Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Most common reasons why projects go wrong: Scope Creep Misaligned Expectations Misaligned Budget Inaccurate or insufficient discovery Even long term retainers have a life span The importance of thinking how to get our of something, before you get into it... The difference between quotes and estimates... For Projects: Have a specification linked to the estimate – reserve the right to change the quote if the ...
Sep 26, 2023•24 min•Ep. 175
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Key metrics to track Targets to aim for & industry benchmarks Exactly what formulas to use to calculate them Example metrics: Financials (Revenue, AGI, Gross Profit, Net Profit, Overhead Spending) Utilization Rates Average Billable Rates Labor Efficiency Ratio Marcel's Bio: Marcel Petitpas is the CEO & Co-Founder of Parakeeto, a company dedicated to helping agencies measure and improve their profita...
Sep 19, 2023•47 min•Ep. 174
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! My 5 minute SEO Assessment of any client website! Disclaimer: this isn't a process for running a full SEO Audit on a website. Instead, this is the process I go through when a lead comes in to talk about SEO. Before any project has been confirmed, or any money has exchanged hands, this is the process I go through before the initial call to give me context. Website structure User experience Current Rankings C...
Sep 12, 2023•18 min•Ep. 173
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! #1 – look inwards – "What do YOU want?" What type of lifestyle do you want? What interests you? How much money do you want to make? Do you want to be in a location? Do you want staff? How will it serve you? #2 – where can I make a difference? What is your skill set, and how can that commercial impact on businesses? #3 – do any of my points above line up? If no, what industries are cash rich? Legal Jewellery...
Sep 05, 2023•23 min•Ep. 172
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Why did I start this? Leaving previous employer No Leads Contractual Obligations How do I do it? It's in my to do list I have some habits that happen regularly I have one-offs that happen when they need to A lead is never ignored or left to stagnate Some days it takes 5 minutes, other days it takes all day (it might be the only thing I do that day) How do I manage it? Trailblazer FM – How to Manage Leads I ...
Aug 29, 2023•16 min•Ep. 171
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Process: Pre-Discovery Session Lead comes in Brief 20min phone call to validate lead / project – outcome is to present Discovery Session as next best step 1 Page Agreement / Checkout for Discovery Session Post Discovery Session: SEO Health Audit Current Rankings Reports Backlink Toxicity Report Top Level KW Research Core Web Vitals / Speed Report SEO Proposal Prepared Document Templates: Proposal Template C...
Aug 22, 2023•13 min•Ep. 170
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Process: Pre-Discovery Session Lead comes in Brief 20min phone call to validate lead / project – outcome is to present Discovery Session as next best step 1 Page Agreement / Checkout for Discovery Session Post Discovery Session: Project Specification Document Prepared Project Proposal Prepared Proposal Delivery: Proposal Call Booked AHEAD of sending proposal On the morning of the call, send the proposal thr...
Aug 15, 2023•20 min•Ep. 169
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! The Importance of Internal Focus Treating Your Agency as Your Own Client: A Strategic Approach: Self-Assessment and Goal Setting Implementing Internal Marketing Strategies The Option of Outsourcing: When to Make Your Agency Someone Else's Client Balancing Internal Focus and Client Responsibilities Join the Facebook Group...
Aug 09, 2023•18 min•Ep. 168
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! As an agency, we need to take responsibility for the quality of leads we have coming through our doors. Having defined products and services is key to aligning yourself with the right clients Having a clear marketing process that guides clients is key to not wasting anyones time Defining your products and services What you do Who you do it for How does your marketing fit Funnel Mentality Can you filter out ...
Jul 31, 2023•22 min•Ep. 167
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! There are multiple levels of service that an agency can work on... Clients Staff and their dependants The owner The wider world A business is only really a sustainable force when it can serve all four (OK, if you're content at being a solo-agency, then maybe not number 2). Why is service important? Differences for clients: Personalized Service Proactive Service Responsive Service Differences for staff: A sa...
