Engagement Roadmap

Here's what I'm hearing

You've got 11,000 customers in your database and you're not marketing to them. That's the big one. You've got welders who bought a Miller two years ago, diesel fitters who grab consumables every month, mining contractors with standing orders — and none of them are getting an email when Makita drops a June EOFY special or GearWrench runs a toolbox promo.

The other gap is discoverability. A tradie new to the region, or someone out in Blackwater or Clermont, doesn't know CH Tools exists. They assume they'll have to freight something in from Rocky or order from Total Tools online. You're losing sales to people who don't know you're an option.

The webstore fixes part of that — it puts you on the map for search, gives people a way to browse your range after hours, and lets account holders reorder without a phone call. But the webstore won't grow itself. It needs the same rhythm the in-store promos have — email, social, Google Business Profile all working together, every month, consistently.

What's failed before is inconsistency. Marketing happened in bursts, then stopped. This time we're building a system that runs without you having to reinvent it every month.

Where you are right now

The bones are good. The Facebook page has 2,800 people — real locals, real tradies. The database has 11,000 contacts. The in-store relationships are strong. Suppliers trust you to execute their promos well.

What's missing is the connective tissue. The database isn't segmented, so you can't send a TIG welder promo to just the welders and fabricators. Social posts happen, but there's no content calendar tied to the supplier promo schedule. The Google Business Profile isn't being actively managed, so when someone searches "welding supplies Emerald" you're not showing up with recent posts, fresh photos, and a reason to choose you over Mitre 10.

The webstore isn't live yet, so right now you're invisible to anyone searching "Milwaukee dealer Emerald" or "tool shop Central Highlands" who expects to be able to browse and buy online.

The opportunity

June is the biggest month of the year. EOFY and tax time — every tradie with a bit of cashflow is looking to spend before June 30. The supplier promos are lined up. This is the window.

Beyond June, the rhythm matters more than the individual campaigns. Tradies don't impulse-buy a $4k welder. They buy when the need lines up with the promo. Your job is to stay front-of-mind so when that moment comes — the old impact driver dies, the apprentice needs a new kit, the site supervisor is speccing tools for a new crew — CH Tools is the first name they think of.

The webstore changes the game for discovery. Someone in Blackwater searching "DeWalt Emerald" at 9pm on a Sunday finds you, browses your range, and either buys online or walks in Monday morning already sold. You're no longer limited to foot traffic and word-of-mouth.

The 11,000-strong database is the other big lever. Segmented properly — welders, sparkies, diesel fitters, mining contractors, ag operators — you can send targeted promos that feel relevant, not spammy. A welder opens an email about a Miller Multimatic deal. A diesel fitter sees the Snap-on diagnostic tool promo. Both convert higher because it's actually for them.

What that looks like with us

Your website and webstore

The vision is Industrial Shed — that clean, trade-focused aesthetic. Big product photography, simple navigation, filtering by trade and by brand. It feels like a real tool supplier, not a generic Shopify template.

But it's built for how your customers actually buy. Trade account holders log in and see their pricing. New customers can browse and add to cart as guest or retail. Product pages are set up properly — specs, compatible accessories, related products, stock visibility where it makes sense.

The site does three jobs:

• •Discoverability — someone searching "HiKOKI Emerald" or "welding helmet Central Queensland" lands on a product page, not a generic homepage. Every product is a potential entry point.
• •After-hours browsing — tradies sitting in the ute at smoko or at home in the evening can check your range, compare models, and either buy online or know exactly what to ask for when they walk in.
• •Reordering for account holders — regulars who buy the same consumables every month (cutting discs, drill bits, gloves) can reorder without a phone call. Saves them time, saves your counter staff time.

Product setup is staged — we don't try to upload 10,000 SKUs on day one. We start with the hero categories (power tools, tool storage, welding, hand tools) and the products tied to active supplier promos. Then we fill in the rest progressively, prioritising by search volume and margin.

