The Digital Agency Growth Podcast

Here at Sales Schema, we know our podcast listeners are all at different stages of growth with their agency. And after hundreds of interviews with professionals across the agency space, one key takeaway stands out: to grow an agency, you have to build a system that keeps your sales funnel full without the owner having their hand in the process. Dan is here today to talk about the different stages of an agency’s growth, how lack of clarity stalls your growth, and how outbound marketing could be the system you need to reach the next level with your agency. This week, episode 219 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about how to build a repeatable new business process for your agency without spam or burnout!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Dan Englander shares the importance of building strong business relationships amidst the trust recession and actionable steps you can take right now to optimize outbound marketing for your agency’s needs. In this episode, Dan discusses the following:The four levels of sophistication in sales for agencies – from glorified freelancer to cruisers.The pros and cons of outbound marketing and why it could drastically change your business.Identifying prospects by leveraging commonalities with existing clients and networks.How lack of clarity and follow-through kill outbound strategies and how to fix it.If you think the Targeted Outreach System is a fit for your organization and want to learn more, please visit salesschema.com/enrollment!Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at http://salesschema.com/takecharge CONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales SchemaLINKS MENTIONED:The Targeted Outreach System

The game that is sales outreach is always changing, and with so many schools of thought, it can be hard to keep up with best practices to keep your pipeline full. Matt Lincoln with Apollo.io is here this week to offer insight into how sales outreach has changed, what data is important for targeting your best leads, tips for making a cold outreach feel like a warm inbound and much more! This week, episode 218 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about the broken predictable revenue model and how Apollo.io approaches cold outreach in 2024.Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Matt Lincoln shares the importance of personalization in sales outreach strategies and actionable steps you can take right now to narrow down your search to the leads that are right for your business. Matt Lincoln is the Principal Product Manager at Apollo.io, the leading go-to-market (GTM) solution for sales and marketing teams. Apollo.io is one of the fastest-growing companies in SaaS, with 9x ARR growth since 2021. The company currently serves over 500,000 companies like Qualtrics, Customer.io, and Census, as well as millions of GTM professionals globally. Matt is a seasoned product leader who joined Apollo in July 2023 to help navigate the mysteries of deliverability through self-serve tools that deliver the right message, to the right customer, at the right time. He has over a decade of experience creating product roadmaps, aligning stakeholders, and setting the product vision at global organizations like Shopify, United Airlines, and Staples.In this episode, Dan and Matt discuss the following:The past, present, and future of sales engagement.Why the Predictable Revenue Model is broken.Google and Yahoo’s big changes that affect email deliverability.The uses of AI in sales and outreach efforts.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at http://salesschema.com/takecharge CONNECT WITH MATT LINCOLN:Apollo.ioX (formerly Twitter)LinkedInCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

The agency space has seen its fair share of ups and downs over the past several years.  However, as the industry landscape has changed, agencies have also adapted to meet their clients' needs and what they need to stay afloat. Drew McLellan is no stranger to the changes in the industry and is here today to talk about the state of the agency industry in 2024, shifting your agency model to emphasize thought leadership and much more. This week, episode 217 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about building trust and scaling through thought leadership!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Drew McLellan discusses the importance of building trust with prospective clients long before a sale and actionable steps you can take right now to establish your agency as a thought leader in your space. Drew McLellan has worked in advertising for 30+ years and started his own agency, McLellan Marketing Group in 1995 after a five-year stint at Y&R and still actively runs the agency.  He spends the lion’s share of his time running Agency Management Institute (AMI), which he also owns. AMI serves thousands of agencies small to mid-sized agencies (advertising, digital, marketing, media and PR) every year, so they can increase their AGI, attract better clients and employees, mitigate the risks of being self-employed in a such volatile business and best of all — let the agency owner actually enjoy the perks of agency ownership.In this episode, Dan and Drew discuss the following:Finding the advantages of being an agency owner.The importance of scalability and balance in agency growth.Building trust with potential clients long before making the sale.AI’s usefulness for data analysis in agencies, but not for strategy.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at http://salesschema.com/takecharge CONNECT WITH DREW MCLELLAN:Agency Management InstituteLinkedInX (formerly Twitter)WebsiteCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales SchemaLINKS MENTIONED:Sell With Authority: Own and Monetize Your Agency’s Authority Position

No matter what industry you work in, you will learn lessons and gain valuable skills that will carry over into other industries. Transferring to the agency space from the restaurant industry was easier than expected for Mark Scrivner due to the lessons and skills he learned about sales, marketing, and quality of service in his restaurant career. Today, Mark is here to share those transferable skills and other valuable insights about entrepreneurship and agency ownership. This week, episode 211 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about entrepreneurship insights and restaurant industry lessons for agencies!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.Mark Scrivner is the Founder of Snapshot Interactive,a strategic marketing agency with a vision to create impactful stories and measurable marketing solutions for clients across various industries. With a passion for client service, he's had the privilege of leading the most talented team of storytellers, data lovers, and artists who specialize in the finance, healthcare, and industrial spaces.  As an entrepreneur, Mark also co-founded Ecos, a sales and marketing presentation platform, and served as a moderator and board member at Entrepreneurs' Organization - Nashville, a global network of like-minded leaders. In this episode, Dan and Mark discuss the following:Lessons Mark learned in the restaurant industry that have carried over into the agency space.The importance of speed of delivery in agency work.Pivoting from project to retainer-based work, and when each type is right for you.What new entrepreneurs are thinking and feeling, and advice from Mark on where to start.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH MARK SCRIVNER:LinkedInSnapshot InteractiveCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

