Corey Haines
ec31133ad9
A new skill (`/plan {client-name}`) that produces an exhaustive 13-section
Notion-paste-ready marketing plan structured by AARRR (Acquisition,
Activation, Retention, Referral, Revenue), customized to the client's
current budget, team, stage, and tooling stack, mapped to future
funding-stage capability unlocks.
Three-phase workflow:
- INIT: research + structured 10-topic intake; pulls data from wired
MCPs (Ahrefs, GA4, Stripe, Customer.io, etc.); offers to run
/audit-marketing first
- REVIEW: section-by-section interactive draft with user confirmation
on each of the 13 sections; resumable across sessions
- FINALIZE: compile, verification pass (cross-references, machine paths,
brand voice), and optional publish to a shared GitHub repo
The 13 sections:
1. Executive summary
2. Strategic frame
3. Current state (scored against the 17-section audit-marketing rubric)
4. Acquisition
5. Activation
6. Retention
7. Referral
8. Revenue
9. 90-day roadmap (AARRR-tagged, owner-assigned)
10. 12-month outlook (with funding-stage milestones)
11. Marketing operations stack (skills + MCPs per AARRR stage)
12. Tactical idea bank (all 139 ideas from `marketing-ideas` mapped to
AARRR + client-specific status: Now / Q2 / Q3+ / Q4+ / Skip)
13. Measurement, RACI, open decisions, appendix
References:
- methodology.md — full three-phase workflow
- plan-template.md — 13-section template with per-section guidance
- aarrr-framework.md — AARRR primer + diagnostic rules for which stage
is the binding constraint
- current-state-rubric.md — 17-section audit-marketing rubric mapped
to AARRR
- ops-stack-mapping.md — all 26+ marketing skills + MCP/API integrations
mapped to AARRR stages
- idea-cross-reference.md — all 139 marketing-ideas mapped to AARRR
with timing defaults
- funding-stage-unlocks.md — 5 standard funding tiers (pre-seed through
Series B+) with budget profiles and capability unlocks
- measurement-framework.md — north-star patterns by business model,
leading indicators by AARRR stage, review cadence
- client-types.md — variations by client archetype (B2B SaaS, D2C
consumer app, hybrid hardware+software, marketplace, dev tool,
deep-tech/clinical, commerce)
- example-olo.md — canonical reference plan from a real fCMO engagement
Updates:
- plugin.json + marketplace.json bumped to 2.3.0
- marketplace description updated to 43 skills
- VERSIONS.md entry added
Total skills: 43.
Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 <noreply@anthropic.com>
210 lines
13 KiB
Markdown
210 lines
13 KiB
Markdown
# Marketing Operations Stack — Skills + MCPs per AARRR Stage
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This doc maps every marketing-skill and every relevant MCP/API integration to the AARRR stage(s) it primarily serves. It's the source for Section 11 of every plan.
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## The thesis
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A small team + fCMO + agentic tooling = output of a 15–20-person traditional marketing org. The skills + MCPs encode workflows that previously required dedicated headcount per channel.
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The plan's Section 11 makes this thesis explicit by:
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1. Mapping skills to stages so the founder sees which skills execute which work
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2. Mapping MCPs/APIs to stages so the founder sees the tooling layer
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3. Naming a concrete operational example that proves the stack works
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4. Showing capability unlocks by funding stage (pre-seed → seed → Series A)
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## Marketing skills mapped to AARRR
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### Acquisition skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use in Acquisition |
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| `seo-audit` | Audit site for technical and on-page SEO | Quarterly site health checks |
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| `ai-seo` | Optimize content for AI search engines / LLM citation | Future-proof content strategy |
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| `programmatic-seo` | Build template-driven SEO pages at scale | Location, comparison, integration page systems |
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| `schema` | Add structured data markup | Rich snippets, eligibility for AI citation |
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| `content-strategy` | Plan content topics, pillars, cadence | Setting the editorial calendar |
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| `competitors` | Build vs-pages and alternative-to-pages | Capture high-intent SERPs against competitors |
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| `ads` | Plan and structure paid campaigns | Apple Search Ads, Meta, Google, LinkedIn |
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| `ad-creative` | Generate ad variations and creative | Iterate ad creative across platforms |
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| `social` | Plan and write social media content | LinkedIn, Twitter/X, Instagram, TikTok |
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| `typefully` | Schedule/post tweets, threads, LinkedIn content | Cadence operations for founder-led channels |
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| `cold-email` | Write B2B cold outreach + sequences | Outbound for B2B SaaS / hybrid businesses |
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| `analytics` | Set up tracking, GA4, conversion events | Funnel instrumentation |
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| `audit-marketing` | Run the 17-section product marketing audit | Comprehensive scoring of current state |
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| `free-tools` | Plan engineering-as-marketing free tools | Build tools that generate links + leads |
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| `marketing-website-design` | Design marketing sites with intention | Pillar/landing page design |
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| `launch` | Plan and execute launches (Product Hunt, GA, feature launches) | GTM moments — strategy + tactical execution |
