About Us
- Facts: Facts about Business Diagnostics and Duct Tape Marketing both Kansas City marketing companies
- Ownership Profile: Some background information about who I am and what I can do for you as a marketing strategy consultant in Lenexa, Overland Park Kansas and surrounding communities.
- Our Marketing Story: Why I left corporate America to help others as a marketing consultant
- Our Ideal Client: Who do we enjoy working with and who benefits from our services
- Our Difference: What makes us different than other Kansas City advertising agencies and marketing agencies
- FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
- Past Clients: Our fabulous clients who we have had the privilege to work with
- Testimonials: What others say about my work as a marketing strategy consultant
Our goal is to help business owners in Kansas City better market their companies so they can stay in business longer, feed their families and retire gracefully. We do this by helping them develop and implement a complete marketing system to generate more leads for their business.
Facts:
A few facts about Business Diagnostics and Duct Tape Marketing to get to know us a little better:
- Business Diagnostics has been in business since 2006
- BDI has over 20 years experience in advertising and marketing industry
- Both BDI and Duct Tape Marketing are locally owned and operated by Kansas City residents
- The network of Duct Tape Marketing consultants has representatives in the United States, Canada, Australia, the UK, Columbia, Bahrain and Hungary
- The Duct Tape Marketing Book has sold over 50,000 copies in hardback, paperback and Kindle editions and has been translated into Croat, Indonesian, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish
- The Duct Tape Marketing website receives over 10,000 unique visitors each day
Ownership Profile:
Who are we? Business Diagnostics is a Kansas City marketing agency that specializes in working with service professionals in the medical, business and contractor trades.
Owned and operated by Shawn Russell, who has been marketing in Kansas City since 1988. Shawn is a Kansas City native and graduate from UMKC Block School of business. He worked in advertising at The Kansas City Star for 17 years, where he helped 100′s of companies market and advertise their businesses.
What do we do?
In the fall of 2009 Shawn was selected and trained to be an Authorized Duct Tape Marketing Consultant with his wife Karen Lind Russell. They help small business owners develop and implement a complete small business marketing system. Shawn believes, “a marketing system is a great way to automate lead generation”, but realizes marketing solution have to be tailored to fit customer needs.
Shawn also believes marketing and advertising is only as good as its results. Unless tracking and measurement tools are in place you can’t tell what is working and can waste a lot of money, thus he tagged his business, “marketing by the numbers!”
Since 2006 he has helped business owners with a variety of marketing task:
- Business analysis, marketing and advertising analysis
- Marketing strategy, developing marketing materials, referral systems, direct mail, internet marketing (website design, search engine optimization, blogs, social media, local search), ad design, print marketing, and magazine marketing
- QuickBooks (To manage their “marketing by the numbers”) and now
- Duct Tape Marketing
Our Marketing Story
I use to work for corporate America trying to help small business owners receive some sort of return from the exorbitant amount of money they spent on advertising. In the late 80′s it wasn’t so bad, a lot of small businesses ran advertising and did quite well. But every year the price went up 5%; every year! With less audience!
Eventually the small business owner was pushed out by the mufti-store chain. The chain could divide their ad cost by a number of locations and still earn a profit. But the little guy was ignored and had little if any chance of covering their cost! I pushed for lower prices. “I claimed, It doesn’t make sense, our customers can’t turn a profit.” And nobody cared.
When I brought this up to management, they replied “your job is to sell advertising, not ask why”! Well that wasn’t good enough for me. I wasn’t going to bamboozle hard working small business owners so a giant advertising company could satisfy Wall Street expectations! So I left to find my answers and went to work as a business consultant.
In the next ten months I analyzed over 70 businesses in as many different cities – a road warrior! I loved it and so did the recipients! I learned that small business owners were in trouble because they were not running their business by the numbers!
The road was hard; I left every Sunday evening and came home Fridays. When my wife told me she was pregnant with our second child it was a big surprise. With the good news I got off the road and opened up a consulting business helping small companies understand their numbers. What I found was that business owners had no idea if their advertising was making them a profit or not!
That’s why I focused my business on, “marketing by the numbers”! My passion is analyzing advertising campaign results to help business owners understand if their advertising dollars are earning them a profit!
Our Ideal Client
You may relate to our ideal client if you are a small business service provider who is running advertising but is not sure if it is working. By working we mean earning you a profit.
Most small business owners are surprised to find out that their advertising dollars need to cover more then just the cost of running the ad. It has to cover the additional material and labor expense to perform the service and the overhead associated with the increase in business. It is not uncommon for a $5000 ad campaign to have to generate $15,000 in sales to break even.
