Acquisent

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CIO of Allunac, an IT managed services provider. We work with various SMBs.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

My partner and I are very technical, but we struggled with marketing. So, we needed to bring a partner on board who understood our industry and could help us develop our business.  

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed a business development strategy and contacted leads. Sometimes we created a list of leads, but they often compiled the leads themselves. Then they contacted people on the list. Occasionally they recommended we explore other marketing tactics.

What is the team composition?

Adam was our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

Adam approached me through LinkedIn.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in October 2020 and we paused operations around the holidays. We discovered that we weren’t ready to expand yet, so we’re working on things internally and plan to engage with Toledo Capital Advisors again in the future.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

They did bring in a few clients, which we have been able to maintain. We would like to work with them again in the future.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

We added them to our internal Microsoft Teams chat, but we also used email., phone, and WhatsApp. We were in constant contact with them, so they were able to ask questions when needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their outreach methods are very effective. I was impressed by how they reached out to potential clients on our behalf. They follow their own process when contacting leads.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There didn’t seem to be any problems.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take them up on their offer. They’re excellent.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO of a health and wellness startup. We provide an online virtual session engine, which matches instructors with clients looking for wellness and health services.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

We engaged Toledo for market research and consulting services.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The first thing we worked with Toledo on was market research. We went to them to see how and where we could fit in the space, and then they did some consulting in terms of positioning the startup in the market and the social media marketing sphere, like which best tools to leverage.

Eventually, the team also wrote some blogs and provided backlinking services. They curated a little bit of content-specific targets, but the bulk of work they did was with the blogs and leveraging SEO within them.

What is the team composition?

I had direct contact with Adam (President), and I’m not sure how many people from his team have been involved.

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

Toledo reached out to us. We did some research and gave it a shot with them.

How much have you invested with them?

I believe we paid them a retainer of $2,500–$3,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since June 2020. We finished the first phase of the contract at the end of January, and once the launch is complete, we’ll probably go back to them for analytics consulting.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We can only analyze the traffic once we go live, and we haven’t launched yet, so we don’t have metrics. Anecdotally, we’re impressed with their work. 

Adam has a lot of industry knowledge, and he’ll listen to what we want and fight to ensure that we’re doing the right work for our company. He’s not a yes man, which is something we appreciate. He’s passionate about what we’re doing.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

All of our communication took place virtually: emails, phone calls, and video conferences.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Toledo is very professional and their team has excellent training.

Are there any areas they could improve?

A bit more communication back and forth might have helped the outcome be a bit more collaborative.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Set up communication expectations at the beginning of the project. Make sure you have set discussions or meetings to review progress.

Toledo delivered the job when it was due and in the context of what we wanted, but we weren’t a part of how it got there, which would’ve been important for us.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the former project managers of an IT company. We were an antivirus and a distribution software company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

We were scaling and looking to grow, which is where Adam’s (President) expertise came in and helped with tracking the right numbers and having the right metrics in place to build strategies so a scaling plan could be achieved.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Toledo Capital Advisors helped us with marketing strategies. At that time, I took care of the execution, and in that capacity, I was in communication with Adam a lot. They helped us with financial projections and understanding key metrics especially with respect to media buying and marketing spend. We’re in a digital world where we have products that people are using on their computers. This is where the marketing shifts from being more digital-focused and where Adam’s specialty is.

He came in and helped us with that to identify the right metrics we should be looking at to have a stronger user base. They also helped us with identifying the kind of spend and marketing campaigns we should be doing. There is a lot of competitor research that needs to be done, which is where they also helped us. By doing that, Toledo Capital Advisors helped us identify opportunities in the marketplace that could help us go and tap in on those opportunities.

Adam has a lot of financial experience which helped us with identifying the right KPI. This is very important in our industry because if we’re not tracking or going after the right KPI, our campaigns might not be performing because we aren’t looking at the right KPI. This is where Toledo Capital Advisors came in and helped us a lot because they have good experience dealing with financials. Their team helped us understand and accordingly came up with the right KPIs which are directly related to our business objectives. 

What is the team composition?

I only worked with Adam. I’m sure there were others behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

We used to be three sister companies working on the same premises. We worked very closely with each other because of the nature of our business. Toledo Capital Advisors was recommended to us by one of our internal stakeholders. We reached out to Adam and started working with them.

How much have you invested in them?

We’ve invested within the range of $20,000–$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from March–December 2018. If we have a need in the future, we will definitely go back.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We had monthly financial review meetings, this is where we’d get updates on initiatives and projects we were working on with Adam. We were happy with the service they provided, and it had a positive impact on our business.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management went very well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Whenever Adam presented in financial meetings — whether it was the progress or the outcome of the research he had done — there was a good amount of clarity in the area that he was trying to pitch which is based on research.

