For startups & growing brands
Advertising without measurement is expense. Measured advertising is growth.
For startups finding their first profitable channel, and growing brands proving what their spend actually drives. We plan and prove your paid media, tying every dollar to the bottom line from day one. Media buying and measurement, run as one discipline.
$220M+
in search, social and video spend managed across our careers
18+ years
combined experience in growth marketing
2 weeks
opt-out on every contract. We earn the next month.
Who we work with
Startups
Find the channel that works, then make every dollar count.
You need efficient growth with a small team and a budget that has to stretch. We build the foundation, test what matters and give you numbers you can take to your board.
Startups we work with: Canvas
Growing brands
Know what your spend actually drives. Then scale it.
You’re spending across several channels and need to know which dollars are truly incremental. We bring geo-lift testing, triangulated measurement and media mix modeling to your plan.
Brands we work with: OnPay
Different stage, same principle: every dollar has to prove itself.
For startups
The questions every founder asks about paid media.
Here’s how we help you answer them: with numbers, not opinions.
“Which channel should we back first?”
We test channels and creative at controlled spend, keeping your bottom line in mind, so you scale the one that’s working instead of the one that’s loudest.
Channel & creative testing
“Is our acquisition cost sustainable?”
We model what each customer costs, what they’re worth and how long it takes to earn back the spend.
Unit economics & payback analysis
“What do we show our investors?”
Clear reporting that ties spend to revenue, so you can defend your marketing budget in the board room.
Board-ready reporting
“Can we afford to try this?”
Start with a free media audit and get reporting that shows the impact on your bottom line from the first month. Work with us by the hour, and leave any contract with two weeks’ notice.
Get a free media audit
Why the name
Every factor matters. In wine, and in growth.
Terroir is French for the natural environment where a wine is produced. The soil, the grapes, even how much it rained that year. All of it shapes what ends up in the glass.
We believe the same is true of building a business. Your product, your audience, your data and your budget are your terroir. Generic playbooks ignore them. We design programs around them.
We started Terroir after years inside the traditional agency model, convinced it was too slow, too rigid and too expensive, and not built to use AI and modern measurement.
Why Terroir
An extension of your team, not another vendor to manage.
Team Terroir
We define and execute your vision and goals
We adapt to your brand and your team’s needs
Low-risk contracts with a 2-week opt-out
A testing-led approach: scientists at heart
The traditional agency
Executes your vision, but you still own the thinking
$20k+ a month for full-service management
Extra fees that grow with your media spend
Needs close oversight, with long turnaround times
Rigid, long-term contracts
Methodology · OptiMeasure
We meet you where you are.
Most companies keep buying and measurement in separate silos; we run them as one. Most startups begin in the Opti Phase; as spend and channels grow, we add the measurement that proves what’s working.
Startups · under $50k/mo in media
01 · Opti Phase
Build the foundation
Get the fundamentals right and drive results: clean account structure, the right channels and creative that’s tested, not guessed.
Automate the mundane
Media channel best practices
Foundation for incremental analysis
Creative & message testing
Start with a free media audit →
Scaling startups & growing brands
02 · Measure Phase
Expand with proof
With the basics in place, we add channels and scale budget, measuring what each one truly adds.
Geo-lift analysis
Triangulation analysis
Channel expansion
Incrementality testing
Established brands
03 · Opti-Measure Phase
Scale on the bottom line
A full test-and-learn agenda that optimizes toward revenue and lifetime value.
Media mix modeling
Unit economic (flywheel) analysis
Measurement learning agenda
Simplification
The era of over-engineered accounts is over. Well-structured, comprehensible accounts feed better data to the algorithm.
Automation
Automation at every level, from reporting to bidding, frees time for strategy instead of manual tasks.
Innovation
A culture of experimentation: test, learn, repeat, guided by a clear learning agenda.
How we measure
There’s no single right way to measure. So we triangulate.
Each method trades off speed, accuracy and scope. Used together, they give you an answer you can act on.
Method
Speed
Accuracy
Scope
Attribution
Analytics & ad platforms
●●● Strong
●○○ Weak
●●○ Average
Experiments
Conversion & geo lift
●●○ Average
●●● Strong
●○○ Narrow
Modeling
Media mix modeling
●○○ Slower
●●○ Average
●●● Broadest
Geo-lift testing: the gold standard for causal ROI
We add or withhold ads in matched markets and measure the extra conversions, revealing a channel’s true incremental impact, often within weeks. It works across retail media, walled gardens and programmatic.
1
Define populations. K-means analysis groups similar markets (state, city or zip), then we randomize test cells within them.
2
Check stability. We compare sales trends across groups before launch so results are consistent and readable.
3
Measure the lift. Test-versus-control results by cell drive decisions on media, creative and offers.
What we do
Start with one channel or hand us the whole program.
Geo lift & attribution
Prove what your media actually drives.
Media buying & campaign management
Day-to-day execution across platforms.
Media creative strategy
Creative and messaging built to be tested.
SEO & AEO
Visibility in search engines and AI answers.
Conversion rate optimization
Turn more of your paid traffic into customers.
Training & education
Level up your in-house team.
In our clients’ words
“Shawn has truly become an extension of our team… It’s this personalized, thoughtful approach that has helped us see real, tangible improvements in our digital marketing efforts.”
Angela Cosentino
Director of Brand and Strategy, JSP Events
“They function like an extension of our small team, getting into the weeds of our paid Google Ads campaigns… and restructured our campaigns to be more efficient. And, they’re fun to work with, too.”
Ben Petuchowski
Marketing Lead, Canvas
Who we are
Senior experience on every account.
Shawn Grenald
Founder & CEO · Chicago, IL
10+ years in growth marketing
Managed $100M+ in search and $20M+ in video spend
Recognized through Google Premier Partner status and Search Engine Land Awards
Connect on LinkedIn
Pricing
Pour as much as you need.
By the Glass
Focused help, billed by the hour.
Channel-specific execution
Short-term projects
Consultation sessions
Hourly
scoped to your project
By the Bottle
Holistic media management on retainer.
Holistic media management
Weekly or bi-weekly check-ins
Quarterly business reviews & planning
Aligned to bottom-line metrics
On call whenever you need us
Custom
per month
Let’s talk
Let’s see what grows in your soil.
Tell us about your goals and current media program. We’ll come back with an honest read on where we can help, and where we can’t.