We Built The Foundation First Client AI Marketing Plan

Every business has a first client—the one that defines your methods, your energy, and your belief in what’s possible. For me, that client marked the true beginning of ArcInfini, my marketing agency in Lahti, Finland. The mission? To use AI-powered marketing tools and personalized strategies to help small local businesses grow online without wasting time or money.

Most small businesses don’t fail because their products are bad. They fail because they scatter their marketing efforts—posting randomly on social media, running ads without tracking, and hoping something “sticks.” My goal was to build a solid marketing foundation for my first client before scaling upward. In this post, I’ll show you exactly how I did it—step by step.

Step 1: Conducting the Baseline Audit

Before creating any marketing magic, I started with a complete online audit of my client’s presence. An audit is basically a snapshot of how a business is performing online—what’s working, what’s broken, and where the opportunities lie.

I gathered access to everything:

• Their social media accounts

• Google My Business profile

• Google Analytics data from their website

Then, I dove deep into the numbers. Using Google Analytics, I tracked website traffic, bounce rates, time spent on pages, and engagement levels. From social platforms, I extracted data about audience reactions, likes, comments, and shares.

Once I had all this data neatly organized, I turned to my secret weapon—ChatGPT. I had built a custom GPT project tailored specifically to my client’s business, allowing me to analyze the data quickly and accurately. By uploading CSV files from each platform, I asked targeted questions like:

• “Which content performs best with their audience?”

• “What’s causing low engagement?”

• “Which traffic sources are most effective?”

In less than 30 minutes, I had a detailed audit report that summarized every insight and actionable point. This report became our roadmap—the foundation for all marketing decisions moving forward.

Step 2: Defining the Ideal Customer Persona (ICP)

Once we understood the client’s current situation, the next step was defining the Ideal Customer Persona (ICP)—basically, the type of person we want to attract.

During our meeting, I asked my client a simple question:

“How do you want me to market your business?”

At first, the question caught him off guard. But soon, he shared that while online deliveries through apps like Wolt were going great, he wanted more walk-in customers for the restaurant. That was our “aha” moment.

With that insight, we shaped a clear ICP: local residents in Lahti who love dining experiences, not just takeaway food. We built a profile around their interests, behaviors, and preferences. Once you know who you’re talking to, every marketing move becomes sharper and more effective.

Step 3: Building a Simple but Consistent Content Strategy

With a clear audience in mind, it was time to build a content strategy. The client’s social media pages were almost inactive—no consistent posting, no personality. I knew that had to change immediately.

The goal was simple:
Post engaging, story-driven content daily to bring life back to their online presence.

We planned a week’s worth of content around what people love most—food, visuals, and storytelling. Each post would showcase the restaurant’s dishes, ingredients, and preparation process in a fun, trendy way—almost like short montages of delicious moments.

The plan looked like this:

• Shoot short-form videos of food preparation.

• Add engaging captions and hashtags tied to Lahti’s local scene.

• Post every day for the first week to build momentum.

Meanwhile, I kept an eye on the website’s analytics to see if the posts were driving more Google searches or traffic to the restaurant’s website. The mix of creative storytelling and data-driven monitoring was where AI met authenticity.

Step 4: Tracking Progress with AI

No marketing plan is complete without tracking and optimization. After posting consistently for some time, I revisited all the analytics—website traffic, social engagement, and conversions.

Again, I collected new data and fed it to ChatGPT to compare before and after results. This approach allowed me to identify patterns quickly—what content drove walk-ins, what posts got the most reactions, and how local awareness improved.

The entire process was streamlined. Instead of guessing, I had AI-backed clarity. That’s the key difference between modern marketing and traditional guesswork: we use data and automation to guide creativity, not replace it.

The results? My client went from being overwhelmed and confused about marketing to feeling confident, excited, and ready to scale. Once we had clarity, the energy shifted. Every post, every move felt purposeful.

Conclusion

This first project wasn’t just about helping a local restaurant—it was about proving that even small businesses can leverage AI tools to create measurable, meaningful growth.

Here’s the recap of what we did:

1. Audited their online presence using analytics and AI.

2. Defined a clear Ideal Customer Persona.

3. Created a consistent content plan tailored to their goals.

4. Tracked and analyzed progress with ChatGPT-powered insights.

That’s how we built the foundation for long-term marketing success.

At ArcInfini, this is the kind of hands-on, customized service we aim to deliver for every client. We don’t throw random tactics at the wall—we build structured systems powered by AI and creativity.

Are you a small business owner looking to grow your brand the smart way?
Let’s build your foundation together. Contact ArcInfini today and start your own AI-powered marketing journey.