Smart Agency Masterclass With Jason Swenk: Podcast For Digital Marketing Agencies

How does your agency fit into your life? Are you being very honest and clear on what it is that you want and what success means to you? If you feel like a prisoner to your business or you're struggling with passion for your agency, it might be a time to look within. In this episode, we’ll cover: 3 simple questions to gut check whether your agency is working for you. How to reinvent your agency. How to understand your recurring revenue needs. Today I talk with Pia Silva, Founder and Brand Strategist at WorstofAll Designs, speaker, Forbes contributor and author of BadAss Your Brand. Pia and her partner (who also happens to be her husband) had their lightbulb moment over 6 years ago when they’d fallen into a huge funk and some serious business debt. She’s here to share with us how to avoid those same mistakes while being true to yourself and your business goals. It was then they realized their agency model wasn’t working and that they were trying to front an agency model and be something they weren’t and have

How can you create an agency culture that continually inspires your team? After all your team is your #1 asset, so keeping them energized and motivated is key. Agency culture and brand are two sides of the same coin. So, it all starts with defining your on core values. Easier said than done, right? In this week’s episode, we’ll cover: Who to hire first at your agency. How to create a desirable agency culture. One example of core values that set the tone for amazing agency culture. Today’s guest on the show is Brad Flowers, founder of Bullhorn Creative. Like many others, Brad and his partner “accidentally” founded their agency. What was just the two of them and some freelancers in 2008 has grown to 2 offices and 14 employees. They learned fast and hard in order to grow, and Brad is on the show to share his tips on creating a desirable agency culture. Who to Hire First at Your Agency Their first hire was a Project Manager which is ideal, because PM's: Pay attention to details and follow-up/follow-through. Cr

Do you want to grow your digital agency with amazing talent, but worried you can’t pay top dollar? This unique “reverse recruitment model” for finding, training and keeping incredible talent might make it more doable than you think. In this episode, we’ll cover: Why and how to implement a reverse recruitment model. How to develop agency talent with an entry level team. 2 big benefits to reverse recruitment. Today’s guest is Morgan Lopes, CEO of Polar Notion, the web and mobile app development agency he co-founded 5 years ago. Like so many of us, he’s an accidental agency owner who shares with us some valuable advice about hiring a team to grow your agency. He has created and implemented a new recruitment model that’s netting fantastic results. Why Hiring Entry-Level People Can Grow Your Agency Morgan had an amazing mentor when he was young and new to the industry. He developed his craft through the generosity of an older, more experienced person who would not accept payment for his time. Instead, he asked M

Have you thought about productizing your SaaS idea or tech solution? Is a SaaS company the way to go? It might be! As agencies, we provide solutions and create tools for clients every single day. So, why not monetize them? But first, learn the right way to build a profitable SaaS company. In this episode, we’ll cover: How to create a profitable SaaS product. What agencies are doing wrong when it comes to productizing. How to avoid common mistakes creating your SaaS product. This week’s guest is Dan Martell, a former agency owner and current coach to SaaS companies. His passion has always been in the tech space and he’s here to share insights on how you can get your incredible SaaS idea off the ground and be profitable at it. How to Create a Profitable SaaS Product Successful SaaS creates a technology solution for: customers, so they can do something themselves. the industry, so they can do something easier. B2B SaaS is the most tried and true type. There are 5 categories: Alerting or monitoring tools Rep

So what can you do when a client refuses to pay? I mean, absolutely refuses! That’s the dilemma this new agency owner has with a nightmare client who owes him almost $10K. Listen to his story plus my advice on how to get through it and the processes he needs in order to prevent it from happening again. In this episode, we’ll cover: Why you need a prospect qualification process. What information to get in an initial client meeting. 2 ways to get the client’s budget every time. How to protect your agency against slow pay or no pay clients. Today’s guest is Mike Volkin, a long time freelancer turned agency owner when he founded 800lb Marketing in early 2017. Mike’s agency specializes in fractional CMO services for startups that don’t have marketing leadership. He was about 8 months into the business when I interviewed him. He caught my attention with a post in our Digital Agency Owners Facebook group about a client who wouldn’t pay. In this episode, Mike candidly shares his story about a client who stiffed him

