f8cd37ac8c
Includes: API (Express/TypeScript), Astro site, Python workers, document generators, FCC compliance tools, Canada CRTC formation, Ansible infrastructure, and deployment scripts. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.6 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
204 lines
11 KiB
Markdown
204 lines
11 KiB
Markdown
# Performance West — Distribution Channels
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**Last updated:** 2026-03-27
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Based on 2025-2026 research into where business owners, accountants, bookkeepers,
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and HR professionals actually discuss compliance topics online.
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---
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## TIER 1 — Automated + Highest ROI
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### Reddit (Automated LLM Monitor)
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| Subreddit | Members | Compliance Topics | Why It Works |
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|-----------|---------|-------------------|-------------|
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| r/tax | 841K | 1099 vs W-2, misclassification, IRS compliance | Highest-relevance sub. Nearly every post is on-topic. |
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| r/smallbusiness | 470K | Contractor classification, LLC, privacy policy, TCPA | Business owners asking for help directly. |
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| r/Entrepreneur | 470K | Formation, contractor, privacy questions | Founders making compliance decisions. |
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| r/legaladvice | 1.6M | Misclassification, wage theft, FLSA | Employee-side posts show employers the risk. |
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| r/Bookkeeping | 75K | 1099 processing, payroll compliance, QBO/Xero | Bookkeepers who refer clients. Strict rules. |
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| r/accounting | 1.23M | Contractor classification, payroll tax | Accountants who encounter compliance daily. |
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| r/humanresources | 107K | FLSA, handbooks, discrimination, HR policies | HR professionals. Direct compliance Q&A. |
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| r/QuickBooks | 37K | Payroll/1099 compliance in QuickBooks context | QB users hit compliance issues in software. |
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| r/IRS | 442K | Enforcement notices, compliance questions | Tax compliance and notices. |
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| r/antiwork | 1.6M | Misclassification, wage theft (massive engagement) | Shows employer risk. Educational replies. |
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| r/EmploymentLaw | 7.1K | 100% compliance questions. Every post is relevant. | Small but highest signal-to-noise ratio. |
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| r/ecommerce | 91K | CCPA, privacy, SMS marketing | E-commerce compliance pain points. |
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| r/marketing | 141K | TCPA, SMS consent, DNC | Marketers hitting TCPA issues. |
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| r/construction | — | Contractor misclassification (#1 industry) | Construction is ground zero for 1099 issues. |
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| r/restaurateur | — | Wage-hour violations (tip credit, overtime) | Restaurants are the highest-risk industry. |
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| r/realestateinvesting | — | Contractor classification, entity formation | RE investors use 1099 workers extensively. |
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| r/freelance | — | Other side of contractor misclassification | Freelancers asking "am I misclassified?" |
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| r/startups | 1.2M | Formation, early compliance | Startups making first compliance decisions. |
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| r/payroll | ~10K | Payroll tax compliance, classification | Focused payroll compliance community. |
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**Automation:** reddit-monitor.py (Ollama qwen2.5:3b, 3 replies/run, 10/day max)
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### Google Search (SEO)
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| Approach | Target Keywords | Expected ROI |
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|----------|----------------|-------------|
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| Service pages | "contractor classification review", "CCPA compliance audit" | Very High |
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| Free tool pages | "1099 vs W-2 quiz", "TCPA compliance checker" | Very High (compounds) |
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| Blog content | Long-tail compliance questions | High (compounds over 6+ months) |
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### AI Agent Discovery — MCP Server
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| Approach | Integration | Expected ROI |
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|----------|-------------|-------------|
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| MCP Server | Install: `npx @performancewest/mcp-server` | Very High — zero-friction AI-assisted sales |
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| AI assistants (Claude, ChatGPT, Cursor) can walk users through formation questionnaire and place orders | Submit to Smithery, mcp.so, Glama directories | Compounds as AI adoption grows |
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The MCP server exposes tools for service lookup, formation questionnaire, order creation,
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and order status. AI agents discover our services when users ask about business formation,
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telecom compliance, or CRTC registration.
