The Secret to Keeping Clients for Over 20 Years with Pinaki Kathiari | Ep #775

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It’s always easier to retain existing clients than constantly landing new ones. Do you want to know the secret one agency has that has helped them hold onto clients for over 20 years? This interview highlights an agency owner’s whose client retention philosophy involves a candid, honest, and sincere approach which has helped them retain some clients for over two decades.

In this conversation, we explore his struggle to balance entrepreneurial business development with satisfying his creative instincts. He reveals how he eventually established systems that removed him from being the bottleneck in agency operations while allowing him to choose his involvement in the processes. He also shares the clarity he found that inspired a subscription-based product offering that maintains healthy cashflow.

Join us for this insightful conversation about agency growth, creating freedom through systems, maintaining long-term client relationships, and navigating the evolving challenges of the entrepreneurial journey.

Pinaki Kathiari is the CEO of Local Wisdom, a digital communications agency, and co-founder of Resource Hero, a resource planning and time tracking application for professional services companies. Pinaki also hosts his own podcast his podcast "Why Does It Feel So Wrong to be Human at Work?". He shares his journey as an entrepreneur, reflecting on nearly 25 years of running his agency, and highlights his volunteer work.

In this episode, we’ll discuss:

• Embracing subscription-based growth.

• Honesty as the key to building long-term client relationships.

• How to stop being the bottleneck in agency operations.

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Pinaki’s agency journey began when he and his college partners, all computer science graduates from Rutgers, found themselves jobless after the tech bubble burst in the late 90s. Recognizing the potential of the growing internet landscape, they decided to collaborate and create their own path.

They identified a crucial market gap: companies excelled either at design or technology, but rarely both. This was the niche they decided to occupy. Later on, realizing most of their clients were communicators, they further niched down to serving communications teams.

Their initial approach was humble, often trading services for goods rather than charging traditional fees. They worked with small startups that struggled with funding. This experience taught Pinaki and his team valuable lessons about the realities of client relationships, pricing, and the importance of setting boundaries.

Through collaboration, they were able to refine their approach, ultimately leading to more significant projects and clients. This shift from small, struggling startups to larger enterprises marked a turning point in their journey.

Eventually, as they gained experience and began to understand the needs of larger enterprises. They found the confidence to Increase their pricing structure, with their first big project being a $40,000 deal. At the time, that kind of money seemed wild to them!

Even after increasing their prices, Pinaki admits it took him too long to get out of day-to-day operations. After navigating an industry still in its infancy and growing his agency by doing a bit of everything, he had learned to enjoy daily operations and thrived in that work. However, hiring the right team members eventually helped him and his partners recognize they should redirect their focus toward strategic growth, with effective delegation as the key enabler.

Shifting focus from operations to growth helped them realize the potential to grow existing accounts by offering subscription-based services. Clients often struggled to maintain their websites post-launch, resulting in deteriorating quality over time. Recognizing this gap, they introduced "website curation" services designed to preserve and enhance site quality as content evolved.

The subscription model really helped maintain cashflow, providing steady revenue that stabilize the agency when project work fluctuated. It also helped them create stronger client relationships by setting up a new situation where they would do a lot of work for just one client instead of a lot projects for different clients that never grew beyond that.

While his agency team always knew the right questions to ask clients, Pinaki admits they initially fell into the "order taker" category. Today, however, 70% of their revenue comes from recurring business—a testament to their deliberate focus on building long-lasting relationships, with their longest-standing client partnership spanning approximately 20 years.

For Pinaki, honesty serves as the cornerstone of these enduring client relationships. This means respectfully declining projects beyond their capabilities or tactfully pushing back on ideas they believe won't succeed, all while treating clients with genuine empathy. This approach of delivering difficult messages compassionately transforms potential setbacks into growth opportunities. When clients know they can depend on their service provider for truthfulness—even when uncomfortable—it fosters a deeper, more resilient trust over time.

As he points out, there should always be a focus on moving forward when challenges arise rather than placing blame, which really helps them in being seen as trusted advisors.

Most agency owners begin their journey as creators or industry enthusiasts with specialized skills—like building websites—who eventually find themselves navigating the business side once clients start paying for their services.

This transition to business ownership requires three critical steps: 1. connecting with like-minded peers, 2. gaining clarity about your agency's direction, and 3. developing the confidence to pursue that vision with conviction.

Building a sustainable future typically involves creating robust systems and making strategic hires that gradually remove you as the owner from every operational decision. Eventually, this evolution results in a business that functions independently. If you're concerned about becoming a bottleneck, implement regular feedback sessions with your team. Ask them what they wish you would stop doing, continue doing, and do more of—providing invaluable insights into areas where you might be unintentionally constraining growth.

While systematizing your business is crucial, this doesn't mean abandoning the aspects of agency work you genuinely enjoy. Whether it's joining client closing calls or facilitating design meetings, you can still participate in these fulfilling activities. The key distinction is creating systems that give you the choice to participate rather than requiring your involvement.

Looking to dig deeper into your agency's potential? Check out our Agency Blueprint. Designed for agency owners like you, our Agency Blueprint helps you uncover growth opportunities, tackle obstacles, and craft a customized blueprint for your agency's success.