The backend integrates with your trade account system so account holders see their pricing and terms. Stock levels sync so you're not selling things you don't have. Checkout is set up for both guest purchases and account holder orders.

Post-launch, we manage the monthly updates — new supplier promos go live as product features, seasonal campaigns get their own landing pages, blog posts target the search terms tradies are actually using ("best impact driver for mining work," "how to choose a MIG welder").

Your marketing system

This is where the database and the promo calendar come together. Every month has a plan — what's being promoted, who it's going to, what the message is, and how it shows up across email, social, and Google.

We start by segmenting the 11,000 contacts by trade. Welders and fabricators in one group. Sparkies in another. Diesel fitters, plumbers, ag operators, mining contractors, general trades — each group gets its own tag. That way when you've got a Lincoln Electric promo, it goes to the welders. When it's a Fluke multimeter special, it goes to the sparkies and auto electricians.

The rhythm is weekly emails during promo-heavy months (May–August, November–December) and fortnightly the rest of the year. Each email is short, visual, and trade-focused. No corporate waffle. "Miller Multimatic on special — $700 off until June 30. In stock now." With a product shot, the price, and a clear CTA.

Facebook and Instagram follow the same calendar. Posts go out 4–5 times a week during active promo periods — product highlights, supplier brand content, job site photos (with permission), the occasional how-to or comparison post. Reels for tool demos and unboxings — this stuff performs well with younger tradies and apprentices. Stories for quick promos, stock arrivals, and counter conversations.

Google Business Profile gets updated weekly — new posts highlighting current promos, fresh product photos, replies to reviews (every single one), and regular updates to your services and categories so you show up for the right searches.

The whole system is documented in a monthly content calendar. You'll see what's being promoted, when it's going out, and what the creative looks like before it goes live. No surprises. No scrambling.

• •Database segmentation — 11,000 contacts tagged by trade so every promo hits the right audience
• •Email calendar — weekly during promo season, fortnightly rest of year, tied to supplier promo schedule
• •Social content plan — 4–5 posts per week, Reels for demos and unboxings, Stories for quick hits
• •Google Business Profile active management — weekly posts, review replies, photo updates, search term optimisation
• •Supplier promo execution — May–August calendar activated across all channels with consistent messaging
• •June EOFY/Tax Time campaign — the big one, fully coordinated across email/social/Google to capitalise on the highest-revenue month
• •Monthly performance snapshot — email opens and clicks, social reach and engagement, Google profile views and actions, website traffic by source

Ongoing partnership and support

You're not buying a website and being left to figure it out. You're getting a system that runs month-to-month, with someone in your corner who understands the trade supply game and knows what actually works in regional Queensland.

Every month we update the content calendar based on the supplier promo schedule. New products get added to the webstore. Email campaigns go out. Social posts go live. Google gets updated. You review and approve, we execute.

When something changes — a supplier drops a flash sale, freight delays push a promo back, a competitor opens nearby — we adapt the plan in real time. You're not locked into a strategy that's out of date two months in.

The weekly check-ins keep it on track. We'll talk about what's working (email open rates up, Google traffic spiking for a specific search term), what's not (Instagram engagement flat, webstore cart abandonment high), and what to prioritise next month.

You'll have a project dashboard where everything lives — content calendar, campaign performance, website analytics, upcoming tasks. No email chains, no lost attachments. One place, always up to date.

Phase 1 — Webstore build, database segmentation, June EOFY campaign execution (May–June) Phase 2 — Ongoing monthly marketing system launch, content calendar rhythm established (July onwards) Phase 3 — Optimisation based on first 90 days of data, refine messaging and targeting (October)

What happens next

We'll send through a formal roadmap and service agreement for sign-off. Once that's locked in and the deposit's through, we kick off mid-May — tight timeline to get the June EOFY campaign live and the database segmented before the end of the month.

You'll get access to your project dashboard immediately. First check-in is the week we start. Let's get this thing moving.