How a Niche Payroll Company Moved From Stalled Out to Steady Growth

Superior Trucking Payroll Service's Journey

From day one, Mike’s plan was to educate buyers, not hard‑sell. He knew he wasn’t a classic salesperson — “I’m totally a farmer, not a hunter.”

But doing it himself stalled out, with inconsistent posting, no clear CTAs, and content that didn’t move buyers forward.

A colleague recommended the book Endless Customers. Mike read it and realized, this is exactly what I’ve been trying to do. He hired a content person and increased publishing. Results improved, but it still wasn’t really landing the way he had hoped.

Then came the epiphany: “Michael Jordan has a coach… Why don’t I have a marketing coach?”

Mike decided to attend Endless Customers Live in Chicago with his content manager. Hearing from the coaches, he realized he’d handicapped his content manager and the business by trying to do everything himself instead of using the guidance of an Endless Customers coach.

After speaking with coaches at the conference, he knew coaching could change the business.

Mike knew his business needed:

• A buyer‑first content plan tied to real questions and clear CTAs
  
  
• Accountability to publish consistently (weekly/biweekly priorities)
  
  
• A lightweight video habit to support content and sales

Building The System

After Endless Customers Live in Chicago, Mike and his Marketing Manager, Melissa Bush, joined coaching with IMPACT Coaches: Allison, Mandy, and Janet. 

The first change was focus.

Instead of trying to fix everything at once, the team worked on one clear priority each week. Weekly or every‑other‑week check‑ins created the rhythm and accountability they had been missing. 

Mike describes it simply: “the wisdom tells you what to do, but the accountability is where the rubber meets the road.”

Melissa saw the difference immediately: “We already believed in answering buyers’ questions. We just didn’t know how to do it well. Coaching was the turning point, because it gave us the ‘how,’ not just the ‘why.’”

Video then became the accelerant. Mike let go of perfection and started recording short, useful clips that answered real buyer questions and ended with a next step. He built a simple podcast setup so filming felt easy. Those clips fed Shorts and social, which fed the site.

“I’ve gotten past the idea of it’s got to be perfect… as long as I stick the landing — the CTA.” — Mike

The audience focus tightened as well. Content shifted from “anyone curious about payroll” to the small‑company owners and operations leaders who actually buy.

Topics leaned into high‑intent questions buyers ask before they talk to sales: cost, problems, comparisons, reviews, and best options. 

Clear CTAs and internal paths moved readers to the next step, whether that was a calculator, a video or a call.

Sales enablement grew alongside publishing. Articles and videos were used in the sales process to pre‑answer common questions and shorten conversations. As qualified demand increased, STPS hired its first sales rep in four years. That split let Melissa protect deep work time for content and video while the sales rep handled inbound follow‑up, proposals and persistence.

STPS was able to see how to use self-service to remove friction. After a working session, the team rebuilt their pricing calculator. The original tool crammed too much information onto one page and confused visitors, so they replaced it with a simple, step by step flow: five pages, one clear question at a time. 

The impact was immediate. Weekly inbound leads jumped from “maybe one” to “between five and eight.” As Melissa put it, “When we optimized our self-service tool, our leads took off.”

What Changed

Within a few cycles the work started to compound. Publishing felt steady instead of sporadic. The team knew who owned what.

Video stopped being a hurdle and started doing real work in both marketing and sales. Leads were not only more numerous, they were a better fit for the business.

The story also changed inside the company. Mike moved from doing it all himself to enabling a team with a clear cadence. Melissa had the support and direction to write the pieces buyers needed. Sales had assets they could send before calls so time on the phone focused on fit and outcomes instead of basics.

Business Impact

The headline is simple: more of the right conversations and a steadier pipeline. That showed up in both the numbers and the org chart.

• Leads: 24 in Q2 2024 to 64 in Q2 2025, with 48 qualified
  
  
• Growth: Hired a sales rep for the first time in four years due to increased demand

Key Lessons for Similar Businesses

Founder‑led teams in “unsexy” industries can still grow quickly when the work is focused, consistent and tied to sales.

Mike’s advice is to stop trying to do it all alone, give someone ownership and get a coach who keeps you honest each week.

1. Get a coach and a cadence. Plans matter, but weekly accountability is what turns them into output.
   
   
2. Make video simple. Short, helpful clips with a clear next step beat perfect production you never publish.
   
   
3. Point content at revenue. Write for the actual buyer and use the pieces in the sales process.

What’s Next For STPS?

With the foundation in place, the team is focused on leverage. The video library and weekly podcast will expand. New self‑service tools will help buyers qualify themselves before they call. Assignment Selling will become standard so every call starts further down the path.

Mike’s take on the difference working with IMPACT and the Endless Customers System says it all:

“A year later, leads almost tripled, and I think a lot of that is due to the time I spent with the coaches and IMPACT.”

For Mike, Endless Customers provided the plan, and IMPACT provided the regular coaching and accountability to execute it.