Operations are the unsung heroes in the agency space. Though not talked about as often as sales and marketing, having robust operations through efficient procedures and documentation keeps an agency running smoothly and profitably. But what are the right tools and techniques for your agency? Melissa Morris is here today to help you identify what will work best for you, tell us why SOPs are overrated, and more! This week, episode 210 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about streamlining your agency’s operations and why SOPs are overrated!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Melissa Morris shares the importance of getting clear on your offerings before documenting SOPs and actionable steps you can take right now to set distinct boundaries with clients for clear communication. As the founder of Agency Authority, a project management and operations consultancy for agency owners, Melissa Morris uses her 10 years agency experience to help business owners maximize their team, increase their productivity, and grow their profits. Firmly committed to breaking the ‘long hours and bad pay’ stigma that plagues the agency world, Melissa and her team help business owners and their team members do the work they love without sacrificing client satisfaction, the bottom line, or their own sanity.In this episode, Dan and Melissa discuss the following:Melissa’s DISCO method of streamlining processes.The common mistakes agency owners make when building their tool stacks.The benefits and challenges of time tracking for agencies.Setting clear expectations and boundaries with clients from the beginning of the contract.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH MELISSA MORRIS:LinkedInInstagramAgency AuthorityCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

Specializing and niching down are topics we talk about a lot on the show simply because of their importance and effectiveness in scaling your agency. Hand-in-hand with specializing is scaling based on expertise in your niche instead of relying on founder-driven sales to keep the pipeline full. Friend of the show Corey Quinn is back this week to talk about his upcoming book, Anyone, Not Everyone, in which he teaches you his approach to escape founder-led sales and much more! This week, episode 209 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about how to build your agency’s vertical go-to market strategy!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Corey Quinn shares the importance of specialization for your agency and actionable steps you can take right now to build new sales strategies that don’t involve founder-driven sales. Corey has a 25-year record of extraordinary success as an entrepreneur, sales leader, and marketing executive. His most recent in-house role was Scorpion's Chief Marketing Officer. While there, the SMB-focused agency grew from $20M to $150M in recurring revenue in under seven years. Today, he's a coach and the author of Anyone, Not Everyone, a book that helps agency founders escape founder-led sales by specializing in a vertical market. In this episode, Dan and Corey discuss the following:The difference between niching and deep specialization.Why specialization is even more critical in a down economy.Gifting as a unique outbound sales strategy.Seeking growth through specialized expertise, not founder-driven sales.Don’t forget to check out Corey’s daily newsletter, Deep Specialization Daily, and sign up for information on when his new book, Anyone, Not Everyone: A Proven System to Escape Founder-Led Sales is released!Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH COREY QUINN:WebsiteThe Vertical Go-To-Market PodcastLinkedInYouTubeCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

Risk assessment, setting an example of leadership for your employees, and looking to the future are all part of an agency owner’s daily schedule. But how often do we take the time to slow down, take a breath, and reflect on what leadership means to us and our company, now and going forward? Matt Phillips thinks we don’t do this as often as we should. He’s here today to discuss why taking time to reflect and develop as leaders will help our agencies, why finding the truth amidst limiting beliefs will help us grow, and much more. This week, episode 208 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about developing leadership skills, overcoming limiting beliefs, and assessing risk!Watch our latest video training, How to Take Charge of Your Agency’s Future Revenue. During this training, you’ll learn how we get qualified appointments every week using tasteful and highly targeted email outreach.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Matt Phillips shares the importance of setting aside time to contemplate your leadership and actionable steps you can take right now to hire the best possible person in every scenario. As a leadership coach and host of The Matt Phillips Podcast, Matt Phillips helps sales leaders achieve pro-level performance by developing and harnessing their mental toughness. Having worked with companies including Western Union, Marsh, and Robert Half, Matt knows that the status quo of promoting rockstar salespeople to sales leaders often leaves the new leader with significant gaps in their own leadership philosophy, confidence, and resilience. By combining his background as a professional baseball player with his global experience in sales, operations, and accounting, Matt supports business leaders and teams as they break through the mental roadblocks that arise in their daily grind to help them realize their potential in their personal and professional lives.In this episode, Dan and Matt discuss the following:What mental resilience means in everyday practice for your business.Matt’s four archetypes that give insight into how people think and work.The importance of asking tough questions to uncover the truth and overcome fear-based limitations.How carving out time for thoughtful reflection on leadership, even with a busy schedule, will positively impact your business.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH MATT PHILLIPS:WebsiteThe Matt Phillips PodcastLinkedInInstagramCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

