From a marketing consultant with over 10+ years of experience

As a marketing consultant with over 10 years of experience, I’ve honed a marketing strategy for service providers that is low-effort but high-impact. Not only do I get to test what works with clients, but also for myself. Since I’m a service provider just like many of my clients are, obviously I need to use my skills as a marketing consultant to sell my own services.

My marketing strategy now looks a lot different than previous years, especially as I return to work after the birth of my second child. The premise to these changes: You can have a successful business without pouring all your energy into social media. Full stop.

My shift in focus has obviously been inspired by the fact that I have even less time now with 2 littles 2 and under. My days revolve around their schedules, and I do my best trying to juggle everything. While it’s working well, I don’t have time anymore to show up in the ways that I did before kids, or even with just 1 baby. Now that there’s double the fun? Something had to give.

My goal is to optimize what I can pour my efforts into. Not spread too thin.

That’s where my low-lift, high-impact marketing strategy comes in. It answers the question: “How can I do more with less?”

One year later: The results of my low-lift marketing strategies

This post was originally published in mid-2024 when I was re-entering very light work, and needed my marketing to work without demanding too much from me. I wouldn’t have even considered myself as really working at the time of the original post… I was creating content as it made sense, but mostly focusing on my family.

I promised I’d share how things played out. So here we are one year later.

Here’s the results both in the numbers and in how it feels as a mama of 2 with a full life, clients to support, and a business to run.

The tangible results…

These are just a few highlights. There’s so many more I haven’t listed!

Website traffic is up 17x since Q1 of 2024.

Google ranking improved by an average of 21 positions across tracked keywords.

Instagram engagement is way up in the form of profile clicks and saves, even with far fewer posts. Follow on Instagram here.

LinkedIn, which was a recent decision to dabble, had a post go viral a chunk of new followers, and profile views increased. Follow on LinkedIn.

I started a Substack in 2025 and paying subscribers are joining, so this platform does double duty with subscription revenue and sending traffic to my traditional funnels. Read Business After 5 here.

YouTube traffic and affiliate sales from people who found me there (after posting just a few videos in the last year). Learn together on YouTube here.

Pinterest brought in my first tracked sale from someone who shared they discovered me there. This may have happened sooner, but this was the first tracking report. Hang out on Pinterest here.

The intangible results (aka how my current marketing strategy feels):

This is the first time in my business where I truly feel like marketing is just humming in the background. I love creating content. I don’t love having to scramble to get stuff done around my full schedule, and it’s harder these days to more formally strategize and schedule far in advance. With my low-lift, high-impact efforts, I’ve found a sweet spot in pre-scheduled versus doing things live.

• I schedule content for 2 weeks to a full month in advance. More recently, I took a week off for vacation that included NOT bringing my laptop… Everything ran smoothly.
• Instagram became a bonus channel, not the main one. That release of pressure was sweet relief. Now when I post here, it’s because I have a good idea and want to. Not that I feel like I have to feed the social media monster.
• I finally feel like I’m in alignment with my work again. All aspects of it. I struggled for a while with a disconnect that felt weird for a creative type like me who’s highly personally invested in what I do.

Marketing feels manageable, sustainable, and fun. And I want that for you too.

👉 Want to explore a low-lift strategy that fits your business? Learn more about my marketing consulting here.

Next, let’s talk about what my low-lift marketing strategy really is. Examples included!

My low-lift, high-impact marketing strategy with real examples

This post was originally a combination of marketing trends I’m seeing, but also a peek at my marketing strategy. Because I know I’m always curious about what others are doing, I thought you might be too. Hopefully this will inspire some ideas for you to think outside the box, and work to realign your marketing strategy with what your business and life looks like right now because there are seasons in business. Sometimes it’s a season to build. Or to grow. And sometimes you’re in a season of maintenance… Wherever you are right now, that’s okay.

Watch my 2024 marketing strategy on YouTube

If you prefer to watch, check out the video version of this honest brain spill on YouTube.

Marketing strategy trends

To state the obvious: Marketing trends change.

Some changes I’ve noticed lately that I’m 1000% here for…

Your marketing strategy needs more than revenue claims.

We’re over using revenue numbers as a core marketing pillar. Money wins are big, but not the only or most important thing. And the numbers you get for clients speak louder than the ones you clock for yourself.

I started this conversation in an earlier blog post about 2023 in review—an honest review. But it’s too surface level to focus on your own money wins. I’d rather know how your business supports your life or the results you get for clients. That track record means more to me when I’m choosing an investment versus just what your personal wins are. This is especially true for B2B service providers… How you help others is more important to your customers than how much money you make.

