Why Long-Term Growth Starts Before Purchase Intent

Most brands focus their marketing on the moment a buyer is ready to make a decision. It feels efficient, measurable, and directly tied to revenue. In reality, this is also the most competitive and expensive stage of the funnel, where differentiation is minimal, and many buyers have already made up their minds. Long-term growth is rarely created here. It is shaped much earlier, long before purchase intent becomes visible.

At any given time, only around 5% of buyers are actively in-market. These are the audiences most performance-driven strategies compete for. The remaining 95% are not searching or comparing solutions, yet they are forming opinions, associations, and mental shortcuts that will later influence their decision. When brands fail to engage this majority, they leave future demand to competitors.

This late-stage focus becomes even more problematic when marketing budgets are taken into account. With budgets averaging just 7.7% of total company revenue, brands cannot afford to repeatedly overspend on the same high-intent buyers. Chasing demand at the bottom of the funnel drives short-term results but rarely builds lasting advantage. Efficiency, in this context, is not about spending less — it is about investing earlier.

Brands that grow sustainably understand the power of early narrative-building. By showing up before intent exists, they create familiarity, trust, and perceived leadership within their category. This early exposure builds bias in their favor, increasing the likelihood that the brand will be remembered and chosen when the need finally arises. Instead of reacting to demand, these brands actively shape it.

One of the strongest outcomes of this approach is referrals. Referrals are not triggered by last-click campaigns or short-term promotions. They are the result of stories people remember, values they align with, and experiences they are confident recommending. For this reason, referrals remain one of the most reliable indicators of scalable, long-term growth.

The real opportunity for brands lies not with the small percentage of buyers ready to purchase today, but with the much larger group that will decide tomorrow. Companies that invest in building narratives early, when attention is cheaper and competition is lower, position themselves to win not just transactions, but trust, memory, and momentum over time.