Success School

You've been outsourcing your ads for years. You're paying thousands in agency fees. And you're still getting inconsistent results.

That's not a marketing problem. That's a control problem.

In this episode, Tim sits down with Anna James, founder of Inked SMP and multiple beauty businesses in Melbourne. Anna went from paying four different agencies up to $8,000 a month in fees to taking complete control of her marketing and scaling from inconsistent $10K months to consistent $80K months.

She shares the exact moment she looked in her ad account and found the wrong city, the wrong business name, and even a competitor's name running in her ads. That was the breaking point that made her fire her agency and learn to run ads herself.

You'll hear how Anna went from overthinking the change for three years to implementing it in weeks, why she hired a VA to help scale ads across three businesses, and the mindset shift that came from finally knowing her numbers and running a truly profitable business instead of just chasing revenue.

Anna also gets real about the sales process she didn't have, the mistake of trying to look like everyone else in her industry, and why success loves speed more than perfection.

You'll hear:

• Why Anna paid four agencies up to $8K a month and still got terrible results
• The moment she opened her ad account and found a competitor's business name running in her ads
• How she went from overthinking the change for three years to taking action in weeks
• Why she hired one VA to run ads across all three of her businesses
• The KPI tracking system she didn't want to do but now can't live without
• How getting clear on her ideal client avatar changed everything in her marketing
• Why focusing on eight qualified bookings per week beat chasing 60 leads a month
• The sales process she didn't have and how her partner went from winging it to crushing it
• Why trying to look like everyone else in the beauty industry killed her results
• How knowing her numbers helped her go from busy to actually profitable
• Why AI generated images hurt trust in her industry and tanked conversions
• The mindset shift from selling treatments to selling transformations
• Why success loves speed and you already know what you need to do

If you're a service business owner paying an agency to run your ads and you're not getting the results you want, this episode is for you.

Ready to take control of your marketing?

Book a free Scale Session with the Success School team at startsuccessschool.com. We'll look at your business, show you where the gaps are, and map out what taking control of your pipeline could look like for you.

Got value from this episode? Hit follow wherever you're listening. It helps more service business owners find the show.

Follow Tim and Steph on Instagram:
@timxfrey (https://www.instagram.com/timxfrey/) · @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/)

See you next week.

You've hit six figures. You've proved people want what you sell. So why does growing the business still feel so hard?

In this episode, Tim and Steph break down six lessons they've learned about scaling a service business—and the problems that another strategy, another hire or more ad spend won't automatically fix.

They share what happened when they jumped back on sales calls for two weeks, why hiring closers as appointment setters can change your sales process, and how knowing your numbers helps you tell the difference between a marketing problem and a sales problem.

You'll also hear the four-slide Instagram story sequence designed to start conversations with potential clients, plus the story of a client who had a $150K month but couldn't explain what drove it.

And beyond sales and marketing, Tim and Steph get honest about the personal cost of running a business: the Sunday Scaries, panic attacks on the couch, and learning to build a schedule that leaves room for a life you actually enjoy.

In this episode:

• Why you should consider hiring closers as setters—and how to pitch them on the role
• How two weeks back on sales calls revealed where deals were falling apart
• Why a competing offer that sounded too good to refuse still lost the sale
• How to financially model your marketing so you know what's working
• Why a strong revenue month means less when you don't know how to repeat it
• The four-slide Instagram story sequence that generates inquiries and starts sales conversations
• How quarterly whiteboard sessions help identify what's broken in life and business
• Why removing the wrong people can shift the energy of your entire team
• How to stop letting your business dictate every hour of your life

If you're a service business owner ready to grow beyond six figures without sacrificing your life in the process, this episode is for you.

Ready to stop relying on referrals?

Book a free Scale Session with the Success School team (https://startsuccessschool.com/). We'll look at your business, identify the gaps in your sales and marketing, and map out what building a fully booked pipeline could look like for you.

Follow the show wherever you listen, and connect with Tim @timxfrey (https://www.instagram.com/timxfrey/) and Steph @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) on Instagram for more each week.

Book your business growth call here: www.startsuccessschool.com (https://startsuccessschool.com/)

You've got an offer. You've got clients. You're making decent money.

