Carl John Fechner
Marketing Strategist
Business Growth & Marketing Strategist | 40 Years' Experience | Turning Strategy into Measurable Results
About Carl John
I help established businesses identify missed growth opportunities, develop effective marketing strategies and turn those strategies into measurable results.
With 40 years of experience in marketing, sales, business development and leadership, I bring a practical understanding of customer psychology, emotional direct response marketing and what motivates customers to take action.
MY APPROACH: DIAGNOSE, PRIORITISE, IMPLEMENT AND TRANSFER
I work with business owners to understand their challenges, identify opportunities and develop practical growth strategies.
I then coordinate the right specialists, oversee implementation and equip business owners and their teams with the knowledge and systems to manage their marketing independently.
CORE EXPERTISE
✓ Business growth and marketing strategy
✓ Customer psychology and emotional direct response marketing
✓ Digital marketing, SEO and lead generation
✓ Google Ads, Meta advertising and customer acquisition
✓ AI-assisted research, marketing analysis and automation
✓ Project coordination, specialist management and team training
RECENT CLIENT PROJECTS
Neal Goad Automotive, Ballarat
Developed a comprehensive 32-page digital marketing and SEO strategy and guided implementation. The client reports workshop bookings three to four weeks ahead, increased telephone enquiries and record website bookings.
Prestige Tractors, Ballarat
Developed the marketing strategy, coordinated implementation and helped the business establish greater independence in managing its website, promotions and customer communications.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP, PUBLISHING AND LEADERSHIP
Beyond commercial consulting, I am the founder, author and publisher of Growing Deep and Strong®, an international Christian discipleship and leadership development initiative.
I also founded Find Your Destiny™, a personal development and workshop program designed to help people explore their identity, direction and purpose.
Both initiatives reflect my broader experience in developing intellectual property, creating educational products, building digital platforms, coordinating specialists and developing practical training systems.
MY CONSULTING PHILOSOPHY
My role is not simply to deliver a marketing plan. It's to help businesses understand their customers, build effective systems and develop the internal capability to sustain their own growth.
I work through Strategy Consultants Pty Ltd, providing project-based consulting and marketing leadership to businesses seeking practical expertise without the commitment of a full-time executive.
I work through Strategy Consultants Pty Ltd, providing remote, project-based marketing strategy and business growth consulting across Australia. My availability is flexible to accommodate intensive strategy development and implementation requirements.
Experience
Strategy Consultants Pty Ltd
Founder & Marketing Strategist (2024 – Present)
I help established businesses identify missed growth opportunities through customer psychology, emotional direct response marketing and practical business growth strategies.
With 40 years of experience in marketing, sales and leadership, I analyse businesses, identify opportunities and develop strategies that generate enquiries, improve conversions and increase sales.
I coordinate technical specialists, oversee implementation and equip business owners with the knowledge and systems to manage their marketing independently.
Recent projects include Neal Goad Automotive and Prestige Tractors, where I developed marketing strategies and guided implementation to support measurable business growth.
Phil Labor BPO - Outsourcing & Offshore Recruitment
Co-Founder & Managing Director (2018 – 2021)
Recognising the commercial potential of offshore outsourcing, I combined my experience in marketing, business development and managing remote teams to help Australian businesses access skilled professionals and improve operational efficiency.
My experience included outsourcing work to an estimated 100-plus people over time, giving me practical insights into offshore recruitment, delegation, remote management and working across different cultures.
RECOGNISING THE BUSINESS OPPORTUNITY
I joined forces with two business partners, Jeff Collinson and Erika Wager, to establish Phil Labor BPO.
Our partnership brought together three complementary strengths:
✓ My background in marketing, business development and identifying commercial opportunities.
✓ Erika's established industry relationships and extensive contacts within the Australian automotive sector.
✓ Jeff's operational experience in the Philippines, together with his understanding of Australian and Filipino business cultures.
Together, we developed a business designed to connect Australian companies with offshore talent and practical outsourcing solutions.
MY ROLE AND CONTRIBUTION
As Managing Director, I led the marketing and business development direction, working collaboratively with my partners to establish the business and develop its market opportunities.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE DEMONSTRATED
This venture reinforced my experience in recognising market opportunities, forming strategic partnerships, developing businesses, managing offshore relationships and coordinating people with complementary expertise.
These principles remain central to my consulting approach today, particularly when assembling specialist teams and helping business owners implement and manage their own systems.
Internet Secrets Made Easy
Founder & Managing Director (2012 – 2022)
Combining customer psychology, emotional direct response marketing and digital strategy, I helped established businesses uncover growth opportunities, generate more enquiries and convert prospective customers into sales.
I founded Internet Secrets Made Easy to help businesses transition from traditional marketing into effective digital marketing. Drawing on decades of experience in marketing, sales and business ownership, I developed practical strategies that business owners could understand, implement and manage independently.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND ACHIEVEMENTS
✓ Developed business and marketing diagnostics to identify ideal customers, market positioning, buyer motivations and growth opportunities.
