Victoria Fide Consulting (VF)  is a digital transformation firm serving companies with $300 million+ in annual revenue. They had only recently launched their digital transformation consulting business when they contacted me for marketing help, though the CEO had made multiple startup attempts in the past. Months earlier, he had read the free Content Marketing Starter Kit eBook available on my website and was curious to learn more. His new business was on a tight budget and they weren't sure where to begin. Admittedly, they knew little about marketing.

Victoria Fide faced several growth challenges common to many IT Services and Consulting firms. The these challenges include: 

• Ability to get referrals from established relationships, but challenged to build new relationships
• Complex, difficult to explain services
• Large buying committee
• Prospects do not understand the depth of their problem
• Unable to effectively evaluate their options
• Wanting to avoid risk (unsure about the outcome from consulting services)
• Not able to assess the effectiveness of consulting services offered 
  
• All consulting services look the same - hard to stand out

Despite their vast experience in digital transformations, Victoria Fide Consulting was facing a growth challenge. They were forced to rely on referrals for new clients, which was unpredictable. They were targeting large enterprise firms with over $300 million in revenue. But breaking into this market wasn't easy. 

These big companies had complex buying processes, and Victoria Fide had a lot of competition so struggled to stand out. Plus, their services were intangible, making it hard to show potential clients what they'd get. And they couldn't share past successes due to client confidentiality.

Their first thought was to advertise, maybe on the radio. But it was expensive, reaching the right people was uncertain, and it might make them look desperate. Also, it wouldn't really showcase their expertise, which was crucial because consulting clients buy experience.

Then, they considered SEO to boost their online presence. But SEO works better for businesses that sell directly to consumers, and it's tough to rank high enough and takes quite an investment to get noticed. Plus, it's a crowded space, and if it didn't work, they'd have wasted a lot of time and money.

Finally, they thought about using LinkedIn, but they didn't know much about the platform. They weren't sure who to reach out to, what to say, or how to manage the whole process. In the end, their main problem wasn't a lack of ideas—it was not having enough time to try them all out.

My first step was to interview the CEO and gain a deeper understanding of their business and services. I used the interview to create a series of short videos they could share on social media. They still wanted to do some advertising, so we used LinkedIn's advertising tools to increase their visibility by advertising shorts videos for the low price of $.05 cents per view. Next, I suggested we develop a Brand Book to guide the development of their visuals and content.

I then assisted them in creating a white paper. Simultaneously, I analyzed and improved their LinkedIn profile and launched a targeted LinkedIn connection campaign. This included a LinkedIn newsletter and a weekly article series based on their white paper. Further, I began developing a webinar to engage and convert their subscribers based on their white paper. Throughout the process, the client met with me once a week for a coaching, strategy, and brainstorming sessions. 

The starting point for working with Victoria Fide was to fully understand their situation by conducting a podcast interview. I interviewed the CEO about his background, typical client challenges, and the Victoria Fide proven process. 

The podcast was turned into a series of 12 videos that could be shared on social media. The videos were also added to a YouTube playlist so a single link to the entire list of videos could be shared.

I had the members of the Victoria Fide team take a brand strategy survey to gather research. We all  agreed that the underlying inspiration behind the company was their pursuit of "wisdom" on digital transformation.

Their Brand Book became a working document that examined their business promise, goals, marketing objectives, target audience (including the target audience's goals). It also included suggestions for wording, content, design, visuals, and their client experience.

NOTE: Their Brand Book contains confidential information that cannot be shared online.

A series of 10 interviews were conducted with the CEO to gather research for the white paper. We called it a "Blue paper" to align it with their brand.. 

Their blue paper research revealed ten major mistakes their clients were making which led to DX failure. During the interviews, the CEO recommended ten preventative measures companies should take. I developed a Creative Brief that summarized the goals, target audience, and research. Finally, I hired and managed freelance help - a writer and graphic designer to implement the vision.

A branded article series, which I wrote myself, delved into the details of their white paper. Each article covered one of their 10 digital transformation mistakes to avoid. The concept was to feature a recognizable sage-like personality and build a story around one of their well-known quotes to engage newsletter subscribers and nurture their buyer journey. The process followed a content calendar, outlining topics a year ahead and planning articles four weeks in advance.

Each new LinkedIn connection was invited to subscribe to Victoria Fide's weekly LinkedIn newsletter. Subscribers automatically received both a weekly LinkedIn notification and an email notification sent to the email address connected to their LinkedIn account.

This solution enabled VF to consistently stay in touch and nurture potential clients through their long B2B buying cycle. A link to download the White Paper was included, along with an offer to schedule a free consultation.

A predictable percentage of connections were consistently converted into subscribers.

The final result for Victoria Fide was a LinkedIn account-based marketing campaign with engaged C-level subscribers. In addition to their brand strategy and white paper, I helped them develop a content management system so they could create and manage their content internally.  

When my contract was complete, their connection campaign had resulted in over 2,500 targeted LinkedIn connections (500% growth in one year) and 300+ newsletter subscribers. The power of their list came from the many targeted C-Level decision-makers who opted in, rather than the total number of subscribers.

Their Sage article series let them consistently create top of mind awareness without boring their audience. And they could promote their offer of a free consultation. 

Their high-quality content assets can be repurposed and reused for years. As opposed to advertising, every dollar they spent was an investment. Their campaign was so successful, that after 18 months they could afford to hire a Marketing Manager and Assistant to handle their project internally.