But you're stuck, and it's probably not for the reason you think.

In this episode, Tim and Steph break down the three problems that stop most service businesses from hitting seven figures: leads, sales, and scale. By the end you'll know which one is holding you back and what to do about it.

While you're stuck, you're losing money every day. Our clients aren't. 72% of them are up month on month, while 64% of Australian businesses are reporting falling profits.

You'll hear:

• The theory of constraints, and why fixing one problem at a time can double your business
• How to find the kink in the hose that's actually stopping the flow in your business
• Why most businesses don't have a leads problem. They have a warm audience problem.
• Why we recommend ads over organic content, and how to install an ad system that works
• Why some of our clients spend $400 a month to make $20,000 a week
• The truth about selling to warm leads vs. cold leads, and why your sales skills need to change
• How to remove yourself from sales without killing your close rate
• The scale problem: why you can't take a holiday when everything relies on you
• How Lorlean went from $60K to $130K a month in six months through accountability alone
• How Matt and Emily went from $80K to $146K a month in six months
• The beauty business owner who ditched her agency and scaled from $20K to $80K a month
• Why hiring an agency is the easy choice that leads to a hard life
• Why industry-specific coaches hold you back, and how an outside view helps you stand out
• How Steph's take on content drove a 66% increase in views and a 250% increase in comments

Ready to get unstuck?

If you're a service business owner under seven figures and tired of relying on referrals, book a free Business Growth Call with our team at startsuccessschool.com.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out your path to seven figures. It's not a pitch fest, just a real conversation about what's holding you back.

Got value from this episode? Hit follow wherever you're listening. It helps more service business owners find the show.

Follow Tim and Steph on Instagram:
@timxfrey (https://www.instagram.com/timxfrey/) · @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/)

See you next week.

Most businesses don’t need more leads.

They need better marketing.

We’ve generated over $15M in online sales, and some of our biggest improvements haven’t come from complicated funnels, new tactics or chasing cheaper leads.

They’ve come from getting the basics right.

In this episode, we break down 4 simple marketing lessons we’re using right now:

• Why direct beats clever
• Why you should nail ONE funnel before building another
• Why cheap leads can actually cost you more money
• Why ROAS matters more than CPL
• Why AI-written copy can hurt your conversions
• Why simpler landing pages are winning for us
• How we’re getting around 50% of our leads to book calls
• What we learned from spending $700,000 testing webinars

One of our landing pages converted at 28%.

We “improved” it using AI.

It dropped to 14%.

That taught us a pretty simple lesson.

Clear beats clever.

Human beats polished.

And more marketing doesn’t fix bad marketing.

Our philosophy is becoming pretty simple:

MORE ADS. BETTER ADS.

But those ads need to lead somewhere that actually converts.

If you run a service business and want more of what we’re testing with paid ads, funnels and marketing each week, follow us on Instagram:

Tim: @timxfrey
Steph: @stephgorton__

Want us to look at your business?

Book a free Scale Session with the Success School team.

We’ll look at your:

• Lead generation
• Marketing
• Funnel
• Sales process
• Numbers

Then we’ll show you where the biggest gaps are and what we’d focus on next to help you build a more predictable pipeline.

Book your free business growth call at www.startsuccessschool.com

And if you got something from this episode, follow the show.

Every week, we share what we’re actually testing, what’s working, what isn’t, and the lessons we’re learning from marketing and scaling service businesses.

You've got competition. They're undercutting you on price. They're posting more content. And you're wondering how the hell you're supposed to stand out.

That's not a competition problem. That's a strategy problem.

Today we're breaking down the three principles that will help you absolutely destroy your competition in business. And if you're not doing these three things, you're letting weaker competitors steal clients that should be yours. We're talking about upgrading your offer so it solves better problems than anyone else in your market, outmarketing your competition with ads and content that actually converts, and staying in the game long enough to watch everyone else quit.

We get into why 50 million new businesses are created every year and most of them fail in the first 12 months, the accountant who added a mortgage broking wing to her business and doubled her revenue, and why making pithy opinion posts about politics or what you watched on Netflix is killing your brand.

