Startup marketing requires wearing a lot of hats. This startup marketing strategy case study explores building and launching a corporate brand from the ground up for a digital media startup serving financial services.

1. Ryan Ruud // Portfolio
Digital Strategy  Marketing  PR

2. Result150
StartUp Brand Strategy

3. Situation
Result150
StartUp Brand Strategy
• Funded digital media startup serving credit union industry
• No corporate brand contemplated or budgeted, only product conceived
Goal
• Internally build a B2B brand and establish presence in credit union industry while also
building and launching product.
Methodology
• Keyword research, primary research with investors and BoD, competitor research, PPC
tests, A/B tests of landing pages, Google Analytics Dashboard development and
maintenance

4. Result150
StartUp Brand Strategy
Key findings:
• Market and even some investors still unclear of company’s purpose.
• Contrary to experience, SEM was not the most viable channel for paid media.
• Active market in social media.
• Search for industry keywords offered opportunity to rank.
• Industry loves educational content.

5. Result150
StartUp Brand Strategy
The strategy
• Company name selected with story on the genesis of the company.
• LinkedIn would be our primary paid channel to conserve cash and maximize reach.
• Content marketing would be the core of our inbound strategy.
– With heavy focus on growing social media attention of those in the industry who are engaged.
• Beyond company updates PR would be focused on engagement, sharing POV.
• Google Dashboard built to monitor KPIs and adjust strategy based on key findings.

6. Built site on WordPress.
Launched in 14 days.
http://bit.ly/1vSXDh9

7. Monthly
pillar
content
pieces to
drive
inbound
marketing.
http://bit.ly/1
zL2PnE

8. Promoted via paid and
shared media

9. Earned media to rapidly
grow awareness and
saturate industry press.

10. Weekly email newsletter
built from the ground up
to average a 48.2%
open rate and 7.3%
click through rate.

11. Result150
StartUp Brand Strategy
Results
Launched in about 2 weeks including creative, web, social and email.
Within the first quarter following launch
• More than 200 opportunities filled the sales & marketing pipeline representing ~3.3% of
market
• Estimated reach of social, paid and PR presented result150 brand to nearly 25% of
market
• Page 1 organic rank for several industry searches
• ~ 6% site wide conversion rate at result150.com
• Towards an optimized media spend
• Coverage in 50% of major trade publications

12. About Ryan Ruud
Ryan Ruud is a Minneapolis, MN based digital strategy,
marketing and PR business leader and consultant.
For more visit
http://ryanruud.com