Practical Marketing From The Field

Data-driven marketing advice for service business owners. Written by Brandon Rollins, Founder of Pangea Marketing.

Most Recent

Jul 28, 2026

How Much Should You Spend on Google Ads? [2026 Budget Guide]

The answer to "how much should I spend on Google Ads?" isn't an industry average. It can only be your own unit economics. Here's the math, the benchmarks, and the rules.

Jul 22, 2026

How To Measure Marketing Lift in 2026

Attribution is broken. So you need to measure marketing lift. This guide will tell you how to do that and use it to make smarter budget calls in 2026.

Jul 22, 2026

How to Prioritize Marketing Channels When Resources Are Tight

When marketing budgets are tight, doing less works better than doing more. Here's how to pick the channels that generate what you need: revenue and feedback.

Jul 22, 2026

The Secret To Killer Ads Is...The Scientific Method?

Ad trouble? Learn how applying the scientific method—yes, the one from school—can improve your ad performance, reduce waste, and build repeatable success.

Jul 22, 2026

When Marketing Metrics Help (& When They Hurt)

Marketers love metrics. It's too bad that metrics don't tell the truth. CTR & ROAS don't mean much unless you pair them with sound business logic.

Jul 21, 2026

How Do You Set Reasonable Marketing Benchmarks?

A "reasonable" marketing benchmark isn't the industry average. It needs to be grounded in your own economics and data. Here's a framework for setting one, even from a cold start.

Jul 14, 2026

What Measurement Can't Do (And Why I Measure Anyway)

I measure everything I can in marketing. But simple fact: you can't measure everything in marketing. You just can't. Thinking you can is a mistake.

Jul 7, 2026

What SEO Can't Do (No Matter What You Pay)

SEO is powerful, but it can't create demand, fix a weak offer, or work overnight. Knowing the limits is how you spend on it sanely.

Jun 30, 2026

How to Add Keywords to Your Website [2026 Guide]

How to add keywords to your website the right way: not stuffing words into tags, but matching pages to the searches that actually book jobs.

Jun 26, 2026

12 Old-School Marketing Tricks You Should Know—Even in 2026

Dismissing old marketing ideas? Big mistake. Here are 12 proven marketing tactics from before the digital era—and why modernized versions still work in 2026.

Jun 26, 2026

13 Weird Things They Don’t Tell You About Online Advertising

Online ads look simple. Until they’re not. Here are 13 weird truths I’ve learned about budgets, bans, bots, and bad data. Read before you spend another dime.

Jun 25, 2026

The Absolute State of Conversion Attribution in 2026

Marketing attribution in 2026 is messy. This guide breaks down what went wrong—and how smart marketers are adapting with better systems, smarter questions, and a more honest approach.

Jun 23, 2026

Questions to Ask Before Hiring an SEO Company [2026 Guide]

Questions to ask before hiring an SEO company that expose whether they can tie work to booked revenue. The ones that separate pros from snake oil.

Jun 16, 2026

How Much Should SEO Cost? [2026 Guide]

SEO providers charge $500-$2,000/mo, but the average is too wide to be useful. Here's what drives the price, and the better question to ask.

Jun 9, 2026

SEO vs. Google Ads for Service Businesses [2026 Guide]

SEO vs. Google Ads? For a service businesses: wrong question. It's a stack, and the layer that matters most is the one most posts skip. Here's how to sequence it.

Jun 2, 2026

How To Tell If Your SEO Is Working

SEO is hard to measure, slow to show results, and easy to BS. Here's a framework for telling whether your SEO investment is building something real.

May 26, 2026

Is SEO Dead in 2026? No, But It's Definitely Weirder.

SEO is not dead. Search volume is up 22%. Clicks are down. AI is making everything weird. Here's what's happening and what service businesses should do.

May 19, 2026

Do You Need a Rank Tracker? I Read 200+ SEO Threads To See.

Most SEOs pay $100-400/mo for rank tracking. Many experienced ones have stopped entirely. I read 200+ SEO threads on Reddit to figure out when it makes sense.

May 12, 2026

SEO for Landscapers: What Wins Leads (Not Just Traffic)

Most landscaping companies rely on Facebook and referrals. Here's the "SEO for landscapers" playbook that turns Google into your best lead source.

May 5, 2026

HVAC Marketing: Where the Leads Come From

In HVAC marketing, it's hard to prove which marketing dollars produce which jobs. Here's what 600+ real owner conversations reveal about closing that gap.

Apr 28, 2026

How Home Services Companies Know If Marketing Is Working

Most home services owners can't prove which marketing dollars produce which jobs. Here's what 7,000+ real owner conversations reveal about closing that gap.

Apr 21, 2026

How to Rank a Service Area Business in Google

Service area businesses rank differently than storefronts. Here's the playbook (GBP, local pages, reviews, and authority) from someone who does this work across multiple industries.

Apr 14, 2026

How to Audit Your SEO (Without Paying an Agency $5,000)

Most of what's in a $5,000 SEO audit comes from free tools. Here's how to assess your own site in terms of traffic, content, technical health, and Google Business Profile.

