100% agency expertise.
10% of the cost.
If you're a sub-£10k p/m ecommerce business, we're here to help.
Get expert-level support at every stage of your growth journey as you start to see the benefit of Meta + Google Ads on your business.
Sign up to our initial taster sessions to see how our Growth Academy Programme can grow your business at a fraction of the monthly cost of an agency.
Ongoing agency expertise at a fraction of the cost of a monthly retainer
Access the same knowledge + advice we provide to our 7/8 figure clients
Weekly group AMA sessions + monthly 1-2-1 calls to tailor advice directly to your business
Instant access to the full 12 weeks of learning materials to start implementing from day 1
Grow your e-commerce business with support + oversight from a range of agency experts
Access routes to funding at the end of the course with our exclusive partnership with Prime Advantage Capital Partners
For 90% of e-commerce businesses, the agency model is broken
Smaller e-commerce businesses, with sole founders, need the most external support to achieve growth through digital marketing.
We call this an inverse time paradox:
a fancy way of saying that the greater the need a small business has for external expertise, the less likely they are to be able to afford it.
So what can you do to achieve that initial growth past £10k per month?
You can either do your own Meta + Google Ads, investing your precious time and energy learning how to run ads with no guarantee of success, wasting vital cash in the process.
Or you take the plunge with an agency, investing well over 50-100% of your monthly revenue into the ad spend and agency - again with no guarantee of success.
But what if there was a way to get the expertise needed to grow your business while paying 10% of a monthly retainer?
IMPROVE YOUR OWN META + GOOGLE ADS IN 12 WEEKS WITH THE RIGHT EXPERTISE TO HELP YOU GROW
Our Growth Academy Programme (GAP) will teach you (almost) everything we know from 12+ years growing e-commerce businesses.
Program Benefits
Full Funnel Knowledge
The GAP covers everything your business needs to grow, from Google + Facebook fundamentals through to advanced creative + growth strategies.
Access to Experts
You'll be learning from agency experts in digital marketing with over 20+ years of experience. The programme also gives you access to various subject matter experts in e-mail, creative, CRO + funding.
1-2-1 Agency Support
Not only will you get agency support on group learning sessions, you'll also get a monthly 1-2-1 call with our strategists where you'll get agency level advice tailored directly to your business needs.
Instant Knowledge
We understand that different founders will have different levels of knowledge. That's why all learning materials for the full 12 weeks are available from Day 1 so you can start implementing more advanced strategies as soon as you join.
Founder Community
Learn from fellow e-commerce founders as to how they overcame similar challenges that your business faces as well as tips, tactics and strategies they used to achieve growth.
Routes to Funding
Through a partnership with Prime Advantage Capital Partners, who work specifically with small, sole founder e-commerce businesses, you'll have exclusive access to different funding options + support for your business.
Who We Are
Who We Are
Big agency expertise, delivered to smaller businesses that need it most
Hey, I'm Sam, the Growth Academy Programme Lead as well as founder of Atomic Clock.
Atomic Clock is a Meta + Google Ads agency for 7/8 figure e-commerce brands looking to definitely prove the value of their social and digital advertising.
I've also worked as a social + digital marketing consultant for brands like NFL UK, Sky, De Beers, Tetra Pak, Innocent Drinks.
I set up the DIY Programme for two reasons.
1) Small e-commerce businesses need the most time + support from experts as you both try + figure out your business. This expertise is often unfairly out of budget for most sole founders.
2) At Atomic Clock, we've encountered these challenges with smaller e-commerce businesses time and time again. Trust us, when I say the best use of your precious resource is to upskill yourself with expert advice to guide you.
Client Testimonials
Atomic Clock worked with us on our Facebook advertising and how to make the most of our data.
They were super insightful and we were very impressed by their knowledge, their analysis of the metrics, and how they turned them into valuable business insights.
Anna Clare
Innocent
Atomic Clock’s knowledge across Meta Ads has been key in driving traffic and sales to our sites and we are currently selling more than our projections.