We also talk about why Amazon didn't turn a profit for nine years and Airbnb lived on credit cards for five years before they cracked it, the client who compared herself to Amy Porterfield and why that was setting her up for disappointment, and why if you're constantly changing your niche or offer every 12 months, no one will ever trust you.

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of watching your competition win, this episode is for you.

You'll hear:

Why 50 million new businesses are created every year and why most of them don't last

The brutal truth about upgrading your offer and why competing on price will destroy your margins

How we changed our offer from group coaching to one to one with a build and release model

Why you need to ask your best clients what they love about your offer and what they would change

The accountant who added mortgage broking to her business and doubled her revenue in 12 months

Why most people don't upgrade their offer because they don't believe they can charge more

How to outmarket your competition by marketing more and marketing better

Why we recommend Facebook ads over organic content for most service businesses

The difference between making noise and actually marketing your business

Why posting pithy opinion takes about politics or what you're watching on Netflix is a waste of time

How to stay in the game long enough to watch your competition quit

Why Amazon didn't turn a profit for nine years and Airbnb lived on credit cards for five years

The client who kept comparing herself to Amy Porterfield and why that was setting her up to fail

Why you need to turn the blinkers off and stop comparing yourself to the goats in your industry

How to avoid the wobbles and why getting depleted will make you change direction too soon

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's episode, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next week.

You want to scale past a million dollars. You've got the offer. You've got the clients. But you're still stuck.

That's not a strategy problem. That's an execution problem.

Today we're breaking down six brutally simple rules that will take you past the million dollar mark. And if you're not doing these six things, you're leaving money on the table every single day. We're talking about the uncomfortable truth about going all in, why charging more will attract better clients and grow your business faster, and the one thing that separates people who hit a million from people who stay stuck at 200K.

We get into why being on Instagram all day is killing your focus, the story of how we ran a webinar the day Steph's dad passed away because we said we would, and why our business coach replied with 40% of the goal when we hit our first 400K month.

We also talk about why you need to burn the boats and remove your safety net, the client who paid 30 grand and moved faster than anyone we've ever worked with, and why if you're blaming the algorithm or Meta ads or anything else, the answer is always more effort.

If you're a service business owner and you're ready to scale past a million, this episode is for you.

You'll hear:

Why you need to go all in and burn the boats if you want to scale past a million

The brutal truth about charging more and why it attracts better clients who refer better clients

How we went from criminal underchargers to on track for 400 to 500K months by raising our prices

Why doing what you say you're going to do builds self trust and moves your business forward faster

The story of how we ran a webinar the night Steph's dad passed away because we committed to it

Why you need to get off Instagram and stop wasting time on bullshit that doesn't drive you towards your goal

How being tunnel vision on a million dollars a month means we don't give a fuck about what anyone else is doing

Why you need to put in more effort and stop blaming the algorithm when your ads aren't working

How we built a new webinar in 12 hours because that's what it takes to feed the team

Why you need to listen to the people you're paying and implement their advice immediately

The difference between hiring a pusher and hiring someone you want to be friends with

Why our business grew four times in 18 months after we hired a coach who pushed us harder

The story of our coach replying 40% of the goal when we hit our first $400K month

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's episode, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next week.

You booked a sales call. They didn't show up. And now you're wondering how to get them back without looking desperate.

That's not a no show problem. That's a follow up problem.

Today we're breaking down the Ghost Protocol, the exact strategy our sales team uses to turn no shows into paying clients. And it's got nothing to do with better reminder emails, better sales scripts, or chasing people down on social media. It's about using psychology and email deliverability to get straight back to the top of their inbox.

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of no shows killing your close rate, this episode is for you.

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's S*it that works!, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next Thursday for S*it that works!

You're building a business. You're planning for a family. And you're wondering how the hell you're supposed to do both without everything falling apart.

Today we're pulling back the curtain on the 3.5 year journey it took us to get pregnant, the brutal reality of IVF, and exactly how we've removed Steph from the business so it can scale to a million dollars a month without her.

We're talking about the moment we realized our entire business relied on Steph being the face of everything, why we had to kill our group coaching model and move to one to one, and the three key hires we made in two weeks to prepare for this. We also get into why Tim's sperm count was zero for 18 months, the choice we had between scaling down or building a real business, and why waiting until you're six months pregnant to prep for maternity leave is way too late.