Apr 7, 2026

Which SEO Metrics Matter? A Framework for Service Businesses

Most SEO reports are full of numbers that don't connect to revenue. Here's what I actually track for service businesses, in what order, and why.

Mar 31, 2026

Local SEO Heatmaps: What They Tell You (& What They Don’t)

Local SEO heatmaps show where you rank geographically. But they can't tell you if those rankings are making you money (unless you're smart about it).

Mar 24, 2026

Why Marketing Matters (And When It Doesn't)

Why marketing? Because buyers and sellers don't automatically find each other. Here's when to invest in it—and when to fix other things first.

Mar 17, 2026

How to Choose a Marketing Channel (Without Blowing Your Budget)

Not sure how to choose a marketing channel? There’s no single "best" option. Here's how you pick the right one for your audience, timeline, and business model.

Mar 10, 2026

Is Digital Marketing Worth It? How To Know For Sure in 2026

Is digital marketing worth it? You don't need to guess. Here, I'll break down the math on ROI, LTV:CAC, and when hiring an agency is a smart investment.

Mar 3, 2026

How Much Does Content Marketing Cost? [2026 Pricing Guide]

How much should you spend on content marketing? It depends—but this guide gives you the logic to find your number, not just industry averages.

Feb 24, 2026

How Much Does Direct Mail Marketing Cost in 2026?

Direct mail costs $0.30-$3.00 per piece depending on design, printing, postage, and list quality. Here's exactly what you'll pay and where costs add up in 2026.

Feb 17, 2026

How Much Marketing Budget Does A Startup Need?

Startup marketing budgets should follow unit economics, not percentages. Learn why 12-20% benchmarks mislead and how to budget based on CAC and LTV instead.

Feb 10, 2026

What Types of Questions Can Marketing Attribution Answer?

Stop chasing perfect data. Learn exactly what types of questions can marketing attribution answer—and which ones it can't—to make smarter, profitable decisions.

Feb 3, 2026

How to Spy on Your Competitors’ Marketing Strategy

Spy on your competitors marketing strategy? Where I come from, that's called...marketing research. Here's what you look for and what to do with the info.

Jan 27, 2026

How to Choose a Digital Marketing Agency

Choosing a digital marketing agency? I’ll show you what I’d look for in your case: competence, understanding of your business, process, fit, and contract terms.

Jan 20, 2026

Is Marketing Hard? Yes—Here's Why & What To Do About It.

Yes, marketing is hard—but not for the reasons you think. Learn the 3 systems that make testing, decision-making, and measurement actually manageable.

Jan 13, 2026

Why Hire a Digital Marketing Agency?

Why hire a digital marketing agency? Here's what agencies are actually good for, what they cost, when you're ready, and how to make the relationship work.

Jan 6, 2026

The Marketing Tactics That Scale (And The Ones That Don't)

The scrappy techniques that got you your first customers won’t work at 10x the size. So where do you look when you need marketing tactics that scale?

Dec 30, 2025

5 Marketing Questions I'm Asking Myself in 2026

Attribution is broken. Metrics lie. Budgets are tight. Five marketing questions I'm asking myself in 2026—and what I'm doing about each one.

Dec 23, 2025

3 Things That Made Marketing Harder in 2025

If marketing felt harder this year, you weren't imagining it. Conversion tracking is broken. AI created a content arms race. Platform costs rose as budgets fell.

Dec 16, 2025

How To Know Your Marketing Is Working (Before Revenue Shows Up)

Your accountant is asking questions about your marketing spend. Here's how to prove it's working before the bank account shows results with actual numbers.

Dec 9, 2025

You Don't Have To Post To Social Media Every Day

Marketers love social media, but most of it doesn’t make money. This post breaks down what social media is actually good for, where it falls short, and what to do instead.

Dec 2, 2025

How to Find the Right Marketing Metrics for Your Business

What's the right ROAS, LTV, or CAC for your business? And how do you know? This guide shows you how to decide what metrics matter and set your own benchmarks.

Nov 25, 2025

What Does An Honest Marketing Agency Look Like?

Marketing isn't plumbing. It's full of uncertainty. But honest agencies give you realistic expectations and straight talk about what they actually control.

Nov 18, 2025

You Need A Marketing Pre-Flight Checklist

It's the best way I know to prevent launching broken marketing campaigns and wasting money. This preflight checklist helps you move fast without making big mistakes.

Nov 11, 2025

How to Test If Your Offer Is Any Good

Stop optimizing tactics for offers no one wants. Test your offer with conversations, landing pages, and pilot programs to get feedback fast.

Nov 4, 2025

Base Rates: Your Secret Weapon Against Marketing Mistakes

Stop panicking at normal results and chasing unicorn outcomes. Base rates reveal what's really working in your marketing and help you make smarter resource decisions.

Oct 28, 2025

The Uncomfortable Truth About Marketing & Incentives

Your agency wins with big budgets and long timelines. You win with simple, profitable growth. Classic principal-agent problem. Here's what you do about it.

