Lessons from Growing an Agency Too Fast

<p>Are you trying to grow your agency fast? Trying to posture as a big agency to impress clients? There are a lot of big decisions to make when you're growing. However, you could be making mistakes that actually hold back agency growth. Today’s guest learned some lessons from growing too quickly the first time. He shares what he learned and how he overcame it to grow more consistently. He talks about leaning too hard into vanity metrics and hiring a team too soon as well as which roles to hire first.</p> <p><strong>Christopher Marrano</strong> is the founder of <a href= "https://bluewatermarketing.com/" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Blue Water Marketing</a>, a digital agency that works with direct-to-consumer brands to generate sales using SEO, Google ads, and Facebook ads. Chris started his agency focusing on SEO and grew quickly solely with referrals. However, he did not know which systems to implement to scale and it almost failed as a result. He soon learned from his mistakes and now has a successful agency that continues to grow.</p> <p>In this interview, we’ll discuss:</p> <ul> <li>The downside of growing too quickly.</li> <li>Why you shouldn’t get sidetracked by vanity metrics.</li> <li>Why sales should always come first.</li> <li>A strategy to fill your agency’s pipeline by trusting your results.</li> </ul> <h2>Subscribe</h2> <p><a href= "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/smart-agency-masterclass-jason-swenk-podcast-for-digital/id870206013" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Apple</a> | <a href= "https://open.spotify.com/show/0FiKuRTpkJ7OraCJBUIlr9" target= "_blank" rel="noopener">Spotify</a> | <a href= "https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-smart-agency-master-28334260/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">iHeart Radio</a> | <a href="https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-smart-agency-masterclass-marketing-business-strategist" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Stitcher</a> | <a href= "https://player.fm/series/1499414" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Radio FM</a></p> <h2>Sponsors and Resources</h2> <p><strong>Dot & Co: