Smart marketing fuels revenue; smart financials protect it. We help with the latter, but today, we’re highlighting a partner who’s great at the former.
Let’s start with the basics. Tell me who you are and what you do.
I’m Vicki Harte, Director of Client Engagement at Paradigm Marketing and Design. We’re a strategy-first agency specializing in websites, outsourced marketing, design and branding, and sales automation.
We work with businesses that have a complex sale. In other words, it’s not an impulse buy. Customers need to have a conversation before they make a decision.
At a high level, we build websites that serve as marketing tools, act as a fully outsourced CMO, and design branding and sales automation systems, all driven by strategy. Every single thing we do is viewed through the lens of: will this help you reach your goal?
We focus on BHAGs—Big, Hairy, Audacious Goals—and reverse engineer a path to get there. Every initiative should tie back to a strategy, be measurable, and feed into the larger picture. We’re constantly testing and refining, leveraging what works and improving on it, or pivoting when it doesn’t.
So, two big differentiators for us: we’re always strategic, and we always connect actions to measurable goals.
You mentioned you focus on more complex sales, can you explain what that means and who your ideal client is?
Our core clients are B2B professional services firms and nonprofits. We focus on businesses where we can elevate expertise through thought leadership. Putting a full marketing-to-sales infrastructure behind a low-cost product doesn’t deliver the right ROI. But for businesses selling expertise, where trust and credibility are key, that’s where we shine.
Small businesses like mine and yours, by the SBA’s definition, are often led by expertise, and their value isn’t in the lowest price, it’s in their knowledge and experience. That’s the story we help tell. So, when a potential client thinks, “Our leads aren’t great,” or “We need to shorten our sales cycle,” or “How do I make my sales team more effective?”, that’s when we step in. People don’t come to us for a website alone. Yes, we build websites, but that’s not the core value we offer. What they’re coming for is strategic, thought-leadership-driven marketing, and yes, we also handle execution.
So, you’re offering comprehensive marketing grounded in strategy, and then actually doing the work, not just handing off a plan.
Exactly. I always say marketing is like a cookbook. The strategic plan is full of great recipes, but someone still has to cook dinner. And that’s what we do; we execute the plan.
It can be overwhelming at first. Most businesses need 9 to 13 touches to build trust and drive engagement. That could be a networking event, a talk, a website visit, a business card, or a referral. Each is a touchpoint that builds on each other.
Even if someone deletes our email, they still saw “Paradigm.” That’s a brand impression, and those impressions add up.
We create that marketing-to-sales infrastructure. Websites are part of it, but they’re just the center of the ecosystem. Everything else feeds into it to drive conversions.
There are a million marketing professionals out there, just like there are a million bookkeepers, so what’s the special sauce when someone works with Paradigm?
Great question. I’ll start with what makes us different and then share a bit about what we don’t do.
Our special sauce is strategic thinking. You’ve heard of marketing and sales, right? But often, they operate in silos—two boats on the same pond going in different directions. We build a marketing-to-sales infrastructure so that everyone is rowing in the same direction.
That means we work closely with sales teams to make them more effective and to free up business owners from being involved in every single touchpoint.
Say we run a campaign on the difference between bookkeeping and advisory services—we track who opens the email, who clicks, who’s engaging. That gives the sales team data: they know exactly who’s showing interest and what they’re interested in.
Instead of following up with a cold pitch, they follow up with something meaningful, like a resource or a tool, because now they understand what is resonating. It’s all about using data to make informed decisions and create nurturing strategies. So, when it’s time for a real conversation, they’re talking to someone genuinely interested and already educated on what you offer.
We also know we’re not the right fit for everyone. If a company is happy with their current set-up and isn’t looking to grow or scale, we’ll refer them elsewhere. We focus on delivering growth strategies.
Do clients usually come to you with a brand already built, and they need help getting it out there? Or are they looking to build a brand from scratch?
It really depends on what their perceived challenge is. Some come to us thinking social media is their issue. But we don’t jump in with a solution until we understand the real problem.
We ask: how is social media impacting your business? What’s the outcome you’re hoping for? In many B2B environments, social media alone won’t drive revenue. And if you assume your only prospect is hanging out there, you’re missing the bigger picture.
That’s why we think in ecosystems. Once we understand the pain point, we can layer in social media as one of many touches, along with email campaigns, download tools, webinars, and so on. A single touchpoint rarely delivers results unless you’re spending massive amounts, and most small businesses aren’t putting $20K–30K a month into social media alone.
And based on the company size you work with, are you usually dealing with the founder? I assume many don’t have a CMO.
That depends on the organization. We work a lot with B2B professional services, including law firms. Many firms with 5 to 25 people might not have a marketing team, or they have a marketing manager doing the basics like social posts.
So, it really depends on their infrastructure. With small and mid-sized businesses, we often work directly with the owner, VP of Sales, or someone in the C-suite. Marketing is a financial investment, and it’s also strategic, which makes it a C-suite conversation.
As a CFO, I’ve seen countless marketing plans. I’m often “Dr. No” because showing ROI in marketing can be tough. With ad spend, you can measure impressions and open rates, but how do you show value when the return is less tangible?
You’re right; some metrics are harder to track. But most things are measurable if you build in the right structure. It starts with setting KPIs. We establish baseline metrics at the outset, then adjust once campaigns are in motion, and we see how the engine is running. I like to think of the website as a performance vehicle and the marketing campaigns as the fuel.
In one case, a client told us they weren’t seeing ROI, until we pointed out that we had generated 100 leads the previous month. The issue? No one followed up with them.
Right, leads are measurable, what the client does with them, that’s a different story.
Absolutely. It’s critical to define what success looks like from the beginning. We don’t close deals; we lead the horse to water. It’s up to the sales team to convert.
In that case, we brought in a strategic partner to help them manage lead flow more effectively. It’s not just about volume. I’d rather have 50 quality leads than 300 unqualified ones. I’m not interested in kissing a bunch of frogs.
I’m with you. All leads are not good leads.
Exactly. And when marketing is done right, with the right messaging, you’re reaching the right people, not just generating noise.
First, you have to understand your audience, segmenting them in a meaningful way. For example, if your clients range from healthcare to construction, those industries couldn’t be more different in how they consume information and where they spend time.
Healthcare professionals might be on LinkedIn. Your construction guy? Probably not. That’s why segmentation matters.
Second, it’s about messaging. I get emails that are clearly written for “a business owner,” but they don’t speak to me. Now, if someone tells me they can increase my pipeline or make my sales process more efficient, that gets my attention.
I love that you can serve a broad range of clients, but you’re crystal clear about your ideal client profile, one that focuses on complex sales, not shopping-cart sales. That makes it so much easier to make a referral, I know who you’re great for, and I know you’re truly an expert in that space.
One thing we really take pride in is knowing we’re not the right fit for everyone. We don’t try to back into a solution based on budget or pressure. Before joining Paradigm, I ran my own firm for five and a half years and often brought in other marketing firms for client work. I had a front-row seat to many of them presenting, and no matter who got picked, I was consistently impressed with Paradigm, their process, their infrastructure, the SOPs, the way they customized each client engagement. While the strategic approach may look similar at a high level, the execution is always tailored. We help clients uncover and elevate those differentiators strategically through messaging, go-to-market planning, and data-backed decision-making.
And of course, we stay current. We’ve been at this for 15+ years, and we embrace modern technology, AI for example. Will it replace me someday? Maybe, but I like to think I’m still more fun at a party.
But seriously, yes, there are a lot of marketers out there. My advice to anyone looking for help: talk to a few. Find the right alignment. Just because someone says you’re a fit doesn’t make it true. We’ve turned down business when we realized we couldn’t genuinely bring value, and that’s a big reason why marketing can get a bad rap. Some firms take the check and hope for results. That’s not us.
What does a typical engagement look like?
We typically start with a six-month agreement, though we offer month-to-month as well. But marketing isn’t an overnight process; it takes time to plan and execute the right strategy.
The first six to eight weeks are focused on building the plan: messaging, go-to-market strategy, competitive analysis, and a full landscape review. We start running campaigns around month three, and by month four, clients are seeing activity and getting a feel for the infrastructure.
And life happens, sometimes a client forgets to tell us about a trade show until the last minute. That can pause or shift the plan unless they want to invest more. We’re always transparent, offering options when surprises pop up.
By month six, the full marketing ecosystem is up and running. Clients are seeing the results and feeling the impact. That’s when everything clicks. Our full outsourced CMO service is really about doing what you don’t have time, resources, or desire to do, so you can focus on running your business while we drive the strategy and execution forward.
What’s the biggest mistake you see companies making in their marketing? You touched on this earlier, maybe an over-reliance on social media. But is there anything else happening right now where you’re just like, “I want to stab myself in the eyes”?
Yes, definitely. First, not having a CRM. If your goal is to grow and scale, a CRM is absolutely essential. It enables automations, tracks data, and builds a scalable foundation. Without it, you’re flying blind.
Second, unclear messaging. This is a big one. I network constantly, and I see so many people introduce themselves with, “I do this and this and this for anyone who…”—and you walk away with no idea what they actually do. If someone hears my pitch and walks away confused, that’s not their problem, it’s mine.
I was just talking to someone who is launching a business. He explained it to me, and I must’ve said 10 times during the call, “I’m so sorry. I don’t understand what you’re saying.” He brushed it off with, “Maybe it’s just not for you”.
Now I’m not the smartest person in the world, but if I can’t understand it, that’s a red flag.
Exactly. If others can’t retell your story clearly, it doesn’t matter how good it is. As Donald Miller says, “The riches are in the niches.” We live by that. Yes, we can work with companies of all sizes, but our sweet spot is that $2–$50 million range.
Now, even within that, the mindset of a $2M company is different from a $10M one, or a $20M one. So, we segment further, because what matters to a $10M business owner is different than what matters to someone running a $200M company. And if you go into the market trying to talk to everyone, you end up talking to no one.
Your messaging has to evolve depending on the audience, even if the core value prop is the same. Segmenting and refining messaging is critical.
Everyone wants to feel like their business is special. And even though all P&Ls look the same, there are still nuances. A professional services agency looks different than it does for a product-based business with inventory. So, you want to feel understood. And when someone like you says, “Yes, we can do all these things, but this is our sweet spot,” that lands really well.
Before we finish, anything I didn’t ask you about Paradigm that you want people to know?
Actually, yes. Listening to you, I’m reminded of something a colleague said recently: “I feel like a business therapist.” And honestly, that’s what we do. That’s what you don’t get from a giant firm. We are high-touch!
Remember when the pandemic hit and nobody could get a banker on the phone, except the people who had a relationship with their local community banker? It’s the same in marketing. We’re in the trenches with our clients. When you’re overwhelmed or falling apart as a business owner, we’re the ones helping to hold it together. That relationship matters. It’s not a transaction.
And that doesn’t mean results don’t matter, because they do. If we’re not getting ROI, we shouldn’t be rehired. When the mindset is right, and the relationship is right, we’re able to do really amazing things together. Want to learn more? Reach out to Vicki directly at vharte@paradigm-md.com