Looking for a new way to monetize your agency’s content marketing? Check out how you can use interactive content to personalize the user experience, engage with your prospects and gain trust by making the content more relevant. Learn what interactive content is all about and how you can use it to acquire new agency business. In this episode, we’ll cover: What is interactive content? How can agencies use interactive content? What types of interactive content works best for agencies? Today’s guest is Randy Reyess, cofounder of Outgrow, a growth marketing platform that enables marketers to build interactive content that increase customer engagement. He’s on the show to share strategies on how you can create interactive content that captures more leads and helps convert them into clients. What is Interactive Content? You know those clever quizzes on Facebook that test your movie knowledge? Or calculators you find online to recommend what type of mortgage loan you need? That’s interactive content. It content tha

Wondering how you can get the attention of your ideal clients? It's a noisy marketing world out there, but you can break through the noise. Learn how one digital agency owner is growing a social community with tens of thousands of prospects. In this episode, learn the ins and outs of creating a Facebook group that provides value and connects people so you can beat out your competition and stay top of mind. In this episode, we’ll cover: 2 benefits to building a Facebook community. Tips on creating and managing an engaging group. How to avoid common pitfalls when creating a Facebook group. Today’s guest is Arne Giske, a digital agency owner whose business sky rocketed after creating a Facebook community has over 29,000 members in just one year (and still growing!). He’s here to share tips on creating and managing an engaged group plus pitfalls to avoid so you can generate new agency business. 2 Big Benefits to Building a Facebook Community It took Arne 6 months to take his Facebook group from 0 to 1,000 membe

Being an agency owner can feel isolating and lonely. But it can be a whole lot better when you hear from others in the same boat.  So, check out the stories of not one but two super successful agency owners as we cover everything from overcoming their biggest challenges, to increasing prices and growing their teams. In this episode, we’ll cover: Overcoming the pipeline problem. 4 tips on increasing prices. What agency role to hire for first. What to do about a weak link on your team. I could not be more excited to share this episode with you because it’s my first three-way! :) Today’s show guests are two digital agency owners Zach Williams, of Venveo, and Todd Earwood, of Money Path Marketing. These guys have been super successful - Todd’s agency doubled their business in 4 months and Zach’s did 4X revenue in one year, so listen close! They’re here to talk about the similarities and differences in their journeys as agency owners, as well as share some golden nuggets of wisdom and inspiration. Overcoming th

Have you ever considered closing your agency because you feel like you’re failing? Cash flow problems, employee issues, bad clients… the struggle is real! You don’t have to throw in the towel. Just check out what this agency owner did to turn things around to become profitable and happy again.   In this episode, we’ll cover: How an agency goes from good to bad. 6 Steps to turning around a struggling agency. One regret from an agency owner.   Our guest today is Jack Jostes, President and CEO of Ramblin Jackson, the SEO agency he started in 2009. In his video The Good, The Bad and The Ugly he talks about his eight year journey as an agency owner and the valuable lessons he learned in order to go from almost close to thriving. Jack’s on the show to talk about the steps he took to turn around his agency so he and his team could enjoy it again. How Does an Agency Go from Good to Bad? Like many entrepreneurs, Jack fell into the business by accident. He was working in sales and started to learn SEO as a trade from

As Agency CEO one of your 5 roles is to be the face of the company. A great way to do that is to use speaking engagements and presentations to build your brand and grab the attention of your ideal clients. Here are 9 tricks to keep the audience engaged and leave them with an unforgettable first impression. In this episode, we’ll cover: What makes the best presentations? 9 Tips to a unforgettable speech Today’s guest is Mike Pacchione, one of the public speaking experts at Duarte. As Mike puts it, he gives “workshops on giving workshops” and “talks on talks.”:)  No matter how you explain it though, Mike is the pro on giving memorable speeches. He knows what to do to keep your audience engaged so you can use your presentations to build your agency business. Mike shares his experience and advice on making the most of your speaking opportunities. What Makes the Best Presentations? Two things. It might seem obvious but most importantly you need to start with a good idea. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering b

