Digital Marketing Consultant · New Zealand
Digital marketing consulting
for the AI era.
We use AI across content, analytics, ads, and reporting - and teach your team to do the same. Modern stack, transparent pricing, built to hand over. From $2,500/month.
River Path Home Loans
Manta5 Hydrofoils
Empower Software
PPC Foiling
Hofman Roofing
Hidden Springs
Agilis Consulting
Go Waipa
Presto Dryer
ZeroJet
Tectrax
Storage Care Hub
RB Thomas Builders
Airmax Website
Airmax - 10x Visibility in 28 Days
The Digital Marketing Reality in 2026
Most NZ digital marketing consulting is stuck in 2018.
WordPress recommendations. SEO advice that ignores AI search. Reporting dashboards built on platforms that don't talk to each other. Strategies designed for a Google-only world.
Digital marketing in 2026 looks fundamentally different. AI generates 80% of content first drafts. AI search engines are taking real query volume. Modern web stacks have left WordPress behind. Attribution and analytics are more powerful than ever - if you set them up properly.
We consult from where digital marketing is now, not where it was a decade ago.
What We Cover
The full digital marketing stack.
Performance marketing
Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn - campaigns built around conversion data, not vanity metrics. We optimise weekly and report monthly with real CAC, ROAS, and payback periods.
SEO & GEO (AI search)
Traditional SEO plus optimisation for ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. We build llms.txt, structured data, and FAQ schema so you show up in AI answers - not just blue links.
Content & email
Content systems built around AI-assisted production with human editing. Email automation flows that actually convert - welcome series, nurture, retention, win-back.
Analytics & attribution
GA4 set up properly, UTM attribution working, conversion tracking on every form. You finally know what's actually generating leads, not just which channel got the click.
AI integration & ops
Where AI fits in your marketing operations - content, reporting, customer comms, prompts, custom GPTs. We build the playbook your team can run with.
Web & conversion
Conversion-focused websites built on modern stacks (Next.js, not WordPress). Landing pages tested against real ad traffic. CRO that compounds over time.
How We Use AI
Four principles that shape our AI-native consulting.
We use AI in our own business - visibly.
The site you're reading was built with Claude Code. Our content workflows, analytics, attribution, and reporting all run through AI-powered systems. We're not consultants who recommend AI - we're consultants who run on it.
AI augments humans, doesn't replace them.
Strategy stays human. Taste stays human. Decisions stay human. AI handles speed, volume, and consistency. The best digital marketers in 2026 are the ones using both effectively.
Modern stack, not WordPress + 30 plugins.
We build on Next.js, deploy on Digital Ocean, integrate AI tools that work in 2026. Most NZ digital agencies are still recommending tech from 2018 because that's what they know.
Transparent everything.
Pricing on every page. No mysterious retainer minimums. No 'request a quote' walls. AI Audit at $1,500. Full Service $5-8k/month. Individual services priced per project. Scope and quote upfront.
Three Ways We Consult
Pick the engagement that fits your stage.
Same AI-native approach, three commitment levels. We'll help you pick.
Common questions.
What does a digital marketing consultant actually do?
A good digital marketing consultant audits your current digital presence, builds the strategy, sets up the foundations (analytics, attribution, conversion tracking), runs or guides execution, and trains your team. We do all of this - we don't stop at strategy.
How is 'digital marketing consulting' different from 'marketing consulting'?
Mostly framing. Digital marketing consulting emphasises the channels (paid ads, SEO, email, content, web) where most marketing happens today. Real strategy still applies - channel choices, positioning, funnel design, measurement. We do both because they're not actually separable in 2026.
How much does a digital marketing consultant cost in NZ?
Our pricing is transparent. AI Marketing Audit fixed at $1,500. Full Service Accelerator $5,000-$8,000/month. Individual services priced per project. No hourly billing surprises, no scope creep.
Are you experts in Google Ads / Meta Ads / SEO / specific channels?
