Marketing for surveying firms

Most clients see initial improvements within 3-6 months, with significant results typically appearing within 6-12 months. Marketing is a long-term investment that builds momentum over time.

It depends on what you're working on. Tactical activity like LinkedIn content or a refreshed service page can start generating conversations relatively quickly. Repositioning, building a stronger reputation in a new market or shifting the quality of work coming in takes longer, typically six to twelve months of consistent effort. The practices that see the strongest results are the ones who treat marketing as an ongoing discipline rather than something they turn on when the pipeline looks thin. I'll always give you a realistic picture of what to expect and when.

Yes. The majority of my work is UK based but I have worked with firms internationally. The core challenges around positioning, messaging and business development strategy are consistent across markets. Where local market context matters, we build that into the process. If you're based outside the UK and want to explore whether I'm the right fit, get in touch and we can have that conversation.

Referrals are a sign you're doing good work, but they're not a strategy. They're unpredictable, hard to scale and heavily dependent on who happens to recommend you at the right moment. A marketing strategy doesn't replace referrals, it works alongside them. It makes sure you're visible to the right people even when no one is actively recommending you, positions you clearly for the work you want more of, and builds the kind of profile that makes referrals more likely in the first place.

A marketing strategy defines the thinking: who you're targeting, what you're known for, how you're positioned against competitors and what messages will resonate with your ideal clients. A marketing plan translates that into action: what you'll actually do, when and how you'll measure it. You need both, in that order. A plan without a strategy behind it is just a list of activities with no clear direction. I develop both together so that everything you do connects back to your business objectives.

Often better than you'd expect. Larger practices have more resource but they also have more complexity, slower decision making and a harder time coming across as genuinely responsive and personal. Smaller practices have real advantages: closer client relationships, a clearer specialism and the ability to be specific about who you work best with. The most effective approach is to lean into those strengths rather than trying to look like a bigger firm. I work with a lot of smaller practices and the ones growing consistently are the ones who are confident about what makes them the right choice.