How do you judge a marketer when marketing isn’t your job?

A founder ready to hire, without a way to judge the work.

The founder had a B2B software product and paying customers, with business coming through a sales partner. They could pay for marketing help. What they couldn’t confidently do was tell who would be good at it.

Looking at someone’s experience felt insufficient. A candidate could describe impressive results without making their own contribution clear. The founder wanted a person who could advise them on where to market the product, but didn’t know how to assess that advice.

I’d first check whether the brief gives us a useful basis for assessing candidates. Until we know what the business needs the marketer to do, even a thorough interview can reward the wrong strengths.

I’d decide what the hire is there to change.

I’d start with the founder and the person bringing in sales. We’d look at how recent customers found the business, what persuaded them to buy, and where other conversations stopped. I’d read the material buyers currently see and check what the sales partner has to explain around it.

That gives us a basis for choosing the job. If suitable buyers understand the product but hardly anyone reaches them, experience finding and reaching that audience matters. If the partner keeps rewriting the explanation or supplying missing proof, customer research, messaging and sales materials may deserve attention first.

I wouldn’t choose a channel from the post alone. Nor would I ask candidates to solve that uncertainty by pitching a confident plan with almost no information.

For example, if buyers need a better explanation before considering a demonstration, I’d prioritise customer research, writing and sales materials in the role. We’d also settle what the founder must provide: access to sales conversations, product expertise and help with design and implementation.

If the founder mainly needs someone to carry out a proven plan, I’d write a different role. Paying for a person to choose the direction and then giving them no room to choose it is a mismatch we can catch before hiring.

Then I’d make the interview about work you can inspect.

I’d agree the assessment criteria before reviewing the shortlist. Each candidate gets assessed against the same job, with follow-up questions that address the gaps in their own evidence.

We’d start with something they have already made. I’d ask them to walk through the original brief, show their contribution and explain the choices they made. Confidential work can be redacted; they don’t need to reveal a former employer’s information to explain their reasoning.

I’d look for a customer observation that changed the work, an actual piece of writing, and evidence of what the candidate personally delivered. I’d ask what happened after it was used and what they changed as a result.

If they use AI, I’d ask to see an output they corrected or rejected and how they checked it. A fluent draft is easy to admire. I want to know whether the person can spot an unsupported claim before your customer does.

Here’s the kind of recommendation I’d give you.

A candidate comparison should help you make a decision, not leave you with a page of scores to interpret. This is a fictional example of the distinction I’d draw:

Candidate A could be the better choice for a different job. The point is to make the trade-off visible. You should know what you’re choosing, what remains uncertain and what support the person will need.

You get a defined job and a reasoned hiring recommendation.

I write the role brief and assessment criteria, review shortlisted candidates’ work, take part in the agreed interviews, and give you a written comparison with the questions still to resolve. You or your recruiter find the candidates; you make the hiring decision.

If you already have someone who can assess the relevant marketing work, you may not need me for this stage. Where I help is when you need that judgment alongside you—and want the person making the recommendation to stay involved as the hire starts doing the work.

After the appointment, we use the brief to organise the handover and first project. The promises made in the interview become the starting point for working together.

This is the hiring stage of First Marketing Hire & Support. See the scope and guide prices.