It may sound sensational to hear about a well-established business multiplying its sales after only a 3-month ramp-up time, but this isn’t hype. When the company began to develop and implement a new marketing strategy in September, 2009, it didn’t take long to see a substantial, measurable impact on revenue.

Becki Creighton, owner of Flowers By Fudgie in Sarasota, Florida, tells the story in her own words.

“By the end of this month [March, 2010], we will have done equal to the number of orders that we did all of last year in the first 3 months of this year. So, it is totally amazing… the improvement and where we’ve gone with it.”

Due to the complexities of tracking where their revenue is coming from, this only tells part of the story: the orders coming through the company website. The actual increase in their business is much bigger because of new inquiries coming from brides for their weddings. Wedding business revenue isn’t always recognized right away when inquiries come in, so it will take some time to fully comprehend the impact of this new strategy.

Can You Duplicate These Results?

The fact of the matter is that most businesses can experience similar improvements in the revenue side of their business. Every situation is different of course, but the essential strategy used by Becki is one that Epiphany Marketing, LLC has used with its clients and trainees to produce thousands of new leads, untold numbers of new customers and millions of dollars in revenue.

Free Webinar: How to Quadruple Your Sales in 90 Days

David G. Johnson, founder of Epiphany Marketing, will be presenting the basics of this strategy and telling Becki’s full story in a webinar on Thursday, March 18th, 2010 at 9PM US EDT (check that time in your time zone here). Space is limited. Get all the details and reserve your spot here now.

This webinar is part of a series of free “preview” webinars to help you get a sneak peek at what to expect from the upcoming “Team Gear Shift” live events. Watch this space for updates!

CONTACT: David G. Johnson, (941) 870-5346, david [dot] johnson [at] epiphanymarketing [dot] com or Joe Bettley, CPA, CITP (888) 689-7772, jbettley [at] aspirepartner [dot] com

Experts Help Business Leaders Accelerate Out of the Great Recession

High-Performance Businesses Learn How Changing Times Call for Shifts in Thinking & Methodologies: Webinar Series Beginning March 18th.

SARASOTA, Florida, March 10, 2010 – Joe Bettley, for one, believes that the recession has been good for Florida’s business community. Since he’s a CPA by training – and inclined to have his nose in the numbers – this tends to shock the people he encounters in his business. But for Bettley, the numbers only tell part of the story.

“When credit markets were more liberal, there was a lot of loose cash floating around,” Bettley explains. “People were buying products and services without paying much attention, which caused companies to get sloppy. Just about anyone could appear to be successful… even if they weren’t running a great business.”

And while Bettley is the first to admit that some well-run companies were caught in the crossfire, he contends that what has occurred largely amounts to a weeding out of the companies that had more than their fair share of improving to do.

“The businesses that will survive and thrive in this environment are those that develop excellent disciplines in key areas,” Bettley says. “Understanding and managing the numbers is critical, but the best-run businesses today are also focused on their people and their communications strategies.”

And Bettley put his money where his mouth is. In September, 2008, he chose to start a new business at a time when the economy was clearly tanking. Bettley teamed up with Patrice Say – a corporate HR veteran and people person – and ASPIRE partners, LLC was born. The two founders have been busy improving internal systems and providing clients with winning strategies ever since.

The Revenue Piece

In mid-2009, the two met marketing and social media expert David G. Johnson while working on an update of their website. They instantly recognized an opportunity to round out their offering with a much-needed third component.

“Patrice and I were helping businesses increase profitability by managing costs and improving performance,” says Bettley. “Meanwhile, David had been helping companies large and small – including some well-known brands like the Ziglar Corporation – grow revenue by developing strategies with cutting-edge web and social media techniques.”

“Many business leaders recognize that Google has forever altered the dynamics of attracting new customers,” Johnson, who is the founder of Sarasota-based Epiphany Marketing, explains. “But that doesn’t mean they’ve figured out how to make it work for them. Add in the fact that now prospects and customers expect – and even demand – high levels of interaction through media like Facebook and Twitter… and you can easily find yourself without a clue where to start.”

Producing Lasting Change

Bettley contends that tackling three core areas of any business – the marketing, the numbers, and the people – is a recipe for dramatic improvement, but achieving real results requires far more than just diagnosing and prescribing.

“Most consultants can sniff around and locate problems inside a business without too much difficulty,” says Bettley. “And it would be easy to collect a fee for recommending solutions. But this is another example of the old way of thinking that got us into this mess.”

