You can build it then market it, but odds are a decent marketer will add value to how the product can be more promotable with features etc in the developement p

You can build it then market it, but odds are a decent marketer will add value to how the product can be more promotable with features etc in the developement phase. Also if you want to hit the ground running marketing can be developing plans for some time ahead of launch. As for a black hole of money, it can be. Any area is if spent poorly. A failed product is a development money pit. Marketing should be looked at like an investment, not a cost. Track your activities and if a dollar spent brings back more than a dollar, spend more and see where it plateaus. And vice versa, stop spending or find another channel/marketer. Ive seen developer lead companies looking at marketing as a cost line reject budget increases even with marketing showing a dollar spent was directly returning significantly more. I've also seen money shoveled into the furnace. Marketing is not just good/bad, it's recognising good marketing and bad marketing.