Acquisition · Channels

Acquisition Channels

The ways companies get the right people in the door — 33 acquisition channels across 11 categories, classified by what they cost, how fast they read, and who they fit. Start with systematic channel testing.

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3 channels

Intercept people the moment they go looking. Demand already exists; you compete to be the answer.

5 channels

Ads

Buy attention from people who weren't looking. Fast to read, stops when you stop paying.

4 channels

Content

Earn attention by being genuinely useful. Slow to start, compounds into an owned asset.

2 channels

Owned-list nurture and scaled cold outreach — two very different motions under one inbox.

3 channels

Outreach

Go directly to named prospects. Founder-led at first, a sales motion at scale.

3 channels

Communities

Show up where a niche already gathers and be useful before you sell.

3 channels

Events

Teach a room. Owned webinars to tier-1 booths — concentrated attention, episodic.

3 channels

Partnerships

Borrow someone else's distribution. Slow to land, compounds when it lands.

2 channels

Referrals

Let existing customers bring the next ones. The acquisition multiplier.

3 channels

Sponsorships

Rent a trusted voice. Borrowed credibility, priced by reach.

2 channels

Press

Earn third-party credibility — coverage, awards, directories.

All categoriesSearchAdsContentEmailOutreachCommunitiesEventsPartnershipsReferralsSponsorshipsPress

Any intentAlready searchingNot looking yet

Any stage0 to 1Have customersAt scale

Channel	Best for	Category	Buyer intent	Test budget	Time to signal	Long-term asset	Stage
Paid search (SEM)	Capturing high-intent searchers the instant they look — when you can afford to pay per click.	Search	Already searching	$500–5k	Days	No	0 to 1
SEO	Compounding inbound from people already searching — when you can wait months for an owned asset.	Search	Already searching	$500–5k	Months	Yes	0 to 1
App store optimization	Mobile-first products that live or die by app-store discovery.	Search	Already searching	<$500	Weeks	Yes	Have customers
LinkedIn ads	B2B where the buyer is defined by job title and industry.	Ads	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Days	No	0 to 1
Meta / Instagram ads	Consumer products with broad, interest-targetable demand.	Ads	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Days	No	0 to 1
TikTok ads	Consumer brands that can produce native short-form video at volume.	Ads	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Days	No	0 to 1
Programmatic / CTV	Scaled brands buying reach across the open web and streaming.	Ads	Not looking yet	$5k+	Weeks	No	At scale
Out-of-home / billboards	Broad brand awareness in a geography you want to own.	Ads	Not looking yet	$5k+	Months	No	At scale
Founder-led content	Early-stage founders with a sharp POV and time to publish it.	Content	Not looking yet	<$500	Weeks	Yes	0 to 1
SEO content engine	Topics with real search volume and a long content runway.	Content	Already searching	$500–5k	Months	Yes	0 to 1
Video / YouTube	Products best understood by being shown, not told.	Content	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Months	Yes	0 to 1
Podcast (owned)	Building relationships with a niche audience and guests over time.	Content	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Months	Yes	Have customers
Lifecycle email / newsletter	Converting and retaining an audience you already own.	Email	Already searching	<$500	Weeks	Yes	Have customers
Cold email (scaled)	Reaching a precise, named list of buyers who aren't searching for you yet.	Email	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Weeks	No	0 to 1
Founder-led outbound	The first 10 customers, when the founder's credibility is the pitch.	Outreach	Not looking yet	<$500	Days	No	0 to 1
SDR motion (scaled)	A repeatable, high-ACV motion worth staffing a prospecting team for.	Outreach	Not looking yet	$5k+	Weeks	No	At scale
Cold calling	Markets that still answer the phone and decide fast.	Outreach	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Days	No	Have customers
Vertical community / sponsorship	Niches that congregate in one identifiable place.	Communities	Already searching	$500–5k	Weeks	Partial	0 to 1
Reddit / public forums	Topics with active public threads where you can be genuinely helpful.	Communities	Already searching	<$500	Weeks	Partial	0 to 1
Slack / Discord groups	Reaching a gated niche through trust, not broadcast.	Communities	Not looking yet	<$500	Weeks	Partial	0 to 1
Webinars (owned)	Considered purchases where teaching builds the case to buy.	Events	Already searching	$500–5k	Weeks	Partial	Have customers
Regional / niche events	Verticals where deals still start with a handshake.	Events	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Months	No	Have customers
Tier-1 conference booth	Established players who need to be seen where the industry gathers.	Events	Not looking yet	$5k+	Months	No	At scale
Co-marketing	Reaching a peer's audience by trading yours.	Partnerships	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Months	Partial	Have customers
Integrations / marketplace	Products that get more valuable inside a platform's ecosystem.	Partnerships	Already searching	$500–5k	Months	Yes	Have customers
Resellers / channel	Markets where established partners already own the buyer relationship.	Partnerships	Not looking yet	$5k+	Months	Yes	At scale
Referral program	Products with happy users and a natural reason to share.	Referrals	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Weeks	Yes	Have customers
Word of mouth (organic)	Products good enough that people bring it up unprompted.	Referrals	Not looking yet	<$500	Months	Yes	Have customers
Vertical podcast sponsorship	Borrowing a niche host's trust with a defined audience.	Sponsorships	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Weeks	No	0 to 1
Niche creator sponsorship	Reaching a creator's engaged niche with their endorsement.	Sponsorships	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Weeks	No	0 to 1
Consumer influencer	Consumer brands buying reach and aspiration at scale.	Sponsorships	Not looking yet	$5k+	Weeks	No	At scale
PR / earned media	Moments with a genuine news hook and a credible story.	Press	Not looking yet	$500–5k	Months	Partial	Have customers
Awards / directories	Categories where buyers shortlist from directories and 'best of' lists.	Press	Already searching	<$500	Weeks	Yes	0 to 1