How can you turn your agency into a highly sought-after brand? Today’s guest knows how because he’s done it for the OxiClean and the George Foreman Grill. In this episode, learn the 5 key strategies to build a brand that gets clients beating down your door.   In this episode, we’ll cover: How the right positioning can drastically change your business. 5 things you can implement right now to build a successful brand. Today’s guest on the show is Rick Cesari of Cesari Media, the agency he founded over 20 years ago. They specialize in building brands that sell products direct to the consumer. Over his career, Rick has worked some amazing brands such as OxiClean, George Foreman Grill, Rug Doctor, and Sonicare to name a few. He’s here to share the secrets to building these amazing brands so you can apply them and grow your agency.   “Figure out a good way to position so you’re different than everyone else.” ~ Rick Cesari Why You Might Need to Reframe Your Brand Positioning Have  you ever heard of The Fajita Expr

If you know a ton about your agency but aren’t winning all the clients you think you should be, you might be plagued with the curse of knowledge. In this episode, you will learn how you can clarify your message and use it as a competitive advantage. Win more clients when you communicate in a way that makes clients feel educated and helped. In this episode, we’ll cover: What is the curse of knowledge? How to break the curse of knowledge. How to use explanation to separate your agency from the competition. Today’s guest on the show is Lee Lefever founder of Common Craft and Explainer Academy and author of The Art of Explanation. His businesses and his book center around the idea of making explanation a business growth strategy. He’s on the show to share ways to clarify your agency’s message so you can win more clients... because when you confuse, you lose. “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.” ~ Albert Einstein What is the Curse of Knowledge? Ever wonder why no one “gets” what

Are you trying to land bigger clients for your agency? It’s hard to communicate value when a lot your agency work invisible to clients. In this episode, discover how you can build better relationships and win bigger agency clients by stepping up your communication game. In this episode, we’ll cover: 4 Ways to communicate to win bigger clients. How to avoid feeling like an imposter when you land big clients. Dylan Baskind is today’s guest on the show. He’s here to share ways agencies can step up their game to land bigger clients. Dylan is the CEO and Co-founder of Qwilr, a software solution for for creating attractive proposals and sales documents. He's on the show to share ways to notch up your client services and win bigger agency clients. Dylan spent 8 years in the digital consultancy space growing his business from small, local clients to larger, multinational ones. He found the one consistent pain point was always the time suck of creating impressive proposals. So he created Qwilr as a solution for repl

Do you feel like your agency spends more time being an order taker than providing insight and value to your clients? If so - listen up. It’s time to show your clients how much value you bring their business. You can increase revenue by measuring your client's success and finding new opportunities for them. Data reporting done right can be your secret weapon to growing your agency. In this episode, we’ll cover: How agencies can retain their clients. What KPI’s agencies should measure in their data reporting for clients. How to use data reporting to grow agency business. Steps to acquiring and growing retainers. Today’s guest is Peter Caputa CEO at Databox, a SaaS tool to simplifying analytics and reporting for agencies. He joined Databox after serving as the VP of Sales at Hubspot, so in this interview he brings us a ton of knowledge on retaining and growing clients. How Agencies Can Retain Clients It’s all about reporting. And we’re not talking about just going through the motions of reporting. More like, a

What can you do to stand out from your competition? How can you avoid costly business mistakes that make it harder to grow and scale your agency? In this episode, you’ll get some great advice on this and more from an amazing pro who’s owned three successful agencies over the past two decades. In this episode, we’ll cover: How the agency space has evolved over time. How to avoid costly business mistakes in your agency. Why specializing is more profitable for agencies. What is 48in48? So get this! Today’s guest is Jeff Hilimire who also happened to be my guest on episode #2 of The Smart Agency Master Class more than three years ago! With nearly 20 years of experience owning 3 different agencies, he says his worst mistakes were made over the past 3 years. He’s back on the show this time to tell us how you can avoid those mistakes to successfully grow, scale and enjoy your agency. Jeff started his first agency in 1998 and sold it 10 years later. He stayed with the acquiring agency until it sold again another 5