They have always been flexible and responsive. I can highly recommend working with them or all your social media advertising needs.
Colena Abbosh
Ora Household Towels
Atomic Clock’s efforts improved our CPC and click-through rates. The team was professional, flexible, and experienced. Moreover, they delivered on time and budget and communicated clearly.
Their personalised service and high-quality output made them an outstanding partner.
Oliver Lea
BIB Wines
I had a great experience with Sam and his team. his knowledge and the attention to details were amazing.
Anyone who is looking for all around support whether is social media or website design, Atomic Clock are the team to work with.
Dror Vakrat
Varkat
Atomic Clock's efforts boosted followers and likes across all social media platforms for the client. The team swiftly and seamlessly adapted to the project's evolving needs.
Their easy-going collaboration style, responsiveness, clear communication, adaptability, and dedication contributed to the project's success.
Jenni Seddon
Sanelo
We had a really positive experience working with Atomic Clock.
They were thorough and professional throughout, with an excellent understanding of the platforms we were advertising on and how to execute a strategy that optimised every penny we had to spend. Highly recommend.
Chris Miller
Becon
I have worked with Sam and Atomic Clock over several years and across a number of businesses. In what has increasingly become a challenging market and with few, easy wins,
I have always found Sam's integrity, expertise and all round contribution to be crucial reasons to have him on the team.
Greg Tufnell
Prime Advantage Capital Partners
Atomic Clock were paramount in assisting us start our social media marketing journey.
With their excellent management and clear reporting, they helped us steer our marketing in the right direction and without this we wouldn't be heading in the right direction that we are today.
Charlie Pothecary
Follo App
Excellent people to work with, Sam was a dream to work with and was very transparent with everything we could achieve, which is rare.
Amandeep Panglin
Alchemy Oils
WHO WE'VE WORKED WITH AT ATOMIC CLOCK
Innocent Drinks
BOL Foods
Ora Household Towels
De Beers
Invisalign
Cornell University
FaceGym
Chinti & Parker
Blooming Haus
Craft Gin Club
Saga Travel
CabinZero
Thames City
Park Hyatt London
Hamptons
Who The Growth Academy Benefits Most?
Sole or Dual Founder of a D2C business
Business has subscription model or subscribe + save aspect to the business model
Doing between £5-15k monthly revenue
Running Meta and/or Google Ads yourself and either don't have time or can't make them work
Struggled to find agency or freelance support that you can trust
Pre-funding Startups trying to prove an MVP or MVB (minimum viable business)
All sectors welcome. Our experience centres around Food + Drink, Retail, Fashion, Accessories, Supplements + Wellness
If that all sounds familiar, then sign up for one of our Taster Sessions to find out more about the course.
WEEK BY WEEK COURSE OVERVIEW
Week 1 - Meta + Google Fundamentals
If you don't nail the basics, you'll be sunk.
Week 1 looks at how you can make Meta + Google Ads work best for your business, broad strategic advice you can implement from Week 1, and how to get your accounts into top shape for scale.
What You'll Learn
How to best use Meta + Google Ads together with a small budget
5 core ad types that you can start applying to your ads from Week 1
How to correctly implement your Pixel, Conversions API, Custom Events
How to choose the right Campaign Types for your business objectives
How to protect your accounts against hackers
Week 2 - Campaign Set up (Meta)
How your campaigns are structured in Meta is crucial for performance.
Week 2 looks at how the auction system works in Meta + the best way for Small Businesses to set up their campaigns and ads within Meta to ensure you're as competitive as possible.
What You'll Learn
Deep dive into how the Meta Auction system works
The difference between CBO, ASC, ADV+ campaigns; pros + cons of A/B testing
Why account simplification is the best thing you can do for your business.
How to make your campaigns as effective with limited pixel data.
Understanding on how + when to use Retargeting on a limited budget
Week 3 - Campaign Set up (Google)
Google's leaning big into AI and automation - which should be music to the ears of a time poor sole founder.
