Case Study: Join the dots marketing - Business growth support
Growth Hub
Case Study
10/05/2022
Karen was supported by Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub
Join the dots marketing was created after founder Karen Williams noticed that many companies were lacking a results-driven marketing strategy due to various tactics being used in isolation.
She had spent more than 30 years in marketing and became frustrated at how different elements of marketing were not being correctly aligned for small businesses and, as such, outcomes were not as successful as they could have been.
Karen, who has previously worked with global brands such as IBM and Lenovo, wanted to create a solution for small businesses to get access to the full marketing toolkit but, crucially, be able to access the tactics that would help them to achieve their specific goals.
During 2021, Karen turned to the Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub for advice and support.
With Join the dots marketing being in its infancy, Karen enrolled onto the ERDF Cheshire and Warrington Business Growth Programme, where she was coached on specific challenges affecting her business. She was introduced into a network of business owners from various sectors, who met virtually every week to share tips and lend a hand to one another.
During the course, which involved weekly sessions, participants were encouraged to take it in turns to present to their peers on their business concept and their plans for the future, a task that Karen admits she found daunting at first.
Karen, who is based in Chester, said: “After spending a long time writing marketing strategies for huge corporates, I wanted to take a step back and consider how I could use my skills to help small businesses flourish.
“One thing I had noticed though is how many businesses were either taking a scattergun approach to marketing and trying any old tactic without any clear strategy or, even more concerning, were being advised wrongly on which direction they should take to get the best results.
“Join the dots marketing works with companies to identify what their problem is, what they want to achieve and how best to get there. It might be paid-for social media or perhaps PR – depending on what the solution is, I will handle either in-house or outsource to a partner to undertake the work to the highest possible standard.
“Working with the Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub and, in particular, the Business Growth Programme at MMU, forced me to tackle the issues my business was facing head on. The programme really made me focus on my mindset and understand what may be holding me back; after understanding this then the programme team coached me to get to the solution. For me, this is what made the real difference; I might not like where you've taken me at times but I needed it, so I’m incredibly grateful for that.
“I’m now looking forward to growing my client base and would like to develop a team next year, as well as working in partnership with other agencies.”