new-site/docs/marketing.md

# Performance West Inc. — Marketing Plan

**Last updated:** 2026-03-27

---

## Target Audience

Small-to-medium business owners (1–200 employees) who need regulatory compliance help but
don't want to pay $300–$500/hr attorney rates for what is often procedural, non-litigation
work. They want fixed pricing, fast turnaround, and someone who speaks plain English.

---

## Three Discovery Layers

### Layer 1: Human Buyers via Forums & Search
People actively searching for answers to compliance questions on Reddit, Stack Exchange,
Quora, and Google. They have an immediate problem — a DOL audit letter, a CCPA complaint,
a contractor they're not sure how to classify. They need help now.

**How we reach them:** LLM-monitored forum replies, SEO content, Google Ads on
high-intent keywords.

### Layer 2: Referrals
Accountants, bookkeepers, HR consultants, and business attorneys who don't do compliance
work themselves but whose clients ask about it. They refer to us because we don't compete
with them — we do the procedural filings they don't want to touch.

**How we reach them:** Referral partnership program, co-branded content, direct outreach
to accounting firms and HR consultancies.

### Layer 3: Free Tools
People who aren't ready to buy but want to self-assess. They take the Contractor
Classification Quiz, Privacy Policy Check, or TCPA SMS Check. We capture their email,
nurture with educational content, and convert when they realize they need professional help.

**How we reach them:** SEO-optimized tool pages, social media promotion, forum mentions
when someone is exploring/unsure.

### Layer 4: AI Agent Discovery (MCP Server)
AI assistants (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor) can discover and transact with Performance West
via our MCP server. When a user asks an AI agent about business formation, telecom
compliance, or CRTC registration, the agent can walk them through a formation questionnaire
and place orders directly.

**How we reach them:** Install: `npx @performancewest/mcp-server`. Submit to Smithery,
mcp.so, and Glama directories. The MCP server exposes tools for service lookup, formation
questionnaire, order creation, and order status.

---

## Target Buyer Personas

### Persona 1: The Startup Founder (Corporate + Employment)
- **Age:** 25–40
- **Business:** Pre-revenue to $2M ARR, 1–20 employees
- **Pain points:** Picked the wrong entity type, hiring first employees, confused about
  contractor vs employee, no HR policies
- **Services:** Business Formation, Contractor Classification Review, Employee Handbook
- **Where they hang out:** r/startups, r/Entrepreneur, r/smallbusiness, Hacker News,
  Twitter/X, Indie Hackers

### Persona 2: The E-commerce Operator (Privacy + TCPA)
- **Age:** 25–45
- **Business:** $500K–$10M revenue, sells online, collects customer data
- **Pain points:** CCPA notices from customers, SMS marketing compliance, privacy policy
  is copy-pasted from another site
- **Services:** CCPA Compliance Audit, Privacy Policy Review, SMS Consent Audit,
  Marketing Campaign Review
- **Where they hang out:** r/ecommerce, r/marketing, Shopify Community, Twitter/X

### Persona 3: The Small Business Owner (Employment + Corporate)
- **Age:** 35–60
- **Business:** $1M–$20M revenue, 10–200 employees, brick-and-mortar or service business
- **Pain points:** Got a DOL audit letter, worried about overtime classification, employee
  handbook is outdated, expanding to new states
- **Services:** FLSA Audit, Employee Handbook Review, State Registrations, Annual Reports
- **Where they hang out:** r/smallbusiness, Alignable, local business groups, LinkedIn

### Persona 4: The Telecom Operator (Telecom Compliance)
- **Age:** 30–55
- **Business:** CLEC, VoIP provider, ISP, IPES, or reseller
- **Pain points:** FCC filings, STIR/SHAKEN deadlines, state PUC registrations, NECA/LERG
- **Services:** FCC 499-A Filing, STIR/SHAKEN, IPES Registration, Telecom DB Management
- **Where they hang out:** DSLReports, r/telecom, r/voip, industry conferences, LinkedIn

