CUSTOM WEST DASHBOARD
Project: ACTIVE
Custom West Marketing Plan
Calendar of Events – October 5, 2016
Timelines/Deadlines in bolded brackets like this: [10/5/16]. Where no timeline listed, dates TBD.
- Create master list of all lead sources.
- NEXT STEP – FINALIZE LIST: Set up finalized list of lead sources to install into Custom West’s database / system
- Phone Call (Source Unidentified)
- Website
- Video
- Social Media (Other)
- Online Advertising
- Social Ads
- Display Ads
- Single Ad source
- Directory Ads
- Referrals
- Existing Customer
- Past Customer (Recapture)
- Inactive Customer (Reactivation)
- Directory Listings
- Direct Mail
- Newsletter
- Media Coverage
- Events
- Sponsorships
- Direct Sales Activities
- Speaking Engagements
- Print Ads
- Newspaper add-ins
- Create procedures for customer service for incoming leads, documenting and tracking
- Ask how they came to call us.
- Use list of categories to input for EVERY CALL
- Procedure for asking: First, be very welcoming, and solve their problem as quickly as possible (usually this means set a service appointment). Then, after their immediate need has been met, ask how they came to call us. Wait for their answer. If vague, ask a follow up question in attempt to glean enough info to categorize the lead.
- Measure and track progress moving forward by generating the report monthly or quarterly and reviewing category totals for the “How they found us” field.
- Prioritize lead generation activities based on this working list of lead sources. (SEE BELOW FOR TOTALS OF “HOW THEY FOUND US” CURRENT DATA)
- Commercial Lead-Gen Campaign set-up.
- NEXT STEP – BUILD LIST: Creating list of potential strategic partners, distribution partners, referral partners, large sources of potential clients, “big fish” clients, client targeting details (demos and identifiable targeting data).
- TO DO – NATE: Go through list of Missoula companies and categorize based on your best guess:
- 1. Great potential client, 2. OK possible potential client, 3. Unlikely to become a client. (SUPER BONUS 1+ = Potential strategic alliance or referral partner.)
- Chamber list
- Labels w/ N&A
- NARPM member list?
- Your networking group
- Introduction / referral letter?
- Access to B2B mailing list, email list, etc?
- Other opportunities (MBIA, MDA, SBC, City Club, Rotary, Lions, etc.)
- TO DO – NATE: Go through list of Missoula companies and categorize based on your best guess:
- NEXT STEP – SETH: COPYWRITING / SALES MESSAGES: Create marketing communications and materials to use to reach out to partners and clients, and to communicate the value proposition effectively.
- Defining sales activities for outreach and encouraging inbound leads in these areas.
- Scheduling sales and outreach activities (manual, automated, calendar and triggers, CRM set-up, etc.)
- Content ideas:
- NEXT STEP – SETH: CREATE EDITORIAL CALENDAR
- From count extension office, get calendar of pest seasons and re-write to match CWPC’s services. Create a proactive plan for customers to stay ahead of each seasonal threat. Commercial and Residential focus (different for each).
- Addressing the pet issue. Pet Fest.
- “Green” issues. Address them up front. We’ll give you all the alternatives for chemical-free treatment up front, for you to decide. (Then give them a way to “push the easy button” to use chemicals and get the problem taken care of immediately.)
- Myths and Realities (Allan Felsot, PhD) http://www.croplife.ca/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Pesticides-and-Health-Myth-vs-Realities.pdf
- Bed bugs. Hotels. Learn how to identify bed bugs before your guests do. Self Test, and DFY test.
- Flesh out entire editorial calendar of content for the next 12 months.
4. Begin USP / Content creation strategy process.
- Message/USP – Goal is to refine and finalize Message/USP by {set dates w/ Nate & Karen}
- 3 USP meetings total.
- 1st initial meeting to gather information and set course. (After meeting action steps: Seth goes to work to compile and write the first draft of the USP. Custom West team gathers and submits information to Seth.)
- 2nd meeting to go over the first draft, gather input and feedback, and make edits. (After meeting action steps: Seth rewrites and refines the USP.)
- 3rd meeting to finalize the USP with the objective of coming away from this meeting with a practical, working message to market we can use across all marketing channels.
- Important note to guide this process: After “finalizing” the USP, we can always tweak and change it. In fact, this is common for the USP to be tweaked over the weeks, months, and years as things evolve. But it is important at this stage to “finalize” the USP to the point where it is “ready to publish” to the public in marketing materials.
5. Social media content distribution/promotion and customer interaction structure and set-up.
- Including organic, native posting and paid ads.
- Where we will post active content, and where we won’t (I call this your “Content Distribution Network” or CDN).
- Best practices: Who will post what, when and how.
- Creating a content editorial calendar for the company.
6. Begin setting up the database for the systematized follow-up system.
- Strategy process
- Technical set-up
- Implementation
7. Video marketing
- Determining what videos we will create, and when.
- Outlining, recording audio and video, editing, reviewing, and publishing new video content across our CDN (Content Distribution Network).
- Continual video creation, tracking of results, and improvement.
- Implementing strategies for your team to capture footage in the field, and determining what our internal procedures will be to filter, edit, and publish that video content onto our CDN and social platforms.
8. Sales training
- Strategy session about your current process.
- Options, opportunities, and potential improvements.
- Setting our game plan.
- Setting up training sessions with your staff.
9. Customer Connection & Retention Strategy and Plan
- Defining your current procedures.