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### Activation skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use in Activation |
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| `onboarding` | Optimize user onboarding flows | Onboarding rebuild, activation rate tests |
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| `signup` | Optimize signup/registration | Reduce friction at top of activation |
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| `cro` | Optimize any marketing page or form | Conversion testing across pages, forms, landing pages |
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| `paywalls` | Optimize paywalls and upgrade screens | Trial → paid conversion (also Revenue) |
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| `popups` | Optimize popups, modals, slide-ins | Lead capture + activation prompts |
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| `copywriting` | Write marketing copy | Onboarding screens, paywall copy, CTAs |
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| `copy-editing` | Edit and improve existing copy | Voice / clarity pass before ship |
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| `copycraft` | Real-time copy variation overlay | Live copy iteration during reviews |
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| `website-copy` | Write full website copy (stage-8 from CF process) | Comprehensive site copy production |
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| `ab-testing` | Plan A/B tests | Structure for onboarding variant tests |
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| `marketing-psychology` | Apply behavioral science to copy and CRO | Persuasion principles in activation moments |
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### Retention skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use in Retention |
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| `emails` | Design email sequences | Customer.io / Mailchimp / Resend flow building |
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| `churn-prevention` | Build cancellation flows, save offers, win-back | Reduce churn, recover failed payments |
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| `copywriting` / `copy-editing` | Email copy production | Lifecycle email content |
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| `paywalls` | (cross-cuts) — upgrade prompts in retention emails | Upsell within lifecycle |
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| `ab-testing` | Test email variants | Subject line, CTA, timing tests |
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### Referral skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use in Referral |
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| `referrals` | Plan and launch referral / affiliate / ambassador programs | Core skill for Section 7 |
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| `social` | Create ambassador-shareable content | Talking points, post templates |
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| `copywriting` | Ambassador / affiliate email copy | Recruitment, onboarding, communication |
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| `marketing-website-design` | Per-ambassador landing pages | Attribution surface |
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| `emails` | Ambassador lifecycle emails | Onboarding, monthly digest, payout notifications |
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### Revenue skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use in Revenue |
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| `pricing` | Audit and optimize pricing | Plan tier structure, annual defaults, value metrics |
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| `paywalls` | Paywall optimization | Trial → paid, free → paid conversion |
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| `sales-enablement` | Build sales decks, one-pagers, demos | B2B sales support material |
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| `revops` | Revenue operations, lead lifecycle | Marketing → sales handoff |
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| `ab-testing` | Pricing experiments | Test annual default, intro pricing, tier consolidation |
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### Cross-cutting / brand foundation skills
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| Skill | What it does | Primary use |
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| `positioning` | Define market positioning | Section 2 of plan (Strategic frame) |
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| `customer-research` | Conduct customer interviews + surveys | Section 2 + Section 3 (Current state) |
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| `brand-voice` | Apply / enforce brand voice | Every section that involves copy |
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| `brand-strategy` | Brand strategy workshop (stage-3 from CF process) | Foundational brand work |
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| `brand-guidelines` | Apply brand guidelines (e.g., Anthropic's) | Cross-functional brand artifact creation |
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| `brand-style-guide` | Build a brand style guide doc (stage-7) | Handoff to designers |
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| `branding` | Implement a defined brand in code | Building brand-aligned UI |
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| `product-marketing` | Set up the `.agents/product-marketing.md` context file | Persistent client context for future skill runs |
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| `marketing-psychology` | Apply behavioral science | Cross-cuts copy, CRO, paywalls |
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| `marketing-ideas` | The 139-idea library | Section 12 of plan (Idea bank) |
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| `diagram-maker` | Create visual diagrams | Flows, architecture, RACI charts |
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### CF process / workflow skills (less directly used)
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These exist for full client engagements (Conversion Factory process). The plan skill doesn't usually invoke them directly, but they show up in RACI when a client is doing a full revamp.
