don’t have to be complicated. Listen to your audience. Take data-driven actions. And don’t be afraid to pivot when something isn’t working.
Feeling stuck? Let us help you take the next step. Schedule a call with us today and let’s create a strategy that drives the results you need.
