How it works

From free review to always-on partnership.

Every partnership starts the same way: we run the audit, you see the truth, we decide together whether we’re the right fit. No pressure. No premature scoping. Just the honest picture and a clear next step.

The five stages

What actually happens, from first contact to first optimization.

01

Free ad review (5-7 business days)

You give us read-only access to your Google + Meta accounts. We run the full AdellaInsight audit — every relevant widget across attribution, campaigns, creative, retention, and financial performance. A senior US strategist writes the 20-30 page strategic brief with prioritized findings. Delivered with a 45-minute working call to walk through what we found and what we’d change.

Qualifies at $15K+/mo ad spend, D2C on Shopify, decision-maker on the call. This is real strategic work — we do it whether you engage us afterward or not.

02

Scoping call (30 minutes)

You’ve read the brief. You have questions. We answer them. If the Performance Engine fits your business, we walk through the engagement terms: zero retainer, 15% of ad spend, 10% of the growth we create, six-month commitment, senior US strategist assigned. If we’re not the right fit, we’ll tell you and often point you somewhere better.

No pressure. No follow-up drip sequence. If it’s right, it’s obvious.

03

Onboarding (weeks 1-2)

Full access provisioned. AdellaInsight connected to your Google Ads, Meta Ads, Shopify, GA4, Klaviyo (if in scope), and any other channels in your mix. Your dashboard populates within 48 hours. The baseline is set — the rolling 90-day pre-Adella revenue reference against which growth is measured. Your assigned strategist meets with your team, learns your brand, understands your priorities. Incrementality testing framework agreed for month-3 attribution validation.

04

Nightly optimization + weekly review

The Action Engine runs every night. Fatigued creative flagged and paused. Zombie ads and keywords killed. Budget reallocated to marginal ROAS. Your strategist reviews every decision the next morning and either confirms, overrides, or escalates. Weekly 30-minute call to walk through performance, upcoming priorities, and any strategic questions. Slack channel with your account team for anything in between.

The engine handles the tactical grind. Your strategist handles strategic judgment. That’s the split.

05

Monthly + quarterly reviews

Monthly strategic summary: what changed, what worked, what didn’t, what’s next. Quarterly business review with your executive team: full P&L reconciliation, growth attribution validated via incrementality tests, roadmap for the coming quarter. Growth commission calculated and invoiced monthly against the validated incremental revenue.

The daily rhythm

What actually happens every day.

EVERY NIGHT (AUTOMATED)

AdellaInsight decides. Actions logged.

  • Every campaign scored on marginal ROAS, contribution margin, fatigue signal
  • Creative rotation: fatigued assets paused, winners boosted
  • Budget reallocated across platforms based on marginal returns
  • Zombie ads and zombie keywords killed
  • Bid adjustments based on conversion probability and expected LTV
  • Anomaly detection: spend spikes, ROAS drops, fraud flags, stockout risks
  • Monthly forecast updated with real-time run rate
  • All decisions logged to your dashboard with rationale in plain English
EVERY MORNING (HUMAN)

Your strategist reviews. You get context.

  • Senior US strategist reviews every engine decision from the previous night
  • Confirms, overrides, or escalates based on strategic judgment
  • Flags anything that needs your input via Slack or email
  • Adjusts strategy based on business context the engine doesn’t have (launches, promos, PR, seasonality)
  • Prepares weekly summary and next-priority actions
  • On the phone for anything urgent
Reporting cadence

Real communication. Not dashboard theater.

Live dashboard 24/7. Weekly working call. Monthly written summary. Quarterly business review. Slack channel for anything in between. All the surfaces communication actually needs — without turning our team into report-writers instead of operators.

  • Live dashboardEvery metric, every widget, every decision the engine made. Available to your team 24/7.
  • Weekly working call (30 min)What happened, what’s next, what needs your input. Not a status update — a working session.
  • Monthly summaryA written brief covering the month’s performance, key decisions, wins, misses, and coming priorities.
  • Quarterly business reviewDeep dive with your executive team. Growth attribution validated. Roadmap for the next quarter.
  • Slack channelYour account team accessible for anything in between. Response within business hours.
MONTH 3

Incrementality validation

The 90-day baseline is now three months old. We run the incrementality test: geo-lift or holdout study depending on your brand. Purpose: validate that the growth we’re claiming is incremental to what would have happened without us. The result becomes the source of truth for growth commission calculations from that point forward.