### Persona 5: The Marketing Agency (TCPA)
- **Age:** 28–50
- **Business:** Digital marketing agency running SMS/call campaigns for clients
- **Pain points:** TCPA liability, one-to-one consent rules, DNC compliance, client campaigns
- **Services:** SMS/Call Consent Audit, DNC Review, Marketing Campaign Review
- **Where they hang out:** r/marketing, r/digitalmarketing, LinkedIn, marketing Slack groups

### Persona 6: The Accountant/Bookkeeper (Referral Partner)
- **Age:** 30–60
- **Business:** CPA firm or bookkeeping practice with SMB clients
- **Pain points:** Clients ask them compliance questions they can't answer
- **Services:** Refers clients to us; we refer tax questions back to them
- **Where they hang out:** r/accounting, r/tax, LinkedIn, AICPA communities

### Persona 7: The International Telecom Carrier
- **Age:** 30–55
- **Business:** VoIP operator, ITSP, or wholesale carrier wanting to operate internationally
- **Pain points:** FCC Section 214 authorization costs ($58K–$525K+), CALEA wiretap
  compliance, FBI background checks, Team Telecom review delays (12–18 months),
  STIR/SHAKEN requirements. US carrier licensing is prohibitively expensive and slow
  for small operators.
- **Services:** Canada CRTC Carrier Package ($3,899) — BC corporation, CRTC registration
  letter, BITS registration, CCTS membership, Canadian DID, .ca domain, corporate binder
- **Why Canada:** CRTC registration is notification-based (no approval needed), no background
  checks, no CALEA equivalent, fraction of the cost of US FCC licensing. Canadian carriers
  can interconnect with US networks via international trunking.
- **Where they hang out:** r/telecom, r/VoIP, DSLReports, telecom trade forums,
  LinkedIn telecom groups, WhatsApp carrier groups

---

## SEO Keywords by Category

### Telecom Compliance
- FCC Form 499-A filing service
- STIR/SHAKEN implementation help
- IPES registration FCC
- ISP registration requirements
- state PUC registration telecom
- NECA membership application
- telecom compliance consultant
- FCC CORES registration help

### Canada CRTC / International Telecom
- CRTC carrier registration
- Canadian telecom carrier
- BC corporation telecom
- BITS registration Canada
- alternative to FCC 214
- Canadian carrier vs US carrier
- CRTC reseller registration
- Canada telecom license cost
- FCC 214 alternative Canada
- international carrier registration cheap

### Employment Compliance
- FLSA compliance audit
- contractor vs employee classification
- 1099 vs W-2 test
- employee handbook compliance review
- DOL wage and hour audit preparation
- exempt vs non-exempt classification
- overtime compliance small business
- independent contractor misclassification risk

### Data Privacy
- CCPA compliance audit small business
- CCPA privacy policy requirements
- California privacy rights compliance
- data mapping CCPA
- privacy policy review service
- breach response plan template
- CPRA compliance checklist
- do not sell my information compliance

### TCPA Compliance
- TCPA consent requirements SMS
- one-to-one consent rule TCPA
- DNC compliance review
- SMS marketing compliance
- TCPA audit service
- telemarketing compliance consultant
- prior express written consent
- TCPA penalty calculator

### Corporate Services
- LLC formation service
- business formation Wyoming
- foreign qualification filing
- annual report filing service
- registered agent service Wyoming
- LLC vs S-Corp vs C-Corp
- multi-state business registration
- EIN application service

---

## Content Marketing Cadence

### Weekly (every Monday)
- 1 blog post (800–1,200 words) targeting a long-tail SEO keyword
- Rotate through categories: Telecom → Employment → Privacy → TCPA → Corporate
- Each post ends with a CTA to the relevant free tool or service page

### Bi-weekly (every other Wednesday)
- 1 Reddit/forum educational post (150–300 words) in a target subreddit
- Helpful, non-promotional, signed "-- Justin"
- Subtle mention of Performance West or free tool where natural

### Monthly
- 1 in-depth guide or checklist (2,000–3,000 words) — gated behind email capture
- 1 email newsletter to captured leads — compliance news, tips, new tool announcements
- Review and update product-facts.md with any service changes