Instead, ASPIRE partners and Epiphany Marketing both utilize an approach that is intended to produce the kind of long-term change they believe is required for businesses to transition into the new economy. Bettley is tight-lipped about disclosing all the details, but their methods involve a hybrid of analysis, consulting, systems design, training, implementation and ongoingsupport.

“The beauty of our business is that our services pay for themselves many times over,” Johnson says. “It’s not hard to justify investing in something when there’s a rapid return.”

Bettley, Say & Johnson will be conducting local events in upcoming weeks that are designed to give executives and entrepreneurs a taste of what it takes to improve these three areas of their businesses at very low cost. In addition, a free webinar series kicks off of March 18^th with, “How to Quadruple Your Sales in 90 Days.” Registration is available online at http://teamgearshift.com

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About ASPIRE partners, LLC:
ASPIRE partners, LLC was formed in 2008 by Joe Bettley, CPA, CITP and Patrice Say, SPHR to serve small and mid-size companies with cash flow, profitability, financial performance, tax strategies, people performance, customer retention, leadership, communication, cost reduction, and growth strategies & management. Headquartered in Sarasota, FL, ASPIRE serves the Tampa Bay area business community and clients around the globe with outsourced solutions, strategies and implementation. The company’s website is located at http://ASPIREpartner.com, with a blog at http://ASPIREpartnersBlog.com.

About Epiphany Marketing, LLC:
Epiphany Marketing, LLC is a strategic marketing consultancy that helps businesses establish and increase market presence, grow revenue, and increase profitability via training, coaching, and consulting. Founded in 1998 by David G. Johnson, the company’s clients include a wide variety of businesses worldwide, including software companies, health care organizations, I.T. firms, non-profit organizations, contractors, retailers, and internet-based businesses. The company’s website is located at http://www.epiphanymarketing.com.

Just Announced!

Join 2 Team Gear Shift faculty members LIVE on Friday, February 19th at 1PM US EST for a free preview call:

The #1 Most Common Barrier to Progress in 2010

Are you and your team  being affected by this deadly stalker? Chances are, if your business or organization has been around for any length of time at all… this infectious killer has already invaded your ranks.

This factor:

• kills productivity
• stifles creativity, and
• rewards mediocrity

David G. Johnson

Joe Bettley

Many times, leaders like you aren’t even aware of its presence… until it’s too late! Register Now.

During this 1-hour “sneak preview,” Joe Bettley, CPA, CITP and David G. Johnson will reveal this fatal disease and show you exactly what you must do to hunt it down and eliminate it from your ranks.

Space is limited, so…

Put Your Name & Email Address in the Boxes Below to Get Access to This Important Call

This will be a 100% LIVE event and will include an opportunity for you to get your questions answered by our expert faculty members! We look forward to “seeing” you there!

HWADI?!?!

Most every organization suffers from the dreaded HWADI.  What’s HWADI you ask?  How We’ve Always Done It!  That’s often the answer we get when we ask Why? of our new and prospective clients.  True, using tried, tested and proven methods and methodologies is good business practice.  But often stepping out of our comfort zones and/or having a set of expert outside eyes look at how we analyze, track and verify our financial processes and results can yield great dividends.

So just how do we hunt the financial HWADI?  Like in most every journey in life, we need some idea of where we want to go.  Even on our spur of the moment, no planned destination trips and adventures (some of the most fun!) we still have some idea of how we will go (plane, car, etc.) and have some ultimate destination (probably home) at some point in time.  So even when we have a completely spontaneous trip, we still have an ultimate destination and time frame.

Many businesses find it hard to forecast and project financial results (note I didn’t use the dreaded B word – Budget) because of the many variables, particularly in today’s economic climate.  “It’s impossible for me to forecast 3 months from now, let alone 3-5 years!” is a common theme we hear.  There’s a HWADI!  It is possible and by setting realistic goals and outcomes and tracking the progress, often the results are attained or surpassed.

Another HWADI we hunt is cost and expense reduction.  “We’ve already cut all costs that we possibly can!” is another common theme today.  While it’s quite possible that that is the case and that a business or organization has reinvented itself and its processes, usually that is not the case and the HWADI is still running wild!  Here’s another instance where an outside expert may be able to reduce your expenses while increasing your revenue.

What’s the HWADI in your business or organization?  Happy Hunting!