Week 3 explores the best way to utilise Google's modern campaign set up to deliver profitable, scaled results for your business.
What You'll Learn
What Google's Campaign set up looks like + how best to apply these
How to view different PMAX placements for maximum performance
How + when to start using bidding controls to drive profitability
How to enrich your PMAX campaigns with better content
How + when to use traditional Search campaigns with limited budgets
Week 4 - Targeting (Meta)
Despite what you might have heard, audience targeting is still a thing in Meta.
Week 4 looks at the modern set up for audience targeting, why interest audiences are still relevant for newer businesses, and what role Retargeting can play with a smaller budget.
What You'll Learn
How to maximise performance potential when your Pixel is low on data
How + when to use ASC campaigns for new + existing customer acquisition
How + when to use Retargeting audiences when traffic is low
How to create Custom Audiences + how to use these
How to maximise use of your existing customer data
Week 5 - Creative Excellence (Image)
You'll hear this a lot. But creative is the most important part of your Meta Ads.
Week 5 looks at how to create image ads at scale, how to maximise their value across Meta + Google Ads, as well as best in class examples from some of the leading D2C brands.
What You'll Learn
How to set up effective testing frameworks for image ads
How to make these yourself and at scale without it costing you a fortune
How the leading D2C brands set up their image ads at scale
How to use 5 core ad types within your image ads
How to maximise your image ad creation across Meta + Google Ads
Week 6 - Creative Excellence (Video)
The beauty of modern advertising is that every single brand owner can make video ads now,
Week 6 looks at how small D2C founders can be their greatest asset to their video ads + how to create a range of video ads without it costing you a fortune in time or money.
What You'll Learn
How you as a a founder will be the best asset to your video advertising
How leading D2C brands are embracing "messy ads"
How you can create multiple variants of ads from content you can shoot at home
How to use 5 core ad types within your video ads
How platforms like Kapwing can elevate the look + feel of your ads, efficiently
Week 7 - Creative Excellence (UGC)
User Generated Content (UGC) can provide amazing traction for small D2C brands.
Week 7 looks at the different options you have from a UGC perspective, how to maximise its effectiveness, without being ripped off, and different ways to scale your use of UGC.
What You'll Learn
How UGC works among customers, content creators + Influencers
How to source UGC from each of these partners effectively - at scale
How you can apply the 5 core ad types to UGC content creation
How to avoid wasting time + products by selecting the wrong UGC partners
How to maximise the value of your UGC in your own ads
Week 8 - Creative Excellence (Copy)
Copywriting + messaging is crucial - particularly when you have milliseconds to get across your brand.
Week 8 looks at how to best communicate with your target audience across all ad types and how best to test these amongst your target audiences.
What You'll Learn
How to effectively communicate with your audiences in social ads
How to apply these principles across your image, video and UGC ads
How to use the 5 core ad types to inform your ad messaging creation
How to create effective hook + angle tests within your image + video ads
How (and why) leading D2C brands communicate with their audiences
Week 9 - Landing Pages + CRO
A great ad cannot save a bad landing page experience. But a good landing page experience can save a bad ad.
Week 9 looks at the importance of landing pages + the post-click experience and how you should create + structure your landing pages.
What You'll Learn
How to set up effective, high converting Landing Pages
How to structure these with rich, informative content
How to utilise your ad content within your landing page for optimal results
How leading D2C brands use landing pages
How to utilise Offers within landing pages for best results
Week 10 - Offer Creation + Upsells
Every discount is an Offer. But not every Offer is a discount.
Week 10 looks at the different Offer types you should be testing within your D2C business and how + when to apply these in key trading periods (like Black Friday) and throughout the year.
What You'll Learn
How to apply different Offers (discounts, upsells, cross-sells, spend goals etc.)
