For owners and marketing leaders
Everyone can see growth has stalled, but nobody agrees on why.
Pick the symptom that sounds most like your business, and we'll show you where the problem usually starts and what to fix first.
Which of these sounds most like your business?
- Offering
- Prospect
- Magnets
- Conversion
- Channels
- Action Plan
Step 2: IMPACT Prospect
Who is the most profitable customer for that offering?
This usually starts two steps above where people look: if nobody has written down who a good lead is, marketing and sales end up aiming at different targets.
What to do about it
- How Do You Generate High-Quality Leads?
- How Do You Segment B2B Customers?
- How Do You Calculate the Profitability of a Customer?
New here? See how the six steps fit together
Browse by step
Every answer here belongs to one of the six ProfitPaths® steps.
The steps run in the order the decisions have to be made, so if you aren't sure where to begin, start with the first question below that you can't answer with confidence.
- 01
IMPACT Offering
Which offering is the most profitable one to grow?
- What Is a Good Profit Margin for a Product?
- How Do You Calculate Break-Even ROAS?
- How Do You Calculate the Profitability of a Customer?
- 02
IMPACT Prospect
Who is the most profitable customer for that offering?
- How Do You Calculate the Profitability of a Customer?
- How Do You Generate High-Quality Leads?
- How Do You Increase Customer Lifetime Value?
- 03
Prospect Magnets
What would make that buyer want to hear from you?
Read the step - 04
Prospect-to-Lead Conversion
How many of those prospects become leads, and then sales?
- How Do You Follow Up With Sales Leads?
- What Is a Good Lead Conversion Rate?
- How Do You Generate High-Quality Leads?
- 05
Channel Selection
Where does that buyer pay attention, at a cost that pays back?
Read the step and all 13 answers - 06
Marketing Action Plan (MAP)
How do you turn it all into one plan, and grow what works without losing margin?
- How Much Should a Company Spend on Marketing?
- How Do You Choose an SEO Agency?
- How Do You Measure Digital Marketing ROI?
Who's behind this
The people behind this site have signed the checks themselves.
The Profit Handbook is published by 5K, a growth agency in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Many of us have owned businesses ourselves, so we know what it's like to sign the checks and wonder whether the marketing is working. ProfitPaths is the method we use with every client, and every page here is built on it.
our promises to you
- 1Every number has a source, or it isn't here.
No recycled statistics passed from blog to blog. If we can't trace a figure to where it came from, we don't use it.
- 2Examples are labeled as examples.
When we use round numbers to show how something works, we say so. Real client results are marked as real.
- 3We'll tell you when something doesn't work.
Including when a tactic is wrong for your business, and when you don't need an agency at all.
Work through the six steps on your own.
Read the six steps and answer a twelve-question self-check. The first question you can't answer with confidence is where your growth is leaking, and where to start.
Start hereWant a second set of eyes on it?
We’ll look at your business and marketing, point out the most valuable opportunities you might not be seeing, and you’ll leave with specific advice whether or not you ever hire us.
Free, with a real person from the 5K team. Takes about a minute to request.