Independent practice: marketing ops as a service
A retainer practice doing the unglamorous work that makes marketing measurable: $260K in managed media across 5 retainer accounts, HubSpot implementations with lead scoring lifting MQL→SQL 24% on average, GA4 + GTM + Looker Studio attribution stacks replacing last-click guesswork, Tableau client reporting, and a structured experimentation program running 9+ tests per quarter at a 38% win rate. Average client ROAS: 4.2x. Client churn so far: zero.
Four productized engagements
1 · Martech implementation. HubSpot Marketing Hub builds end-to-end: lifecycle stage architecture, lead scoring models tuned against actual close data, nurture workflows, and Salesforce-aligned handoff definitions written jointly with sales. Average MQL→SQL lift across implementations so far: 24%.
2 · Measurement & attribution. GA4 audits and rebuilds, GTM container governance with a documented event schema and naming convention, server-side tagging where signal loss justifies it, and Looker Studio dashboards joining spend to pipeline so clients see cost-per-outcome, not cost-per-click. Tableau builds for clients who need executive-grade reporting.
3 · Paid media management. Meta and Google accounts run with the same discipline as my agency years: stage-level CPA ceilings, negative keyword programs, creative testing with pre-registered thresholds. Average ROAS across active retainers: 4.2x on a blended $260K under management.
4 · Experimentation program. A standing test backlog per client across creative, landing pages, offers and email flows; 9+ structured experiments per quarter, win rate 38%, every result documented win or lose. Klaviyo flow builds for the e-commerce accounts ride alongside: cart recovery, post-purchase, win-back.
The practice exists for a simple reason: most small marketing teams have channels but no system. I install the system, document it, and leave the client able to run it, which is why churn is zero and why every engagement so far has expanded scope after the first quarter.
Portfolio performance
Engagement mix, $260K under management
The standard implementation playbook
- Audit first: every engagement starts with a fixed-scope teardown of tracking integrity, funnel definitions, list hygiene and spend efficiency, delivered as a scored report with a prioritized fix list.
- Definitions before dashboards: MQL, SQL and opportunity definitions written with sales sign-off; data hygiene (dedupe, enrichment, required-field governance) before any automation is trusted with the database.
- Schema before tags: a documented GTM event schema and UTM convention per client, the same governance pattern this very website demonstrates in its colophon.
- Operating cadence: weekly performance reviews against pre-agreed KPI targets; monthly experiment readouts; quarterly roadmap renewal, the retention mechanic carried over from my agency years.
Full metric table
| Metric | Result | Measurement basis |
|---|---|---|
| Media under management | $260K | Annualized across active retainers |
| Retainer accounts | 5 | 3 e-commerce, 2 B2B services |
| Average client ROAS | 4.2x | Blended, conversion campaigns |
| MQL→SQL lift | +24% avg | HubSpot lead-scoring implementations |
| Experimentation | 9+/qtr · 38% wins | Documented test log, all accounts |
| Client churn | 0 | All accounts retained; 5/5 expanded scope |