Advertise on podcast: The Agency Growth Podcast

[Cold open [ChatGPT UTM Drops, Disney SEO & Godzilla.] ends at 08:11.] Getting better results for your clients shouldn’t mean making less money. But if you charge a flat retainer and eat every usage fee, that’s exactly what can happen. More leads mean more calls, more automations, and more charges. Multiply that across your clients, and those pennies start taking a real bite out of your margin. Our move from HubSpot to HighLevel brought this conversation back up. We talk through how call tracking, automation, reporting, and payment processing costs add up and why “we just eat it” deserves a closer look. We cover passing usage fees to clients, setting pricing tiers, and accounting for costs in your ad spend pricing. We also talk about why billing needs to be automated. Saving your margin doesn’t help much if you create hours of manual invoicing. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Article: ChatGPT appears to drop UTM tracking, making AI referral traffic harder to measure https://searchengineland.com/chatgpt-appears-to-drop-utm-tracking-making-ai-referral-traffic-harder-to-measure-496552 ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Marathon Medals & Big Tech Ad Warfare.] ends at 07:30.] Before you spend thousands on a marketing course, see what you can learn for free. We both spent money on programs that didn’t deliver what we expected. This week, we walk through free courses from Google, HubSpot, Meta, and WordPress that agency owners and their teams can take. Knowing the fundamentals helps you spot when some biz bro is charging you for outdated, regurgitated information. We also cover why Google Tag Manager is one of the most valuable skills you can add to your agency. Tracking leads and sales matters when clients are paying you to deliver results. And if you’re using AI to build websites, you still need enough web knowledge to understand what it built and what’s broken. Getting certified doesn’t make you a marketing genius. We talk about where certifications fit into Google Partner status, how they can help establish credibility, and why platform training still deserves some skepticism. Start with the free resources before deciding what’s worth paying for. ----- FREE COURSES: HIGH LEVEL SOLUTION: DIGITAL MARKETING FUNDAMENTALS Hubspot's Digital Marketing Fundamentals https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/digital-marketing Google's Fundamentals of Digital Marketing https://skillshop.exceedlms.com/student/collection/1830706 HIGH LEVEL SOLUTION: WEB DESIGN Everything Wordpress https://skillshop.exceedlms.com/student/collection/1830706 AI COURSES Google AI Essentials https://grow.google/intl/es/ TRACKING YOUR WEBSITE Google Analytics 4 by Google ** Knowing Google Analytics is fundamental for SEO and digital marketing in general. https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/15068052?sjid=16468356113301912686-NA Google Tag Manager Fundamentals Course https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/15068052#zippy=,get-started-using-google-analytics-introduction,go-further-with-advanced-features-in-google-analytics-advanced,answer-business-questions-with-google-analytics-intermediate,use-google-analytics-for-your-business-beginner HIGH LEVEL SOLUTION: SEO Google SEO Fundamentals **This course is recommended by Google themselves. https://www.coursera.org/learn/seo-fundamentals SEO Certification Course by Hubspot ** Hubspot has a plethora of free courses and their SEO course is pretty decent. https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/seo-training Semrush SEO Crash Course ** Semrush is a well-respected analytics tool in the SEO/PPC industry and provides this free course led by Brian Dean. https://www.semrush.com/academy/courses/semrush-seo-crash-course-with-brian-dean/ Wix Studio SEO Course https://www.wix.com/seo/learn/course HIGH-LEVEL SOLUTION: SOCIAL MEDIA Meta Blueprint Certification https://www.facebookblueprint.com/student/catalog TikTok Academy https://ads.tiktok.com/business/en-US/blog/introducing-tiktok-academy LinkedIn Academy https://training.marketing.linkedin.com/ Full-funnel content marketing strategy https://training.marketing.linkedin.com/building-a-full-funnel-content-marketing-strategy-on-linkedin HIGH-LEVEL SOLUTION: PPC Google Ads Certification https://skillshop.docebosaas.com/learn/signin HIGH-LEVEL EMAIL MARKETING Hubspot's Email Certification https://academy.hubspot.com/courses/email-marketing-certification-en?utm_source=lookingformarketing&utm_medium=referral ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Article: Apple, Amazon, Meta At A Standoff Blocking Ads, AI Agents https://searchengineland.com/google-tests-bigger-local-services-ads-491531 Google Ads Quality Score https://tenscores.com/quality-score/ ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Google is testing bigger Local Services Ads.] ends at 06:23.] More clients won’t fix an agency that can’t handle the ones it already has. In this episode, we lay out seven steps for growing an agency. We also talk about deciding what kind of agency you actually want to run. That decision affects the services you sell and the clients you take on. We share how onboarding became such a bottleneck that we stopped taking new clients for months. Clients had already called us out for being too busy growing to deliver the monthly service. They were right, and we had to fix it. We also get into why adding clients and hiring more people eventually stops being enough. Increasing revenue per client matters, but selling an extra service you can’t confidently deliver can cost you the relationship. These are lessons from building our own agency, including the parts we’re still figuring out. