How to run growth marketing during a recession

Welcome to TechCrunch+ Friday

Last month, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the economy is “in a period of transition,” on the grounds that “we have a very strong labor market. When you are creating almost 400,000 jobs a month, that is not a recession.”

Today, we learned that the U.S. added 528,000 new jobs last month and the unemployment rate has fallen to 3.5%, but for many people in tech, this is a distinction without a difference: according to layoffs.fyi, 467 startups have let go of 64,518 employees so far in 2022.

Marketing can’t cure everything that ails a company, but it is the easiest channel to make iterative changes that produce immediate results.

In his latest TechCrunch+ column, Jonathan Martinez says it’s time to “re-forecast, re-prioritize and refine” strategies to move key growth metrics like ARPU and LTV.

Using multiple examples, he shares a few ways companies can project revenue using shorter time intervals, along with exercises to help fine-tune their marketing stack.

“If new channels and major experiments were in the picture, it’s probably best to shelve those for when the markets recover,” he advises.

Thanks very much for reading,

Walter Thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@yourprotagonist

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From NDA to LOI: What really happens when your startup is being acquired?

On Tuesday, VP and managing director of Dell Technologies Capital, Yair Snir, shared an article explaining why founders should plan to get acquired, particularly since their odds of going public are so long.

In a follow-up, he takes readers inside the post-acquisition integration period/process:

• • The shopping sprint
  • The road to an LOI
  • Bring in bankers?
  • Diving into due diligence
  • Defining “day one”
  • You’ve been acquired!

“While IPOs may get more headlines, a well-timed, well-planned acquisition can mean even larger opportunities for you, your team and the technologies you’ve built,” says Snir.

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How to approach building your first employee benefits package

When I worked at a startup located near a wall-climbing gym, a manager proudly announced that they’d negotiated a discount for our entire staff as a company perk.

But once it was explained that this benefit was only valuable to the employees who were already gym members, it seemed somewhat exclusionary. To restore parity, employees who declined a gym membership were offered ride-hailing credits.

“Founders need to ask themselves what really matters to their business, and which benefits best align with their cultural values,” says Anitra St. Hilaire, vice president of People at ThreeFlow.

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Dear Sophie: How long am I required to stay at my current job after I get my green card?

​​Dear Sophie,

I’m a software engineer currently on an H-1B. My employer sponsored me for an EB-2 green card, and my application has been approved, but I’m still waiting for a decision on my application to register for permanent residence.

I want to leave my employer and do something completely different. Can I transfer my green card to another employer in a different field and position, or should I stick it out in my current position until I receive my green card?

If I should stick it out, how long should I stay with my current employer after I receive my green card?

— Craving Change

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Will a weaker euro lead to greater US investment in European startups?

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, pandemic supply chain issues, and the looming recession are dragging down the euro’s value, but there could be a silver lining for European startups.

Besides helping them make more money from selling to the U.S., a stronger dollar could encourage U.S. investors on the fence to invest across the pond, suggest Alex Wilhelm and Anna Heim in The Exchange.

“U.S. dealmakers on the fence may find a stronger dollar to be a nudge toward conviction, if not enough to truly change behavior.”

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6 first-time fund managers detail how they’re preparing to thrive during the downturn

According to PitchBook, 270 new venture funds raised a total of $16.8 billion in 2021. Twelve months later, the managers of those funds are trying to make sense of a changed landscape where the old rules no longer apply.

To learn more about how their strategies and tactics have evolved, Rebecca Szkutak interviewed these first-time fund managers:

• • Giuseppe Stuto, co-founder and managing partner, 186 Ventures
  • Ariana Thacker, solo GP and founder, Conscience VC
  • Leslie Feinzaig, founder and CEO, Graham & Walker
  • Tom Ferguson, GP and managing partner, Burnt Island Ventures
  • Rex Salisbury, GP and founding partner, Cambrian
  • Marco DeMeireles and Allan Jean-Baptiste, co-founders and GPs, Ansa Capital

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Pitch Deck Teardown: Glambook’s $2.5 million seed deck

This summer, Glambook, a booking platform that aims to become the “Uber for the beauty industry” raised $2.5 million at a $12 million valuation.

To help TechCrunch+ readers understand why Glambook’s pitch helped seal the deal, Haje Jan Kamps tears down their 19-slide deck, depicting a company that’s rapidly gaining traction in a “market that is bigger than you think.”

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