The Agency Growth Podcast

**Cold Open (Follow up on listener problem from Episode #165)****Skip the Cold Open at 6:43**It's been a few years since we've talked about what we'd do differently if we were to start an agency over right now.However, the landscape has changed more in the last year than it has in the last 5 years. Additionally, we are not the same people we were in 2019.Over the last 6-7 years, we have learned a lot about ourselves, we've gained confidence, and we see the changes that are happening in the world.What starting over for us looks like in 2026 looks vastly different than what starting looked like in 2019.----------------------------------JOIN THE FREE DISCORDhttps://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRDOur recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

We get tired of hearing about all the awful "setters and closers" out there. But one of our listeners put us up for the challenge of trying to find a legitimate appointment setting agency and grilling them on the podcast.So we did just that.We found Steve Fair from Sponge:NB who has been in the industry for over 2 decades. Steve not only explains how to do appointment setting right, but pulls the curtain completely back on the shifty appointment setting gurus and tactics we see all over the place.----------------------------------JOIN THE FREE DISCORDhttps://discord.gg/uvHRRRFVRDOur recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

We've touched on our personal experiences with AI at our agency in this podcast as well as with other guests, but it's been a while since we've had a dedicated episode on the topic.Emily Thompson from CoSchedule joins us to go over their survey report on The State of AI in Marketing.We go over the various finding in this report and weigh in on each finding. Things like:Whether marketers feel that AI gives them a competitive advantageHow other marketers are reporting using AIHow many marketers and agencies are reporting more success and better performance with AIHow much more marketers and agencies expect to use and invest in AI in 2025 and beyond----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Jake is training for a marathon)****Skip to Cold Open at 11:10**Last week, we went over how we managed client projects and recurring monthly tasks inside of our ClickUp workspace.This week, we're going over how we use ClickUp internally to manage internal projects, team member time tracking, monitor labor efficiency, and how we manage our own workloads.We also go over how we use the project management tool to conduct research and development of new services and value adds as well as store notes for internal meetings and future ideas.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Cody is finally done moving)****Skip to Cold Open at 6:20**A popular request of us is to walkthrough our entire ClickUp™ setup and how we use it as a productized service agency.In this episode, we go through specifically how we use it for client work and how we automate monthly, recurring task generation.We also go into other features we use such as scheduled emails to clients and general time tracking workflows for client work when it doesn't make sense to track time on individual tasks.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Cody's Breakdancing + ER Visit...)****Skip the Cold Open at 13:10**A listener wrote in to get our advice on what to do regarding a situation he's in with a client. His client isn't understanding the value of what he's offering despite amazing cost per lead results and even the client admitting that the leads are closing at 60%.To complicate matters, he feels like he can't fire the client because this client's brother is also a client and doesn't want to lose two clients in the process.The Everbros weigh in and we give our thoughts on exactly what he should do.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Cody's living in a 3rd world country)****Skip the Cold Open at 7:37**After 6 years of the same pricing we had when we started, we raised prices by 30% overnight.We sent an email to our clients on February 28th telling them the price change was going into effect on April 15th.In this episode, we break down our complete methodology on what went into the price increase.Why 30%Why announce it in the spring?How many clients did we lose?What other things we had to considerHow we're doing now that the dust has settled----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

We sit down with Geenay at Consortium Studio, who recently pivoted from the agency model that takes anything they can get to niching down.Only her niche is with luxury and premium brands.We're used to finding Facebook groups with our niche audience or guesting on podcasts in our niche to get in front of our clients.Geenay doesn't have that luxury... or perhaps she actually does have the luxury? She has to attend fancy parties and member-only clubs to rub shoulders with her target audience.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Ever see those really awesome marketing campaigns that brands do that seem so out of the box and must have taken millions of dollars to pull off or some creative genius?Those are because of people like Dani Durfesne with The Aux Co.Dani has a history in film production and pulls off some pretty awesome stuff for brands at pretty low budgets (we're talking only a few thousand dollars). She's the person agencies go to when they get a crazy idea but have no idea how to execute it for their client.She finds the venues, gets the people, gathers the talent, and organizes the production of that crazy idea.And she does it all incognito. Clients never know she exists. All of her work is credited to the agency.We dive into what exactly her business model is, why on earth she doesn't want any credit, and what actually all goes into these productions.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

