The Worst Business Advice Ever
July 25, 2022
Selling before you build a business is a terrible strategy.
The worst business advice I ever received was to keep selling and bringing on new clients without regard to the internal structure of my agency.
I was an early adopter of account-based marketing, and I remember thinking that if I kept selling and adding new clients, the revenue would continue to increase. However, I didn’t realize that I was slowly becoming the worst agency in town.
My staff was overworked, my clients were unhappy, and I was constantly putting out fires. It wasn’t until I took a step back and realized that I needed to focus on building a sustainable business model that things started to turn around.
If you’re selling without a solid business foundation, I urge you to stop and assess the situation. It’s not worth it to sacrifice your long-term health for short-term gain. Trust me, I know from experience.
Take the time to build a strong foundation and create a business that can weather any storm.
From Burned Out to Thriving
Let me tell you a little story from one of my clients. She owns a digital marketing agency. She had grown to multiple figures and had a team that worked well together.
She was burnt out, tired, and overwhelmed from trying to keep up with all the work running an agency. She was working in a situation where there was no way for her to bring in additional clients and scale that business without hiring a lot more people and increasing her overhead.
Not only was there no time in the business, but there were also no more hours available for the people working there. There also was no time for her, and there was no opportunity to increase her income.
When we started working together, the very first thing we did was take a look at that structure and reorganize it. We moved from account-based work to task-based work. That simple change in structure and the alignment of how services were delivered gave her back time and confidence in her business.
She was more profitable because now she had the structure within her team to allow for more growth without hiring many more team members. The structure of her company is aligned with the services she provides, AND she can scale more extensively than she ever imagined.
Why Agency Structure Matters
The structure of your agency matters because it is the skeleton that your entire company is built on.
To have a thriving, sustainable, and profitable business, you must ensure that your agency structure can support growth.
Here are three things to consider when assessing your current agency structure:
1. How easy is it to bring on new clients?
2. How easy is it to scale services?
3. How easy is it to increase profits?
If you’re finding that any of these things are difficult, it’s a good indication that your agency structure needs some attention.
Investing in the right agency structure will pay dividends in the long run. It will allow you to bring new clients, scale services, and increase profits without sacrificing your health or sanity.
Don’t wait until you’re burned out to make a change. Assess your agency structure today and see where you can make some improvements. Your future self will thank you for it.