✓ Created structured digital marketing strategies, website briefs and implementation plans covering SEO, lead generation and customer conversion.
✓ Delivered practical No Geek Speak workshops, presentations and one-to-one coaching to help business owners understand and manage digital marketing.
✓ Sourced and coordinated web developers, SEO specialists and offshore contractors, overseeing technical work against agreed business objectives.
✓ Developed a 22-page marketing strategy guide, 27-page business diagnostic and 34-page web developer brief.
CLIENT OUTCOMES
Clients reported improved Google visibility, increased enquiries and greater confidence in managing their online presence.
My role was to connect commercial strategy with the right technical specialists, then transfer practical knowledge to the business owner.
PROFESSIONAL EXPERTISE DEMONSTRATED
Customer psychology, emotional direct response marketing, business growth strategy, digital marketing, SEO, strategic outsourcing, training and implementation oversight.
This experience continues to shape my consulting approach through Strategy Consultants Pty Ltd.
AutoSales Online - Automotive Digital Marketing Strategy & Sales Training
Founder & Director (2008 – 2012)
Combining customer psychology, digital marketing strategy and sales conversion techniques, I developed practical training programs that helped automotive dealerships turn internet enquiries into increased vehicle sales.
I founded AutoSales Online and created the three-day Used Car Internet Clinics, working with RACV Approved Dealers in Victoria and the Easy Cars Dealer Network in Sydney to train dealership owners, managers and sales teams in lead generation, customer engagement and converting online enquiries into sales.
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
✓ Developed and delivered three-day internet marketing and sales training programs.
✓ Developed practical online sales systems, processes and 25 key performance indicators to improve sales conversion.
✓ Helped dealerships integrate traditional sales experience with digital marketing to achieve measurable business growth.
CLIENT TESTIMONIALS
"We’ve had three record months and increased our gross profit since completing the AutoSales Online Internet Clinic, it has been unbelievable, and I did not think it was possible!” ----- Carl Jacobson ----Used Car Manager Patterson Cheney Toyota
“We participated in the AutoSales online Internet Clinic and we have had the best month in sales in five years.”
“Carl, we continue to have record months!” ----- Les Young ---- Used Car Manager Automobiles Dandenong
“In the first 30 days, we had a 50% increase in enquires, 30% increase in sales and all our old stockers have gone”. ------ Jeff Zaninelli. Owner JZ Motors Ferntree Gully
“Wow, we increased our internet enquiries and sales, before we implemented all of the 25 Key Performance Indicators! ……In 8 weeks all our old stock is gone! ---- Unaffected by GFC when it hit! ----- Up to 50% of our sales now come from the internet each month! ………Has helped us achieve Toyota heavyweight dealer Status! ---- The AutoSales Online in-house Internet Clinic has really worked for us! -----Savo Veledinovic Used Car Manager Clintons Toyota Campbelltown NSW.
This experience helped establish the practical, results-focused consulting approach I continue to apply through Strategy Consultants Pty Ltd.
Automotive Sales Leadership, Business Growth & Digital Marketing
Sales Consultant, New Car Manager & Used Car Manager (2005 – 2008)
Combining customer psychology, sales leadership and emerging digital marketing strategies, I helped automotive dealerships identify growth opportunities, improve sales performance and increase profitability.
Working across Melbourne Cheapest Cars, Duhig Ford and Brighton Toyota, I progressed through sales and management roles, applying practical marketing and sales strategies to improve customer enquiries, vehicle sales and stock turnover.
CAREER PROGRESSION
✓ Melbourne Cheapest Cars: Returned to automotive retail as a Sales Consultant.
✓ Duhig Ford, Essendon: Progressed to New Car Manager, contributing to sales growth that helped the dealership achieve national Top 25 Ford dealer status.
✓ Brighton Toyota: As Used Car Manager, recognised the enormous potential of internet marketing to transform vehicle enquiries, stock turnover and dealership profitability.
KEY ACHIEVEMENTS
✓ Developed and implemented practical internet marketing strategies that helped transform used-vehicle sales performance.
✓ Within 60 to 90 days, achieved average monthly used-vehicle stock turnover of approximately 100%.
✓ During an AFL Grand Final weekend, our team sold 26 used vehicles, an exceptional result for a weekend when selling two or three vehicles would normally have been considered successful.
✓ Combined an understanding of customer psychology, traditional sales techniques and emerging digital marketing opportunities to achieve measurable results.
FROM SALES MANAGEMENT TO BUSINESS STRATEGY
These experiences became a turning point in my career. I recognised that many dealerships were missing significant opportunities because they did not understand how to generate, manage and convert internet enquiries.
This firsthand experience revealed the enormous commercial potential of combining customer psychology, effective sales processes and emerging digital marketing technologies. It became the foundation for my subsequent work developing business growth strategies, training programs and practical marketing systems that help businesses generate more enquiries, improve conversions and achieve sustainable growth.
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