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The Only 3 Levers That Grow a Business: A-T-M (Attract, Trust, Monetize)

When a business isn't growing, it’s not because you’re missing the next shiny tool or haven’t “hacked” the algorithm yet. It’s because one of three growth engines is broken.

You don’t need 50 tactics. You need to focus.

At Pre-IPO Hype, we call it A-T-M:
Attract. Trust. Monetization.

Three growth levers. Three places to look. Three fixes to apply.

Here’s how to find your leak—and plug it.

💡 The ATM Framework

Let’s break it down:

• Attract – You need more people aware of and entering your world.

• Trust – You must turn that attention into belief, engagement, and buy-in.

• Monetization – You need to convert trust into revenue (and ideally recurring revenue).

If any one of these breaks, the whole system slows down. But if you fix all three? Your business compounds.

Let’s explore each growth engine in detail—and what it looks like when they work.

1️⃣ Attract: You Need More Qualified Leads, Not Just More Traffic

Most businesses think they have a lead problem. But more often, they have a lead quality or positioning problem.

You don’t just need more eyeballs—you need the right people seeing the right message on a repeatable channel.

To grow this bucket, focus on three fundamentals:

1. A Clearly Defined Niche

You must know exactly:

• Who you serve (ideal avatar)

• What problem you solve (with urgency)

• Why they should listen to you

If you’re speaking to everyone, you’re resonating with no one. April Dunford would call this “losing the positioning war before it starts.” Your niche is your moat.

2. A Stable, Scalable Lead Channel

There are only a few lead engines that scale:

• SEO or long-form content (slow burn, but compounding)

• Paid ads (fast and scalable with the right ROAS)

• Partnerships/affiliates (trust-rich leads, but slower to set up)

Pick one channel that aligns with your audience and message. Nail it before you add more.

3. Enough Volume

You need volume once you've defined the niche and have a working channel. You should know your monthly lead target. If you need 10 new clients a month and convert 10% of qualified leads, you need 100 qualified leads back into your number.

Ask yourself:

Your message is probably off if you’re getting views and clicks but no pipeline. If you’ve got great content but no one sees it, your distribution is the issue. You haven't earned attention if you have a great product but no leads.

2️⃣ Trust: Build It or Lose The Sale

Attracting leads is half the game. Earning trust is the multiplier.

People don’t buy when they understand you—they buy when they feel understood by you.

Here’s how to make your audience believe.

To build trust at scale, you need:

1. Educational Content

Teach people how to solve their problems, even before they buy. That might be:

• Founder podcast interviews

• Deep-dive blog posts

• Webinars or live sessions

As Amanda Goetz says, “Content isn’t a nice-to-have. It’s how people evaluate your leadership.”

And yes, we know this can feel exhausting. But here’s a shortcut: Answer the top 10 questions your best customers ask—and record yourself doing it. That becomes your blog, LinkedIn post, and email drip.

2. Proof of Success

Nobody wants to be your guinea pig. They want to join a movement that’s already working.

Show what winning looks like:

• Case studies (quant + story)

• Screenshots of results

• User testimonials or interviews

Not just outcomes, but the process. Pull back the curtain.

3. Engagement Signals

Trust is invisible—but its byproducts are trackable.

Watch these:

• Email open and click rates

• Replies or DMs to your content

• Webinar attendance or video watch time

If you’re not getting responses, trust isn’t built. Improve clarity, value, or storytelling.

Tip:
Most founders overthink distribution and underinvest in resonance. It’s not about more posts—it’s about saying what your audience has been waiting to hear, in their own words.

3️⃣ Monetization: Turn Trust Into Revenue

This is where the money is made—or lost.

You can have all the leads and trust in the world, but you'll never scale if your offer falls flat or your funnel leaks.

Here’s how to monetize better:

Three core ingredients to get right:

1. An Irresistible Offer

Your offer needs to feel like a no-brainer. In Alex Hormozi’s words, it should make people think that it is “stupid to say no.”

That usually means your offer does one (or more) of these:

• Removes risk

• Solves a painful, urgent problem

• Includes social proof + fast time-to-value

Quick test: If people say “I need to think about it,” your offer isn’t strong enough. Either the promise isn’t compelling, or the path to results isn’t believable.

2. A Simple, Effective Funnel

There are only a few that work:

• DM + Call funnel (for high-ticket offers)

• Opt-in + Email nurture + Checkout (for mid-ticket/online)

• Waitlist + Launch + Scarcity (for productized or cohort-based offers)

Pick the one that best matches your price point, urgency, and team bandwidth. Then, optimize it like a growth team: weekly split tests, clear KPIs, and continuous messaging refinement.

3. Repeat Buyers

Monetization doesn’t end with the first sale.

You need:

• Subscription revenue

• Product ladders or upsells

• Reactivation or referral flows

Apply Nik Sharma’s TRACE mindset here—tighten your post-purchase experience, track retention metrics, and make re-buying feel effortless.

Monetization isn’t magic.
It’s alignment: the right person, the proper trust-building sequence, and the right offer, all at the right time.

✳️ Diagnosing the Leak in Your ATM Engine

Here’s a simple diagnostic you can do this week:

Wherever your “no” is—that’s where you focus.

You don’t need more random tactics. You need alignment.

🚀 Real-World Examples

• Powerbox (Equity Crowdfunding Campaign):
  Started with a strong tech product but no lead gen. We built a niche content machine and got them 2,500+ qualified leads in 4 weeks (Attract). Then we added founder-led webinars (Trust) and launched a founder video with a tight “investor-first” CTA that spiked conversions (Monetization).

• DTC Wellness Brand (Monthly Recurring Revenue):
  Lead gen via TikTok was strong, but their LTV tanked after one sale. We revamped their onboarding flow, added SMS retention drips, and launched a “referral unlock” loop. The result: +28% in recurring revenue within 60 days. That’s Monetization, fixed.

🧰 Closing Toolkit

Here’s your cheat sheet for improving each ATM lever:

Attract

• Run an ICP alignment audit

• Test a new outbound or paid channel

• Create one flagship SEO asset

Trust

• Launch a 3-part email welcome series

• Add 2 new testimonials to your sales page

• Post one “open the curtain” story on LinkedIn this week

Monetization

• Rework your offer page with Hormozi’s value equation

• A/B test your checkout flow or call script

• Run a “win-back” campaign to lapsed buyers

🎯 Final Word

Growth isn’t mysterious. It’s mechanical.
It’s a system. And like any system, it either compounds or it clogs.

If your business isn’t growing like it should, something in your ATM engine isn’t firing.

Fix the leak. Then step on the gas.