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Google tests bigger Local Services Ads article: https://searchengineland.com/google-tests-bigger-local-services-ads-491531 ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [ChatGPT shopping fees and profit margins.] ends at 06:55.] The money in your agency’s bank account isn’t all yours to spend. This week, we walk through how we manage finances at Evergrow and how that system has changed as we’ve grown. We cover collecting payments, keeping business and personal money separate, and getting an accountant before your books become a mess. We also explain how we adapted Profit First to give payroll, operating expenses, savings, and profit their own accounts. Those boundaries help us decide whether we can afford a new tool or hire without treating every dollar as available money. Then there’s paying ourselves. We’ve gone from taking home $12,000 each in a busy month to less than $1,000 in winter. We talk about what changed and why your personal income shouldn’t swing with your agency’s seasons. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: ChatGPT 5.6 has transformed Shopping mode: https://www.tryprofound.com/blog/chatgpt-5.6-shopping-transformation#smaller-merchants-must-integrate-through-shopify-to-combat-this Reddit post shared by Jake: https://www.reddit.com/r/agency/comments/1wavilk/agency_owners_how_do_you_manage_your_finances/?solution=d6ced175b39ca535d6ced175b39ca535&js_challenge=1&jsc_token=2824be10929bdc604753c70a67a1c3311f738478fbc50c003b1beb425da34512&jsc_orig_r= Agencies Need the Profit First™ System (ft. Mike Michalowicz): https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/episodes/agencies-need-the-profit-first-system-ft-mike-michalowicz-150 The Tax Strategies Most Agency Owners Never Consider (ft. Emily Bowie): https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/episodes/the-tax-strategies-most-agency-owners-never-consider-ft-emily-bowie-w-thorne-advisors-222 ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Reacting to California's ban on addictive social media features.] ends at 06:20.] In this episode, we break down what actually happens when you land (or think about landing) a client that might be too big for your agency to handle. A lot of agency owners mistake the overall valuation of a client's business with the actual scope of work required. When you rush to take on massive accounts without the labor capacity to back it up, you end up compromising quality, burning out your team, or neglecting your existing clients. Real agency growth comes down to calculating your actual labor hours, not chasing big numbers for vanity. We share our own stumbles, from turning down a 30-hour-a-week overflow contract early on to managing a franchise deal that eventually made up 35% of our monthly revenue. Relying on one account to fund half of your payroll creates massive operational risk if that revenue suddenly disappears or gets moved in-house. We talk through how taking on deals outside your limits can do irreversible damage to your reputation and pull you away from your core niche. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Reddit thread: https://www.reddit.com/r/agencynewbies/comments/1w8p20q/i_think_im_getting_into_something_big/?solution=27c5927fd8eeb84b27c5927fd8eeb84b&js_challenge=1&jsc_token=2824be10929bdc604753c70a67a1c33147878f6fa90addb71bae1db8a88a12a6&jsc_orig_r= ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [The Problem With ChatGPT Ads.] ends at 07:03.] Your agency already has a brand voice, even if you’ve never defined it. We learned this when a team member published the first Evergrow blog post that Cody or Jake didn’t write. The article was solid, but it didn’t sound like us. That exposed a problem many agency owners eventually face: once content and client communication move beyond the founders, the team needs more direction than “keep it casual.” In this episode, we talk about defining a voice around your clients, company values, and the way your team actually communicates. We also explain why reviewing work together matters, especially when you’re training newer employees. The goal isn’t to make everyone sound identical, but to give them clear boundaries and room to contribute. We also break down how objective writing standards can make editing less subjective. If your agency is delegating content, emails, or social media, this is the groundwork that keeps the brand consistent as the team grows. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Article: Data Reveals ChatGPT Ads Not Performing https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/417528/data-reveals-chatgpt-ads-not-performing.html ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

