Referrals got you here. They won't get you to the next number.
You built this business on word of mouth and doing good work. That worked - right up until it stopped being enough. We help small businesses build the marketing they should have had five years ago, without hiring somebody full-time to do it.
Let's talk about where things are stuck →- We've always gotten business from referrals. Lately that's slowed down and I don't know why.
- My office manager is doing our marketing on top of her actual job.
- We have a CRM. Nobody puts anything in it.
- Someone fills out the form on our website and I honestly don't know what happens next.
- We hired an agency. We got a lot of reports and not much else.
- I know I should be doing more with this. I don't know what “more” means.
None of that means you've done anything wrong. It means the business outgrew the way it was getting customers, which is what happens when a business works.
Word of mouth is the best marketing there is. It's also the only kind you can't turn up.
For years it's enough. Your customers tell people, those people call, you do good work, and it goes around again. Then you hit a size where the math stops working — you need more new customers per month than your existing customers can naturally produce, and there's no lever to pull.
Most owners respond by trying things. A Facebook page. A new website. An agency. Google ads for a while. Each one is a reasonable idea on its own, and none of them are connected to each other, so nothing compounds.
A lead comes in and lands in an inbox. Somebody follows up, or doesn't. There's no list of people who almost bought last year. Nobody's sure which of these things actually produced a job.
That's not a marketing problem. That's a plumbing problem — and plumbing can be fixed.
Most owners at your stage are choosing between three options. It's worth being honest about all of them.
Sixty to eighty thousand a year, plus the hard part: you have to know enough about marketing to tell whether they're any good. Most owners at this size don't, which is why so many of these hires end badly for everyone.
They'll run campaigns and send you reports. But they build everything on their own systems, so when you leave, it leaves with them. And they're usually incentivized to spend more, not to figure out whether spending is the right answer.
Cheapest right now. Also the reason you're reading this page.
What we do is a fourth option. We set up the systems your business needs, get them running properly, and teach whoever's doing your marketing how to run them — so you end up owning the thing instead of renting it.
You get one senior person who knows your business, backed by systems built to handle the volume. Not a salesperson followed by whoever the agency had available that month.
What actually gets done
The Small-Business Accelerator builds the front of the chain from scratch and then runs it, and establishes the back half so nothing falls over once customers start arriving.
You own every system, account and asset. If we stop working together, nothing gets switched off.
We're not going to put a number on this page, because what you need depends on what you've already got — a business with a working CRM and one with three spreadsheets are different jobs.
What we will tell you:
- It costs less than hiring someone. Meaningfully less.
- The price is agreed before anything starts. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices.
- It's month to month. No annual contract, no cancellation penalty. If it isn't working, you stop.
- You keep everything. Every system, every account, every list is in your name and stays with you.
If the first conversation makes it clear this is more than you need, we'll tell you that and point you somewhere better. That happens fairly often, and it's a fine outcome.
Is this you?
- The business is growing but referrals alone aren't keeping up
- Marketing is happening, but it's nobody's actual job
- You've got tools you're paying for and not really using
- You want to build something that lasts, not run a campaign
- You'd rather understand your own marketing than hand it off and hope
You want someone to just take it over and never talk to you about it
You're looking for one campaign to fix a slow quarter
You have a marketing team and a marketing leader already — the Growth Readiness Assessment is a better starting point
Kirk Trucking & Forestry Recycling
A regional operator with steady demand and no way to capture it online. We rebuilt the brand and the website around what customers were actually searching for and how they actually decide.
New England's Tap House Grille Restaurant Group
A restaurant, a raw bar, a farm, and an event venue, all under one ownership group, all competing for the same attention and the same owner's hours. We gave each one its own identity and audience while keeping the operating side simple enough for one team to run.
Z Car Club Association
Fourteen years, forty thousand members, and a partnership with Nissan North America — built with essentially no budget. Most of what we know about making marketing work when resources are tight came from here, not from anywhere with a marketing department.
Common questions.
What does the Small Business Accelerator cost?
It costs less than hiring someone, meaningfully less. The price is agreed before anything starts — no hourly billing, no surprise invoices. It's month to month — no annual contract, no cancellation penalty. If it isn't working, you stop. You keep everything — every system, every account, every list is in your name and stays with you.
Is the Small Business Accelerator right for my business?
This fits if the business is growing but referrals alone aren't keeping up; marketing is happening, but it's nobody's actual job; you've got tools you're paying for and not really using; you want to build something that lasts, not run a campaign; or you'd rather understand your own marketing than hand it off and hope.
When is the Small Business Accelerator not the right fit?
This isn't the right fit if you want someone to just take it over and never talk to you about it; you're looking for one campaign to fix a slow quarter; or you have a marketing team and a marketing leader already — the Growth Readiness Assessment is a better starting point.
Start with a conversation.
Twenty minutes. No cost, no pitch, no slide deck. Tell us what's going on with the business and what you've already tried. We'll tell you what we think is actually in your way - and whether that's something we can help with or not. If we're not the right fit, we'll say so and try to point you somewhere useful.
Let's talk →