Operation Agency Freedom - The #1 Podcast for Digital Agency Owners Who Want to Scale and Exit Their Business

What does onboarding an employee look like? Do you automatically hand them all the work to do on the first day? Hiring a new person on the team is a tedious task, but it shouldn’t stop there. Now that you have them, it’s time to set them up for success.  Chris Martinez talks about the process they go through at DUDE when they onboard a new employee. Chris believes that new hires need to contribute within the first two weeks and be relatively anonymous within 90 days. And that all this is possible with the right process in place.  If you’re an agency owner who plans on hiring somebody and get them up to speed quickly, this is definitely an episode for you.   Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 4:49 Indoctrination into the company culture 6:58 Why it’s okay to talk about your failures 9:43 Split the time for training and with actual doing of the work13:20 Things to take into consideration in your hiring process, especially with multicultural teams 16:03 The training is never going to stop after 90 days17:17 Make sure new hires understand how and what the benchmarks are 17:31 Train your staff using Trainual Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency)  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Register for live trainings on running a profitable agency (https://dudeagency.io/)  Send us an email about Trainual info@dudeagency.io  Books mentioned in this episode:  Delivering Happiness https://www.amazon.com/Delivering-Happiness-Profits-Passion-Purpose/dp/0446576220  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!

Agency owners understand that making a sale is easy but growing your profitability is insanely difficult. The numbers game will either make or break your agency and so there has to be a conscious effort in place to understand the financial aspect of your business. You may find it difficult if you are not into the numbers thing, but it will be worth your while to dig deeper into it.  In this week’s Operation Agency Freedom podcast episode, Chris Martinez talks with Billy Gene Is Marketing’s CFO Daniel Flores. Daniel shares the tasks he focused on when he started working with Billy Gene. He also discussed the KPIs they measure specifically to determine profitability, tracking and measuring churn rates, and other red flags they monitor to ensure they are financially healthy.  If you are determined to grow your agency’s profitability, no matter how unsexy the financial stuff is, this is an episode you’ll learn a lot from. Tune in to this episode today.  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction3:46  Why Daniel decided to work for Billy Gene Is Marketing 5:51 What made Billy Gene decide he needed a CFO  7:29 Net income of Billy Gene Is Marketing when Daniel came in first in 2017 8:06 Tasks that Daniel focused on when he first started10:38 KPIs that are measured specifically 12:55 Does Billy look at the numbers every single day 14:25 Things that go in to your Cost of Goods sold 15:40 How Daniel handles scenarios where X amount is needed to fund an idea  18:26 Churn - unacceptable percentage and how to track and measure it19:46 Other KPIs measured that have a positive impact on churn 21:12 Red flags being monitored 22:46 Where Billy Gene Is Marketing headed towards  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/ Visit our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw Register for live trainings on running a profitable agency https://dudeagency.io/ Download your free PDF copy of Never Wear Pants Again https://dudeagency.io/digital-book-never-wear-pants-again/ Reach out to Daniel through email info@askbillygene.com  About the Guest:  Daniel Flores is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer of Billy Gene Is Marketing. He is an experienced executive financial and operations officer with a demonstrated history of working in a wide range of business industries. Strong operations professional skilled in Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), External Audit, Financial Services, and Process Development. Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!

Hiring, in general, is a challenge for 99.99% of agency owners. That next team member is crucial to your agency’s growth and success. But who should you hire exactly? And what are the signs you need to start hiring?  Chris answers these questions in detail in this episode. He also talks about the bottlenecks that you can have as an agency owner and how you can use those as a way to identify who you need to hire next.  Tune in to this episode and learn how you can be more efficient in scaling your labor.   Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:00 Look at the departments in your agency 3:37 Look at the bottlenecks and create an actual plan to fix those 6:02 Think about the things you suck at 9:17 Two important things Chris learned over the past years 10:20 Your Pro Forma as a guide for your growth 14:40 Inconsistent sales means you’re not going to grow 15:31 Project manager 16:18 Customers churn - customer experience person 18:40 Finance manager 20:19 An HR person 21:10 CEO 24:25 Recommendations for those with limited budgets for hiring  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency  Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/ Visit our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw Register for live trainings on running a profitable agency https://dudeagency.io/ Get a Pro Forma training through DUDE school https://dudeschool.io/trainings/  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!