In this episode, we talk about why the right .com can be worth pursuing as your agency grows. It will not instantly bring in more leads, but it can change how established and credible your business feels. That matters when you are building a real company instead of chasing short-term revenue. We walk through how to find the owner of a taken domain, determine what it may actually be worth, and complete the purchase without hiring a broker. The most important part is deciding what you are willing to pay before the negotiation starts. Cody also shares how he bought a domain listed for a few thousand dollars for just $230. It is a good reminder that an asking price is only an asking price, and that domain acquisition could become another useful service your agency offers clients. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Inside the Castello Brothers Smoothie Move Into Fractional Ownership of Domain Names Article: https://www.dnjournal.com/articles/2026/smoothie/doma.htm Book recommendation: "Never Split the Difference" by Chris Voss How to get in touch with the domain owner? lookup.icann.org Premium domain negotiating toolbox: Estibot.com Escrow.com ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

We sat down with Emily Bowie from Thorne Advisors to talk about the boring, unsexy side of tax strategy and fixing broken agency pricing. Most agency owners lump tax prep in with basic bookkeeping and ignore real strategy until Uncle Sam takes a massive chunk of their profit. Emily breaks down why tax strategy starts making sense around the $100k net mark, how S-Corp elections factor into the mix, and how to handle reasonable compensation to stay off the IRS audit list. It comes down to understanding your actual cash flow instead of guessing your way through payroll. We also talk about the operational leaks that make agencies look profitable on paper while the bank account tells a completely different story. From miscalculating labor rates to ignoring true overhead, scope creep silently eats away at your capacity to take on better work. Emily breaks down how one agency lost $120,000 just by failing to factor true delivery costs into their proposals. If you want to stop bleeding cash on bad proposals and keep more of what you earn, listen to the episode and share your thoughts in the comments. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Follow Emily: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilyvbowie/   Thorne Advisors: www.thorneadvisors.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thorneadvisors/   5 Cash Leaks and 5 Missed Tax Deductions: https://www.thorneadvisors.com/cashleaks ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Moving to Tampa, podcast camera shaming, and getting called "AI slop" on Reddit.] ends at 12:43.] Account management might be the hardest agency skill to teach. We’re moving two experienced strategists into formal account management roles, and the hard part is not SEO, PPC, or reporting. It is learning how to communicate strategy, understand the history behind the numbers, and know when a client email needs 30 seconds or 30 minutes. Those soft skills carry more weight than most agency owners realize. We break down the difference between client services, account management, and account executives, plus what each role actually requires. A strong account manager needs more than likability. They need strategy, organization, communication, industry knowledge, and a clear understanding of where they can push back. If clients are used to working with the owner, handing off accounts takes more than changing the name on an email thread. You need to build trust, stay involved, and give the new account manager time to prove they can handle the relationship. Until that happens, stepping away from the agency can cost you clients and recurring revenue. ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

We sat down with Jasmine Sotiropoulos to talk about the reality of undercharging, learning how to sell services, and niching down without torching your main agency. Jasmine started like a lot of agency owners, taking cheap jobs on task sites, grinding nights and weekends, and saying yes to everything. Everything shifted when she stopped treating design like "making pretty things" and started learning how to communicate actual business value to her clients. That shift in communication allowed her to step away from low-ticket work and start closing $10,000+ branding projects. We also talk about how she launched a second agency entity to capitalize on founder-led branding without trapping her original business in a single box. Plus, she breaks down why she skips lazy automation for personal voice memos and chooses tech stacks that make client handoffs painless. If you are stuck undercharging or terrified of making the wrong strategic pivot, this conversation offers a grounded look at the boring work behind building a real business. Check it out and let us know what you think. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Contact Jasmine: LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasmine-sotiropoulos/ ReWorded: https://www.reworded.com.au Red Bow House: https://www.redbowhouse.com ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

Mark Kelly built Inbound Revenue by doing the work other agencies were selling. For roughly a decade, white-label Google Ads made up most of his business. It reduced the sales burden and gave partner agencies a productized fulfillment system, but it also meant his team had to jump between completely different industries. Mark is now shifting toward direct relationships with outdoor living contractors. We talk about why narrowing the niche gives him more control over budgets, client communication, and lead feedback. We also discuss why white-label agencies can lose accounts over problems they had nothing to do with. We compare pricing, landing-page control, hiring Google Ads specialists, and the systems required to keep fulfillment consistent. Mark is building a different version of a niche agency than ours, which is exactly the point: two competitors can serve the same market without building the same business. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Contact Mark: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mark.d.kelly1 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mdkelly/ Inbound Revenue: https://inboundrevenue.com ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

