Market Development Associate

Primary is a seed-stage venture capital firm dedicated to delivering exceptional support to the founders of transformational businesses in NYC. By pairing meaningful investment resources with the largest portfolio impact team of any seed investor, our portfolio companies have reached an industry-best seed-to-A graduation rate.

We are hiring a full-time Market Development Associate to help accelerate growth across our portfolio—supporting startups as they build customer relationships and scale their sales pipelines. This is a unique opportunity for an early-career professional to gain hands-on experience shaping and executing early go-to-market strategies. You'll work directly with founders and investors to support company growth from the ground up.

This is a fast-paced, high-impact role focused on Go-to-Market (GTM) strategy. As a Market Development Associate, you’ll partner directly with Founders and commercial leaders in driving critical early-stage GTM efforts, shaping how companies identify and engage their earliest customers—boosting top of funnel opportunities, engaging target personas, and facilitating high-value introductions.

Additionally, you’ll have the opportunity to contribute to other valuable growth initiatives, including lead nurturing programs, marketing, or events strategies. 

You’ll report to Jason Gelman, Primary’s GTM Operating Partner, and join a team that operates with the urgency and creativity of a startup—backed by the resources and network of a venture firm.

Outbound Prospecting (~50% of time spend):

• Define or refine Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs) across different verticals and company stages and develop prospecting tactics for personas within them

• Scale pipeline and meeting generation programs to reach target customer personas

• Execute initial introductory meetings and discovery sessions to obtain market feedback and inform product and commercial roadmap

• Help identify and engage design partners and early adopters to validate product-market fit
  

Revenue Operations (~25% of time spend):

• Support portfolio companies’ early sales motions, including customer acquisition and business case development

• Recommend and implement GTM tools (i.e., CRM, sequencing, data enrichment) to support scale

• Track funnel metrics and help iterate on early-stage GTM execution
  

Marketing (~25% of time spend):

• Develop lead nurture strategies and touchpoints

• Create marketing collateral, such as newsletters, social posts, outreach templates, and pitch decks

• Plan and produce marketing-driven events (i.e., webinars, dinners) to build networks and raise visibility for Primary and its portfolio companies
  

• You have 1–4 years of professional experience in a fast-moving, customer-facing, or growth-oriented role (e.g., GTM, sales, business development, consulting, or something adjacent)

• You’re located in the greater NYC area and are able to be present in our office (near Madison Square Park) 3-5 days per week. 

• Critical Thinking Skills: You're a problem solver who breaks down complex challenges, prioritizes effectively, and communicates ideas clearly.

• Growth mindset: You embrace feedback and view ambiguity as fuel for learning and growth. 

• High-Agency: You have an entrepreneur’s intrinsic motivation–you take initiative, close loops, and thrive in fast-moving, unstructured environments.

• Deeply organized: You juggle multiple priorities without dropping details and keep things on track

• Passion: You’re enthusiastic and passionate about early stage startups

• Storyteller: You can quickly synthesize complex insights into a strong POV and communicate it clearly

• Prospecting Techniques + Tools: Experience with GTM tools (i.e., SalesNav, Clay) is a plus, but not required
  

This role could be a stepping stone to a variety of roles including: 

1. Other internal roles at Primary or another VC firm 

2. Chief Of Staff at an early stage startup

3. First GTM or sales hire at an early stage startup

Even if you are not sure what your next role will be, being inside the talent network of a premier VC firm will greatly expand your network and visibility. 

The base salary for this role is $75,000 annually, and this includes healthcare benefits and upside in Primary’s funds. Compensation includes access to Primary’s broad network, mentorship, and career development opportunities.