Stop Leaving Money on the Table: Part 3

This is the home stretch for making your agency more money. Let’s get that retention up and the churn down!

If you missed #6-10 and want to catch up from last week’s email, get it here. 

I’m Nick Avaria, agency owner, and founder of Agency Acquisitions. Every week I share a client story, insights, and tips into scaling your agency faster. If we’re not yet connected on LinkedIn send me a connection request here for daily agency insights.

11. Great client onboarding translates into higher retention rates (the first 100 days are key)

Onboarding goes beyond just getting the clients information and launching the work.

There’s 3 key elements to onboarding - I call them the 3 E’s:

• Setting and re-setting Expectations: clients forget what they bought and often mix up your quote to your competitors a few weeks in. You have to remind the client 4-5 times in the first 6 weeks what the scope is that you agreed to with them. 

• Creating Experience: Send them their favorite coffee for that first monthly meeting. A hand written card, etc. it goes a lot further than you think. Do this 2-3 times in the first 3 months for a solid client experience. 

• Give them Education: A client that feels like they are learning something also feels they are being led by the agency. Clients don’t leave you when you are the ones leading them.

12. The more you educate your clients, the longer they stay

Look at the point above on education - enough said.

13. Being a one-service agency will make you grow really fast, but will limit how long clients stay with you (there are some notable exceptions like organic social)

Being a one-service agency will grow you to $1-2M really fast. Then bring you to a halt at some point unless you can increase pricing significantly due to you being the best at what you do.

At some point you should add a 2nd service that is complimentary. This can be something your clients often need or add on a Done-With-You service. 

When you only have 1 service, if it doesn't work the client is gone and your churn goes up.

14. Agencies that believe they have a client turnover problem have the lowest turnover and on average have 2-3x longer retention. 

Agencies that think they have a churn problem who are obsessed with improving it grow quickly.

Why? When you apply sales to an agency that has sub-par client retention the retention gets worse when you speed up the amount of sales you get.

15. Agencies who believe that they don't have have a churn problem always believe they have a sales problem

Oddly, people who think that they have a sales problem usually have a churn problem. 

When they put their foot on the gas the problem gets worse.

Why? More sales puts more pressure on the systems of the business. Eventually they break. Think of a bridge giving way because of too much weight. Same thing.

If you want to check out the full Youtube video where I go over all 15 of these in full context the link is below.

Catch you next time.

-Nick