Agency Journey

Topics discussed in the episode:

• 00:25 - 02:40 The Story Behind Yvi's Branding
• 02:47 - 05:20 How Yvi is productizing her consulting business.
• 05:30 - 06:40 Helping people build their business in ClickUp
• 06:50 - 08:00 What is Minerva, and what is Minerva's current focus as a startup
• 08:00 - 11:50 Yvi and YouTube
• 12:00 - 13:20 The 10x10 Formula Strategy
• 13:21 - 15:00 Shifting her approach problem-based learning
• 15:15-16:50 The art of repurposing content
• 16:50-19:30 Client Acquisition
• 19:30-25:00 What is The SOAR Framework?
• 25:00 - 26:00 Why do 95% of Yvi's clients use ClickUp?
• 27:00 - 29:00 Being a ClickUp Consultant

Presenting Sponsor: ZenPilot

Check out ZenPilot, where we help agencies optimize their operations using our proven systems and processes.

ZenPilot knows that you are tired of wasting time on trial-and-error — that's why we provide tried-and-true solutions that will help you grow and scale quickly and sustainably.

So, what are you waiting for?

Go to zenpilot.com to learn more.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Yvonne Heimann's Linkedin
• AskYvi's Website
• The SOAR Framework
• Gray MacKenzie's LinkedIn
• ZenPilot Website
  
  

Topics discussed in the episode:

• From bootstrapped to profitable exit
• VC funding vs targeted mentorship
• Creating a JTBD (jobs-to-be-done) framework
• Launching DFY services on top of software products
• Finding opportunities in churn surveys
• SOPs and KPIs: the cornerstones of team expansion
• The components of successful link building
• Infographics as a backlink-magnet
• Incorporating humor in outreach
• The future of Postaga

Presenting Sponsor: ZenPilot

And be sure to check out ZenPilot, where we help agencies optimize their operations using our proven systems and processes.

ZenPilot knows that you are tired of wasting time on trial-and-error — that’s why we provide tried-and-true solutions that will help you grow and scale quickly and sustainably.

So, what are you waiting for?

Go to zenpilot.com to learn more.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• ZenPilot
• Postaga
• TinySeed
• Charm Offensive
• Grow Together SEO Facebook group
  
  

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Going From a Lifestyle Business to Specialty Agency
• Narrowing Your Focus For Long-Term Agency Growth
• Driving Client Acquisition Without Outbound Sales
• Differentiation and Positioning: 2 Weapons For Lead Generation
• What to Do When You’re Losing Business to Competitors
• The Role of Performance-Based Guarantees
• Using Focus Group Data to Achieve Better Client Outcomes
• Data-Driven Creative Design
• Branding KPIs
• Prospect Theory: Subjectivity = Risk, Data = Certainty
• The Benefits of Outcome-Based Pricing
• Pattern-Recognition as a Growth Skill
• Playing to The Strengths of Each Co-Founder
• Overcoming Chaos During Agency Scaling

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander
Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

Keep your message consistent
Save time and be more productive
Be accurate, every time
The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander.

Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link. 

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• ZenPilot
• SmashBrand
  
  

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Addressing Obstacles Throughout The Agency Journey
• Not Having Enough Clients to Hire More Team Members: Escaping the Catch-22
• Finding The Right Clients to Evade Price Errosion
• The Importance of Client Case Studies
• Should You Get Your Foot in The Door or Make Your Core Offer Sexier?
• The Cost of Investing Your Time on Upsells
• The Role of Satisfaction Guarantees: When to Drop It
• Giving Yourself Time to Think About Growth
• Finding 10 Extra Hours in Your Week
• Delegating Tasks to The Team You Already Have
• Finding Ways to Improve Your Best-Performing Channels
• The Benefits of 2-4 Executive Briefings Per Month
• How to Keep Your Agency From Becoming a Commodity
• Building Your Business on Proven Strategies and Existing Results

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander.

Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• ZenPilot
• Hands-Off CEO
• 5 Exits to Scale to $100K/mo

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Approaches to Agency Consulting: ZenPIlot vs TheDPM
• The 6 Characteristics to Look For in a Senior Project Manager
• Why You Should Hire Paranoid Project Managers
• Common Misconceptions About Great Project Managers
• Should Project Managers Follow The Leader or Be a Leader?
• What Makes a Senior Project Manager Worth Their Salary?
• When to Involve Project Managers in the Sales Process
• How to Best Utilize Project Managers as an Agency Owner
• Finding a Unicorn PM: Navigating Resumes and Interviews
• How Moderate Paranoia Keeps Businesses Competitive

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander.

Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• TheDPM.com
• @TheDigitalPM on Instagram
• ZenPilot
  
  

Topics discussed in the episode:

• ProcessDriven’s Business Model
• Balancing High-Level Strategies and Granular Tweaks
• When to Focus on One Product vs. Branching Out
• The PB&J Method to Separating Process From Software
• Choosing Tools For Clients: Self-Selection vs. Guided Vetting
• Engaging Service vs. Scalable Product: The Ideal Value Delivery Vehicle
• Setting Reasonable Implementation Timelines
• Self-Implementation, Guided Implementation, and DFY: Pros and Cons
• When to Send Clients Elsewhere
• The Trojan Horse of Client Acquisition
• What The Future Holds For ProcessDriven
• From Role Models to Business Models
• Becoming The Go-To Source For Your Industry’s Guides

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it's customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That's where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and effort using TextExpander. Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Layla Pomper's LinkedIn
• Layla's YouTube Channel
• Processdriven.co
• ZenPilot
• Gray MacKenzie's LinkedIn
• Gusto
• Zapier
• Make (formerly known as Integromat)
• ClickUp
• Mike Michalowicz's LinkedIn
• Profit First Book
• EOS

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Niching Down: Chase What You Love
• Figuring Out Which Clients You Enjoy Working With
• Social Proof, NDAs, and The Logos You Don’t See
• How Jeremiah Would Tackle Agency Growth If He Had a Do-Over
• Practicing What You Preach: Agency Marketing 101
• Firing Yourself From Sales
• Equipping Your Sales Team For Success
• SEO Investment: Building and Updating Pillar Articles
• How Good Content Brings Quality Leads
• Being So Good You Lose Clients?
• Working With Family: Pros and Cons
• Mastering Sales, Marketing, and Delivery
• When to Expand Into New Services
• Delivering On Your Promises
• Going From a Commodity to Partner
• The Role of Referrals
• Impact of EOS: Entrepreneurial Operating System
• What The Future Holds

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander. Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• SimpleTiger
• QuickBooks
• Slack
• EOS
• ZenPilot
  
  

Topics discussed in the episode:

• To Niche or Not to Niche
• Choosing The Right Niche For You
• Bringing Modern Solutions to Archaic Industries
• Building Effective Campaigns Through Processes
• Using Industry Experience to Craft Unique Messaging
• Small Details, Big Differentiators
• Creating Original Content With Pre-Built Frameworks
• Automating Client Input to Minimize Calls
• Productize Your Service

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander. Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• RentBridge
• VPM Solutions - VA platform recommended by Heather
• HubSpot
• ZenPilot

Ben McLellan is the founder of Ethical Scaling, a consulting company focused on helping businesses scale faster and more sustainably by retaining their clients longer. Ben got his start running a six-figure personal training company.

At the time, Ben had a dozen clients that had been with him for over a decade and this would be the exact retention experience he needed when he started his own online agency. He would also go on to work with Traffic and Funnels as a client success director that moved over 1,000 customers through their process.

Ben never claimed to be an expert at getting customers in the door, but he was one of the best when it came to keeping them from walking out.

Presenting Sponsor: TextExpander

Do you ever type the same thing over and over and over again? Whether it’s customer support answers, sales emails, or document edits, typing things repetitively or using copy and paste can be a burden. That’s where TextExpander comes in. With TextExpander, you and your team can:

• Keep your message consistent
• Save time and be more productive
• Be accurate, every time

The way we work is changing rapidly. Make work happen wherever you are by saying more in less time and with less effort using TextExpander. Get 20% from ZenPilot with this link.

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Training Clients to Make Your Process Work For Them
• The Relationship Between Higher Retention Rates and Business Growth
• Choosing Which Clients to Serve Long-Term Based on Initial Results
• How Long Should Your Client Agreements Be
• The Disconnect Between What Agencies Think is Valuable vs. What Clients Care About
• Relationship vs. Results: What Matters Most For Client Retention
• Three Reasons Agencies Lose Clients
• Different Client Archetypes and How to Adapt to Them
• How to Overcome Dopamine Dumps/Hedonic Adaptation in Clients to Prevent Churn
• Slowing Down and Understanding What Your Client Cares About
• Training Team Members to Handle Different Types of Clients
• How to Re-Assess Client Expectations Regularly
• Selling Clients What They Want Then Giving Them What They Need
• Relationship Building w/Slides, Humor, and A-Typical Conversations
• What's a Healthy Client Churn Rate For Agencies

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Ben McLellan on Facebook
• Ethical Scaling
• GoHighLevel - tool recommended by Ben
• HubSpot - CRM Gray uses
• Gray MacKenzie on LinkedIn
• Andrew Dymski on LinkedIn
• ZenPilot

Topics discussed in the episode:

• Tips for Creating an Effective Agency Case Study
• The Benefits of a Great Agency Case Study
• What is an Ideal Agency Case Study
• Tips for Conversion Copywriting
• What Makes A Great Case Study

Presenting Sponsor: ZenPilot

ZenPilot helps agencies build more productive, profitable, and healthy teams by streamlining their operations in ClickUp.

As ClickUp's largest implementation partner, we've served over 2,300 agencies and would love to help you scale operations.

Learn more about our agency solutions.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• Joel Klettke on LinkedIn
• Joel Klettke on Twitter
• Case Study Buddy Website
• Joanna Wiebe on LinkedIn
• Jonathan Dane's Agency Journey Episode
• Joel Klettke's Newsletter
• KlientBoost Website
• Gray MacKenzie on LinkedIn
• Andrew Dymski on LinkedIn
• ZenPilot