About TJ Wardell | Lift Strategy Group
About TJ Wardell

15+ Years. $500M+ in Revenue.
70+ Locations. One Focus.

Customer acquisition strategy built by an operator — not an agency.

15+
Years Experience
$30
Avg. Cost-Per-Acquisition
70+
Locations Scaled
$500M+
Revenue Environment
Headshot
TJ Wardell
Founder & Lead Consultant
My Story
Built on the Front Lines,
Not Behind a Desk

I started my career in sales at a location-based business — knocking on doors, closing deals, and learning exactly what it takes to turn a prospect into a paying customer. That ground-level experience shaped everything that came after.

I rose from sales rep to VP/SVP of Marketing at a top-20 national fitness brand, where I led the acquisition strategy that scaled the company from 17 locations to over 70 across eight states. That environment — generating an estimated $500M+ in annual revenue with hundreds of thousands of active members — is where I built and pressure-tested every system I use today.

I hold a B.S. in Economics from the University of Utah, which gave me the analytical foundation behind the data-first approach I bring to every engagement. Now, through Lift Strategy Group, I help service businesses stop wasting ad spend and start building acquisition systems that actually produce customers.

Core Expertise

What I Bring to the Table

Paid Media Strategy
Managed large-scale budgets across search, social, display, and video — with a relentless focus on cost-per-acquisition. Deep expertise in how every dollar should work and how to cut the ones that don’t.
$30 Avg. Cost-Per-Acquisition
Channel Integration
All digital channels — search, social, display, email, direct mail — and how they work together as a system, not in silos.
Full-Funnel Approach
Data & Attribution
Paid media analysis, multi-touch attribution, and performance modeling. Know exactly which dollars drive customers and which are wasted.
Multi-Touch Attribution
Landing Page Optimization
Certified specialist. Turns clicks into customers through systematic conversion optimization, page structure, and messaging strategy.
Certified
A/B Testing & CRO
Certified in A/B testing mastery. Data-backed decisions, not gut feelings. Systematic test-and-learn frameworks that compound results over time.
Certified
Pricing & Promotions
How to structure offers, pricing, and promotional strategies that move the needle on revenue — without destroying margin.
Revenue-Focused
Referral & Low-Cost Growth
Built high-impact referral programs and promotional systems that drive revenue at a fraction of the cost of paid media.
High-Impact, Low-Cost
Sales Process & Execution
Started as a sales rep. Understands the location-level sales mentality, how to build a process that converts, and how marketing and sales must work together.
Operator Experience
AI & Marketing Automation
Certified in Marketing Analytics and AI. Early adopter of AI-driven workflows that multiply output and reduce cost.
Certified • Deep Expertise
AI-Powered Approach

AI Isn’t a Buzzword Here.
It’s Built Into How I Work.

I was an early adopter of AI in marketing and continue to integrate it into every part of my process. From campaign optimization to content creation to data analysis — AI is how I deliver faster results, sharper insights, and more efficient systems for every client.

AI-Driven Campaign Optimization
Using AI to analyze performance data, identify patterns, and make faster, more accurate media decisions across every channel.
AI Content & Creative Workflows
Leveraging AI tools to produce high-quality landing pages, ad copy, and marketing assets at speed — without sacrificing quality.
Marketing Automation
Building AI-powered workflows for lead nurture, follow-up sequences, and customer reactivation that run without manual effort.
AI-Enhanced Analytics
Using AI to surface insights from large data sets that manual analysis would miss — turning raw numbers into actionable strategy.
Certified & Continuously Learning
Formally certified in AI and Marketing Analytics. Actively staying on the cutting edge of AI tools, platforms, and emerging applications in marketing.
AI-Built Client Deliverables
From custom landing pages to funnel architecture to data dashboards — AI accelerates what I build for clients, cutting timelines without cutting corners.
Credentials

Certifications & Education

Landing Page
Optimization
A/B Testing
Mastery
Marketing
Analytics
Artificial
Intelligence
B.S. Economics
University of Utah

Let’s Talk About Your
Acquisition Strategy

Whether you need a full system overhaul or a targeted fix — let’s figure out where the biggest opportunities are.