How to have an agency that you love [Part 1]

When you first start your agency you have a clean slate and you are full of enthusiasm and positivity. You generally have new client work that is exciting and you feel like you have made the right move working for yourself, doing what you love.

Do you remember those times?

As the months go by you realise there are a lot of moving components involved in running a profitable business. Hiring people at the right time, ensuring clients are getting the results they paid for, in the time they expect. Balancing the books to keep paying wages and suppliers on time, while making sure your invoices are paid.

If you think you can do it all yourself with long hours and hard work. If you are feeling like you are on a hamster wheel and going nowhere, here are a few tips to get you back in the groove and loving your agency again.

Read more: Are you focusing on the right things to take your agency to the next level?

1) Read the book Traction by Gino Wickman

This is a short book and a game changer when it comes to learning how to set up simple systems in your agency to make things run smoother.

Firstly you will find out if you are a “Visionary” or an “Implementer”. This will then make you decide if you either need to hire or partner with another “Visionary” or “Implementer” to help you with the business. The entrepreneurial operating system is the backbone of the book and yes, there are many different methodologies on how to run a successful business, however you could start here and learn some tools to get you started.

Boring processes can give you freedom if you try!

2) Hire a good accountant

...(preferably who has a book-keeper/credit controller).

Ideally your accountant will have experience in working with businesses in the professional services sector because essentially this is what your digital agency is. When your clients see value in the services you deliver and you are helping them get results, you can have a very profitable business.

Working with your accountant to make sure your hours are time tracked into your invoicing system and that you are pricing your services and costing your expenses in the right way, is key to having a successful agency.

Read more about how having a great team is essential in having a great agency.

3) Be honest with yourself

Write down a list of the tasks you love to do in your agency and the ones you do not. It is your business and you need to be happy going to work everyday. When you are not happy your energy radiates across the business - no matter how good an actor you think you are.

In today’s world your employees are choosing to work with you because they like working in your agency. They don’t have to be there as there are now plenty of other ways they can make money.

A fantastic book to read and help you understand the importance of having a good company culture is “Contagious Culture”, by Anese Cavanaugh.

These are only three tips to help you get on the path to having an agency you love, again, and not be filled with dread at the thoughts of going work every day. If you focus on these over the next 90 days that would be a great start.

Did you fall out of love with your agency and found your way back again? We would love to hear from you. Join our Digital Agency 2018 Transformation Challenge to get even further. You can also read more about growing you agency with Growit Group in our case study.

If you want to know how to find a coach that fit your agency, take a look here!