### Quarterly
- Refresh free tool content and scoring logic
- Analyze forum monitoring performance (replies sent, clicks, conversions)
- Update keyword targets based on Search Console and forum trending topics

---

## Community Presence Strategy

### Principles
1. **Be helpful first.** Every forum interaction must provide genuine value before any mention
   of Performance West. If the post doesn't naturally connect to our services, don't force it.
2. **Build reputation over time.** Consistent, knowledgeable answers build trust. One spammy
   post destroys months of goodwill.
3. **Respect community norms.** Read the rules of every subreddit and forum before posting.
   Some ban self-promotion entirely — in those, only answer questions helpfully.
4. **Use personal voice.** Posts come from Justin, a real person, not "Performance West Inc."
   People trust people, not brands.

### Execution
- Maintain active Reddit accounts with genuine comment history
- Participate in threads even when there's no service to promote
- Upvote and engage with other helpful answers
- Share the free tools as resources, not sales pitches
- Never argue with people who disagree — thank them and move on

---

## Free Tool Traffic Flywheel

The free tools (Contractor Quiz, Privacy Check, TCPA Check) serve as the engine of a
self-reinforcing growth loop:

```
Forum post mentions free tool
       ↓
User visits tool page (organic traffic)
       ↓
User completes assessment (engagement)
       ↓
Tool shows risk score + recommendation (value delivery)
       ↓
User enters email to get detailed report (lead capture)
       ↓
Email nurture sequence educates over 7 days
       ↓
User books consultation or purchases service (conversion)
       ↓
Satisfied client refers others / leaves review (amplification)
       ↓
Reviews + backlinks improve SEO rankings
       ↓
More organic traffic to tool pages
       ↓
Cycle repeats
```

### Why This Works
1. **Low friction:** Free tools require no commitment — just answer a few questions
2. **Immediate value:** Users get a risk assessment instantly, before we ask for anything
3. **Self-qualifying:** High-risk scores indicate buyers; low-risk scores filter out non-buyers
4. **SEO compounding:** Tool pages attract backlinks from forums, blogs, and other sites
5. **Forum-native:** Mentioning "here's a free quiz to check" is genuinely helpful, not salesy
6. **Data collection:** Aggregate quiz results reveal which compliance areas have the most demand

### Metrics to Track
- Tool page visits (by source: organic, forum, direct, referral)
- Assessment completion rate
- Email capture rate
- Email → consultation conversion rate
- Consultation → purchase conversion rate
- Average time from first tool visit to purchase
- Which tool drives the most revenue

---

## Service Bundles (Pricing/Marketing)

### Formation Bundles
| Bundle | Includes | Price |
|--------|----------|-------|
| **Wyoming LLC Starter** | Formation + RA + Operating Agreement + EIN | $599 |
| **Wyoming LLC Complete** | Starter + Annual Report + Compliance Calendar | $849 |
| **Multi-State Bundle** | Formation in 2 states + Foreign Qualification | $1,199 |

### Telecom Bundles
| Bundle | Includes | Price |
|--------|----------|-------|
| **CLEC Starter** | FCC 499-A + CORES + 1 State PUC | $2,499 |
| **VoIP Complete** | CLEC Starter + STIR/SHAKEN + IPES | $4,999 |
| **Canada CRTC Carrier Package** | BC Corp + CRTC Letter + BITS + CCTS + DID + .ca Domain + Corporate Binder | $3,899 |

### Compliance Bundles
| Bundle | Includes | Price |
|--------|----------|-------|
| **Privacy Starter** | Privacy Policy + Cookie Consent + Data Map | $1,499 |
| **Employment Starter** | Handbook Review + FLSA Audit + Contractor Assessment | $2,499 |
| **Full Compliance** | Privacy + Employment + TCPA Audit | $4,999 |

Bundles are priced at 15-20% discount vs. individual services to incentivize larger purchases.

---

## Production Notes

- **Employment pages are hidden in production.** The `/employment` and `/careers` routes
  are excluded from the sitemap and have `noindex` meta tags. These pages exist for
  internal reference only and should not be indexed or linked publicly.