People are a valuable resource. Anyone who is running an agency understands this basic truth. This is the reason why it’s so difficult to lose team members who you’ve invested in and are greatly contributing to your success. How do you know the signs someone is leaving? What are some of the things you can do to move the needle?  This is what Chris talks about in this week’s episode. Chris shares some of the common issues that team members face that lead them to move out of your agency. He also gives out some of the philosophies that are practiced at DUDE that will benefit the team and the owners as well.  Check out the full episode today.  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:25 Chris shares his personal experience with valuable team members leaving 3:36 First thing you need to be aware of when something is going on with a team member 5:25 Creating an environment where people are okay with sharing things 5:39 Meetings - are these people showing up late for meetings?7:47 Deadlines - are they missing deadlines?9:29 Disengagement - are they verbalizing their goals?11:59 A team member has a drama with another team member14:06 A promotion - are team members getting passed by?15:40 Owners being an asshole 17:52 Keep your people happy, treat them well 18:33 Empower your folks to do amazing work 21:00 People will move on eventually 23:46 Bridge, connect, and deliver  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Register for live trainings on running a profitable agency (https://dudeagency.io/)  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!

Running an agency is not always a walk in the park, but it doesn’t have to be a burden either. If you envision an agency that wins big and becomes more profitable, stop believing the myth that having more sales will solve all your problems. Instead, turn your focus on the stuff that’s most neglected or what I like to call the non-sexy side of running an agency.  In this week’s podcast episode, I have an interesting discussion with my guest, Kelly Gordon about how you can use your project management software to bring out the best in your team members. We also cover the differences between button-pushers and strategy people and how to manage them, and what you can do so you don’t miss a beat when somebody in your agency leaves, and a whole lot more!  If you’re an agency owner looking for the answer on how to make your agency profitable and grow massively, this is the episode for you! Tune in to this today!  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:45 Kelly shares about the path she took that led to the start of Dapper codes5:29 Structuring the roles for her team members into her project management software 8:35 What would be on the board of someone who is in Kelly’s team 11:17 What to say to people who say that can’t standardize or systemize their business 13:24 An owner’s lack of discipline will make things messy 15:43 First place to start when creating role boards 16:06 Examples of button-pushing tasks 18:36 Profitability is tied to time 19:54 What you can do to start breaking down processes 22:14 The kind of people Kelly works with  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency Instagram https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/ Visit our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw Check out our website and see how we can help you run a profitable agency https://dudeagency.io/ Reach out to Kelly Gordon through Facebook https://www.facebook.com/kellybryn1  About the Guest:  Kelly Gordon is the founder and CEO of a 7-figure digital agency, Dapper Codes, helping businesses grow using proven methods that allow their clients to be a cut above the rest in this highly competitive world. She also founded a mentorship program, Cyberpreneur Inferno, aimed at helping create masterful agencies that are set up to win, impress, and retain customers.  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in! 

One of the common things that I see among CEO’s is that most of them do not know what’s going on in their departments. This lack of insight into what’s happening limits your ability as a CEO to foresee problems that you could prevent before it turns into a huge mess. So if you aim to become a  better leader, you need to conduct a regular meeting with the people who comprise your leadership team to get a hold of important stuff you need to know about.  This type of meeting is what I discuss in the third and last episode of the series 3 Meetings You Must Run in Your Agency. I share how we conduct a weekly leadership meeting and what we cover during that meeting. I also talk about how crucial the role of a CEO is and how leadership teams help make CEOs accountable, and a lot more.  Those who occupy leadership roles in an agency will benefit from listening to this episode. Tune in now!  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:36 The non-sexy stuff separates successful agencies from those that aren’t 4:30 Breakdown of the different departments in your agency 6:13 Who is involved in the weekly leadership meeting 6:46 Weekly leadership meeting timeframe7:19 What does the weekly leadership meeting cover 16:30 The role of the CEO 18:30 How the leadership teams make the CEO accountable 19:56 Recommendations for agencies that don’t have weekly leadership meetings yet  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency)  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Check out our website (https://dudeagency.io/)  The marketing scorecard (https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1wmMHCuw1k3I-uqkxYItS0MRaZKJvxxjBNHUzZJxYi2Q/edit?usp=sharing)  Listen to the podcasts included in this series  OAF Episode 94: The Daily Deadline Meeting (https://dudeagency.io/e94-the-daily-deadline-meeting/) OAF Episode 95: The Weekly Sandwich Meeting (https://dudeagency.io/e95-the-weekly-sandwich-meeting/) Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in! 

It’s not a secret that most people dread meetings. But, at DUDE, we have a meeting that all of us look forward to. We went from having it to not having it, and then our team asked that we do it again, regularly. As a leader, I consider this meeting as an opportunity to relay important information about our company or updates that will get everybody excited. In today’s episode, I talk about the Weekly Sandwich Meeting. It’s the second episode of the three-part series 3 Meetings You Must Run In Your Agency. I share how DUDE benefited from this type of meeting. I also discuss the importance of a structured meeting and tips on improving your weekly meetings in your agency.   If you’re excited to jumpstart your weekly meeting or improve the one you’re currently doing, I encourage you to tune in to this episode.  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:12 Background of this type of meeting 4:40 How running this type of meeting became helpful for DUDE5:37 Why the sandwich important is important  5:57 Why a structured meeting is significant   9:27 What to do if your staff isn’t asking for a weekly meeting10:18 How to improve your weekly meetings  14:48 Sandwich meeting timeframe  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency) Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Check out our website (https://dudeagency.io/)  Listen to Part 1 of this series  OAF Episode 95: The Daily Deadline Meeting (https://dudeagency.io/e94-the-daily-deadline-meeting/)    Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in! 