Our ideal client is a Kansas City professional service provider in the medical, business or contractor trade. To name a few:
| Accountants – CPA’s
Attorneys Chiropractors Computer technicians Dentist Electricians Engineers Financial professionals Home services |
HVAC
Insurance Lawn & Landscaping Medical specialties Optical Physicians Plumbing Real estate Remodeling |
The companies typically earn annual gross sales between $500,000 and $3,000,000, have 3 to 20 employees and work and reside in the Kansas City area. They usually run in traditional advertising mediums (yellow pages, print, TV, radio, or direct mail) and are witnessing deminishing returns from their advertising. Most have a web presence with promotional content and no SEO. They typically do the work themselves with the help of office personnel.
We’re usually hired when the owner is unhappy with their advertising response and/or wants to take the business to the next level. They’ve typically hired a number of different media companies who focused purely on tactic without strategy resulting in a lackluster response. The advertising company usually avoids providing any kind of measurement to tell if the marketing is working.
Our most successful engagements happen when business owners are committed to make improvements in their business and devote the time and energy to stay on schedule and fill out the work books. If they follow the system they get results.
Our Difference:
You will find Business Diagnostics different from other marketing agencies because of our simple, yet effective, 3 step approach:1) Evaluate first, 2) Marketing system, 3) Track and Measure.
1. Evaluate first: First we administer a marketing evaluation to understand what works, what doesn’t work and what needs to be done to make it work. Here is what we do:
- Interview key marketing personnel
- Evaluate cost per thousand
- Analyze margins and review marketing budget
- Review methods for tracking and measuring response
- Analyze competition
- Micro-survey customer base
2. Marketing system: We collaborate with you to develop and install a complete small business marketing system powered by Duct Tape Marketing. Our 7 step process:
- Narrow your marketing focus
- Find and communicate a core difference
- Package your business
- Create marketing material that educate
- Establish your lead generation trio
- Harness the internet
- Live by the calendar
3. Track and measure: We set up a system to track and measure your marketing response so you can determine if it is earning you a profit or not.
- Establish a baseline with goal and objectives
- Set up tracking form and train personnel
- Run marketing and advertising
- Track results and measure response
- Compare measured response to goals and objectives
- Repeat process or tweak and repeat
You will get an objective third party perspective on your marketing from an expert who has over 20 years experience in the industry. I do not accept commissions from media companies and have no allegiance to any particular medium. If they insist I pass them on to you. I work for you.
FAQ: 8 Common Marketing Questions Answered
1. Why should I analyze my marketing?
Whenever you make changes in your marketing you should measure the current conditions to form a base-line, so you can tell if the change works. Note: Change one thing at a time so you can tell if it worked.
2. What are the advantages to interviewing my customers?
No one does it and they should because the information you receive, good or bad, is critical to understanding what you are doing well, what is important to your customer and what your industry may or may not be doing well.
3. What is the one thing I can do to improve my marketing?
Differentiate yourself from your competitors.
4. Why should I target my marketing?
It not only saves money by not reaching uninterested customers, it greatly improves the response and increases the likelihood of making a profit.
5. What is the best medium to use to receive a response?
It varies depending where your target market is but it is safest to use mediums where you can track and measure the response, such as direct mail or internet. Note: Always includes a direct response offer.
6. Why should I track my advertising?
The answer is obvious but most businesses don’t do it. Make sure you do all that you can to track it, a clip board by the phone, a tracking phone number, analytics, a direct response offer.
7. How should I price my product or service?
The price of a service or product is based on three expense categories: materials, labor, and overhead. Once these costs are determined, a price is chosen that will cover expenses and earn a profit.
8. How do I know if my marketing is making me money?
As in pricing your service or product above, you have to accurately determine your margins so you can calculate the return in dollars you need to cover your materials, labor and overhead to earn a profit.
Client List:
