1. The call
We talk about what you want to get done, what's working, what isn't, and who does the marketing today. I'll ask what your team believes is driving pipeline, because the audit checks that belief against the evidence.
If it's clear on the call that I'm not the right person, I'll say so and, where I can, point you to someone who is.
2. The free audit
After the call, I do the homework. I look at your marketing from the outside, the way a buyer or a competitor would:
- Your website, especially the pages buyers read before they talk to sales
- How you show up in Google and in AI answers like ChatGPT
- Your paid media and the pages it sends people to
- Your content, and whether it reaches the buyers you want
- How you report on all of it
Then I compare what I found with what you told me. You get a written readout. Each finding is labeled observed, you told me or unknown, so you can see what's evidence and what still needs checking. It ends with what I'd do first. There's no score to argue about.
I don't need access to anything for the first look. If you want a deeper one, read access to Search Console, your ad accounts or your CRM helps, and I'll sign an NDA first.
Book the call that starts the audit
3. A project or a retainer
If you want me to handle the work, I scope it in writing. Most engagements take one of two forms.
A defined job with a fixed fee: rebuild paid search, fix the pages that should be producing demos, untangle why marketing and sales report different numbers. We agree on what will change and how we'll measure it before I start.
A monthly fee for an agreed part of marketing that I own, as a fractional growth leader. I work with your staff and partners, make the decisions we've agreed are mine, and send a monthly report that says what changed and why.
Some clients start with a project and move to a retainer once they've seen the work. Either way, you work with me directly. When it's time to hire your own marketing team, I help you do that too.
From the outset Mark has demonstrated an ability to bring structure in his areas of ownership and lay out a clear plan for achieving stated outcomes.
B2B marketing leader, from a written review of my work. Before consulting, I was on the leadership teams at TrustRadius and Bluehost.
Pricing
I set the exact price after the audit, once we both know the scope. A project is one fixed fee. A retainer is one monthly number, not a list of line items. Both are written down before anything starts, along with what's mine to do and what your team handles.
| Type | What I've quoted | What sets the price |
|---|---|---|
| Free audit | $0 | Always free, after a call |
| Project | $2,000 to $60,000 | From a tracking setup to a multi-month rebuild of a program |
| Retainer | $5,000 to $30,000 a month | From one channel to a multi-channel program I lead |
Retainers start with a set first term, usually three to six months, so there's time to see results. Ad spend and most software are paid by you, separately.
When I'm not the right fit
If you need a large team producing volume, such as dozens of ads or articles a week, an agency is built for that and I'm not. If the job is a single task with no decisions attached, a freelancer will cost you less. I'm most useful when the work needs a senior person to decide what to do, do the important parts, and answer for the result.
Questions people ask
Is the audit really free?
Yes. There's no fee and no obligation. You keep the written readout whether or not you hire me.
Why do you audit for free?
Because it's the fastest way for both of us to find out whether I can help. You see how I think before you spend anything, and if we do work together, the plan starts from what the audit found.
Do I need to give you access to anything?
No. I start from the outside: your site, search results, AI answers and public ads. If you want a deeper look, read access to tools like Search Console, your ad accounts or your CRM helps, and I'm happy to sign an NDA first.
How do you price the work?
After the audit, once we both know the scope. Projects I've quoted run $2,000 to $60,000. Retainers run $5,000 to $30,000 a month. A project is one fixed fee and a retainer is one monthly number, both in writing before anything starts.
Who does the work?
I do. I run the business as one senior operator, not an agency, so there's no account manager and no handoff to a junior team. When the work calls for more hands, I help you hire your own people.