- Options, opportunities, and potential improvements.
- Setting our game plan.
- Implementation (and training if necessary.)
Other Items:
- Community Marketing
- Other Strategic Alliances
- Local Media Opportunities
- Expert Positioning Strategies
- Adding More Value (Process)
- Pricing Audit
- Print and Display Campaigns
- Direct Mail Campaigns
- More….
This calendar of events will evolve and adjust as things progress. For now, this is just a general guideline to keep us on track. Any questions, please feel free at any time.
Deliverables
FEES: Ongoing monthly package – Marketing Consulting and Web Video Campaign – $1000.00 per month
TERMS: Monthly fee, no set contract, cancel anytime. Cancellation procedures: You may cancel manually through the payment portal or by simply emailing or calling (406) 493-0805 directly and requesting cancellation immediately.
Project Scope
- Implement a marketing “master plan” designed to set objectives for everything we do with your marketing campaigns. (Virtual Director of Marketing service (VDM) with a comprehensive company-wide marketing strategy/system.
- Set up a timeline and a calendar of events with accountability assignments. (Seth, Nate, Custom West management, etc. working together, or delegated to associated team members.)
- Determine the “phases” of the plan together and adjusting the calendar of events and deliverable accordingly.
Deliverables based on the marketing blueprint and the phases we decide together to implement.
(Click image below to view full blueprint in pdf form.)

What is your Business Vitality Score?
The Business Vitality Scale
Where does your company fall on this scale? Your number is your score.
10 – Not only do we have more customers than we can handle, we can pick and choose the most ideal customers, and refer the rest to a strategic partner.
9 – We have more customers than we can handle, and we can turn our lead generation campaigns on and off at will, guaranteeing our ability to get new customers on demand.
8 – We are generally growing and we sometimes get new leads from our marketing efforts, but it’s not as dependable as we’d like.
7 – Our annual growth has been trending upwards, but it’s not always consistent.
6 – Very small annual growth but barely keeps up with the consumer price index and inflation. Our marketing efforts are not always showing a clear ROI.
5 – Growth is flat to non-existent. Our marketing efforts are barely keeping us afloat, and we don’t know what’s working and what’s not.
4 – Business is steadily declining. Our marketing efforts are definitely wasting money.
3 – Not only is business declining, but the outlook is getting bleaker month to month. Our marketing is a disaster.
2 – We are taking emergency steps to “stop the bleeding” of declining business, and we have begun to shut down all spending and investment beyond fixed costs.
1 – The business is dying or dead. We are likely going out of business in the next year.
© 2016 Growth Shop, LLC
As business owners and stakeholders, we believe in our businesses. For some of us, there is nothing closer to our hearts than the businesses and companies we work so hard to create and run. We created our companies because we want to make a difference in this world. Growth Shop thinks this is a noble pursuit.
And, as Peter Drucker said, “Marketing and innovation make money; all the rest are costs.”
But what is “marketing”?
Our definition of “marketing” is the actions a business takes which bring in customers or clients, increase transaction frequency, or increase average transaction size (or the profits from these transactions). Here’s what marketing isn’t: Yesterday’s dusty old (often ineffective) advertising strategies. Not just “creative”. Not just “design”. Not just “ads”. Not just “storytelling“. Powerful marketing is what makes a real connection with and adds value to the people you want to become your customers and clients. Your marketing should also keep your existing clients coming back for more and eagerly telling their friends and family about your business. Effective marketing triggers these behaviors.
The wrong way to do this is to emulate and model your competitors, who are very likely making major marketing mistakes. The correct way to do this is to set and follow a marketing master plan. I built Growth Shop because I’m dedicated to showing you how this is done. I also love doing it for you so you can focus on making a difference.
Here’s what an ideal Marketing Master Plan looks like for any business, whether I’m involved or not. Take this information and use it to get results in your own company as soon as possible.
FAQ #1: “What does a Virtual Director of Marketing do, if I were to take my business through your process?”
Answer:
As a consultant, I would work with you on the following process:
A 10 Point Plan for Perfect Marketing Every Time
1. Define how many leads your business is currently generating. Also determine which marketing factors are currently generating sales (and which ones are not.)
2. Define the profit per lead and the lifetime value of a customer.
3. Define company-wide revenue goals, and calculate the number of new leads/repeat customers/customer frequency necessary to reach those goals.
4. Design a master plan for your company-wide marketing system, including the resolving the primary problems and missed opportunities that currently exist.
5. Identify the top 20% of your clients/customers with the highest ROI and the lowest hassle or headache factor, and devote the majority of marketing resources to focusing on this 20%.
6. Determine how to reach this top 20% of your ideal clients/customers.
7. Implement an automated follow-up system to maximize the value you add to your clients/customers and to entice them to do more business with your company.
8. Set up Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to ensure things are actually improving with your marketing results based on your goals from #3 above.
9. Provide you with a dashboard to access information and data about your Marketing Master Plan, aka your new marketing system for your business.
10. Periodically adjust course based on results and evolving business goals.
Could your business use some guidance or advice in some of these areas? Here’s what you can do about it:
CONTACT ME: Hit me up at seth [@] growthshop.co for a free chat. I’ll ask you some questions so I can get a clear picture of your business, your situation, and your goals. You’ll ask me some question too. It’ll be fun.
Or, if you’d prefer, send me a message on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sethholdren
Have a good one,
Seth Holdren