Are you overwhelmed with tasks that keep you in the weeds instead of working on growing your agency? Are you paying salaried team to do things an hourly assistant could accomplish? STOP IT! Learn how you can increase productivity and save boatloads of time and resources. Plus, learn how to help your sales team be more effective so you can grow. In this episode, we’ll cover: Ways to save time and increase productivity. How to help your sales team be more effective. How to get unstuck from doing everything yourself. Today’s guest on the show is Jeff J. Hunter, founder, and Chief Freedom Officer at VA Staffer, the outsourcing agency he created to help businesses build virtual teams. With a background in IT and virtual project management he knows the ins and outs of getting projects done virtually. He’s here to give us strategies on saving time and ways to help salespeople be more effective. How to Save Time and Increase Productivity Agencies are always trying to land more clients, right? However, there always

Hopefully you already know your agency employees are your biggest asset. But, is your agency “employee-centric”? Do you have the right people in place to find, lead and retain an awesome team? In this episode we’ll hear from a 15-year agency owner about why and how he brought in an HR Director and an agency President to accelerate agency growth. In this episode, we’ll cover: How to know when it’s time to hire an HR Director. Why you might want to bring on an Agency President. When and how to get help growing your agency. Today we have our first ever three-peat guest on the show! Founder and CEO of BrightWave Marketing, Simms Jenkins is making his third appearance and this time he’s sharing the strategies he has used to make sure his team remains his #1 most valuable asset. (You can find his first and second interviews here.) Since the first couple times he was on the show in 2014, Simms says BrightWave has continued to innovate in the email marketing arena. His agency business has doubled and he’s authored

How can you protect yourself and your clients from brand copycats? I recently had some major issues with a copycat and had to take action FAST in order to protect my business and brand. In this episode, learn what you can do to proactively defend your agency and clients’ intellectual property. In this episode, we’ll cover: What is and what isn’t intellectual property? Why register your agency’s brand assets? Tools and tips to keep your assets protected. Today’s guest is Cheryl Hodgson, founder of Hodgson Legal and BrandAide.com. She’s an attorney, advisor, author and expert on everything related to brand protection. Cheryl specializes in intellectual property and brand assets. And, she shares advice protecting your and your clients' brand assets. Cheryl touches on everything from copyrights and trademarks to goods/service names and domain names. What Is and What Isn’t Intellectual Property? Cheryl says often the term “Intellectual Property” is misunderstood. Legally, this term only applies to assets in five

Leadership is seriously hard work. There’s a ton of pressure, juggling and personal sacrifice. Don’t let burnout get the best of you! Learn the signs of a major leadership crash before it happens and how to be a better agency leader by knowing how to stop self-sabotaging. In this episode, we’ll cover: What is a leadership crash? How to identify the signs of an impending leadership crash. How to be the leader your agency needs. Today’s guest is Stephen Mansfield, a leadership consultant to CEO's, celebrities and politicians in crisis. He is also a speaker and author; and his specialty is helping with the recovery of leadership crashes. After years of handling things like major corporation CEO’s affairs and politician’s misuse of power, he has identified 10 signs of a pending leadership crash that will help us stop self-sabotaging traits. Stephen’s on the show to describe some of these signs in a proactive attempt to help us identify and avoid our own leadership crash. What is a leadership crash? A leadership

Do you know what you need to do to stay relevant and significant to your clients? Let’s face it, marketing is an ever-changing industry. And in the agency world, it’s survival of the fittest. So we must adapt or die! Here’s a great story about how one agency transitioned their business model in order to continue to thrive. Think about Blockbuster video - they didn’t adapt to the needs of the industry and are now extinct. Don’t be the next Blockbuster -adapt or die. In this episode, we’ll cover: Why it’s important to adapt in the agency space. 3 Keys to an agency transformation strategy. Why and how you can use vlogging to generate leads. Elizabeth Sosnow is Managing Partner at Bliss Integrated Communications, a 50 person agency in New York City. She’s on the show today to tell us how Bliss transitioned from PR to an Integrated Marketing agency in order to stay relevant in a changing industry. Plus, she shares some great tips on vlogging. Why It’s Adapt or Die in the Agency Space Bliss was founded over 40 ye