Jul 25, 2023•22 min•Ep. 166
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! The Importance of Local Clients: 1. Understanding the Market : Local clients operate in a market you’re inherently familiar with. As a part of the same community, you can understand their target audience better, as you share the same environment, culture, and trends. As a Digital Agency, you often need to target marketing campaigns to specific local audiences. Being in the same locality as a client can prov...
Jul 18, 2023•17 min•Ep. 165
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Why Google Bard is better than ChatGPT for certain tasks: How ChatGPT and Bard are different: ChatGPT Database until Sept 2021 Uses a volume of written text to understand and produce new output. Bard Trained by a specific data set for conversations Main goal is to provide simpler results than the SERPs and trigger conversations Which tool is better for which tasks? ChatGPT: Better at writing. Stores previou...
Jul 11, 2023•17 min•Ep. 164
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Agencies as a Commodity vs Marketing Partner The perception of an agency as a commodity service can have several negative impacts on its growth. Here are the key issues: 1. Price Competition : When a service is viewed as a commodity, the price often becomes the primary differentiator. This can lead to a race to the bottom in terms of pricing, squeezing margins, and reducing profitability. 2. Reduced Perceiv...
Jul 04, 2023•28 min•Ep. 163
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Sales that drive growth aren't incidental – they come about through a persistent drive to build a business. ( Get the 50 business development ideas you can use every day ). Savvy business owners know that all business is an investment. Their profit is a direct multiplication of what they put in. So they ask the question "What's in it for me?" If you can answer that, you'll make sales. If you can't, you won'...
Jun 27, 2023•17 min•Ep. 162
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Part 2 of a mini-series about User Generated Content – go back and check out episode 160 about what UGC is, how to create a UGC strategy and how agencies can help clients with UGC as a service. The benefits of these tools are where the efficiencies lie for agencies. It's the tools that make this process scalable so you can sell it to 100+ clients and know you'll get reliable results for all of them. NB: I'm...
Jun 20, 2023•13 min•Ep. 161
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! What is User Generated Content (UGC) Simply put, UGC is any content that is published online that is generated by your audience. Some of this may be autonomous, but businesses can also have a UGC strategy to help stimulate this content production. It is good practice to showcase the best UGC your business can gather, which can have both an on-page and off-page influence on SEO. What are the different types ...
Jun 13, 2023•15 min•Ep. 160
Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Setting the context – the agency where I found my feet Working with Client Services Working on BIG clients Our agency was NOT a commodity The problem – we see it all the time through SEOHive . Clients identify with what they can see and understand easily – that's why content retainers sell so well. What doesn't sell so easily is the technical SEO and link outreach programs. That's because these items are far more unseen, so clients don...
Jun 06, 2023•21 min•Ep. 159
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! The challenge: We're all exceptionally busy – and if doesn't matter if we're an agency of 1 or 100, we all need to make sure that items of work aren't forgotten, deadlines are hit, our company is marketed, the booked an payroll are done, invoices are sent and that we have some time for ourselves and our family. The solution: Whilst it may sound exceptionally boring, establishing effective routines means you...
May 30, 2023•24 min•Ep. 158
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Understanding Customer Experience in a Digital Agency Context: Explanation of customer experience (CX) and why it's important in the digital agency business. This includes marketing to new clients, servicing clients professionally and retaining / maintaining a lasting relationship with them. The Five Strategies to Improve CX and Client Retention: Strategy 1: Improve Communication Clear and regular communica...
May 23, 2023•21 min•Ep. 157
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Why Local SEO: 46% of all searches on Google include local intent 24.4% of all clicks go to the first result of local business searches “Near me” mobile searches grew increased by 136% in 2022 56% of businesses haven't yet claimed their Google Business Profile The average timeframe to see ROI-positive results from Local SEO is 4.76 months SEOHive's New Local SEO Service Phase 1: Local SEO Audits Phase 2: Lo...
