David Shay
New York, New York
Overview
Most companies don’t have a marketing problem. They have a clarity problem. I work with founders and leadership teams to turn positioning into a practical operating system for growth—so marketing stops being noisy, decisions get easier, and momentum becomes sustainable. I am a Marketing Consultant / Fractional Marketing Lead (FCMO) / Strategic Advisor - focused on clarity, alignment, and durable growth. ----------- I’ve spent more than two decades inside marketing organizations—leading teams, building brands, launching products, navigating acquisitions, and advising founders through moment
About
Most companies don’t have a marketing problem. They have a clarity problem. I work with founders and leadership teams to turn positioning into a practical operating system for growth—so marketing stops being noisy, decisions get easier, and momentum becomes sustainable. I am a Marketing Consultant / Fractional Marketing Lead (FCMO) / Strategic Advisor - focused on clarity, alignment, and durable growth. ----------- I’ve spent more than two decades inside marketing organizations—leading teams, building brands, launching products, navigating acquisitions, and advising founders through moments of both acceleration and uncertainty. Across industries and growth stages, I’ve seen the same pattern repeat itself: Smart people. Hard-working teams. Plenty of activity. But no shared understanding of what actually matters most.When clarity is missing, marketing becomes reactive. Sales guesses. Leadership debates tactics instead of decisions. Effort increases, but progress slows. That’s where my work begins. I help leaders clarify their positioning, narrative, and strategic priorities—and then turn that clarity into something usable. Not a slide. Not a slogan. A living framework that informs how the company communicates, markets, sells, and grows. My work sits at the intersection of strategy, narrative, and execution. I’m often brought in when: • A company has outgrown its original story • Marketing feels busy but misaligned • Leadership is preparing for a new phase of growth • Thought leadership exists in fragments, not as a system • Teams need structure before amplification As a Fractional Marketing Lead/ / Fractional CMO, I partner closely with founders and executive teams to bring order to complexity—aligning positioning, messaging, content, and go-to-market strategy so each reinforces the other. I don’t believe marketing exists to generate activity. I believe it exists to create clarity. That belief also shapes how I use modern tools, including AI—not as a replacement for judgment, but as a way to remove unnecessary cognitive load, pressure-test thinking, and accelerate work that still requires human insight. The companies that scale with confidence share one thing in common: They know who they are, who they serve, and why it matters. Clarity scales. Confusion doesn’t.