Monthly check-ins are a retainer where Ali acts as your standing growth advisor: each month he re-scores your priority levers, reviews the numbers, and agrees the next set of actions with you. The point is momentum. Most owners know what to fix; the hard part is still fixing it in month four. If you do not have priorities yet, a growth diagnostic or focused plan is the better first step.
What a month looks like
One rhythm, repeated: measure, review, meet, act.
- Early in the month: you, or someone on your team, send the agreed measures for the priority levers. These might be calls answered, quotes won, reviews received or repeat sales.
- Review: Ali reads the figures and looks for what moved, what did not and why.
- Check-in call: by phone or video, you re-score the priority levers on the self-assessment and agree three to five actions for the coming month.
- Written note: a short summary of scores, decisions and owners, so nothing depends on memory.
Every quarter the check-in widens to a full ten-lever re-score, because fixing one lever often exposes the next.
Who it is for
Owners who have a plan, a little budget and a history of plans fading. It suits you if:
- you have already picked your priority levers and want help sticking to them
- you have no senior marketing or operations person and want one part-time, without hiring
- the business is seasonal and you want the quiet months used well
- you want a sounding board for decisions such as price changes, hires and marketing contracts
It is less suited to a one-off question, which a review session answers more cheaply.
What is included
Monthly review, a check-in meeting, a written note, and an agreed amount of hands-on help. The scope depends on where in the retainer range you sit.
- Lighter retainers: monthly review of measures, the check-in call, the written note and email or text questions between calls.
- Heavier retainers: all of the above plus hands-on work on marketing and conversion levers, such as rewriting key web pages, setting up review requests, improving listing profiles or drafting quote follow-up scripts.
Exactly what is included is written into your proposal, so there is no doubt about what a month buys.
Timeline
The first month sets the baseline; the effect builds over a quarter. Expect month one to be mostly about agreeing measures and fixing how they are collected. Conversion levers such as response and closing often show movement within the first few months. Attention and trust levers usually take longer to compound.
How results are measured
By the measures you agreed, against the baselines you wrote down, re-scored every month. You will see each priority lever's score and its measure move, or not move, on a single page. If a lever stalls for two months running, the check-in changes the actions or, if the lever is fixed well enough, moves on to the next one. That is also how we judge whether the retainer is worth continuing, and you should judge it the same way.
Mistakes to avoid
- Skipping the numbers. A check-in without measures turns into a chat. Send them, even when they are bad.
- Adding levers every month. Stay with two until one is clearly fixed.
- Using check-ins as therapy. Venting is human; leave with actions anyway.
- Paying for months that do nothing. If the measures stop moving and the actions stop happening, pause. No lock-in means you can.
Price and next step
Monthly retainers in our group range from $2,500 to $12,000 a month, in Canadian dollars plus GST/HST by province. Where you sit depends on how much hands-on work is included. Details are on the pricing page. Call, text or email with your current lever scores to start the conversation.
Frequently asked questions
What happens in a typical month?
You share the month's measures, Ali reviews them, and you meet by phone or video to re-score the levers you are working on and agree the next month's actions. A short written note follows.
Can I stop at any time?
Yes. There is no lock-in. The notice period and any other terms are set out in writing in your proposal before you start.
Do check-ins include hands-on work?
They can. At the lighter end of the range it is review and advice. At the heavier end it can include hands-on marketing and conversion work, such as rewriting web pages or setting up review requests.
How is this different from hiring a marketing agency?
An agency usually works on one or two attention levers. Check-ins cover all ten, so if the problem moves from findability to closing, the focus moves with it.