We sat down with Matt Aldrich of Pet Engine Marketing to break down how he built a six-figure niche agency using trade shows and a $2,500 monthly minimum retainer. Cold outreach flopped in his industry, so Matt pivoted to trade shows to build face-to-face trust with local business owners. He eventually turned those connections into paid speaking gigs that positioned him as an authority in the space. Most local clients did not even understand what a real marketing budget was, so educating them became step one. We also covered why he completely ditched organic social media management after realizing it burned out his team and provided zero financial return. Instead of selling bloated service packages, Matt shifted his focus strictly to high-impact strategy, email, and paid ads. Agency growth is rarely linear, and sometimes cutting useless deliverables is the fastest way to fix your margins. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Contact Matt: [email protected] LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mjaldrich13/ Pet Engine Marketing: https://petenginemarketing.com/ ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Steroids, workout hacks, and AI-flagged social content.] ends at 08:25.] Stepping away from your agency before you have a proper scale built out is a fast track to lost revenue and client churn. In this episode, we break down a recent post from our friend Caesar, who lost $10,000 in monthly recurring revenue after taking six weeks off. While he attributed the lead drop to pausing client acquisition, the cancellations exposed what happens to deliverable quality when the owner steps out. We discuss why raising prices without adding extra value creates high churn the moment you step back from managing those relationships. Based on our conversations with multi-million dollar agency owners, you shouldn't hand off account management before reaching $2 million in revenue or sales before $5 million. Putting an early-stage agency on "autopilot" usually just means you are gliding toward zero. If you want to protect retention, you have to stay in the trenches and do the unsexy work required to maintain quality. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Cesar's Reddit Post: "Down $10K MRR this summer - it's on me" (https://www.reddit.com/r/agency/comments/1ux8bxa/down_10k_mrr_this_summer_its_on_me/) ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

We sat down with another competitor, Tyler Hoyt of Fast Break Digital Media, to compare how two niche agencies can serve similar clients while building completely different businesses. Tyler explains how he grew from managing every account himself to running a lean team built around revenue share, contractors, a VA, and a setter. We talk about getting out of fulfillment, hiring people who are better than you, and dropping the belief that you need to control everything. We also break down the realities of selling Meta Ads, setting minimum budgets, getting clients to create video content, and turning away prospects who will not do their part. Tyler shares real numbers on lead costs, close rates, acquisition costs, pricing, and why organic social is still his strongest source of new business. Fast Break is now doing around $70,000 per month without a bloated team. This is an honest conversation about retention, seasonality, client expectations, and what agency owners can learn from the competitors doing good work beside them. ----- MENTIONS IN THE EPISODE: Follow Tyler: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tyler-hoyt/ Fast Break Digital Media: https://fastbreakdigitalmedia.com/ ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact

[Cold open [Paintball, sick kids, and the problem with barber fades] ends at 05:58.] The agency model built on evergreen content and one reliable acquisition channel is starting to break. Last month, 25% of our Google ad spend went to LSAs, something that would have been unheard of a year ago. Now ChatGPT Ads, AI search, and changing platforms are forcing agencies to rethink both service delivery and client acquisition. We talk about why authority matters more than generic content, and how brand mentions, reviews, industry publications, social engagement, and video are shaping who gets trusted and recommended. Real credibility takes time. It comes from doing useful work and showing up in more than one place. For newer agencies, that may mean working for free to gain experience and cold calling when inbound is not there. For established agency owners, it means staying involved in sales, building beyond one channel, and accepting that the old playbook will not carry the business forever. ----- PREMIUM: Join the Patreon and get exclusive content from this episode with more in-depth advice and hours of bonus content each month: https://www.agencygrowthpodcast.com/premium ----- RESOURCES: Want the tools and resources we recommend for agencies? Check them out here: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/tools ----- NEWSLETTER Want the show in your inbox? Sign up for the newsletter! https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/newsletter ----- COMMUNITY Looking to join a community of agency owners? Join our Discord! https://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRD ----- CONTACT Got something to say? Send us a message: https://www.agencygrowthpod.com/contact