Refine Your Story.
Set Your Brand Apart. Win Now.

Hello there! I’m Dan Martin, a fractional expert with nearly two decades of experience in marketing, content and communications. I help people like you, and the organizations you represent, more clearly define and articulate what makes you unique so that you can leverage those stories into outcomes that matter. And for every business, the most important outcome is revenue. Not every marketing tactic should or can initiate a sale immediately, but marketing that doesn’t drive growth isn’t marketing.

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I’m not here to offer you a wand that will magically generate more awareness of your brand, interest in your product, leads with intent to buy, and dollars flooding in the door. What I will sell you is, in fact, the opposite. Marketing success doesn’t come with a Big Bang – anyone who says otherwise is running a grift – it’s actually about the little things. You see, great marketing is really about developing great habits. Whatever analogy you want to use – building a house brick by brick, adding 5 more minutes to the treadmill each month, making ourselves floss at least once per day – the only way to win is to be consistent in those hundreds, maybe even thousands, of little steps.

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In Marketing, Consistency is Everything

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In fact, Helios Marketing itself is a nod toward the importance of this consistency. My business is named for Helios, the Greek god of the sun, both because I’m an inveterate philhellene (lover of all things Greek) and because each day, without fail, Helios rides his fiery chariot across the sky to shine light on all things.

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The transformative power of small steps, a little progress here and a little progress there, it’s not sexy. It doesn’t come running out with the flame spurts and flip into the ring. It just…works. And works. And works. The transformative power of marketing is a series of habits, steps that, once you have committed to taking them, builds and builds and builds. Until one day, you look up and you can see the transformation. It was happening all along, delivered through diligence and process and staying the course. 

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That doesn’t mean it’s not creative. All marketing, even the most “boring” parts of it, requires creativity. It just means that you have to put in the work and turn the dial just a little bit so that you’re always moving forward. You can try to stay on the cutting edge of every new platform and buzz word and thing that’s going to “change everything,” or you can focus on mastering those things that won’t change: who you are, your story, why it matters, how you help people. As the great James Clear says, “Goals are for people who care about winning once. Systems are for people who care about winning repeatedly.” 

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I've Been Where You Are, And That's Why We'll Win Together.

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I’ve been a marketing specialist, communications coordinator, brand manager, director of digital communications, senior PR director, head of product marketing, vice president of brand and content. I’ve been where you or your marketing people are sitting now. I’ve sat across from countless consultants and agencies trying to sell me something that will “fix everything” or “10X my business.” I commit to doing what they could not or would not do. Understand exactly what you need, how you’ve already tried to solve the problem, what you think the solutions are, and where and why you’ve fallen short. To listen to you. 

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When I truly understand, I can then become an extension of your team and plug in where I’m needed most. As we all know, there is no magic wand. Hard work, consistency, focus, simplification, adherence to a North Star - these are what always win in strategy, marketing and communications. But a lack of a wand doesn’t mean there’s not magic. That happens when we work together, bringing our best to the table in a complementary and collaborative way.

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I know marketing and communications jobs aren’t easy. In fact, in some organizations, they can be among the most challenging. I want to help you and your team develop the great habits that, delivered consistently, will bring your marketing and your business to where you know it can be. Let’s get to work!

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A Little Bit About Me:

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Before founding Helios, I spent almost two decades as an in-house resource in various marketing and communications roles. I started out in an entry-level marketing project management role, worked my way up through copywriting and specialist roles, and gained quite a bit of leadership experience in director, senior director and vice president roles. During that time, I held roles in various industries and verticals including finance, tech and human resources, at stops including Jackson Financial, National Planning Corporation (a regional broker-dealer), Financial Planning Association and DHI Group, Inc. My experience includes disciplines across content marketing and strategy, brand strategy, creative direction and management, product marketing, media and public relations and executive communications.

 

I'm also an aspiring novelist and I'm pursuing my dream of seeing my books in a bookstore (virtual or physical) someday. In my free time, I enjoy running, hiking, going to museums, pizza and movie nights, and building cool Lego structures with my wonderful family; I live with my wife, Kristin, and son, Simon, in Englewood, Colorado.