Berley Trails

How do you catch fish? You don't chase them. You create conditions where fish want to be.

"Make it impossible not to fall into The Flow of Success — the FEELING of making MEANINGFUL progress"

The Fishing Metaphor​

Berley (chum) is what fishermen throw in the water to attract fish before they cast. The fish come to you.

This is the hive-mind applied to sales:

• The berley trail is many small signals (calibration-free)
• The fish-ball is the swarm forming around value
• Forward thinking is where the swarm will be, not where it is

The Thesis​

Bet on experiments that explore opportunities to broaden horizons and deepen expertise.

The skill isn't catching fish. It's knowing:

• The combination of bait, gear, and technique for circumstances
• The job to be done the fish is trying to accomplish
• Where fish are gonna be, not where they are now

Business Idea Definition​

Structured using Business Ideas Template

Persuasion Loop Status​

1. Title & One-Line Description​

• Business name: Berley Trails
• Domain: berleytrails.com
• One-liner: Help businesses create content trails that attract customers before they sell

2. Problem & Why Now​

• What system is broken?

  • Businesses chase customers instead of attracting them
  • Content is created without understanding fish psychology
  • No connection between content → ecosystem → network effects

• Who feels the pain most?

  • Service businesses with high CAC
  • Consultants who trade time for money
  • Anyone who needs to build trust before transaction

• Why urgent now?

  • AI makes content creation cheap — berley is free
  • Attention is fragmenting — need smarter attraction
  • Network effects compound faster than ever

• Why this approach?

  • Fishing is the oldest coordination game
  • The metaphor makes abstract concepts tangible
  • Focus on ecosystem, not individual catches

3. System Map & Opportunity​

• Universe → where we sit:

  • Universe: Marketing / Sales enablement
  • Slot: Pre-sales content strategy (the berley)

• Market size:

  • TAM: All businesses that need customers
  • SAM: Service businesses, consultants, agencies
  • SOM: NZ/AU professional services

• Network:

  • Digital: Content trails, email sequences, social
  • Physical: Third spaces where fish gather

4. Solution & Product Snapshot​

• Plain-language description:

  • We help you create the berley trail that attracts your ideal fish

• Primary users:

  • Service business owners
  • Consultants and coaches
  • Anyone who needs trust before transaction

• Core job to be done:

  • "Help me attract the right customers without chasing them"

• Key differentiator:

  • Focus on fish psychology (what they actually want) not logic (what they say)
  • Build ecosystem (fish-ball effect) not individual campaigns

• Tech stack:

  • Proprietary: Berley frameworks, ICP research
  • Leveraged: AI content generation, analytics

• Business model:

  • Free: Berley frameworks, fishing metaphor education
  • Paid: Custom berley trails, ecosystem design

5. Market & Competition Mini-Map​

• Incumbents:

  • Marketing agencies (campaign-focused, not ecosystem)
  • Content mills (volume without strategy)

• Adjacent players:

  • HubSpot (tools, not strategy)
  • Consultants (strategy, not execution)

• Why we win:

  • Fishing metaphor makes complex simple
  • Focus on ecosystem/network effects
  • Dreamineering framework integration

6. Packages & Pricing​

Based on content marketing agency pricing research:

Positioning: Between pure consultant ($100-200/hr) and full-service agency ($5,000-15,000/month). We do strategy + selective execution, not volume.

7. Unit Economics & Path to Freedom​

Per-Client Economics​

Critical Mass Calculation​

What does freedom look like? Time in optimal flow without financial anxiety.

Critical Path: Clarity (this page) + Capability (fishing framework) + Focus (3 pilot clients)

Critical Velocity: Creating more value than you burn. At $7,500 MRR with 60% margin = $4,500 net = sustainable.

Customer Acquisition​

The insight: Berley Trails must eat its own cooking. Our content trail IS the proof of concept.

LTV Calculation​

8. Business Model Economics​

• Who pays: Service businesses with high CAC who need trust before transaction
• Who earns: Berley Trails (strategy fee) + client (fish caught)
• Value capture:
  • Fixed monthly retainer (primary)
  • Performance bonus option: +10% of attributed revenue (optional)
  • Audit as entry point → retainer upsell
• Network effects: Each client case study becomes berley for the next client

9. Team & Credibility​

• Founders: Dreamineering team
• Advisors: TBD — need experienced fishermen
• Key relationships: Mycelium ventures as test cases

10. Governance, Regulatory & Risk​

• Entity: Part of Dreamineering ecosystem
• Regulatory: None specific
• Key risks:
  • Metaphor doesn't resonate
  • Difficult to prove ecosystem effects
  • Competes with "just do marketing"

11. The Ask​

• Current need: Validate the fishing metaphor resonates
• Not raising yet — proving the berley works first

Develop Trusted Connections​

The fish you want to attract (Forward Thinking):

The insight: Focus on fish that AI threatens — they need new berley trails.

Connection to Mycelium​

Venture Scoreboard metrics:

Critical Metrics​

12-Month Execution Plan​

Q1: Prove the Berley​

Q2: Build the Boat​

Q3-Q4: Scale the Ecosystem​

Next Actions​

1. Week 1: Write full fishing framework (document in /docs/business/growth/marketing/)
2. Week 2: Create Dreamineering self-case study (berley trail → this site → results)
3. Week 3-4: Identify 3 pilot clients from network (service businesses with high CAC)
4. Week 5-8: Deliver 3 free Berley Audits in exchange for testimonials
5. Week 9: Convert 1 pilot to Trail Builder ($2,500/mo)
6. Week 10-12: Build berleytrails.com landing page with case studies

The thesis: You don't catch fish by chasing them. You create conditions where the right fish want to be. The berley trail is mirrored reciprocation — go positive, go first, be constant.