We work across all the main digital channels - Google Ads, Meta Ads, LinkedIn, SEO, email, content, web. We're generalists by design rather than channel specialists, because most NZ marketing fails in the gaps between channels, not within any single one.
What's GEO and why do I keep hearing about it?
GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation) is optimising your business to be cited by AI search engines like ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews. It uses similar signals to SEO - structured data, clear content, authority - plus newer ones like llms.txt and FAQ schema. We do both SEO and GEO.
What size NZ businesses do you work with?
Typically $500K to $20M revenue. Big enough to invest in marketing as a real business function, small enough that a senior consultant makes a measurable difference. We work nationally - Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, and across the Waikato.
Will you train our team to keep running it?
Yes - that's a core part of how we work. Our Full Service Accelerator includes documented handover within 12-18 months. We also offer individual services and training on a project basis. We don't believe in keeping clients dependent.
Related services
The AI angle runs through everything we do. Common next steps:
Case Studies
Real results from real businesses.
View all →
Airmax
A basic WordPress site replaced with a 98-page, search-optimised website - built with AI. Two months later: search visibility up 29x, Google clicks up 6x, and the phone doesn't stop.
1 → 10+
Calls per day
29x
Search visibility, 2 months
Empower Software
A workshop-software company with a tight ad budget and a flat year behind it. Three months later: a paid lead engine that scales, a search-optimised site pulling free organic traffic, and the first leads landing in Australia.
31
Qualified workshop leads, first 3 months
~$102
Cost per qualified lead
Alpha Trailers
A tired WordPress site replaced with a fast, search-optimised website - built with AI, live in six weeks. The owner now edits it himself in plain English.
199
Google clicks, first week
4,360
Impressions, first week
River Path Home Loans
A team of mortgage advisers left an established brokerage to start their own firm - no brand, no website, no online presence. Seven days later they had all three.
7
Days to launch
55+
Pages built
PPC Foiling
From 7 dealers to 95 - how a Kiwi wing foiling brand built a global B2B channel from scratch with King Tide.
7→95
Dealers across NA & Europe
Consistent
Reorders from dealer network
Smart Housing Solutions
From tyre-kickers to 6 signed contracts in two weeks. How a husband-and-wife tiny home business in New Zealand transformed their marketing from scattered to strategic.
6
Contracts in 2 weeks
10+
Quality leads per week
Testimonials
Don't take our word for it.
“The team deliver results at more than twice the pace and impact than normal marketing executives. A real hands on do and deliver team. Jumping from strategy to execution and results in days. The best marketing exec I have ever worked with.”
Mark Robotham
CEO, Manta5
“Louis has a rare and hard-to-find talent for reaching and engaging a target market. He made marketing a core competency of our business. I'm still blown away by the reach and engagement we had on social media and the thousands of enquiries we received over the years.”
Guy Howard-Willis
Founder, Torpedo 7
“The foiling industry is super competitive, and standing out isn't easy. We've made huge progress - we're selling more to end consumers and signing up dealers faster than we ever have. It's momentum.”
Sam Loader
Founder, PPC Foiling
“The team at King Tide are great people to work with. They strike a rare balance between big picture strategic thinking and sharp execution to ensure they deliver actual results, not just glossy reports. Highly recommend.”
Greg Johnston
37 South Capital
“Louis and Ella at King Tide are incredible, after a full brief, intel gathering and outlining our current frustrations and what we were looking for, these guys delivered!! Not only were they incredibly responsive, but they were also intuitive to tap into our Industry to produce result quickly, collaboratively and without fuss - would 100% recommend.”
Cherrie Wheeler
Presto Resourcing
“We've been using King Tide for 12 months as a general advisor for all marketing. The improvement we've seen in our business is off the charts and I see no other reason for it. They're awesome to deal with, incredibly knowledgeable, and their advice works. Can not recommend enough.”
Jake
RB Thomas Building
Ready for digital marketing consulting that's actually current?
Book a free 30-minute scoping call. We'll figure out where your digital marketing needs to go and which engagement type fits.