The directory is the excuse. The call is the business.
This is the same sequence agencies have run to sell local marketing services for years — Beacon just builds the directory, sends the emails, tracks who opens them, and runs the claim and upgrade flow automatically.
- 1
Build the directory
Pick a town, a postcode area, or a niche (plumbers across three counties works as well as “everything in Hornchurch”). Set the branding — colours, logo, font pair — and the category list. A subdomain is live immediately; add a custom domain when you're ready. This step is deliberately fast: the directory is the vehicle, not the product.
- 2
Import 100+ businesses and publish every one
Bring a CSV, map the columns, and let Google Places enrichment fill in the gaps — hours, phone, address, category. Every business gets a real listing page, published, whether they signed up or not. This is the part that feels uncomfortable the first time and is also the part that makes the rest of the playbook work: there's no list to warm up, only a directory that already exists.
- 3
Run the verify-your-details sequence
Enrol the whole list in Free Listing Outreach: five emails over twelve days, each one framed as a favour, not a pitch. Beacon tracks opens, clicks and replies per contact, so you always know who's actually looked. That list — the ones who opened — is your call list. You're not choosing who to ring; the data already chose for you.
Free Listing Outreach5 emails over 12 days — the money sequence. Tells a business their listing exists and asks them to check it.Claim NudgeFires after someone opens or clicks but doesn't claim. A gentle follow-up, not a second cold pitch.Premium UpsellEnrols the moment a listing is claimed. This is where the upgrade offer actually gets made.Welcome & FulfilmentRuns after payment — kicks off Google Business Profile work, review replies, the visibility report.Review RequestAsks claimed and paying listings to leave a review, on a schedule you set.Dormant Re-engagementFor listings that never opened anything — a different angle (local news, an event) rather than repeating the same email. - 4
Let them claim it
The claim form is short: confirm the details, tick contact consent. That consent checkbox matters more than it looks — it's what makes the phone call (and, later, any AI-driven outreach) legitimate rather than a cold approach to a stranger. Claim Nudge automatically follows up with anyone who opened but didn't claim, so you're not manually chasing.
- 5
Sell premium on the call, then the retainer
Once claimed, Premium Upsell enrols them and the upgrade offer goes out: a premium (or featured) listing, bundled with fulfilment — Google Business Profile clean-up, review replies, a proper visibility report, an AI concierge embedded on their own listing page. Defaults are £249/yr for premium and £499/yr for featured; you set your own price per directory. Welcome & Fulfilment kicks off the work automatically once they've paid.
The premium sale isn't the destination. It's the wedge for the conversation that actually pays: a monthly retainer for the ongoing work — the thing agencies were already selling before the directory existed. The directory just gets you a warm, consenting audience to sell it to.
What the business owner actually sees
It's worth looking at this from their side, because the whole playbook depends on it holding up to scrutiny:
- 1. Their business shows up on a real, published local directory — with their actual hours, address and category. Nothing fabricated.
- 2. They get an email asking them to check their own details are correct. No ask, no price mentioned.
- 3.If they claim it, they're confirming details are right and opting into further contact — an explicit choice, not a default.
- 4. Only after that do they hear about premium placement, and only if they want it.