The University of Kansas

Director of Marketing

Since 2009, MetroWire Media has been delivering highly relevant news to the Commercial Real Estate industry. Our digital newsletters contain the most up-to-date developments and announcements in the Kansas City, Saint Louis and Denver metro areas. Omaha COMING SOON!

More than just news, MetroWire Media is the go to source for CRE professionals to make lasting connections that drive business. Hosting As we expand into new metro areas, my role is to continue bringing the latest CRE news, updates and analysis to ensure our contributors, sponsors, advertisers and readers all benefit from our on-site events and content distribution.

MetroWire Media

Media & Marketing Director

The Marketing Group is all about helping small and medium sized businesses take back control of their marketing. With so many avenues to spend your money and time, it's no wonder owners are confused and frustrated. Let us help you answer the key questions that make your business thrive.

- Why do I do what I do?
- What is my story?
- Who is my customer?
- What is the value of a sale?
- How much can I spend to acquire a sale?
- What marketing efforts are working?
- Where should I spend my money?

At The Marketing Group we want to help you establish a brand presence that you believe in and so will your customers– an honest representation of why you do what you do that is consistent across all channels; social media, website, eCommerce, reviews, and more...
Then we will help you find customers, build responsive lists, and turn your data into loyal, frequent customers.
Lastly, we are invested in creating a plan within your budget where you are set for success! AND– it's easier and more affordable than you think.

the Marketing Group

Marketing/Sales Strategy Consultant

• Responsible for leading channel managers, as well as, outside agencies and  ~$18M budget management, overseeing the development of 2 new brands, including a subprime lending solution and a near prime loan product
• Oversaw the implementation of HubSpot as the company’s marketing automation platform, ensuring a seamless transition
• Performed mapping of all customer communication touch points from initial nurturing and awareness through loyalty and advocacy, identifying areas for new marketing opportunities
• Developed and launched attribution tracking into all marketing channels using UTM parameters, redirecting top traffic sources and driving conversion rates from 28% to 34%
• Led in expanding the organizational affiliate relationships from 2 partners to 10+, increasing traffic by 16% and purchased leads by 22% YoY
• Launched the implementation of innovative lead buying strategies increasing the acceptance rate, resulting in bumping funding up 19% YTD on pace to exceed organizational goals

Caliber Financial Services

Director, New Business & Partnerships

Oversaw the marketing and sales efforts across a family of 6 companies, building an internal team of graphic designers, inbound specialists, and campaign managers from scratch that was supplemented with outside vendors, delivering sales-qualified leads with a focus on attribution
• Migrated data stack into SharpSpring CRM and established marketing automation funnels, lead scoring and sales pipelines
• Responsible for the development of the growth strategy for LuLaRoe, supporting the representatives’ adoption of the SaaS product Wayroo
• Leveraged in-App push notifications and in-Software messaging to drive user awareness and increase adoption, expanding mobile point-of-sale use from 46% to 77% within 6 months and growing retail transactions by more than 2X, assisting in receiving recognition from Forbes as becoming the fastest business to reach $2B in sales in 4 years
• Developed a quarterly content strategy, focusing on research-driven white papers, infographics, and client spotlights
• Combined the digital marketing of Boutique Window with inventory management and social selling, creating a new brand, Wayroo.com
• Launched various CRO techniques optimizing websites, resulting in driving lead volume up 15% in less than 3 months

Retail Success

Head of Marketing & Sales

• Led a team of graphic designers and paid media managers, overseeing and optimizing all inbound traffic for dozens of fin-tech websites
• Oversaw the management of a search budget of more than $35K a day, consistently achieving organizational ROAS goals
• Responsible for leading the initiative to reposition the Money Mutual brand, establishing a focus on speed and trust, implementing a complete overhaul of all assets
• Directed the recruitment of new affiliates and managed the onboarding process, ensuring that traffic aligned with target markets
• Leveraged expertise to guide the creative team in developing and launching advertising that was fresh, relevant, and on brand
• Created a robust landing page strategy aligning content with ads, dramatically reducing bounce rates as well as causing conversions to skyrocket
• Constructed and launched an SMS campaign that scaled up to over $40K in monthly revenue, establishing a pace to exceed $600K ARR

Acquire Interactive, LLC

Vice President of Customer Acquisition

• Directly responsible for developing a monetization path for unsold leads in the personal loan and auto finance verticals, providing the ability to attract the right buyers for all leads
• Secured business relationships with a wide array of direct-to-consumer lenders, establishing a CPM/CPC marketplace to redirect unmonetized traffic, driving an additional $40K in monthly revenue
• Performed high-level negotiations concerning commission structures and purchase agreements, monetizing 95%+ of leads generated without compromising the lead integrity

Avenue Link

Business Development

• Managed the building of 3 new brands from the ground up, including naming, domain procurement, brand voice and positioning, logo creation, website design, marketing strategy, and deployment
• Utilized radio, SMS, email, and SEO in marketing the marijuana dispensary Buddy Boy Brands which grew to 8 locations within the Denver metro area, achieving a $4.2M monthly revenue within the first 6 months, far exceeding organizational goals
• Established an innovative merchant advance brand, Cap Assist, including naming, website design, UX, and content, and collaborated with Account and Sales executives to optimize lead generation focusing on CPA and loan repayment performance
• Oversaw the migration of the Canadian lending portfolio Cash Can Do over to the US, redesigning the website, adding individual state pages, performing trigger term audits, and completely overhauling all web and marketing content

Encompass Consulting Group, LLC

VP of Marketing

• Established a team consisting of affiliate managers, a graphic designer, an inbound marketing specialist, and a front-end web developer, overseeing website design, UX, conversion, and lead volume within aggressive CPA goals for over a dozen clients
• Led the team in utilizing affiliates, search, digital ads, email, SMS, and ringless voicemail, increasing lead volume 4X and growing revenue across all lending clients from $42M in 2010 to $218M in 2012
• Oversaw the development of the “Go Loan” customer loyalty program, generating a 30% increase in customer LTV within year 1

Rare Moon Media

Vice President Marketing

• Original team member working to build out AdStation, delivering a revolutionary PPC ad network with over 50K advertisers
• Collaborated with the advertiser team to establish an understanding of current ad budgets and bidding strategies, developing an affiliate publisher portfolio generating over $700K in revenue each month with a 20% margin within the first 18 months
• Established new sales areas that created opportunities to expand the business, onboarding dozens of new publishers

Adknowledge

Business Development Executive

• Focused on maintaining and growing current client relationships, identifying new opportunities for buying and selling leads
• Achieved the top sales position consistently in the 3 final quarters of tenure, including both lead volume and revenue generated
• Integral team member collaborating with client services and sales to ensure all requirements were met, including client budget allocation, traffic quality, and conversion rate

Brad Levene