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`client-intake` (stage-0), `sitemap-workshop` (stage-4), `creative-direction` (stage-5), `logo-design` (stage-6), `wireframes` (stage-9), `website-build-native` / `-webflow` / `-framer` (stage-10), `client-handoff` (stage-11), `growth-engine` (stage-13)
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## MCPs and APIs mapped to AARRR
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### Acquisition tooling
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| Tool | What it provides | Wired-at-client check |
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| **Ahrefs API** | SEO data: keyword research, backlinks, competitor analysis | Required `AHREFS_API_KEY` in `.env` |
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| **DataForSEO API** | SERP data, keyword volume, competitor SERP analysis | Required API key |
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| **GA4 MCP** | Traffic by channel, conversion events, retention curves | Wired via gcp project + service account |
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| **GitHub MCP** | Repo work: marketing site (`site-name-promo` patterns), content authoring | Standard `gh` CLI auth + MCP server |
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| **Typefully MCP** | Social posting (LinkedIn, X, Threads, Bluesky) | Typefully account + API key |
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| **Google Ads MCP** | Ad account management, campaign creation, performance pulls | Wired post-budget-unlock |
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| **agent-browser** | Browser automation (form fills, screenshots, scraping) | CLI install: `npm install -g agent-browser` |
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| **dev-browser** | General-purpose browser automation | MCP server install |
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| **defuddle** | Clean markdown extraction from web pages | CLI install |
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| **Notion** | Internal knowledge directory access | Notion API key |
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| **Stripe MCP** | LTV math, paid-CAC reconciliation (cross-cuts to Revenue) | Stripe account + restricted key |
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### Activation tooling
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| Tool | What it provides |
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| **App Store Connect** | Conversion rate by listing variant, install funnel | Usually manual + `dev-browser` for screenshots |
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| **GitHub MCP** | Mobile app repo for onboarding code edits |
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| **Figma / Pencil MCP** | Onboarding screen design + iteration |
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| **Customer.io MCP** | In-app messaging + lifecycle email coordination |
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| **Stripe MCP** | Subscription state for paywall logic |
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| **GA4 MCP** | Activation events instrumentation |
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### Retention tooling
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| Tool | What it provides |
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| **Customer.io MCP** | The retention infrastructure — flow building, segmentation, sending |
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| **Shopify** | Hardware buyer events as lifecycle triggers |
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| **Stripe MCP** | Subscription state, churn cohorts, plan changes |
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| **GA4 MCP** | Session events, retention curves |
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| **Resend / Mailchimp / SendGrid** | Alternatives to Customer.io for different stacks |
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### Referral tooling
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| Tool | What it provides |
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| **Dub.co** | Ambassador attribution, short links, per-ambassador tracking |
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| **Stripe MCP** | Commission accounting + payouts via Connect |
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| **GitHub MCP** | Per-ambassador landing pages |
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| **Customer.io MCP** | Ambassador lifecycle (recruitment → onboarding → monthly digest → payout notifications) |
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| **Rewardful / Tolt / Mention Me** | Alternatives to Dub for affiliate management |
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### Revenue tooling
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| Tool | What it provides |
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| **Stripe MCP** | Pricing tests, subscription analytics, churn cohort analysis, blended CAC math |
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| **Shopify** | Hardware transactions |
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| **GA4 MCP** | Revenue events |
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| **Customer.io MCP** | Paywall / pricing-related lifecycle |
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| **Notion** | Commercial knowledge directory |
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### Cross-cutting tooling
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| Tool | What it provides |
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| **Notion** | Shared knowledge base |
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| **GitHub MCP** | Shared context repo (`{client-org}/{client-context}`) |
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| **defuddle** | Research extraction |
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| **obsidian-cli** | Working notes for fCMO |
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| **Pencil MCP** | Design files |
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| **Figma MCP** | Design files (if Figma) |
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## Capability unlocks by funding stage
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The plan's Section 11 must include this table (or equivalent), specific to the client's current and projected funding stages.
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| Stage | Headcount | Tooling | Channels live |
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| **Pre-seed / bootstrapped** | fCMO + founder team | All current tooling + marketing-skills library + MCP layer | Organic only (SEO, content, App Store, founder-led social, events, WOM, ambassador) |
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| **Seed close** | + first marketing hire (lifecycle/content owner) | + paid ad accounts (Apple Search Ads, Meta, LinkedIn) + `ads` skill activated | + paid acquisition pilot ($5–10K/mo) |
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| **Seed deployment** | + designer (potentially fractional) | + analytics expansion (Mixpanel / Amplitude if needed) | + paid scaling ($20–50K/mo) + first launches (PH, GA) |
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| **Series A** | + performance marketing lead + content lead | + dedicated tooling spend ($2–5K/mo software) + sponsored event budget | + paid scaling ($50–150K/mo) + international consideration + B2B vertical expansion |
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| **Series B+** | Full-stack marketing org (10+ people) | + agency partnerships + PR firm | + brand campaigns + acquisitions + sponsorships at category level |
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## The concrete-example test
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Section 11 of the plan must include at least one concrete operational example that proves the stack thesis. The example should be:
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- A specific event (not abstract claim)
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- From this client's actual history if possible (most credible)
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- Tied to a non-technical person executing via the stack (proves it works without dedicated engineering)
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Examples from real engagements:
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- *"On the kickoff call, Markus drafted a working Customer.io abandoned-cart flow live, using Customer.io's Claude MCP. Validated that a non-technical founder can ship lifecycle work using the skill pattern independently."*
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- *"In two weeks, the team scaled from 0 to 14 ranking keywords using `programmatic-seo` against the Ahrefs API + GitHub MCP — no dedicated SEO hire required."*
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- *"The first email campaign generated a 24% reply rate after `cold-email` skill + GA4 MCP + Stripe MCP gave the team a verified target list of users with high LTV but no recent activity."*
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If the client has no such moment in their history yet, frame the example as the *first move* — "Here's the demonstration the team will run in week one to validate the stack:"
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## When the stack doesn't apply (yet)
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For clients without MCP connections set up, frame Section 11 differently:
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- List the skills that DO apply with current tooling
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- Name which MCPs would unlock which sections of the plan
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- Treat MCP setup as a Q1 priority alongside the bedrock fixes
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A plan can't claim the agentic-stack thesis if the stack isn't wired. Be honest about state.
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