May 16, 2023•21 min•Ep. 156
Main talking points include: Prefer to watch this show? Subscribe to the YouTube Channel! Part 1: Understanding Scope Creep Definition of scope creep Scope creep in digital agency work refers to the phenomenon where a project's scope of work expands beyond the originally agreed-upon goals, tasks, and deliverables, without a corresponding increase in budget, timeline, or other project parameters. Essentially, it occurs when additional work is added to a project without properly managing or commun...
May 09, 2023•22 min•Ep. 155
Main talking points include: This is part 2 of a two-part show. Check out Part 1 of this podcast – Generating Leads through the 1/9 Rule In this episode, I share a comprehensive process that digital agency owners can follow when they receive a lead or enquiry. Tune in to learn how to convert more leads into clients by following these steps: Initial Lead Capture : Streamline your lead capture process with CRM systems or lead capture forms and consider automation to save time. Prompt Response and ...
May 02, 2023•21 min•Ep. 154
Main talking points include: Reasons Digital Agencies complain about leads: They "don't have any" They "don't know where to find them" The "don't have the time" ... All excuses... What I've actually found is that all the digital agencies I've coached have easy access to leads, they just don't (really) know what to do when they've got one... so they pass on it or don't even class it as a "lead". The 1/9th Rule Firstly, you need to understand your customer. Is this: Industry Specific Business Type...
Apr 25, 2023•11 min•Ep. 153
As with everything you need to apply the 80:20 rule – AI can get you 80% of the way there, but you still need to do the other 20% (thanks Bob Gentle for the inspiration here). Internally Marketing Social media Meeting summaries Externally / with clients Keyword clustering Content ideas & briefs Content Structures Social Media Ideas / Posts Content Summaries Meta Descriptions Meta Titles Custom imagery AI tools we're using: KeywordInsights.AI SurferSEO ChatGPT Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/p...
Apr 18, 2023•24 min•Ep. 152
There are many different models of pricing recurring (and non-recurring) services... ... but all of them rely on you building profit into your pricing structure. In this episode, we walk through how to rice a recurring service to make sure you're making money EVERY TIME (including a base price calculator for you to use) and discuss why profit is so vital to every business. The Base Price Calculator is available in a bundle with the Recurring Service Planner (see episode 150 !) Join our Facebook ...
Apr 11, 2023•17 min•Ep. 151
When you sell anything, it's your responsibility to make sure it works! In this episode we break down a recurring service into its constituant parts, and then provide a Recurring Service Planner (which comes bundled with a base price calculator) for you to plan your own service! Join our Facebook Group! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Apr 04, 2023•16 min•Ep. 150
Knowing what your capacity is and deciding how to delegate to grow is key to any form of agency growth. (This is applicable to you, your business and your staff!) Main talking points include: The differences between business priorities and delegation How to map out your likes and dislikes in your working life and making those decisions How a framework can help build your business life and that of your team members A framework built on a quadrant chart (screenshot available in shownotes). Hosted ...
Mar 28, 2023•10 min•Ep. 149
Main talking points include: In this episode, we cover: What is a Value Ladder? How to Create a Value Ladder Benefits of a Value Ladder Common Mistakes to Avoid Why a value ladder is good for a Digital Agency Join our Facebook Group! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 21, 2023•17 min•Ep. 148
Main talking points include: In this episode, we cover: Signs that a Client isn't a Good Fit Why it's Important to Say No How to Say "No" to a client (and some alternatives) Join our Facebook Group! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 14, 2023•34 min•Ep. 147
Main talking points include: When was the last time you took a step back, looked at the whole picture and asked "OK – is this as good as it can be?" In today's show, we uncover why sometimes asking the most obvious questions, can be the key to delivering in your business and for your clients. Join our Facebook Group! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Mar 07, 2023•11 min•Ep. 146
