Straight answers. Where we cannot answer something honestly without knowing your situation, we say so rather than guessing.
What does Scratch Marketing & Solutions do?
We build custom software, websites, CRM systems and AI automation for small and growing businesses. The work splits into two practices: Systems is ongoing work on how your business operates, and Marketing is project-based work with a defined scope and finish.
Where are you based, and do you work with businesses outside South Dakota?
We are based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and we work with clients nationwide. Local clients often meet in person; work outside the area is handled remotely.
How does working together start?
With a free 30-minute call. We look at how your business operates day to day, identify where the biggest opportunities are, and tell you how we would approach them. There is no obligation after it.
What is the difference between Systems and Marketing?
Systems is ongoing: CRM setup, custom software, internal tools, process automation and AI integration, maintained as the business changes. Marketing is project-based: brand development, website launches, email sequences, paid ads, content strategy and launch campaigns, scoped up front and handed off clean.
I need a website. Which one is that?
Either, and it depends on the shape rather than the site. If the website is part of how work reaches you and needs maintaining, that is Website Design and Build under Systems. If it is tied to a launch, rebrand or campaign with a date and a finish, that is Website Launch under Marketing. If you are not sure, the call sorts it out.
Do you build custom software, or configure existing tools?
Both, and we will tell you which one your situation calls for. Sometimes the answer is configuring a platform you already pay for and connecting it properly. Sometimes the right tool does not exist and building it is cheaper than working around the gap.
What does the AI in your systems actually do?
Four things, in the systems you already use: it reads documents and extracts the figures, drafts quotes and replies for a person to approve, classifies and routes incoming work, and answers questions from your own records. A person still approves anything that leaves the business.
What kinds of businesses do you work with?
Mostly small and growing businesses where something is still being done by hand. Recent work includes field service, trade contractors, a multi-campus church, an insurance agency and local service businesses.
What does a project cost?
Every engagement is scoped individually, because the work varies enormously by what the business needs. The free call includes how we would approach your situation, and scope and cost are agreed before anything starts.
How long does a project take?
It depends entirely on scope, so we will not guess at it here. Marketing projects are scoped with a defined finish date up front. Systems work is ongoing by nature, though we agree what the first phase looks like before we begin.