Beyond recentering the wins pillar over clients versus the provider, there’s the intentional remembrance that there’s more to life than money. Over the last few years, people in the online and freelance world have become obsessed with monetary milestones like $10k months and $6-figure years. These are sold as the big goals to work towards. Some even go as far to attach these numbers to happiness. But what about your life too? Do you have time to live it? Do you really need to hit these numbers? Can you be happy with what you have now? Maybe you genuinely need more?

You need to focus on marketing channels outside of organic social media.

People are getting burnt out by social media, and that’s what’s showing in your numbers. It’s a tool that leaves a lot of us exhausted and stuck in the doom scroll, not even thoughtfully engaging with the content we see. So no, it’s probably not all the algorithms to blame for your low engagement. More personal content is getting ahead in the online biz world.

I’m fed up with Instagram. It’s frustrating to try to chase consistency when your schedule is anything but consistent. We already know that follower counts don’t dictate revenue for a business or personal brand anyways. And everyone’s burnt out from feeding the social media monster, so engagement is lower than ever—sure, you may get views. But is your audience really engaging with that content or just doom scrolling? Questionable. I used to love the platform, and now it’s a chore.

You need to meet busy people in their learning styles with your marketing strategy.

Live webinars just don’t have the same appeal as they used to. Idk about you, but I haven’t signed up for one in ages and would rather get something on demand (or paid) vs sit through a typical webinar these days.

Everyone and their mother follows a similar webinar structure, which means that few truly give value. I’m more likely to grab an easily skimmable download or a low-ticket offer without having purchased anything before rather than joining a webinar I know I’m going to get a pitch during. And I know I’m not alone in these sentiments.

Implementing a sustainable marketing strategy, post maternity leave 2.0

Some changes I’m personally implementing include stepping back from social media (specifically Instagram) as my most focused and consistent marketing channel. Instead, I want to lean into long-form authorship, and stop editing myself to fit into 60-second sound bites.

It also needs to be noted that I have limited time and marketing needs to fit in somewhere between client work and running my mastermind. I only have about 10 hours of focused work blocks each week, so I can’t waste that time on making reels that may or may not glitch when posted.

1 social media platform isn’t a complete marketing strategy

If you’re planning to update your 2024 marketing strategy for the second half of the year, keep in mind that you need a holistic and multi-channel approach. You need to consider things like the stage of awareness of your audience on different platforms, their level of sophistication as customers, and their journey within your funnel. You also need to consider things like your sales and promotional calendar, capacity planning, and available resources (both time and money).

With those answers, you’ll be able to act more strategically when determining your 2024 marketing strategy.

Inbound pipelines that work—not building from scratch

As I return to work post maternity leave number 2, I’ve needed to accept that this isn’t the year for me to build new things from scratch. I’m choosing to intentionally focus on what’s already working versus trying new things. “Simplify to grow” is my main goal for the year.

With that in mind, I’ve developed inbound pipelines for my core services that I know work. These are tested and consistent, and they funnel leads to proven offers… Nothing new. This means my only job becomes marketing and fulfillment versus needing to dedicate resources I don’t have right now to building.

✅ There are building years and growth years and maintenance years. This year is a maintenance one for me. Maybe with some growth as I figure out my new work-life balance. 💃

Optional social media (or make it lite)

Something that I need right now: A low-lift social media strategy. That looks like just repurposing content as I feel like it or have capacity. I don’t have intentions to create a structured social media plan right now or pre-schedule posts weeks in advance. Instead, I’ll sprinkle in this content as it makes sense for me.

The reasoning is that I don’t see the biggest long-term ROI from social media these days. So I’ve chosen to focus my efforts elsewhere.

On a related note, I’ve paused meta ads for a while, but may pick these back up later as my capacity allows. Ads aren’t “set it and forget it” as some people promise, so having another thing that needs to be managed and checked daily felt like too much right now. I’m happy managing my own ads (and do it pretty damn well). Especially with a limited capacity currently, I needed to cut somewhere.

✅ Take a break from a scheduled Instagram feed and the pressure to show up daily. I’m posting if I feel like it instead (which isn’t all that often anymore, and that’s okay).

More long-form content first

This blog post is long. The attached video is too. That’s intentional. Why? Because I have too much to share or teach than can fit in a 60-second Reel (on the long end). There’s more to my story that’s relevant to my audience than just sharing the marketing strategy tips. for example, knowing the reason why I’m shifting my strategy may resonate with you if you’re in a similar season of life. And I’m tired of censoring and editing myself to fit into these small boxes that don’t leave space for personal connection. I’d rather give you more information—more detail and more value—than squeezing things in or cutting out the good stuff.

I’ve seen an increase in traffic and an improved quality of that traffic from focusing on long-form content via my blog and YouTube. This content lives longer and often catches the attention of leads that are closer to the sale. They’re searching for answers versus aimlessly scrolling like most do on Instagram or other platforms.

