“We just burned 20k on a marketing company and got almost nothing out of it. It was a bad decision. Our biggest mistake was assuming that an award winning marketing company would be able to help shape the core messaging of our vision." 

If you’re a seasoned business owner, I am sure the statement above resonates with you.

You hired a marketing agency that promised you sky high results... but had lacklustre outcomes.

Years ago as a budding entrepreneur, I started my first business by writing one blog article after another, posting it online and social media. Hoping and praying for "free SEO traffic". I did it for one entire year straight.

The result? 

I got crickets.

No sales. No traffic. 

Nobody cared.

I packed my bags and went back to University.

Fast forward today:

• I’ve grown my own projects from ground 0 to more than 6 figures in revenue
• Helped small medium enterprises grow their E Commerce sales to half a million in six months (you can scroll down to look at case study screenshots)
• Generated million dollar revenue months at an enterprise level as an E Commerce specialist in one of the biggest banking group in the region
• I still write long articles, but some times they get published on ChannelNewsAsia (Google my full name plus "ChannelNewsAsia")

"The reality we found was that it's something only the core team can really do. Once you have that you can retain marketing to enhance it or leverage the message.”

The eerie thing about these statements is that they are true. 

However, what if I told you that every marketing campaign I ran, whether for agency clients or as an in house team team... core messaging is stressed upon even before a dollar is spent?

In fact, I'll even go as far as tell you that if you don't buy that core messaging, understanding your customers is a necessary step before spending on online marketing...

Or that there is a secret hack/ channel such as "Facebook ads" or "funnels"...

Then I am sorry, you can X this window now.

I am going to bore you to death and there is not going to be a good fit between us. (I'll explain later on, kindly read on). 

“Every single marketing firm that I spoke to over the years told me I need to look at the lifetime value of a customer and not the dollar amount of the first transaction. They said if I’m confident that the customers will spread the word and come back to my site then we’ll be profitable in the long run. One major problem with that logic is that it doesn’t account for cash flow. My business will run out of cash if I have to wait several years to see the return. For paid ads to work for my small business I need to be profitable on transaction.”

That is also a common complain I hear from potential clients.

In fact, I understand exactly how you feel.

I started out as a one employee in my business. I never received external funding. I always started small, made sure I was cashflow positive and pivot on marketing campaigns if it's not giving results.

The truth is: most online marketing campaigns are won/ lost even before a dollar is spent.

Yes, even before a dollar is spent. 

That is because most vendors mis managed and set highly unrealistic expectations from the start.

Small budget with unrealistic expectations?

Sure. Can be done! 

"I mean, there are other marketers out there claiming to make a million dollars without any money nor effort right? So... I am only going to make a bolder claim!"

Yes, anything to get that sale.

Our team isn’t like that. In fact, I'll say this right now: most business owners aren't going to be a good fit for us.

Our team plays a more proactive role in our projects, and we are pretty upfront.

“Most of the agencies are snake oil salesmen.”

Sounds familiar?

Today, many marketers and agencies promise you the holy grail of a specific method or channel such as “running Facebook ads” or "funnels".

However, here's the TRUTH:

If you do not have product market fit. You can have all the traffic in the world, and it’ll not sell.

It is NOT the traffic that counts.

Take it from someone that scaled his first business to 20k in global traffic online with SEO. (yes, I had visitors from the US, from the UK, Australia.)

Take it from someone that has looked at enterprise level teams flush hundreds of thousands of dollars in advertising budget in a matter of months, desperately trying to hit their personal KPIs for their year-end bonus.

Take it from someone that is hardcore SEO fanatic, didn't use paid marketing for his first couple years in digital marketing, but helped an SME scale to half a million in sales by focusing on one paid traffic channel.

I am going to re-say it:

It is NOT the traffic that counts.

Strong buildings come from strong fundamentals. I am sure you're not looking to switch marketing agencies every three months. There are high switching costs, not to mention the disappointment.

If you are a six figure business owner looking to grow your business from first principles. (Heck! You may even be against hiring agencies and hired an in house team.)

Then this might just be for you.