In Part 2 of talking with Dave from Local Falcon and Epic Web Studios, we dive into the Local Falcon platform itself.Dave talks about new things coming to the original geogrid tool, such as AI overview and ChatGPT tracking and MCP servers. Additionally, we explain why we think geogrid tools cause more issues with clients than the problems they solve.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencygrowthpodcastTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

The start of our first-ever 2-part episode on the podcast, Local Falcon CEO, David Hunter, was dropping bombs during the discovery call, so we had to tell him we were holding him hostage for 3 hours to record two episodes.This episode is all about his agency, Epic Web Studios. The agency that eventually brought Local Falcon into the world. The 7-figure agency that no one who uses Local Falcon knew existed and was the whole reason they're using the tool in the first place.In this episode, Dave talks about how and why he started his agency as well as what his plans are with it.What's the end game, and how does Local Falcon fit into it?----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Jake has started mobile gaming)****Skip the Cold Open at 10:19**The best agencies out there aren't necessarily the ones producing the best results. They're the ones with the best communication and value for what is being paid for.On this episode, we navigate how we have failed in the client communication area recently and how we're trying to correct that and provide more communication to our clients without eating into labor hours that are better spent on servicing their actual accounts.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

The United States is often seen as the holy grail of markets for agencies. That's great if you're already located in the US, but what if you're not?For the last couple of years, agency owners in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa have asked us our advice on how they can get clients in the US, but we've never had a good answer for them. Managing time zones is one thing, but the cultural differences and US stereotypes of foreign work plague agency owners not located in the US.Faisal and Umair join us on the podcast to talk about how they got started in Pakistan and grew their development agency, Strugbits, to over 150 people by always targeting the US as their primary market.They go in-depth into how they got started, acquired clients, and earned trust with US partners.----------------------------------*This episode is sponsored by Wix Studio.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Jake moves to Chicago // Jake played Semi-Pro in Portugal)****Skip the Cold Open at 19:21**Sorry for the long cold open. Cody and I haven't recorded in a while, so we had a lot to catch up on.As tenacious business and agency owners, we tend to dive deep into business, the agency space, and whatever our agency's niche is. However, we have to be careful not to make our entire personalities our business.Nobody likes that, and it isn't what we got into the business to be. We got into the business so it could help us do the things we actually wanted to do in life.The agency should fuel your passions. If your personality becomes your agency, then you are nothing without it.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (How do you jump-start a car?)****Skip the Cold Open at 00:05:44**We've featured a lot of different kinds of agencies on this podcast but have yet to have an agency on the podcast that deals almost exclusively with direct mail or a more traditional form of advertising.So we called our buddy, Wayne, up at Inside the Box Marketing to talk about how he and his wife built a 7-figure direct mail marketing agency specializing in postcards for local store franchise marketing and restaurants.Wayne is the man behind the high-gloss pop-out postcards you might get in the mail from major franchises like Applebee's, IHOP, Domino's, Blaze Pizza, and many more.We sit him down to talk about direct mail and franchises.Why direct mail? How profitable is it? Why franchises? How do you get into them?----------------------------------Have questions for Wayne? Find him on LinkedIn or reach out to him at wayne@insidetheboxmarketinginc.com.You can also visit their local store and franchise marketing website at insidetheboxmarketinginc.com.LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/restaurantdirectmailcoach/----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