Oct 21, 2025

Explore or Exploit? Marketers: Know When To Do Each.

Double down on what works, or take a chance on something new? That’s the explore-exploit tradeoff and you MUST understand it to be good at marketing.

Sep 9, 2025

Small Business Owner: Here's How You Adapt To AI SEO

AI SEO is changing how people search and it's hurting many small businesses. But it doesn't have to. Here's how you stay visible as search behavior changes.

Sep 2, 2025

How to Tell If Your Leads Are Qualified (Without Fancy Software)

No CRM? No problem. Learn how to qualify leads manually using spreadsheets, simple tools, and proven frameworks like BANT—plus a real example that helped generate millions.

Aug 19, 2025

Your Customer’s Attention Span is Longer Than You Think

Your customer doesn’t have an 8-second attention span. They’re just overloaded. This post explains why that myth persists—and what marketers should do instead.

Aug 12, 2025

Marketing on Fire? Know When to Triage vs. Optimize

Learn the difference between triage and optimization in marketing—when to stop the bleeding and when to improve what's working. Avoid wasted time, money, and trust.

Aug 5, 2025

90% of Marketing is Scope Control in Disguise

Great marketing means doing less, but better. Scope control is how you do that, and it means you need to get really good at saying no.

Jul 28, 2025

Marketing Is Matchmaking, Not Manipulation

Marketing doesn’t mean lying, cheating, or deceiving. Find the right people and the right time and give them what they need. It’s matchmaking, not manipulation.

Jul 28, 2025

My Absurd, Winding Path To Building A Marketing Agency

If you think you know where your career is headed, you’re probably wrong. Here's how my failing board game business morphed into a successful marketing agency.

Read all

Practical Marketing From The Field

Most Recent

How Much Should You Spend on Google Ads? [2026 Budget Guide]

How To Measure Marketing Lift in 2026

How to Prioritize Marketing Channels When Resources Are Tight

The Secret To Killer Ads Is...The Scientific Method?

When Marketing Metrics Help (& When They Hurt)

How Do You Set Reasonable Marketing Benchmarks?

What Measurement Can't Do (And Why I Measure Anyway)

What SEO Can't Do (No Matter What You Pay)

How to Add Keywords to Your Website [2026 Guide]

12 Old-School Marketing Tricks You Should Know—Even in 2026

13 Weird Things They Don’t Tell You About Online Advertising

The Absolute State of Conversion Attribution in 2026

Questions to Ask Before Hiring an SEO Company [2026 Guide]

How Much Should SEO Cost? [2026 Guide]

SEO vs. Google Ads for Service Businesses [2026 Guide]

How To Tell If Your SEO Is Working

Is SEO Dead in 2026? No, But It's Definitely Weirder.

Do You Need a Rank Tracker? I Read 200+ SEO Threads To See.

SEO for Landscapers: What Wins Leads (Not Just Traffic)

HVAC Marketing: Where the Leads Come From

How Home Services Companies Know If Marketing Is Working

How to Rank a Service Area Business in Google

How to Audit Your SEO (Without Paying an Agency $5,000)

Which SEO Metrics Matter? A Framework for Service Businesses

Local SEO Heatmaps: What They Tell You (& What They Don’t)

Why Marketing Matters (And When It Doesn't)

How to Choose a Marketing Channel (Without Blowing Your Budget)

Is Digital Marketing Worth It? How To Know For Sure in 2026

How Much Does Content Marketing Cost? [2026 Pricing Guide]

How Much Does Direct Mail Marketing Cost in 2026?

How Much Marketing Budget Does A Startup Need?

What Types of Questions Can Marketing Attribution Answer?

How to Spy on Your Competitors’ Marketing Strategy

How to Choose a Digital Marketing Agency

Is Marketing Hard? Yes—Here's Why & What To Do About It.

Why Hire a Digital Marketing Agency?

The Marketing Tactics That Scale (And The Ones That Don't)

5 Marketing Questions I'm Asking Myself in 2026

3 Things That Made Marketing Harder in 2025

How To Know Your Marketing Is Working (Before Revenue Shows Up)

You Don't Have To Post To Social Media Every Day

How to Find the Right Marketing Metrics for Your Business

What Does An Honest Marketing Agency Look Like?

You Need A Marketing Pre-Flight Checklist

How to Test If Your Offer Is Any Good

Base Rates: Your Secret Weapon Against Marketing Mistakes

The Uncomfortable Truth About Marketing & Incentives

Explore or Exploit? Marketers: Know When To Do Each.

Small Business Owner: Here's How You Adapt To AI SEO

How to Tell If Your Leads Are Qualified (Without Fancy Software)

Your Customer’s Attention Span is Longer Than You Think

Marketing on Fire? Know When to Triage vs. Optimize

90% of Marketing is Scope Control in Disguise

Marketing Is Matchmaking, Not Manipulation

My Absurd, Winding Path To Building A Marketing Agency

Data-driven marketing advice for service business owners. Straight to your inbox.

Practical Marketing