AAAbility Discount Plumbing
Richard Gainer
307 N Church St
Olathe, KS 66061
(913) 962-6566
Anderson Electric
Harry Anderson
1011 W 24th St
Kansas City, MO 64108
(913) 710-1754
Bazillion Pictures and Sound
Stephen Goldblatt and Jeff Beith
118 Southwest Blvd.
Kansas City, Mo 64108
(816) 474-7427
Cornerstone Home Improvement
Brenda Walters
5056 Blue Ridge Blvd.
Kansas City, Mo 64133
(816) 737-0601
Wright, Handley & Addy DDS
Dr. Mark Handley
11100 Ash St
Leawood, KS 66211
(913) 491-1844
Hammerpress
Brady Vest
110 Southwest Blvd.
Kansas City, Mo 64108
(816) 421-1929
Motley Creation
Chris Motley
14718 Hadley
Overland Park, KS 66223
(913) 894-1600
Overland Park Dentistry
Dr. Charles R. Kimes
6700 w 151st St
Overland Park, Ks 66223
(913 647-8700
Russell Lawn Care
Robert Russell
3600 W 155th St
Overland Park, KS 66224
(913) 687-6200
Snyder Home Remodeling
Steve & Christina Snyder
4723 Black Swan Drive
Shawnee, KS 66216
(913) 248-8945
Stratford & Foster
Dave Foster
7930 Lee Blvd.
Leawood. KS 66208
(913) 341-3300
Toner Jewelry
Mike Toner
7102 College Blvd.
Overland Park, KS 66210
(913) 663-3092
Testimonials
Client: Chris Motley of Motley Creations
Although Chris is no longer in a business relationship with Shawn Russell, he did find the eight months they worked together to be of great value and benefit.
“Shawn has great organizational skills,” noted Chris. “He also provided us with some spreadsheets that came in handy for matters of my business.”
Shawn and Chris became introduced through a networking group of which they both were members, and Chris felt it was a given that he make use of Shawn’s services.
“In a word,” said Chris, “I would define Shawn as dedicated.”
Client: Richard Gainer of AAA Discount Plumbing
For the three years in which Richard has worked with Shawn Russell, it has proven to be a very insightful time.
“Shawn is very knowledgeable about the marketplace, especially for small businesses like mine. He has been such a tremendous asset through his incredible insight,” said Richard.
Richard is quick to recognize Shawn’s innate talent for helping him realize his business’s bottom line and how to improve upon that.
“Shawn gave me insight I otherwise would not have had access to,” noted Richard. “What I have learned from him has allowed me to make better business decisions, especially with respect to marketing.”
Richard explained one instance wherein Shawn told him that if a small business owner runs an ad in the Yellow Pages that is larger in size than a standard business card, then that business is essentially wasting its money. What Shawn inspired Richard to do was to track his calls to find out from where his leads were actually coming.
“I was utterly amazed to learn that 92% of calls generated for my business came from referrals…that word-of-mouth advertising. The other eight percent came from a series of four or five advertisements I had out there,” said Richard.
Richard does realize that when a small business is started, the owner does have to advertise initially to get his name out there, but he revels in the findings of how his business is truly generated. Thanks to Shawn, this discovery has been a complete revelation to Richard.
“Shawn is helpful,” said Richard. “And very insightful.”
Client: Steve Goldblatt of Bazillion Pictures
If you want a smart and trusted advisor to help you market and advertise your business, Steve Goldblatt of Bazillion Pictures will direct you to Shawn Russell of Duct Tape Marketing.
“Shawn is a very smart guy. He truly knows all about advertising and marketing a business,” said Steve.
Steve has been highly impressed by Shawn’s innate talent for and understanding of advertising and all elements of marketing available to a business. While Steve and his company have not used a service like Shawn’s before, it is doubtful they will ever find one to be of such a high caliber as this one. Steve happily sings the praises of Shawn.
“He is enthusiastic!” noted Steve.
Client: Brady Vest of Hammerpress
For Brady Vest of Hammerpress, summing up the services of Shawn Russell in just one word is a challenge. He thought of three inspiring words right off the bat: enthusiastic, energetic, and interested. Brady has been working with Shawn for the better part of two years now. Shawn was referred to Brady by a trusted resource, and Brady was eager to see Hammerpress reach higher levels of success. He has found that ability through the services of Shawn Russell and Duct Tape Marketing.
“Shawn is very energetic,” said Brady. “He is very excited to help me and enjoys the problem solving aspects of the business. He likes to see how the changes implemented take affect. His genuine interest is undeniable.”
Brady has never really used an outside source such as Shawn to help him improve his business, but it seems to be the right approach for him, as he is truly happy with how things are taking shape for him and how Shawn has been pivotal in those upward changes.
“Shawn is definitely enthusiastic,” said Brady.
Client: Harry Anderson of Anderson Electric
It did not take Harry Anderson of Anderson Electric very long to list all of the business strengths of Shawn Russell. He could have easily rattled them off all day long. In summation, however, he views Shawn as “very optimistic, very enthusiastic, and very knowledgeable about how businesses are run well and run correctly.”
When asked if there have ever been any areas where Shawn could use a bit of improvement or if Harry felt let down in any way, he was quick to respond that Shawn had never let him down and that his work was very well received.