Nobody does this at the SMB D2C tier. We build it into the engagement from day one because our commercial model depends on defensible attribution.

What we need from you

The engagement, from your side.

The partnership works when you’re a real partner. Here’s what we’ll need — upfront, honestly, so you know what you’re signing up for.

ACCESS

Read + admin on your accounts

Google Ads (admin), Meta Business Manager (admin), Shopify (staff w/ orders + analytics), GA4 (admin), Klaviyo (if in scope). Standard agency access levels.

CONTEXT

Brand + strategy briefing

Onboarding session where you walk us through your brand, category, competitive landscape, and near-term priorities. Two hours, upfront.

DECISIONS

Someone with authority

Weekly calls with someone equipped to make decisions. Not a marketing coordinator relaying to a founder. The founder or a real marketing leader.

CREATIVE PIPELINE

Something the engine can rotate

If we’re only running your ads and not producing creative, you need a creative team or freelance pipeline producing fresh assets. Alternatively, add our creative retainer.

MEASUREMENT INFRA

Server-side tracking, ideally

Meta CAPI and GA4 server-side events matter more than ever post-iOS 14.5. If yours isn’t set up, we’ll flag it in the free review and can build it as a project.

INCREMENTALITY

Willingness to test

Our commercial model depends on validated incrementality. That means running holdout groups or geo-lift tests starting month 3. Non-negotiable for the Performance Engine.

Straight answers

What everyone asks.

What exactly does zero retainer mean?

It means we don’t charge a monthly fee for the Performance Engine engagement. Not $500. Not $1. Zero. We’re paid 15% of your ad spend as management fee (billed monthly against what you actually spent), and 10% of the growth we create above your pre-Adella baseline (calculated after incrementality validation).

How is the growth commission calculated?

We establish a rolling 90-day baseline of your pre-Adella revenue when the engagement starts. Growth is calculated as revenue above that baseline. The 10% commission is applied to that incremental amount. Starting month 3, we validate the growth via incrementality testing (holdout groups or geo-lift). The validated incremental amount becomes the source of truth from that point forward.

What if you don’t grow us?

Then we don’t earn a growth commission. And if we’re not growing you materially by the six-month mark, we should probably part ways — the model doesn’t work for either of us. The six-month commitment gives us time to earn our seat; after that, month-to-month.

Do you take on brands with less than $15K/mo ad spend?

Generally not. Below $15K/mo, the 15% management fee doesn’t cover the senior strategist time we commit to every account. If you’re close ($10-15K) and about to scale, tell us — sometimes we’ll take an engagement with a scaling commitment. Below $10K, you’re not ready for this model yet.

Who’s actually on my account?

A senior US-based D2C growth strategist as your primary lead, backed by specialists for creative, email, and technical implementation as needed. Not offshore. Not junior. Not a rotating cast. Named team from day one.

What if I already have a creative team?

Great. The Action Engine will rotate what you produce — we don’t need to be your creative agency too. If you don’t have creative capacity, we offer creative production as a separate retainer at competitive pricing. Either works.

Can I just hire you for one thing (email, SEO, etc.)?

Yes. Every capability is available à la carte at priced to your scope, delivered by the same senior US leadership. You don’t need to engage the Performance Engine to hire us for email, SEO, AEO, landing pages, or Shopify work. The Performance Engine is the highest-use entry point, but it’s not the only one.

What’s the free ad review really about?

It’s a real strategic engagement. You give us read-only access to your Google + Meta accounts, we run the full AdellaInsight audit (usually surfaces a five- or six-figure delta between Meta’s claimed revenue and your Shopify actual), and we deliver a 20-30 page strategic brief with a 45-minute working call. It’s not disguised as a sales pitch — we’d rather give it away to serious brands than run generic audit calls at scale.

Ready when you are.

Start with the free ad review. See the delta yourself. Decide.