The 4 Pillars of Growth

4 pillars graphic 4 pillars graphic

The 4 Pillars of Growth

Every company doing marketing and sales on the Internet is either facing one of two things: digital transformation or digital disruption. Old systems and platforms have become no longer viable. Sales and leads funnels have dried up and moved online. The old strategies of outreach need to be reevaluated and pivoted.

There are four key pillars that drive growth in every business and organization: Strategy, Sales, Marketing, and Technology. 

Every relationship and engagement with August Ash starts with and is guided by our 4 Pillars Consultation. It has proven to be an invaluable process for uncovering and creating new opportunities that excite and grow businesses.

1) Strategy - Uniques, Core Values, and Core Focus

Your business strategy will lead your marketing, sales, and technology pillars. We start by asking

  • What makes you truly unique as a differentiator?
  • What is your value proposition?
  • What are your company’s greatest opportunities for growth?

These are some of the questions we begin with in the Four Pillars Consultation.

August Ash is an EOS-aligned company. Our business is structured with seats, department L10s, quarterly Rocks, annual, three-year, and even ten-year targets. EOS has enabled us to identify issues and create new processes that have helped our business and employees grow.

Knowing who your best customers are gives you the choice of who to work with. Finding focus on personas, unique value propositions, and best service offerings changes you from being a Jack of All Trades into a superhero for your customers. 

2) Sales -  Prospecting, Opportunities, New Business

Sales build and sustain companies and relationships; they are the lifeblood of the organization leading the way and creating opportunities for every department. Often they are at the forefront of many companies' initiatives, and the best sales teams are using digital marketing to facilitate conversations and find new leads, evolving from the days of cold calling, Rolodexes, and driving through territories.

Finding and acquiring the right talent is crucial, especially within your sales department. Your sales team should be equipped with the right technology and technical information to prospect, nurture, grow leads, and close deals. A strong marketing and sales alignment is to sustained growth.

The last couple of months have changed how we all operate. The business world has gone through a forced digital transformation that has challenged many and forced them to grow and adapt to not doing sales in-person or in the office. Many companies have embraced the digital tools and remote processes necessary for success years ago, and weathered the transition more gracefully. August Ash has been in the business of remote work and digital transformation for over twenty one years, and today we just call it “work.” If your 4 Pillars aren’t aligned to account for a mix of in-person, remote, and digital, it’s time to grow.

Technology greatly assists sales. In the last decade many businesses embraced marketing automation to grow and nurture their leads for the sales department. As leads come in, they are given informational content, and based on their actions are given a higher lead score til marketing is able to pass them over to sales to initiate that first discovery phone call. This consultation helps reveal and uncover your existing sales process and discovers how technology and marketing can assist.

3) Marketing - Target Market, Lead Generation, Channel Mix

How are you using Marketing to drive growth in your organization? Marketing has evolved significantly since August Ash started in 1999, and every few years there is a profound paradigm shift.

What makes your company unique in the market and online? Who are your top competitors? Are sales and marketing aligned to optimize processes and performance?

Lead generation for manufacturers, distributors, and professional services has been a core focus of ours since day one. When we walk through the 4 Pillars Consultation with businesses, we learn how many leads and prospects they need to hit their revenue goals, what types of information their prospects and clients are asking for, the problems we are trying to solve for their clients, and what has worked for them historically, all of which uncovers digital marketing opportunities in the future. 

Do you know your customers' online shopping and information-gathering habits? Uncovering what devices and activities they use on your website uncovers a wealth of information for marketing. If you’re not creating content that is easily consumable and answers key questions, you are less likely to be viewed as an industry thought leader.

Today, the divide between digital marketing and marketing has blurred and nearly been erased. Now there is only marketing. If your website and marketing efforts are not yielding results, there may be a misalignment in your 4 Pillars. 

4) Technology - Marketing Automation & CRM, Website & Integrations

At August Ash, we use many different types of technology to help our clients grow, design and develop their websites and marketing efforts. The technology options are endless these days, but by aligning the strategy with their marketing & sales, we create technological solutions that help them solve problems and grow. 

When a client comes to us with an e-commerce need, we carefully look at who their customers are, what types of products they sell, the tools they are currently using, and what tools would best be used to grow their business online.

Many manufacturers, distributors and professional service companies have come to us seeking a complete digital transformation. We’ve worked closely with IT managers, sales leaders, and engineering leads to build robust systems that connect their website to their CRM, ERP or other internal process or system

Sometimes our clients are looking to professionally refresh and rebuild their website. Their first website may have been built 10 or more years ago, using an affordable at the time freelancer or close family friend. When they are ready to build a website that unites the 4 Pillars, we walk through their options for website platforms, user or templated design, and key functionality and integrations.

More than ever, refreshing technology and re-evaluating old processes can drive efficiencies and create that digital transformation your company is needing. It’s very important to align businesses with new technology and systems than to force those new technologies to align with outdated business practices. And maintaining those new systems through support brings peace of mind.

The August Ash Promise to Businesses

We ask tough questions and provide honest answers. Our 4 Pillar framework helps us connect your Strategy, Sales, Marketing, and Technology with the right services to drive growth.

When we walk through the 4 Pillars Consultation we determine together what the largest area of growth for your business is, and focus on sales & marketing technologies, processes, and opportunities to help grow your business. 

If any of these topics are challenges you are facing, we’d love to conduct our 4 Pillars Consultation with you. Schedule an introductory phone call with one of our Strategic Account Managers today.

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