Harry did pause when asked for one word that he could use to describe Shawn and his services. After all, he was so obviously impressed by Shawn’s work, that one word just seemed impossible. In essence, however, the word upon which he landed was “thoughtful.” Harry appreciates the fine work Shawn has done for him.
Client: Dr. Mark Handley DDS
It was a challenge to slow Dr. Handley down as he pontificated as to the key strengths of Shawn Russell. Having worked with Shawn for about eight months, Dr .Handley has already seen the great benefits of working with Shawn.
“In my opinion, Shawn is very calm and deliberate,” said Dr. Handley. “He is very intelligent and is obviously experienced at what he does. He employs a diligent work ethic and shows strong follow-through on all matters.”
According to Dr. Handley, what sets Shawn apart from others in his industry is his unique ability to remain neutral.
“Shawn is quite tactful and is able to tackle an issue far more comfortably than other consultants. Yet he is laid back and does not come across as intimidating,” noted Dr. Handley.
Overall, Dr. Handley sees Shawn as a very dependable consultant.
“He is the perfect man,” said Dr. Handley, “in that he is a good observer, a good listener, and he possesses a strong balance of analytical skills coupled with people skills.”
Client: Mike Toner of Toner Jewelry
The past year has been a real eye-opener for local jeweler, Mike Toner, owner of Toner Jewelry. In his business meetings with marketing professional, Shawn Russell, it has become quite evident to Mike that Shawn is very insightful and knowledgeable about marketing.
“Shawn has really brought a lot to the table in terms of marketing strategies and concepts to enhance my business,” said Mike. “He really knows his stuff.”
When asked to describe Shawn in one word, there was a moment of hesitation on Mike’s part as if to suggest one would not do Shawn justice. However, he finally arrived at the answer: “Dependable.”
Client: Robert Russell of Russell Landscaping
It was a brief, but fruitful, business encounter between Shawn Russell of Business Diagnostics and Robert Russell of Russell Landscaping.
In January of 2009, Robert became acquainted with Shawn as Robert’s wife knew Shawn’s wife. These two ladies brought these two men together and a business transaction transpired.
For about two months, Shawn’s services for Robert included a plethora of data entry. At the time, Robert did not have much else going on, so that is the extent to which he used Shawn’s services. However, he did glean enough about Shawn to recognize some of his strengths.
“To describe Shawn in one word would bring to light the word ‘attentive,’” said Robert.
Client: Dr. Charles Kimes of Overland Park Dentistry
For the past 18 months or so, Dr. Charles Kimes has had the distinct pleasure of working with Shawn Russell so that he can streamline practices in his dental office and ensure that he can focus on what he is trained to do: patient care.
“Shawn originally came to our office to help with our systems and to provide input as to how we could streamline them,” said Dr. Kimes. “He also showed us effective ways to cut our overall advertising costs.”
While Dr. Kimes did use services similar to Shawn’s over 15 years ago, he was quick to note that those particular services were no where near as extensive as what Shawn has done for him.
“Shawn has done far more than I ever expected, than I ever thought he would do,” said Dr. Kimes. “When you own your own business as a dentist, you not only have to be the dentist, but the office manager, HR person, and more. I simply do not have time for all of that responsibility.”
Dr. Kimes is grateful for Shawn’s attention to detail and for his organizational skills.
“He certainly can streamline things,” said Dr. Kimes.
Client: Christine Snyder of Snyder Homes Remodeling
After 12 months of working with Shawn Russell, Christine Snyder came to appreciate his high level of energy.
“Shawn has a great energy that he always brings to each meeting,” said Christine. “With respect to marketing knowledge, he is very skilled and creative. He always provided consistent, positive, and well-tailored insight to the project at hand.”
Christine initially chose to work with Shawn due to her association with him from a local networking group. She admired his demeanor and overall presence, and decided to hire him to help her business grow. Christine likes to support local businesses.
“I worked with Shawn prior to his affiliation with the Duct Tape marketing system,” noted Christine, who first used his services when he was entirely in business building consultation.
“Business consulting frustrates me in that it can push you to do things that go against your better judgment, but I also know that the responsibility to take the final action rests in my hands,” she said.
Through it all, however, Shawn remained a positive note in the consulting process for Christine and Snyder Homes Remodeling.
Client: Brenda Walters of Cornerstone Home Improvements
“I would definitely recommend your services to any company big—or small. Especially ones like we were who think they have it all under control and don’t need an outside opinion. It is truly amazing what you uncovered. I actually feel like I work for a different company, totally because of the shift I’ve experienced in the way I view my role and the way I look at my company”.
"The 7 Steps to Small Business Marketing Success" 