In terms of my career development as a whole, it feels more aligned to create content that shows my thought leadership. Genuine connections and the longevity of the content are more important to me right now than going viral with an 8-second soundbite.

✅ Create long-form content that lives longer first. I have too much to share in a Reel and would rather spend the time it takes to create content to give you the detail you deserve via YouTube video or blog post instead.

💬 Curious what this could look like for your business? Let’s map it out together.

Optimized versus daily

I often use my email list to experiment. This is helpful for my own continued learning and obviously by making sales, but also for the work I do with clients. Email marketing is a potential deliverable or area of consulting. So by experimenting with my own list, I’m able to bring new proven ideas to clients who have similar business models, offers, and styles.

In the last year, I’ve tried emailing my list multiple times a week, and have also scaled it back. While it was a fun challenge to email more frequently, it was exactly that… Challenging to maintain. I don’t want to accidentally water down my message if I’m not able to produce quality content because I’m too focused on the quantity.

Emailing my list 1-2 times each week works best for me right now, and is what I’ll continue with for my 2024 marketing strategy. Within that frequency, 1 email is original content. Maybe a more thoughtful message or teaching moment. And the other is often a CTA to check out another channel from the week, like my blog or YouTube video that posted most recently.

✅ Set myself up for success with email marketing by focusing on quality, not quantity. Again, go with what works right now to ensure ease and consistency versus building or experimenting.

Bring back the personality

I used to talk about life stuff a lot more than I have in recent months. Many of my early inbound leads shared they chose me because they felt connected to me. I teach on how to develop and foster this genuine connection through your messaging inside my courses and programs.

But somehow I forgot to do this for myself consistently along the way. So going forward, we’re incorporating more life and personality into my marketing messaging. That looks like sharing more about mom life and homemaking, baking bread, my exercise and wellness routines, and other things relevant to my ideal audience.

Why is this important? The idea is to selectively and intentionally focus on the similarities you have with your ideal clients. They’ll naturally be interested and feel more connected to you.

In action, that means I plan to keep blogging and vlogging about the day to day. I want you to see what it’s like working and living how I do. Not just tell you. And definitely share more than quick tips.

✅ Explore where old school journal blogging or vlogging my day to day can fit into the puzzle. Because I think showing you behind the scenes of my business more intentionally will be helpful vs always talking at you about how things break down.

Marketing should feel good

As a marketing consultant, I’ve helped many service providers develop marketing strategies that minimize effort while maximizing returns. It’s fun to be able to get to help clients with these things, but also see the rewards in my own business.

I’ve reflected a lot of the above into my business already, and it feels good to know this is the direction I’m heading. Now that I’m coming back to work and have even less time, the mission is to optimize further. It’s all tied together—I don’t have the luxury of time to waste, so what I choose to focus on needs to be worth it.

Why I added Substack to the mix (and how it’s different)

I’m testing a new-to-me platform: Substack.

It’s not replacing my emails, my blog, or my shop. But it is giving me a home for more behind-the-scenes storytelling—the kind that doesn’t quite fit in a Google-optimized blog post or a conversion-focused sales email.

Think of it like a business journal meets over the shoulder education meets learning in public situation. Yet a behind-the-scenes look that by default markets my offers.

What I’ve found so far:

• People love the informal tone and the unpolished updates I share there.
• It helps me reach a new group of readers who wouldn’t have stumbled across my site otherwise.
• It gently sends traffic back to my paid offers, even though it’s not meant to be sales-focused. I don’t really pitch anything in my paywalled content.
  

If you’re curious, the Substack route might work if:

• You want a softer entry point into your world.
• You enjoy writing but feel stuck on how to make it “strategic.”
• You want to create content that doesn’t need to follow rigid structure or SEO rules.

It’s early days, but I’m excited about this one and how it fits into the bigger picture.

Examples of marketing strategies that worked well

I mentioned some wins overall, but I also promised to share my marketing strategy with examples. So let’s get to those examples.

LinkedIn Text Post

First, there’s this post that went a little viral? My favourite part about this is that I wrote it on the fly and forgot about it. But I think that’s part of why it worked so well… It’s authentic. It’s my real, unfiltered thoughts. We’re craving more of that these days, so why not lean into it?

LinkedIn Carousel-Style Post

This LinkedIn post has served me well. Not only on LinkedIn, but as an Instagram post and email as well. The core content comes from a blog post… That’s on repurposing marketing content. It’s not an exact copy/paste across all 4 channels, but the main message is the same and each was tweaked for the platform.

On LinkedIn, the engagements and impressions were up because it’s pointed. It’s clear. And it’s actionable. I feel like this is very much in my voice, while providing good information and quick wins.

