The ‘Sameness’ Problem in Private Equity Marketing, According to Lee McCabe

In a recent LinkedIn post, Lee McCabe delves into what he describes as a pervasive issue within private equity marketing: a fundamental lack of differentiation leading to homogenized strategies and outputs. McCabe argues that despite ambitions for unique growth, many portfolio companies end up employing identical marketing tactics, rendering them indistinguishable from competitors.

McCabe opens his analysis with a striking metaphor: “It all tastes the same in the dark.” He elaborates on this by stating:

“That is modern private equity marketing in one line. Same agency decks. Same attribution models. Same promises about growth. Different logos, identical output. Turn the lights off and you could not tell which portfolio company you are looking at.”

The Measurement Problem Driving Homogeneity

According to Lee McCabe, the root cause of this sameness is not a lack of creativity, but a critical flaw in how marketing performance is measured. He points to the widespread optimization around last-click attribution as a primary driver of this convergence.

“When every business optimizes to last click, the outcome converges,” McCabe writes. He explains that this singular focus leads to predictable and therefore similar strategies across various channels:

“Search ads look the same because they are bought on the same keywords. Social looks the same because everyone chases the same audiences. CRO looks the same because everyone copies the same best practices blog post from 2019.”

McCabe supports his assertion with data, noting that median paid search conversion rates in sectors like home services often hover between 6 to 8 percent, with Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) variance among scaled competitors frequently within a narrow 10 to 15 percent range. “If everyone is using the same channels with the same incentives, no one is building advantage. They are just renting demand at market price,” he argues.

The Paradox of Private Equity’s Growth Mandate

The post highlights a paradox inherent in the private equity model: the mandate to achieve distinct growth while simultaneously funding strategies that lead to uniformity. McCabe observes that the typical approach involves hiring more agencies, which, in his view, often results in increased marketing noise rather than genuine competitive advantage.

Where Real Differentiation Emerges

Lee McCabe contends that true competitive edge is found not in optimizing existing, commoditized channels, but in developing upstream capabilities. He identifies several key areas where genuine differentiation can be built:

• Proprietary data insights
• Depth of CRM utilization
• Call center performance and efficiency
• Speed and effectiveness of follow-up processes
• Strategic offer construction
• Channel mixes that fundamentally alter unit economics

“Most portfolios do not lack ambition. They lack daylight,” McCabe states, suggesting a need for greater transparency and strategic clarity rather than just vanity metrics.

The Path Forward: Demanding Operating Leverage

McCabe concludes by emphasizing that meaningful change requires a shift in how boards and leadership evaluate success. He calls for a move beyond superficial metrics like “prettier dashboards” towards a demand for tangible operating leverage.

“Until boards start demanding real operating leverage instead of prettier dashboards, it will all keep tasting the same.”

In Lee McCabe’s view, until this fundamental shift in evaluation occurs, the private equity marketing landscape will continue to be characterized by a lack of distinctiveness, with companies merely competing on cost and borrowed demand rather than building sustainable, proprietary advantage.