How we work.
No deck. No lock-in. No pitch. Below is how an engagement actually moves from a first email to a year of shipped work.
The shape of an engagement.
- 01
Conversation, not pitch.
30-minute call or email, whichever fits your week. Two questions: what’s the problem, and who’s the customer. If we can’t answer those, no amount of advertising will.
- 02
Monthly, no lock-in.
If the work continues, it’s month-to-month with a 30-day notice on either side. No 12-month minimum. No pre-paid quarter. The work has to earn the next month every month.
- 03
One channel. One owner.
Every client gets a direct line to the person doing the work. Email, text, shared doc, Slack — whatever fits. No account managers. No project coordinators relaying messages. The person you talk to owns the work.
- 04
Cadence fits the engagement.
The rhythm gets built around the client, the budget, and the goal — not a retainer playbook. Updates come as a Loom or email report; meetings only when the work calls for them.
What we don’t do.
Agency norm / How we run it
- 30-page proposalsOne page or less
- Take on more than they can handleRoster fits the work
- Standing meetings whether useful or notMeetings only when the work calls for them
- Hidden markups on ad spend + vendorsEvery line itemized on every bill
- Overpromise. Underdeliver.Underpromise. Then overdeliver.
- Defensive playbooksStudy what competitors do well — beat them at it
- Pitch.Work.
What it costs.
It depends on the problem. Google Ads management, a brand rebuild, a catalog, an SEO overhaul — none of those cost the same.
After the first call, you’ll know what it costs. Take it or leave it. No follow-up sales pressure — we have clients to work for.
Most engagements are billed hourly. One-time builds with clear scope are a fixed fee. Ongoing work is a flat monthly fee, month-to-month.
Every quote is custom. No packages, no tiers. We price the actual work in front of us.
The first call is a conversation, not a pitch.
david@marketing-lions.com