Adam has expertise in it. He has mastered his knowledge, and one of the good things is that he does his research before giving any suggestions or trying to pitch an idea. With the experience that he has, I see him as an expert. He is able to bring up ideas with a good amount of background information and supporting data or information to validate that.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Start with the goal you’re trying to achieve with your project outlining why you are doing it and what it means for you. If you communicate that aspect to them, they’ll be clear on what you’re expecting. Then, they can work around a plan that actually suits what you’re looking at as an ultimate goal.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My role is in sales for a footwear company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

We needed some consulting done, so we hired Toledo Capital Advisors.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team consults on many issues for us. This includes business decisions, next steps, negotiations, and other aspects of our business. 

What is the team composition?

I work with Adam (CEO).

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

A friend recommended I reach out to them. Adam and I talked, which led me to really like the insight he had to offer.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $4,000–$5,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in July 2020 and our engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Since we started working with Toledo Capital Advisors, we’ve seen improvement in the business. We have several repeat customers and the advice their team has given is valuable. They bring creativity and a fresh perspective in various situations.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very responsive. We communicate via email, phone, and FaceTime.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Adam is confident and honest in his approach. He’s good at seeing the bigger picture, which has helped me learn to do that more.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s not really anything to improve. Adam isn’t very flexible and he likes things done his way, but it isn’t really a negative aspect since he has proven to be right so far.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Expect a lot of constructive criticism.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-owner of an organization that manufactures and sources shipping bags for e-commerce companies. Most of our sales are plastic poly mailers, but we also do cardboard and paper bags.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

We wanted to break into larger e-commerce retailers and companies both here in Canada and the US. The challenge we faced was being able to be in front of these larger companies that are shipping a million–2 million units a year.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We helped guide them about what we do and who we were going after. Toledo Capital Advisors identified a prospect list. After we reviewed that list, they went ahead and did their introductions.

What is the team composition?

Adam (CEO) is our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

It was through a referral. One of my business associates had worked with Adam on another project, and I had mentioned that I was looking to grow the business. They recommended that I reach out to Toledo Capital Advisors.

We ended up meeting in my backyard because of COVID-19. I liked their energy, moxie, and process. Adam was open to listening and working with us. He also understood the market right away. We saw it as a fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested about $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Toledo Capital Advisors in April 2020. It’s an ongoing engagement.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We weren’t only able to successfully open the door for new prospects, but we started receiving quotations to fill our pipeline and generating orders to grow our business. The pipeline mattered the most to me. I didn’t want 100 companies that had 5,000 sales; I wanted ten companies to do a couple hundred thousand in sales. Within three months, Adam built the pipeline to $1 million.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

All of our meetings are through phone calls each week. We also communicate through e-mail regarding proposals and strategies.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their clear communication stands out. Adam is prompt and efficient.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I tell him that he always goes after the whales and that he should try to go after some of the middle-market companies. I tell him to hit some singles and doubles and to not just go for the home runs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice would be to be clear in your goals. Explain your product, services, and competitive advantage clearly, and then give him a target.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a house cleaning company. We take care of cleaning, handyman services, landscaping, and other things.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toledo Capital Advisors?

I wanted help clarifying my business idea. In my head, I had a vision, but I didn’t know how to deploy it practically speaking.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They were key in helping me describe my business model and value proposition. For each segment of the business, we figured out the value proposition we wanted, and then we worked on the financial model. For those initial months, we really defined what we were going to do. Once it became clear, we started with marketing. We built the first part of our website and figured how we are going to reach out to the customer.

What is the team composition?

I worked with one person.

How did you come to work with Toledo Capital Advisors?

I knew Adam (CEO) previously. I had met him and I liked that he is confident. He is young and smart, and I liked his profile and the fact that he was able to bring such a variety of skills to a company like mine. He had experience at a large consulting firm with mergers and acquisitions was good.

How much have you invested in them?

Our initial commitment was $5,000, and after the initial launch, whenever he worked, he would just send me the bill.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

After a few weeks, we started to acquire new customers. Adam pushes and wants to keep moving. It might be too much for my team, but for me, it has been good. He is very confident and there is no gray area – it is black and white. Overall, I’m happy with their work.

How did Toledo Capital Advisors perform from a project management standpoint?

We have used email, but WhatsApp is usually what we use to communicate. We share links and ideas.

What did you find most impressive about them?

You just feel like they’re part of your company.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make yourself available and find a way to digest everything. Adam is so driven and he will keep giving you information and ideas. Don’t be afraid to let him know when you want to put the breaks on something.