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### Free Tools (Owned Traffic Flywheel)
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| Tool | SEO Keywords | Conversion Path |
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|------|-------------|----------------|
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| Contractor Classification Quiz | "1099 vs W-2 test", "am I misclassifying" | High risk result → $499 review CTA |
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| Privacy Policy Check | "CCPA compliance checker" | Gaps found → $799 policy review CTA |
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| TCPA SMS Check | "SMS compliance audit" | High risk → $1,299 consent audit CTA |
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| Formation Guide | "LLC formation questionnaire", "which state to form LLC" | Completed guide → formation order CTA |
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---
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## TIER 2 — Manual Engagement, High ROI
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### Facebook Groups (Manual — Create Your Own + Participate in Others)
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| Group Strategy | Size/Reach | Compliance Topics | Notes |
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|---------------|-----------|-------------------|-------|
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| **Create own group** ("Small Business HR Compliance") | Build to 5K+ | All categories | Full control. Schedule posts. Capture emails via join questions. |
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| QuickBooks Users & Proadvisors | ~50K | 1099, payroll, compliance | Answer questions. Build reputation. |
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| Bookkeepers' Corner | ~30K | 1099 processing, contractor classification | Bookkeepers who refer clients. |
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| Restaurant Owners groups | 30-50K | Tip credit, wage-hour, FLSA | Highest-risk industry for wage violations. |
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| Cleaning Business Owners | ~50K | 1099 misclassification | Many misclassify cleaners as contractors. |
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| Construction Business Owners | 20-40K | Subcontractor vs employee classification | Ground zero for misclassification. |
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| HR for Small Business | 15-30K | FLSA, handbooks, policies | Direct target audience. |
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| Women Entrepreneurs groups | 100-300K+ | Broad compliance | Active engagement on hiring/compliance. |
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**No automation possible.** Budget 30-60 min/day for manual engagement.
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### QuickBooks Community (1.6M members, 1.3M posts)
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- Answer 1099/payroll/contractor compliance questions
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- Cannot promote externally — Intuit removes links
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- Build reputation as helpful expert
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- High volume of compliance questions daily
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### Intuit Accountants Community (ProConnect/Lacerte)
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- Tax professionals who refer clients
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- Active daily discussions on compliance
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- Ideal referral partner channel
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- Top contributors have 200-450+ posts
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### LinkedIn (Personal Brand + Groups)
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| Approach | Effort | ROI |
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|----------|--------|-----|
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| Personal posts from Justin (2-3x/week) | Medium | High — organic reach among decision-makers |
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| Comment on compliance discussions | Medium | Medium — builds authority |
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| Connect with CPAs, HR consultants, attorneys | Medium | Very High — referral partnerships |
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| LinkedIn Groups (HR, SMB, Compliance) | Low | Medium |
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### Alignable (9M small business owners)
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- Local business social network
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- "Legal & Insurance" and "Hiring" topic forums
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- Low competition from compliance consultants
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- Good for building local authority
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### BiggerPockets (3M members)
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- Real estate investors
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- Active contractor classification, 1099, entity formation discussions
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- "Legal & Legislation" and "Tax" forum categories
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- Manual answers build authority
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---
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## TIER 3 — Niche, Lower Volume
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### ContractorTalk (170K members, 3.6M posts)
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- Construction industry professionals
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- "Business" section: 155K threads, 50M views
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- Worker classification, insurance, licensing
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- Has sponsor programs for paid visibility
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### Industry-Specific Forums
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| Forum | Industry | Key Compliance Topics |
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|-------|----------|---------------------|
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| RestaurantOwner.com | Restaurant | Tip credit, overtime, youth employment, FLSA |
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| LawnSite.com | Landscaping | H-2B visa, seasonal workers, classification |
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| TruckersReport.com | Trucking | IC rules, ABC test, ELD compliance |
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| DentalTown | Medical/Dental | Employment law for small practices |
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### Canada CRTC / International Telecom Channels
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| Channel | Audience | Approach |
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|---------|----------|----------|
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| r/telecom | Telecom professionals | Educational posts about CRTC vs FCC carrier licensing |
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| r/VoIP | VoIP operators and enthusiasts | Answer questions about carrier licensing, mention Canada alternative |
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| DSLReports Telecom Forum | ISPs, CLECs, telecom operators | Long-form educational posts about CRTC registration |
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| Telecom trade forums | Industry professionals | Participate in FCC 214 and carrier licensing discussions |
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| LinkedIn telecom groups | Decision-makers at telcos | Share thought leadership on international carrier strategies |
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| WhatsApp carrier groups | Wholesale voice/SMS traders | Direct outreach when relevant |
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**Key message:** "Canadian CRTC registration is notification-based at a fraction of FCC 214
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cost ($3,899 vs $58K–$525K+). No background checks, no CALEA, no Team Telecom delays."
