Empowering businesses to reach full potential through marketing, events

Cheryl Hentz

Contributor

April 28, 2025

CHIPPEWA FALLS/OSSEO – According to Amanda Novak, owner of NovaSky Marketing, effective marketing is the cornerstone of any successful business – often acting as the bridge between a business’s products or services and the audience that needs them. 

In today’s competitive corporate landscape, Novak said marketing is not merely an option – it’s a necessity, enabling businesses to establish a strong brand presence, foster customer relationships, drive growth and, ultimately, build communities for the people who live there. 

Strong foundation

Though the grand opening of NovaSky marketing was only a few weeks ago, Novak said she has been utilizing her business administration degree (with an emphasis in marketing), and her two-plus years of sales and marketing experience in the title insurance industry to provide marketing and event planning services to businesses and individuals for a couple of years now – long before deciding to start her own business.

“They were mostly in the real estate industry – because that’s what I’d done over the past few years – as well as other people that I met in the community: business owners and leaders who saw what I did for (the title company I worked for) as far as marketing goes,” she said. “Some had just reached out to me on their own, knowing that I didn’t have a business (at that time), but they liked what they saw.” 

Novak said she prides herself on being a fast learner, something she had to do when she was first hired at the title company.

Though she had no experience in sales and marketing in that industry, and was just sort of dropped into the role, she said by studying hard and applying her knowledge and creativity to the role, she became very successful, very quickly throughout the Eau Claire and Chippewa Falls area. 

Novak said it was no different when she started working with clients on her own, slowly building a client base.

“I didn’t have any real training, but having a mind for creativity and enjoying a good challenge, I took what I knew and did some research, then put my own spin on how I wanted to approach potential clients,” she said. “I started to gain traction with some of the different strategies that I had and started making some really strong connections with realtors and lenders, primarily.”

Novak said that blossomed into some strong relationships, and she started becoming more involved within the community – which included becoming an ambassador with the local chamber of commerce a little more than three years ago. 

“That role helped me to get out there and meet the movers and shakers, if you will, within the community, and make some really strong connections that way,” she said.

Meanwhile, through her title company affiliation, Novak said she also became involved with the local home builders’ association. 

“I jumped into the construction industry and started doing marketing for construction companies in the area,” she said. “At the same time, I continued to grow the relationships I’d already built.”

During this time, Novak said she also started to think about how she could be a resource to other trades within the industry who could benefit from her marketing skills, knowledge and education.

“I paired that with friends of mine in the industry who were starting to reach out wanting to have my help with their own businesses,” she said.

Taking stock leads to major decision

As more people reached out, Novak said she decided she needed to take stock and evaluate where she was in her professional life to determine what she wanted to do with the next 20 or 25 years.

Her choices, she said, were to continue working for someone else, or take the leap of going out on her own – despite the potential risks. 

With the support of family, friends, peers and professional colleagues, she decided to start her own business. 

Novak said her original thought was to tap into the professional sphere that she already had in place – realtors and lenders.

However, she said that has naturally progressed to clients in the construction and repair/renovation side of real estate.

“Besides realtors and lenders, my target businesses now also include people who own their own trades business – like plumbers, electricians, HVAC people, landscapers, excavators, people doing remodeling or renovations, etc.,” she said. “That’s not to say I can’t or wouldn’t feel comfortable working with other industries, by any means. I’m a pretty forward thinker and like to do research. So, if somebody – whether a business owner or a nonprofit – reaches out to me and we have a good connection, I would definitely pursue working with them.” 

Novak said not only does she offer marketing and sales services to clients, but event planning, too – something she said often ties in very organically with marketing.

“People’s lives aren’t just about business,” she said. “We also have personal lives that are intertwined. So, I want to be able to service not only the business side of things for someone – marketing, social media, email campaigns, Facebook ads, logo design, any service that’s digital or traditional type of marketing – but the personal, event planning side of things, too.”

Novak said NovaSky Marketing can be used on an as-needed basis or be retained or contracted regularly.

“There’s a handful of people doing just marketing for clients, almost like consulting, if you will, that have businesses of various sizes (in the community),” she said. “And there are event planners providing services doing the same thing. But I marry the two together. Let’s say a client wants to plan a client appreciation event. That involves coordinating vendors, working with a budget, meeting timelines, marketing the event and so forth. I can handle all of that.”

Novak said she can also handle simple tasks, like email or social media campaigns.

“What I do covers a wide spectrum of services, and it can be a more cost-effective option for businesses, rather than having to employ someone full-time where they have to provide that person with benefits and so forth,” she said. “It stems back to my having a passion for people, for building relationships and for being a resource for businesses in a way that not only benefits their business, but for me it’s about having that mutually beneficial rapport.” 

Learning from others’ mistakes

Novak said investing in marketing is investing in visibility, credibility and sustained success.

Through strategic marketing, she said businesses can communicate their unique value propositions, differentiate themselves from competitors and tap into the vast potential of both traditional and digital channels. 

That said, one of the more common mistakes Novak said she sees business owners making is mirroring what their competitors are doing in the way of marketing and promotion. 

“I see this a lot, especially if someone is not that experienced in marketing themselves,” she said. “They may not know where to start. Or they’re afraid to look silly.”

Novak said it’s important for businesses to know who their target audience is.

“Sometimes, I think they’re not even sure who they’re trying to sell to,” she said. “That’s the first step. And if they’re not sure where to start or how, they shouldn’t be afraid to say, ‘Hey, I need help.’ Some business owners are afraid of what their peers might say if they ask for help. They shouldn’t be intimidated by that. And, in asking for help, they should pair up with someone who is truly going to be their trusted source and partner in marketing and sales.”

Novak said for her, marketing comes down to solving a problem for a business. 

“In other words, ‘what are you doing that adds value and solves a problem for your customer?’” she said. “If you don’t do marketing day in and day out or you don’t know where to begin, then consider working with somebody who specializes in that, who knows what they’re talking about, who can do the footwork for you and is responsive and who gets out there and represents your company and your brand in a way that is reflective of what your goals and mission are.”

Taking a chance on yourself

One of the biggest pieces of advice Novak said she provides potential clients is to not be afraid to take a chance on themselves – and, at the same time, take a chance on NovaSky Marketing.

One of the things she said sets NovaSky apart is her passion for wanting to see clients succeed, because that, in turn, supports a strong community.

“When that happens, our community continues to grow and thrive, creating a legacy for the generations after us,” she said.

In addition to marketing services, Novak said she is also able to help clients with real estate aspirations – as she recently got her real estate license.

“Being in the title industry for two and a half years, I got to know a lot about the industry, and I follow the (real estate) market and what’s going on in the market right now,” she said. “It’s just in my nature to help people, to educate people and it’s special to be able to be a small part of somebody’s journey to perhaps buying their very first home. It’s about making an impact on someone’s life, big or small, just like making an impact on the business clients I work with. That’s very fulfilling for me.”

Novak said she works with clients within a 60-minute to 90-minute radius of the Osseo area.

Novak said she was very deliberate with the name of her business.

Though “Nova” makes up part of her last name, she said the word also refers to a star that signifies a new beginning.

Nova said she chose the word “sky” to signify a lack of limit.

“That can easily play into a business (that) someone wants to grow or an event someone wants planned,” she said. “It has a lot of unique meanings to me, but it can also have a unique meaning for the clients I work with.”

For more on NovaSky Marketing, including a full list of services, visit novaskymarketing.com.