**Cold Open (Business Challenges / Jake is Moving to Chicago)****Skip the Cold Open at 11:44**Our podcast isn't the only agency podcast out there. We decided to have a listen to other podcasts similar to ours and give you our take on them. The good, the bad, and the ugly.We also spend some time reflecting on our own podcast and wonder what would make ours better for agency owners.Either way, we hope you take something good away from this, and maybe that's finding another agency podcast you vibe with and helps you along your agency journey.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Earlier this year, when we started verifying agencies in r/agency, we created a user flair for agencies that have achieved the 8-figure status. We didn't think anyone in the subreddit would get that flair... That is, until Jordan Brannon from Coalition Technologies reached out.One look at his P&Ls, and I knew we had to have him on the podcast.Jordan has gone through just about what every agency owner has gone through... 5 times or more.He's the extreme example of what agency owners can achieve if they put in the work and weather the storms. If there's a challenge in an agency, Jordan's been through it.We asked him in detail what different stages of growth for his agency were the most challenging and how he overcame them. If he were to do it all over again, what would he focus on first or do better with?----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

The last few episodes we've talked quite a bit about how as agency owners, we start to lose our subject matter expertise in the thing we built our agency on.We focus on growing the business and being good business owners rather than being the SEO or paid ads experts in the business. It's a weird feeling when your team starts to know more than you.Of course, you could always be like Joy Hawkins from Sterling Sky.For those of you in the SEO space, you probably recognize her name. She's the founder, owner, and local SEO expert at her agency, Sterling Sky and frequently contributes to major SEO pulbications like Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal, and is even frequently featured in Search Engine Roundtable.We're in awe at how Joy can maintain such an expert-level status on local SEO while maintaining and running her $6m local SEO agency.How do you maintain expertise while delegating and trusting people to be as good as you? Running the business is a fulltime job let alone being an expert in an area that's changing every day.----------------------------------Reach out to Joy on LinkedIn or check out her agency Sterling Sky. We also encourage you to check out their SEO digital conferences and webinars at LocalU. We've attended these ourselves and they are absolutely packed with local SEO information.Also, check out Joy's local SEO subreddit at r/localsearch!----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Borja Cuan from Four15 Digital joins us as we ask him how exactly his agency manages a quarter of a billion dollars in ad spend with only 21 people.What kind of people do you need on your team to manage that? We envision disaster scenarios where someone on our team ads an extra zero or forgets a decimal in budgets while only spending $1,000 per month in ad spend on a client; imagine that client's actual budget being $500,000 per month and someone forgetting a decimal...Bo also drops some life advice on what things should actually be stressful and how to handle those, as well as advice for our younger audience trying to seek success as quickly as possible.----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on socials:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u

Johnathan Gryzbowski from Penji joins us on this week's episode. An episode that was meant to go deep into creating an agency where 100% of the services are whitelabeled through Penji's graphic design capabilities turned into a deep discussion on letting go of the subject matter expertise vine.We went deep into how to build a great team and how to feel when you're no longer the smartest person in the room... in fact, in most cases, you should probably be the dumbest person in the room at your own company.----------------------------------Want 15% off Penji? Use promo code AGENCYGROWTHPOD15 at checkout.Or use this link: https://penji.co/pricing/?affiliate=AGENCYGROWTHPOD15Want to reach out to Johanathan directly? Hit him up at johnathan@penji.co----------------------------------Our recommended agency tools:everbrospodcast.com/recommended-tools/----------------------------------⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐As always, if you enjoyed this episode or this podcast in general and want to leave us a review or rating, head over to Apple and let us know what you like! It helps us get found and motivates us to keep producing this free content.----------------------------------Want to connect with us? Reach out to us on the everbrospodcast.com website, subscribe to us on YouTube, or connect with us on social:YouTube: @agencyuTwitter/X: @theagency_uLinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/agencyuFacebook: facebook.com/theagencyuInstagram: @theagencyuReddit: r/agency & u/JakeHundleyTikTok: @agency.u