One of the things I hated doing as a leader was conducting meetings that, when I started my agency, I sucked at it and felt like it did not contribute any significance to the work we did. That was until I learned how to do it right and see firsthand the numerous advantages conducting regular meetings brought to our company.  In today’s podcast episode, I talk about the Daily Deadline Meeting. This episode is the first of the podcast series 3 Meetings You Run In Your Agency. I discuss and share with you the measure of a successful meeting and why people dread meetings. I also talk about how we, at DUDE, conduct our daily deadline meetings and the advantages of doing so.  Any agency or business owner who feels reluctant about conducting their meetings or is just unsure how to do it right can learn a thing or two from this podcast. Tune in to this today!  Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:51 How is it that most people run your meeting 3:22 Measure of a successful meeting 3:44 People don’t understand the WHY 4:37 Inconsistency makes meetings so hard 5:28 Long meetings 5:43 Too much information into one meeting 6:21 The daily deadline meeting 8:40 How DUDE runs their daily deadline meeting 9:52 Advantages of conducting daily deadlines meeting   12:29 Time frame of the meeting 12:58 What happens if someone has a challenge?15:38 Being able to reset expectations with the client 18:03 When DUDE started doing their daily deadline meetings19:01 Doing something different in this meeting  22:34 Typical format of a meeting  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency)  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Check out our website (https://dudeagency.io/)  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!

COVID was a game-changer for those in the agency space. Most agencies had to shut down and lose their businesses overnight, while others, however, who stood and weathered the storm, grew their businesses exponentially. The contrast between the two make us think of what elements are in play towards the success and failures of running an agency.  My interview with Matt Plapp, CEO of Driven Media Solutions, places a focus on this topic. He bravely shares why the agencies he coached before COVID failed and shut down during the pandemic. He talks about the shiny object syndrome and why you need to avoid it at all costs. We also discuss how COVID became a blessing to the agency industry and the top three things that will make you fail at running your agency.  There’s just so much you could learn from this conversation, so I highly recommend that you tune in to this episode now.   Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 3:37 Matt shares what happened to his coaching program 4:49 Reason why most agencies never mature |7:46 The shiny object syndrome 9:06 Lack of focus results in failure  10:39 Agencies that performed well with Matt’s guidance 13:41 The unfortunate thing about some people running an agency 14:51 How COVID became a blessing to the agency industry 17:04 Why people turn to create an agency 20:07 Discipline and how important it is when running a business20:57 Top three things that will make you fail at running an agency 28:25 Stop using the pandemic as an excuse     Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency)  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Check out DUDE’s website (https://dudeagency.io/)  Reach out to Matt through email (matt@mattplapp.com)  Visit Matt’s website (https://mattplapp.com/)  About the Guest:  Matt Plapp is the CEO of Driven Media Solutions, a full-service marketing firm located in Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky. He’s been involved in most forms of marketing and has seen the good, the bad, and the ugly. Matt is passionate about Guerilla & Grass Roots Marketing, Social Media, and Internal Marketing Strategies.  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in! 

People are an agency’s best resource. The right people on your team will help your agency scale and become more profitable, but the wrong people will cost you a lot. I have learned my lesson over the years and would like to share how we moved past hiring difficulties and now have a great team of people comprising DUDE.  In this week’s episode, I address a topic that I can talk hours and hours about. I share the top five reasons why agencies are finding it so hard to hire the right people, and of course, tips on how to do it right. All of the things I discuss here are things I’ve experienced myself and learned from.  If you are dead serious about getting the right people to work with you, this is an episode that you ought to listen to now! Discussion Points: 0:00 Introduction 2:47 Hiring is hard! 4:54 Labor code in California 5:45 1st reason: Finding people who are not in your timezone 9:01 2nd reason: You don’t have a good hiring process  9:42 When hiring people, don’t replicate yourself 10:51 DUDE’s hiring process in a nutshell 13:46 3rd reason: You are hiring based on technical skills 14:53 The psychometric exam 15:24 4th reason: You don’t know your budget 18:47 5th reason: You’re hiring a button pusher 19:19 Problem solvers are who you need 20:30 Aim to no longer be the bottleneck 20:53 Real-life examples of the benefits of having problem solvers  Resources:  Connect with DUDE on the following social channels  Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/dudeagency)  Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/dudeagency.io/)  Visit our YouTube channel (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJxNhChWk1xlo3ZhkWtYnlw)  Check out our website (https://dudeagency.io/)  Get a hold of more podcast episodes through our website. You can also tune in and subscribe to Operation Agency Freedom on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Thank you for tuning in!