We also answer your questions about why we wanted kids, how we knew it was the right time, whether we're having the baby in Thailand, and why Steph's not reading a single parenting book.

If you're a business owner planning for a baby or any extended time away from your business, this episode is for you.

You'll hear:

Why it took us 3.5 years to get pregnant and the IVF journey that got us here

The moment we realized our entire business relied on Steph and why that was a problem

How we changed the business model from group coaching to one to one so we could scale without Steph

The three key hires we made in two weeks (ops manager, sales manager, and content manager)

Why if Steph got taken out of the company tomorrow, nothing would change

The brutal truth about waiting until month six of pregnancy to prep for mat leave

How we mapped out what it takes to hit a million dollars a month and built the team around that

Why we're having the baby in Thailand and the hospital experience that changed our minds

How we knew it was the right time to have a baby (and why we're glad we waited)

The advice we'd give to anyone planning for a baby while running a business

Why Tim's not reading a single parenting book and Steph doesn't have a birth plan

The Snoo versus Cradle Wise debate and why we're about to start a war in the comments

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's episode, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next week.

You're sending emails. No one's opening them. And you're wondering why your list isn't converting.

Today we're breaking down the email subject line hack that gets us 80 to 90% open rates every single time. And it's so simple you're going to kick yourself for not using it already. We're talking about the one word subject line that makes people think you sent them something personal, the three other subject lines that work just as well, and why most people butcher their emails by making the subject line way too long.

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's S*it that works!, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next Thursday for S*it that works!

You've got an offer. You're running ads. You're posting on social. And you're still stuck under a million dollars.

That's not a marketing problem. That's an offer problem.

Today we're breaking down exactly what it takes to build an offer that scales past the million dollar mark. We've studied over 1,600 offers from businesses we've worked with, and we've found a specific formula that separates the offers that scale from the ones that don't. And by the end of this episode, you'll know exactly what's missing from your offer and how to fix it.

We're talking about the 5P framework, pain, promise, person, process, and profit, and why most offers fail because they don't solve a painful enough problem. We get into why being scared to make promises is killing your close rate, how to know if you're targeting the wrong customer, and why your offer needs to be designed for the client, not for your lifestyle.

We also talk about the photographer who pivoted from real estate agents to financial services and turned her business around in two months, the beauty clinic owner who was marketing massages when she should have been marketing skin treatments, and why high ticket beats low ticket every single time if you actually want to scale.

If you're a service business owner and you're stuck under a million dollars, this episode is for you.

You'll hear:

What an offer actually is and why most people get it wrong

The biggest mistake people make when building offers (hint: they build it for themselves, not the client)

The 5P framework: pain, promise, person, process, and profit

How big does the problem need to be for your offer to scale?

The beauty clinic owner who was marketing massages instead of skin treatments (and why that was a mistake)

Why businesses are terrified of making promises and how to fix that

How to know if you've chosen the wrong customer (and what to do about it)

The photographer who pivoted from real estate to financial services and turned it around in two months

Why you need to start as you mean to go on (and what we learned from Shelby Sapp)

How to scale your offer without burning yourself out

Is high ticket better for scale? (The answer is yes, and here's why)

Why you should never read client feedback as a founder

Why founders feel the need to create multiple offers (and why that's a mistake)

The one thing that will scale your offer past a million dollars

If you're a service business owner and you're tired of relying on referrals to keep your calendar full, go to https://startsuccessschool.com/ and book a free Scale Session with our team.

We'll look at your business, show you exactly where the gaps are, and map out what a fully booked pipeline looks like for you specifically.

No fluff, no pitch fest. Just a real conversation about what's actually holding you back. We'd love to help you build something that actually works.

And if you got value from today's episode, make sure you hit follow wherever you're listening. It means the world to us and it helps more service business owners find the show.

You can also follow Tim and Steph over on Instagram at @timfrey__ (https://www.instagram.com/timfrey__/) and @stephgorton__ (https://www.instagram.com/stephgorton__/) for more content every week.

See you next week.