Lead Magnet Opt-In Page

My lead magnet opt-in page converts fairly high… at 67% to be exact. I break down why in detail on my Substack here. The reason why this is notable for this context is because having a high-performing funnel like this is part of my low-lift, high-impact marketing strategy.

Buyer intent is king in your marketing strategy

The biggest thing to remember when developing your marketing strategy is the intent. What’s the intent of those who find your marketing content? Are they scrolling past ads that need to capture their attention? Or actively searching for answers? Trying to learn? Shopping around?

Knowing the answers to these questions will help you choose which channels to use for variances in your messaging.

You can have a successful business with a low-lift 2024 marketing strategy

Many of my clients come to me for the same reason… You need strategy or copy to work smarter, not harder.

A cool thing: Leveraging changing trends and strategically experimenting to better align my work with my life has allowed me to continue to sell digital products and services while on maternity leave.

But I want to share this with you because I believe more people deserve the freedom that comes with clocking back into work after an extended leave to see things didn’t burn down while you were gone.

What’s working for my clients in 2025

I’m not the only one craving this slow-and-steady, low-lift approach. My clients are too—especially the ones juggling full service rosters, parenting, team growth, or general life.

Here’s what it looks like when we build customized, sustainable marketing strategies for them:

• Pinterest has become a favourite as a low-pressure traffic driver.
• SEO-optimized blog posts that compound over time are another we love to focus resources on developing.
• Lead funnel before content is always the way. Instead of producing content without a place to send people, we’re dialing in on the sales journey and pipeline before we fill the top.
• Email marketing with evergreen automations and intentional send schedules. All personalized and predictive wherever possible.
• Optimization over reinvention always. We’re not scrapping and rebuilding constantly, but digging into the data to see what’s working and not working to best focus our efforts.
  Values-first visibility feels good for everyone. I don’t want you to do anything that feels gross or misaligned.

These things work because they’re tailored. Each marketing strategy I help develop is built around their capacity, goals, and what actually feels doable for them—not what some copy-pasted content calendar says to do.

It’s not enough to just start posting on the same channels as I have, expecting the same results. Intent is everything.

This is the kind of work I love doing inside consulting containers and implementation projects. If you’re ready to make your marketing easier, this is where we can start.

Align your business with your life

No matter how we work together, the big goal for every client is to better align your business to fit around your life. Like I’ve shared, I have minimal time these days. Every resource (time or money) I spend on my business needs to bring the biggest possible ROI. Many of my clients want the same thing—to work less and make more. In order to do that, we need to be intentional and strategic.

I don’t encourage them to show up daily anymore, but to make it count when they do. Struggling with Instagram? Try LinkedIn. Tired of the sound bite content too? Consider a long-form channel like a podcast and/or blog. Start small, then add in pieces to make your overall marketing strategy feel aligned, sustainable, and comprehensive.

Because I’ve said this so many times… Instagram isn’t a marketing strategy. It’s a single tool within the bigger picture.

Get started designing your own low-lift, high-impact marketing strategy

✨ Want personalized support to build a marketing strategy that actually works and feels good to you? Learn more about my marketing consulting services here.

✨ Need some inspiration of what it could look like to realign your business with your life? Check out The 6-Figure Schedule to get a peek at when I work, what types of work I focus on, and more.

✨ Or subscribe to my Substack to see some of this marketing in action, along with copy audits, funnel breakdowns and optimization play-by-plays, and more. Check it out here.

TL;DR of my marketing strategy with examples of results for myself and clients

• I transitioned to a high-leverage, low-effort marketing strategy, focusing on long-form content (blog posts, videos) and repurposing it across multiple platforms.
• Prioritized email marketing over social media, particularly Instagram, to create a more targeted and efficient outreach.
• Streamlined and optimized my existing systems for scalability, enhancing both efficiency and output.
• Focused on content that aligns with both my business objectives and personal values, ensuring sustainability and long-term growth.

Results:

• Website traffic increased 17x since Q1 of 2024.
• Google rankings improved by an average of 21 positions across tracked keywords.
  Instagram engagement saw significant growth in profile clicks and saves, despite fewer posts.
• LinkedIn went viral with one post, leading to new followers and a noticeable rise in profile views.
• Launched Substack in 2025, gaining paying subscribers and sending traffic to my funnels.
• YouTube traffic and affiliate sales grew from just a few videos over the last year.
• Pinterest brought in my first tracked sale from someone who discovered me there.
  

For my clients, this strategy has contributed to higher-quality leads, with many reporting an uptick in engagement and inquiries within weeks of adopting a similar approach.

Also, more sustainability by reducing stress and burnout while focusing on achieving business growth in alignment with personal life balance.

And a more streamlined business model, reduced overwhelm, and a more intentional work-life balance.

✨ What’s not to love about all that?