Christopher AlumbaughMarketing Checkup
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Writing

Notes on making marketing work together.

Practical pieces for Michiana business owners. A new one every quarter, plus everything I wrote for the Federated Media blog since 2020.

  1. Sep 2026Spaghetti Marketing, Six Years LaterIn 2020 I wrote about throwing marketing at the wall to see what sticks. Most local businesses are still doing it. Here is where it actually breaks, and where to start fixing it.Read →
  2. May 2026Your Front Desk Is Your MarketingPeople don’t refer friends because of your ad. They refer them because of how they were treated. The people who greet, answer and follow up are the experience, so train the handoff, not just the pitch.Read →
  3. Feb 2026Where Local Attention Is NowYour customers’ attention is split across the car radio, streaming audio, connected TV, short video, search and AI answers. You don’t need all of them. You need the right few, connected.Read →
  4. Nov 2025Plan Next Year Around What This Year Taught YouBefore you set next year’s marketing budget, look hard at this one: what brought customers in, where they leaked out, what to stop and what to double. Budget on evidence, not habit.Read →
  5. Aug 2025Stop Boosting PostsThe Boost button is easy, and that’s the problem. A planned social ad starts with a goal, the right audience, a page to land on, enough frequency and a way to tell if it worked.Read →
  6. May 2025AI Can Write the Ad. It Can’t Decide What to Say.AI writing and image tools are built into nearly every app now. They’re useful for drafts and variations. The strategy, the offer, the proof and the fact-check still belong to you.Read →
  7. Feb 2025Your Google Business Profile Does More Than Your HomepageMany customers decide whether to call you from your Google Business Profile without ever opening your website. Here is what to keep up to date so the profile does its job.Read →
  8. Nov 2024The Customer You Already HaveMost marketing budgets go toward finding new customers. Keeping the ones you already have is usually cheaper and easier. A few simple ways to stay in touch and make the second purchase easy.Read →
  9. Aug 2024Political Ads Are Coming. Plan Around Them.This fall, election advertising will crowd local TV and radio in a market that reaches into Michigan. Here is how a local business can plan ahead and keep its message in front of people.Read →
  10. May 2024The Phone Call Is Part of the AdYou can run a great ad and still lose the customer on the phone. How calls get answered, returned and handled decides whether the marketing worked. A checklist for local businesses.Read →
  11. Feb 2024What Is a Customer Worth?Most local ad budgets get set by gut feel. A little back-of-the-napkin math about what a customer is worth over time makes it easier to decide what to spend and what to keep.Read →
  12. Nov 2023Your Best Customers Already Wrote Your AdsThe words that sell your business are already sitting in your reviews, your emails and your phone calls. How to find them, and where to use them in your ads, your website and your scripts.Read →
  13. Aug 2023Sponsorships That Pay OffA logo on a banner is where a sponsorship starts, not where it ends. How to show up, collect contacts, connect it to the rest of your marketing and judge whether it was worth the money.Read →
  14. May 2023Google Analytics Is Changing. Don’t Lose Your History.On July 1, Universal Analytics stops processing new data. If your website still runs on it, here is what to do in the next six weeks so you keep your numbers and start GA4 with a clean setup.Read →
  15. Feb 2023What ChatGPT Means for a Local Business (So Far)ChatGPT showed up at the end of November and it is all anyone wants to talk about. After a couple of months of trying it, here is where it helps a small business, where it falls short, and what it can’t replace.Read →
  16. Oct 2022Collecting First-Party Data in Your Existing Ad CampaignsTurning ad response into data you own.FM blog ↗
  17. Aug 2022Plan the Slow Season During the Busy OneMichiana runs on seasons. If you wait until the phone goes quiet to plan for it, you are already behind. Use the busy months to build your list, collect reviews and set up the slow-season offer.Read →
  18. May 2022Radio Didn’t Go Anywhere. It Moved Into the Dashboard and the Phone.People still listen to local radio. They just do it in more places now: the car, the phone, the smart speaker, the podcast app. Here is how to plan audio as one channel across all of them.Read →
  19. Feb 2022Prices Went Up. Now What Do You Say?Costs are rising for almost every local business, and many have to raise prices. How to tell customers plainly, keep their trust and say the same thing everywhere you show up.Read →
  20. Nov 2021When Facebook Ads Got Harder to MeasureSince Apple’s iOS 14.5 update, Facebook ads report less than they used to. That doesn’t mean they stopped working. Here’s how to measure your marketing in ways you control.Read →
  21. Sep 2021Making Content for More Than Just Content's SakeContent that starts with what customers are looking for.FM blog ↗
  22. May 2021The Help Wanted Sign Is Marketing TooHiring is hard for a lot of local employers this spring. The same things that bring in customers can bring in applicants: a clear message, an easy next step and the right channels.Read →
  23. Jan 2021How to Get More Customers: What You Need to Know NowIntegrated marketing as the path to more customers.FM blog ↗
  24. Jan 2021How to Make Your Business Stand Out From the RestMost competitors run many channels. Few connect them.FM blog ↗
  25. Dec 2020Ask What's Next to Get More Out of Your MarketingSpaghetti marketing, and why the fix starts with a question.FM blog ↗
  26. Aug 2020Your Google Listing Is the New Front DoorBefore anyone drives to your business this year, they check hours, pickup options and safety info online. Here’s how to keep your Google My Business listing ready for them.Read →
  27. May 2020Staying Visible When the Doors Are ClosedWhen business slows down, the instinct is to go quiet. Here’s how Michiana businesses can stay visible through the shutdowns by being useful instead of loud.Read →
  28. Feb 2020Start the Year With Four Questions, Not a BudgetMost marketing plans start with a number and a list of channels. Start with four questions instead, and the budget gets easier to set and a lot easier to defend.Read →

The quarterly note

One practical marketing idea, every quarter.

New pieces from the writing page and what's working for Michiana businesses right now. Short, useful, no spam.

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