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### Quora (400M monthly visitors)
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- Answer compliance questions
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- Answers rank in Google (long-tail SEO)
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- Lower volume than Reddit but longer shelf life
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### Referral Partnerships (Relationship-Based)
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| Partner Type | Where to Find | What They Refer |
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|-------------|---------------|----------------|
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| CPA / Accounting firms | LinkedIn, Intuit communities | Contractor classification, corporate filings |
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| HR Consultants | LinkedIn, r/humanresources | FLSA audits, handbook reviews |
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| Business Attorneys | LinkedIn | Compliance filings they don't want to do |
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| Bookkeepers | Alignable, Facebook groups | State registrations, annual reports |
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| Payroll Companies | Direct outreach | Contractor classification, employment compliance |
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### Email Marketing (Owned Channel)
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| Approach | Source | Expected ROI |
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|----------|--------|-------------|
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| Free tool → email capture → nurture sequence | Website tools | Very High |
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| Monthly compliance newsletter | Mailing list subscribers | High |
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| Triggered sequences by compliance category | Segmented leads | High |
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---
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## SKIP / NOT RECOMMENDED
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| Channel | Reason |
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|---------|--------|
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| **Stack Exchange** | Wrong audience (developers/academics, not business owners). Dropped. |
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| **dev.to** | Developer audience. Business owners don't read dev.to. Dropped. |
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| **Hacker News** | No write API. Tech audience. Cannot automate. |
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| **Discord** | No scalable monitoring. Manual participation not worth effort. |
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| **Twitter/X** | API pricing prohibitive. Organic reach collapsed. |
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| **TikTok / Instagram** | Wrong format for compliance consulting. |
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| **Cold Email / Cold Calling** | Legal risk, reputation risk, low conversion. Never. |
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| **Print / Trade Publications** | Cost-prohibitive for our price points. |
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---
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## Channel Priority Timeline
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| Priority | Channels | When | Monthly Cost |
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|----------|----------|------|-------------|
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| **P0 — Month 1** | Reddit monitor (automated), Free tools (built), SEO (service pages) | Immediately | $0 |
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| **P1 — Month 1-2** | Own Facebook Group, LinkedIn personal posts, Email nurture | Week 2+ | $0 |
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| **P2 — Month 2-3** | QB Community, Intuit Accountants, Alignable, Facebook group participation | Month 2 | $0 |
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| **P3 — Month 3+** | BiggerPockets, ContractorTalk, Quora, Referral partner outreach | Month 3+ | $0 |
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| **P4 — Month 4+** | Google Ads (test budget), Industry forums, Podcast guesting | Month 4+ | $500-1K |
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---
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## Key Metrics
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| Channel | Primary Metric | Target |
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|---------|---------------|--------|
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| Reddit | Clicks to site (UTM) | 50/week by month 3 |
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| Free Tools | Assessment completions | 100/month, 40% email capture |
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| Google Organic | Sessions to service/tool pages | 500/month by month 6 |
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| Facebook Group | Members + engagement | 1K members by month 6 |
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| QB Community | Answers posted + profile views | 10 answers/week |
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| LinkedIn | Post impressions + connections | 10 new partner connections/quarter |
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| Email | Open rate, click rate | 35% open, 5% click |
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| Referrals | Referred leads | 5/month by month 6 |
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