Three Truths Every Emerging Business Must Embrace

Jennifer He
Jun 30
2 min read

Growth-stage companies often move fast — but not always with clarity. The pace of expansion can disguise the cracks in alignment, strategy, and decision-making. I had the pleasure of joining Hilda Gan on her podcast REVUP Your Business to unpack the three foundational truths I’ve seen transform emerging businesses from scattered to strategic.

As featured on REVUP Your Business with Hilda Gan

If you’re building a business with ambition — especially in a noisy, fast-moving market — this is for you.

1. Clarify the Core Functions: Brand. Marketing. Sales.

These three pillars work together, but they are not interchangeable.

Brand is who you are: your identity and your promise. It defines why you exist, what you stand for, and how people feel when they encounter you.
Marketing is how you attract. It creates awareness, nurtures curiosity, and builds trust over time.
Sales is where the purchase decision happens. It’s the moment of exchange — value for value.

💡 Many teams blur the lines between these functions and wonder why execution feels scattered. When everything is marketing, nothing is.

“Strategy starts with clarity.”

2. Tune Out the Noise — Tune Into What Matters

Emerging leaders are surrounded by opinions — from investors, consultants, team members, friends, family members, social media commenters. But…

Not every voice deserves a vote.

The key is building a Clarity Circle — the select voices that guide you with grounded insight, not ego or noise. In the episode, I shared five voices every founder should consider:

Your target customers
People who’ve already achieved the results you aspire to
Industry experts who bring critical domain knowledge and big picture
Specialized professionals who bring domain depth
Employees — the closest to your customer’s lived experience

→ I break these down in more detail in this post: Whose Opinions Matter

“Growth-stage founders don’t suffer from lack of input — they suffer from lack of discernment.”

3. Deliver What People Want — Not What You Wish They Wanted

Your product or service must meet a real, recognized, and urgent need. This requires deep listening — not just to what people say, but what they do.

Avoid falling in love with your solution before you’ve fully fallen in love with your customer’s reality.

Stay adaptive. The best businesses evolve alongside the people they serve.

“You scale when you stop convincing and start aligning.”

Final Thought: Growth That Sticks Begins with Clarity

Before you can grow with confidence, you need clarity on three fronts:

When who you are (Brand), how you attract (Marketing) and how you convert (Sales) are aligned, business growth becomes intentional and sustainable.
Knowing who to listen to, so you’re not pulled in every direction
Understanding what your market truly wants, not what you wish they did