The Agency Growth Podcast

Every new agency owner we run into likes to show off their fancy, expensive software whether it's a reporting tool, CRM, or bid manager. It seems like everyone thinks the next piece of software they buy is going to push their agency to the next level when in reality, it's most likely going to keep you from going to that next level.We grew our agency to the efficient machine it is without using one paid SEO or ads tool and as of the recording and posting of this episode, we still don't.If you're considering purchasing new software, ask yourself if it's something you really need. Is your business struggling because you don't have something like it? Or is it struggling for another reason?We dive into the tools we used when we first started, the ones agencies we used to work at used and how wasteful they were, as well as some of the software and tools we use now in our agency.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

The #1 problem with the marketing and consulting industry is fake gurus and "Master Classes". Nearly all of the people who host these or have some kind of agency blueprint course are fake and can't actually perform the marketing they're preaching for clients -- so they turn to teach you instead. For the most part, this is an episode where we take a dump on people who sell agency and marketing courses for over $500 and call a few of them out by name.It's worth it to note, Jake has actually taken one of these courses (and regrets it) while Cody has never. We don't only speak from an outsider's perspective looking in but also from firsthand experience.If you don't like what we have to say in this episode... you're probably not going to like owning a business. Real success takes real work and there are no shortcuts and that's what people are trying to get with these online Master Classes and blueprints.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

If you chase relationships in your agency or consultancy, the money will follow. But if you chase money first, you risk destroying current and future relationships which becomes self-defeating in the pursuit of money.We give specific examples of when we cared more about preserving a relationship than adding a new client or taking a business' money that has had positive effects on our business. That includes nurturing and maintaining relationships over money in the following areas:ClientsProspectsIndustry PartnersEmployeesBusiness PartnersVendors & Publications----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u**Disclaimer**As we become more comfortable with our podcast layout, we make more jokes. Some jokes may be offensive to some, but we do want to iterate that these are simply jokes (specifically regarding the joke around 34m 30s mark).

When you first start out, you'll likely try to acquire and maintain as many clients as possible regardless of how demanding or awful they are. We uncover what it's really like when you sacrifice more money for clients that are out of scope, not a good fit, and are downright rude as well as how to tell when you should consider letting a client go or not take that client on in the first place.Taking on clients that could mean trouble in the future can cost your business money, valuable employees, and other clients. When you have demanding clients, they suck your time away from other clients and other aspects of your business start hurting.Know the signs of when a client may not be a good fit early on and learn how and when to say no to an existing client.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

As you start and grow your agency, you'll deal with client criticism. You can either let it annoy you or let it make you better. Criticism can be rooted in miscommunication, poor delivery, or even your client simply having a bad day.We've dealt with our fair share of client criticism in the past and felt like it would be good for us to share how we deal with different types of criticism as well as how to spot the differences.All of the criticism we've received for our agency services has made us better. It's caused us to:Redefined our servicesSet better expectations with the clientProvide simple value that wasn't there before----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Your services oftentimes include values that aren't measurable. Reporting, assurance, maintenance, etc. But sometimes clients don't understand that. If they're equating the price they're paying to only one aspect of the services you're offering, you can have an issue on your hands with your client's happiness.In this episode, we'll go over a few ways we got our clients to understand the value they got by using our agency's services in more than just our marketing efforts. It can start with simply setting the right expectations and end with communicating your values in a way that they understand.This is one of the key things you can focus on when figuring out how to reduce client churn and keep people and businesses as clients longer.Clearly stating and communicating your value can also prevent your competitors from swooping in and stealing your existing clients.As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Closing sales for a new coach or agency owner is hard, especially if you don't quite have a solid portfolio or a few references you can send prospects to.Every agency owner has to deal with this when they start their business. We were able to overcome that hurdle and now sales and closing clients come naturally to us.When we first started, we had to overcome a lot of objections -- now, it's easy... we just don't. But we had to build our portfolio in creative ways in order to get to that point.We'll go over a few tricks with tips we used when we first booked appointments and sales calls in our first year of business that got us the sale, including things like:Doing initial work cheaper or for free to build your portfolioBuilding consultative relationships that turn into paying customersOffering value that no one else with other clients canAnd more----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

One of the hardest things to do while starting your agency is finding your first client. As one of our most requested topics to shed light on, Cody and Jake expose how they acquired their first clients without cold-emailing, cold-calling, or running any ads.We'll talk about where we went to find clients along with the best and worst places to try to acquire new customers.We also go into some of our own internal rules for gaining new clients and becoming your niche's go-to for marketing or coaching information as the trusted source.In this episode on growing your agency, learn about how we acquired new clients from the following free sources and the dos and don'ts of prospect engagement:Facebook and social media groupsOnline forumsWriting for industry publicationsBeing interviewed on industry podcastsWorking on your own SEOPracticing what you preachBEING PATIENT----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Sometimes the services you offer are enough to acquire clients but are oftentimes not enough to retain clients, especially if the results you produce aren't immediate.Adding value to your services or working with you in general during your partnership with your client can be enough to keep them with you while your services work to produce results over time.We'll talk about a few of the things that we added to our productized services that added value to our clients without:Costing us additional dollarsRequiring more laborRequiring much effort----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Figuring out how to price the services for your marketing agency or consultancy can be tricky to do, especially when first starting out. Most people tend to undersell themselves when first starting out due to a lack of confidence in their own sales pitch and their product. We talk about how we:Priced our services in the beginning when we didn't have any clientsRealized we were underchargingRaised our pricesContinue to monitor whether we're charging too much or not enough----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Jake and Cody analyze the types of marketing or consulting services that not only work but are profitable. You want to offer high-value services that drive actual results with your clients. Clients aren't stupid; they'll eat you alive if what you offer doesn't drive results. You also don't need to offer everything and the kitchen sink.Focus on what works, even if it's just one service; your clients will see you as the specialist in that particular field. Cody and Jake only focused on SEO and Google Ads and that alone got their business to over 50 clients on retainer in just over 2 years. Listen to what they have to say on whittling down your services to the few (or one) that drive great results!----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

There is a multitude of things to consider when starting your agency; one of those things is whether you should focus on a niche or stay broad. Additionally, what niche should you focus on?We tackle the common questions, "should I focus on a niche?" and "what niche should I specialize in?". There is no right answer, but we have some food for thought when considering both of these questions.On one hand, niching down makes you more appealing to a subset of businesses and can increase your close rates and client retention. You can become the go-to agency for that niche, however, it can limit your potential for business growth in other sectors.On the other hand, going too broad increases competition and you're not as much of an authoritative source for a particular industry. You may see lower close rates and client retention.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Jake and Cody tackle everything you need to start your own marketing, consulting, or coaching agency. We're giving you a complete list of everything you should be thinking about and considering when starting your agency from having an actual plan to invoicing software and obtaining your LLC.What Jake & Cody say you need and how to get it:ComputerInvoicing SoftwareWebsite (domain, host, CMS)LLC and / or DBAA Jake or a CodyOne thing we forgot to add to the list was making sure to get your own business bank account separate from your personal one. Keep your money separate! Google the best banks for small businesses in your area and see what you find. You usually don't need an LLC or anything, just some sort of proof you operate as a business under a DBA (website, social media, etc).----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u