How to use Offer apps easily test Offers within the Shopping experience
How to use different Offers at different points of the customer journey
How leading D2C brands are using Offers to maximise success
How to use your email marketing activity around key Offer periods
Week 11 - Tracking Masterclass
Tracking + reporting might seem boring or complicated. But good tracking leads to better ad performance.
Week 11 looks at the detail behind your tracking, reporting and, most importantly, how nailing these elements can lead to improved ad performance.
What You'll Learn
How to ensure your tracking + reporting is working within your Meta + Google Ads
How tracking works within Meta + Google and 3rd party platforms like GA4
How to use 3rd party attribution platforms for a rich view of performance
How to use Custom Conversions for more complicated customer journeys
How leading D2C brands track + attribute their data
Week 12 - Funding Options
With all the skills you've picked up your business should be in a good position - but is it investor ready?
Week 12 looks at the investability of your business through our partnership with Prime Advantage Capital Partners.
What You'll Learn
How to get your business into an "investor ready" state
What metrics and KPIs investors typically look for when funding
How you can use the skills learnt within the programme to optimise these KPIs
How to create the right pitch decks that investors want to see
How to take your business forward through investment
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE GROWTH ACADEMY
CAN I JOIN AT ANY TIME?
We currently run the GAP on monthly cohorts and you'll be given dates in the Taster Sessions for when each Cohort starts. These typically run from the start of the month, so if you're interested now, you'll likely need to wait until the next Cohort starts?
CAN'T YOU JUST RUN OUR ADS FOR US?
We are always open to working with GAP participants and we are always very happy to have that conversation. Typically, we would look to run an initial audit on your current ad performance, creative production capabilities, commercial performance (AOV, LTV, Conversion Rates) before confirming that we can help run your ads for you. From this audit we can determine if it would be suitable to work together.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
The GAP has a monthly cost of £350+VAT per month. This equates to around 10% of our monthly retainer for clients who we provide Meta, Google and Creative Strategy for. Participants are able to pay this in monthly installments or pay up front for a 10% discount.
CAN I GET A REFUND IF I DON'T LIKE THE COURSE?
If you are paying monthly, then you can stop paying for the remaining months of the programme at any point. We will charge in full for the month that you are pausing in, so if you do decide it's not for you, then we would need to know before the end of each month. For upfront payments, we will refund you the amount you have left on the course, minus 2 weeks pro rata cost of the cost as an early exit fee.
CAN YOU GUARANTEE RESULTS AND GROWTH?
In short, no and we are very wary of courses or professional learning programmes with guaranteed results. As so much of our advice depends on functions of your business - your website, your ad content, your product pricing etc. - we can never guarantee that the advice we give can always generate results. That said, we've worked with countless businesses - both big and small - and have helped dozens to grow. So we are confident that we can help point you in the right direction.
WHAT CAN I EXPECT FROM THE TASTER SESSION?
This is a short 30 min call held twice a week where you'll have an opportunity to hear more about the GAP from Sam. This will cover more detail on what the GAP covers, the benefits it can bring to you as a sole founder and details on when Cohorts will begin. It will also give you an opportunity to ask to cover specific points in detail, giving you a more personalised learning experience than other courses out there.
IS THERE A COST FOR THE TASTER SESSION?
The Taster Session this is completely free.
CAN I GET MORE TIME WITH EXPERTS ON TOP OF WHAT THE GAP PROVIDES?
Absolutely - both Sam and the full Atomic Clock team are on hand to help with anything in detail that you'd like to discuss. We can also introduce you to our range of subject matter experts that you may encounter on the GAP and you can arrange for separate consultancy time with them.
HOW DOES THE PARTNERSHIP WITH PRIME ADVANTAGE CAPITAL PARTNERS (PACP) WORK?
We will introduce you to a partner from Prime Advantage in the Week 12 session. They will provide an overview of the work they do at PACP and how they help sole founders access funding through their Investment Ready programme. This is not multi-level marketing or pitch for another course. It's designed to help founders and businesses get their business into a position where they can start seriously pitching investors for 6 / 7 figure investments.
