I chose the words of my title carefully and specifically. 
I’ve worked with many clients who have dreams of one day selling their businesses.
Some have successfully done it.

When you’re looking to sell your business, your marketing has an effect on your multiple.

When business owners are making big decisions regarding accounting structures or spending money upgrading technology – everyone understands the idea that those decisions will impact the company’s future sale price. But many business owners have not considered how their marketing can play a big role in a valuation.

Surprise. It’s not just the impact marketing has on the sales numbers. 

The timing and design of smart marketing campaigns create sales trends showing the right kind of growth, 
they demonstrate brand loyalty,
they add to the value of the company’s goodwill. 

But as consumer (and algorithm) behavior evolves, so does the best use of your marketing dollar. 

I so often meet clients who have committed to spending money on a strategy that’s no longer giving them the ROI (return on investment) they used to get.  While at the same time, a lack of available budget has them holding off on a project that could have a sizable, immediate impact. 

Whether you’re looking to sell, or just trying to grow your business, it’s hard to stay on top of marketing. 

At companies with annual earnings in the $3mm to $7mm range, there’s frequently not a focused, dedicated marketing department because the person in charge of marketing is also responsible for important day to day operations. 
They’re busy keeping the company moving. 

Today’s marketing ecosystem is also vastly different than it was just a few years ago:

The top Tik Tok accounts average 30mm views per post, but is the US government still trying to shut it down?

Instagram Reels engagement dropped more than 10% in the last few months.

Meta is currently keeping the data on Facebook engagement rates a secret.

Elon just made a comment on The Joe Rogan Podcast.  So the number of twitter users could rise or fall drastically by tomorrow morning. 

If keeping up with all of this feels overwhelming, you’re not alone. 

When I first meet those mid sized $3-7mm clients, I commonly find existing Facebook or Google Ads accounts. 
I can tell someone spent a lot of time setting them up –
but they’re now neglected, left to run on their own.
The same ads, the same strategy, the same spend month,
after month,
after month.

In the worst cases, I’ve seen these ad accounts churning through $2k/wk – completely unsupervised. 

I also see websites, product sheets, email communications.
“They’re on the list.”
“We know we need to update these.” 
“We’ve just been really busy and haven’t found the time.”

The opportunity costs of these oversights can be substantial.

Your marketing team is already oversubscribed, so how do you fix it?

Don’t worry, I’m not just here to point at problems. 
I point at solutions too. 

I think these are your two best options:

The First Approach

If you’re not ready to bring in outside help – identify the touch points in your existing customer life cycle. Focus any available time, money, and energy on the most frequently used items:  

Do the majority of your potential customers ask you to “send over some information”?

Make sure your product sheets properly represent your company. 
Feature the products you sell the most, or the items that have the best margin.
Make them trackable so you know when someone has opened the document. (Time your follow up accordingly.)

Does your business rely on referrals from existing customers? 

Have a program that encourages those referrals.
Make it easy by creating something they actually want to share.
Don’t forget, a simple thank you card can work wonders.

Do customers frequently contact you through your website?

Set up an automatic response that lets them know you’ve received their inquiry, and sets an expectation of the timeline for your real, personal response. 
Even the personal responses can begin with a well designed template. 
Outline the next steps. What can they be working on now that will help shorten the time to purchase?

If you have very limited time, focus on the long term marketing tools that will not change next week. 
The resources you’ve been relying on for years – chances are you’ll keep using them for years to come. Invest what you can there. 

The Second Approach

Accept that no one on your team has enough time to keep up with the ever changing digital marketing landscape, the newest platforms, or the latest dance trend – and bring in a consultant. 

Brining in outside help shouldn’t be seen as a cost. You have to look at the ROI (return on investment) and realize how much you’re missing out on every day that the right campaign is still sitting on hold.

I’m just one of many marketing consultants. While anyone can claim to be an expert online, there are plenty of us who have decades of experience, and a long list of satisfied clients. 
We can assess your current marketing strategy. 
We can give you objective information on what’s working and what’s not. 
We can work within your budget and timeline to make sure that all your efforts are bringing maximum results.

Consider me an outsourced Chief Marketing Officer.
A marketing project assassin.
I relieve the pain point of insufficient internal resources and put together a proper marketing plan.

Without a burden on your existing team, we can:
Dial in the vision,
Create a strategy,
Define a go to market plan.

Then I can direct the execution or assist your team with the execution.

I hope this helps, and if you have questions specific to your business, I’m always happy to answer them.  

Contact me here.

by Don McKenzie