Setting a strong foundation for your agency’s operations is key to its success and growth. While operations feels like the last department a new small agency needs to consider, it becomes incredibly important once you have several employees. Outsourcing to operations professionals can be an excellent choice, especially those like Leah Leaves and her team at Alderaan, who embed themselves into the agencies they work with so they become team members, not just hired help. Leah is here this week to share what she’s learned about fractional operations for digital marketing agencies and how you can set an operational foundation for yourself. This week, episode 207 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about building stellar SOPs and growing your agency through fractional operations!Watch our Relationship-Driven New Business ​At-Scale video training to learn how we secure 5-20 weekly brand/agency relationships using a tasteful email outreach centered on commonalities.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Leah Leaves shares the importance of having a solid operations foundation for smaller agencies and actionable steps you can take right now to keep your agency from being brittle.Leah Leaves is the Founder of Alderaan Business Solutions, which offers outsourced operations professionals for remote digital marketing agencies.  We help small digital marketing agency owners avoid burnout, enjoy crazy-good profits, and get back to spending time with their kids by building their business foundation and getting them out of their company's daily business operations.In this episode, Dan and Leah discuss the following:Finding an integrator for your big ideas is crucial to the success of a small agency.EOS, Scaling Up, and other ‘business religions’.The importance of fractional operations taking a hands-on, personalized approach.Creating robust SOPs to strengthen your agency from the ground up.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH LEAH LEAVES:LinkedInAlderaan Business SolutionsCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

PR agencies have seen tremendous changes over the last few decades, just like many industries. Kim Sample, President of the PR Council, has spent her whole career in the PR space and has her finger on the pulse of the PR space. Today she’s here to talk with us about current trends, future predictions in the space, and more! This week, episode 206 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about Kim’s experience advising 140 PR agencies and growing a communications firm to $35M! Watch our Relationship-Driven New Business ​At-Scale video training to learn how we secure 5-20 weekly brand/agency relationships using a tasteful email outreach centered on commonalities.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Kim Sample shares the importance of adopting value-based pricing in agencies and actionable steps you can take right now to embrace technology and hybrid work models. As president of the PR Council, Kim Sample helps the leaders of 140 member agencies work smarter to grow talent, revenue and profits and elevate the PR profession overall. Prior to joining the PRC in August 2018, Kim was the founder/CEO of Emanate, a $35 million, 100+ person international marketing communications agency. During her tenure Emanate was named PR WEEK Agency of the Year and CRAIN’S Best Places to Work in NYC, and the team’s work for clients was recognized with numerous industry awards.In this episode, Dan and Kim discuss the following:Technology’s impact on the PR industry.The pros and cons of asking agencies to complete spec work before working together.Niching and alternative delivery methods as popular agency strategies.The future of remote and hybrid work in the agency space.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH KIM SAMPLE:LinkedInPR CouncilCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema

Silicon Valley is the heart of the tech industry. And since tech is a growing sector, it is often used as a gauge for the rest of the economy. Times have been tough for tech startups lately, but the agencies that work with them have also seen changes.  Morgan McLintic of Firebrand Marketing works in the heart of the Valley, working with startups at all stages to improve their marketing and increase demand. He’s here today to discuss marketing startups, agency valuation, and more. This week, episode 205 of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast is about startup marketing and the state of Silicon Valley!Watch our Relationship-Driven New Business ​At-Scale video training to learn how we secure 5-20 weekly brand/agency relationships using a tasteful email outreach centered on commonalities.In this episode of The Digital Agency Growth Podcast, Morgan McLintic shares the importance of saying no to the clients that are not right for your agency and actionable steps you can take right now to showcase your team’s expertise.Morgan McLintic is the CEO of startup marketing agency, Firebrand. Firebrand works with early and late-stage startups to help raise awareness and drive demand. It does this through integrated programs involving PR, content marketing and digital marketing. The firm was recently recognized as the Boutique Agency of the Year by the PRSA (Public Relations Society of America).  Prior to Firebrand, Morgan founded the US presence of a global communications firm, growing it to $35m in revenues and over 250 staff. Based in San Francisco, where he lives with his wife and two kids, he enjoys extreme gardening and long-distance running.In this episode, Dan and Morgan discuss the following:How an early adoption of AI in digital agencies can provide a distinct advantage.The challenges many tech startups are facing in fundraising and valuations.The importance of hiring experts in various fields and integrating them into an agency.Discussing the integration of teams and clients at the beginning of acquisition conversations.Thank you for listening! If you enjoyed this episode, please take a moment to follow, rate and review the podcast and tell me your key takeaways!Learn more about The Digitial Agency Growth Podcast at https://www.salesschema.com/podcast/ and our Video training at https://salesschema.com/relationships CONNECT WITH MORGAN MCLINTIC:LinkedInFiredUp! PodcastFirebrandCONNECT WITH DAN ENGLANDER:LinkedInSales Schema