Are Agencies Evil? How We Changed the Agency Business Model to Team-as-a-Service

Hello there! Have you ever had a negative experience with an agency that made you feel frustrated and taken advantage of? If the answer is yes, you're not alone. Sadly, unethical practices are all too common in the industry. However, I can share with you how we transformed our agency's business model. We made this change despite losing major projects like Nike and McDonald's. In the end, we improved our results, boosted the LTV and NPS of our clients, and can now share our story.

My name is Dima Skortsov, a growth marketing expert with a track record of scaling revenue from $1 million to $100 million and beyond. I led teams working with major brands like Nike, Jaguar Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Mars, PepsiCo, McDonald's, and banks. Life was good, but something gnawed at me. Little did I know that a wild adventure awaited, transforming our agency and redefining how we deliver growth marketing services. Join us for a safe journey through our agency's history. Thank you for being here.

I really enjoyed my time doing an agency. It opened my eyes to the different projects, business models, pipelines, and approaches and how they could be in other companies and startups. But with time, we realize that the agency model is broken.

Let's start with this: why do companies hire agencies in the first place?

Is it simply about getting results faster? Or is there more to it? Imagine yourself in the shoes of a company executive, striving to surpass competitors, conquer new markets, and thrive in the face of adversity. What would you seek in an agency partnership?

Let's explore the compelling reasons:

• Hiring agencies have seasoned experts who can deliver faster outcomes.
• Agencies have access to the best talent, making it easier to find specialists.
• Companies can easily adjust or terminate agency contracts, giving them flexibility and control.
• Agencies drive the race for results, pushing companies to surpass themselves and gain a competitive edge.
• Agencies inject resilience and adaptability into company strategies, making them anti-fragile.
• Onboarding and training new employees are unnecessary as agencies already possess the necessary experience and efficiency.

But behind the scenes, cracks appeared in the model. Like a hidden labyrinth, challenges awaited us.

The advertising agency is more like an HR business. It involves acquiring talented experts, ensuring smooth collaboration, motivating and upskilling the team, and immersing them in the client's business.

Establishing a strong culture is crucial, as retaining employees in an agency is more challenging than in product companies. Emphasizing values, team activities, and constant involvement are essential.

At our agency, we valued team training. We had enlisted top experts from the market to conduct comprehensive master classes that aimed to develop and nurture the talents of individuals to help them reach their full potential.

Many former employees now work at well-known companies like Uber, Airbnb, and Spotify.

But not all agencies are like that. For most of them:

1. They do not fully engage with the product, customers, or challenges.

2. Their goals for the company and clients are limited to the short term.

3. They give off the impression that clients are just another number, with little communication or care.

4. They present reports with flashy metrics that are confusing and do not align with specific goals.

5. Majority of agency staff not directly involved in advertising creation

   
   

There are whole levels of people whose job is to essentially sit around and wait to approve or disapprove of someone else's work. Hierarchical structures slow down work approval due to multiple layers and committees, leading to unnecessary spending.

Many agencies claim to be "an extension of the client team", but clients soon realize that this is not the case. The problem is that the agency sells this idea to 50 companies, making it impossible to deliver genuinely. Unfortunately, this often results in a poor client experience.

Imagine you hire an agency, expecting seamless communication, unwavering support, and personalized care. Yet, instead of your team's cherished extension, you feel like another faceless number. The reports they deliver are flashy and impressive, but beneath the glitz, confusion lurks as they fail to provide results aligned with your goals.

However, it is important to note that not all agencies follow the same model. Some agile agencies operate with a smaller team and focus on serving a select number of clients in a more personalized and boutique-style format, allowing them to provide specialized attention and tailored solutions.

But no matter how extraordinary the agency, the traditional model couldn't unleash our full potential. It was time for a change. And so, we set forth on a quest to reshape the agency landscape, birthing the team as a service model.

In one pivotal moment, the client requested to increase their capacity to handle more tasks and ad campaigns in foreign markets, and we have responded to their request. The company had experienced significant growth and wanted to avoid wasting time on fruitless searches or hiring more employees without seeing positive outcomes. A marketing team has been formed and educated to monitor effectiveness and enhance efficiency. With our support, the startup achieved a 900% boost in revenue, reaching $4.2 mln ARR!

Our journey was smooth, though. We invested over $1 million in advertising budget within a year, with a return on marketing investment (ROMI) of 300%. The business metrics rocketed, and we got an acquisition offer for the team that led that project to results. It was the power of our approach — the proof that we were on the cusp of something interesting.

And so, our agency metamorphosed, shedding its classic skin. We embraced the team as a service model, where our experts seamlessly merged with our client's team, driven by a commitment and a shared vision. We became more than an outsourced service — we became part of our client's teams, propelling them toward results.

In our 'anti-agency' solution, we recognize that each client's needs are unique and build a team with the right experts for client needs.

These teams work exclusively for one project and are embedded within the business, ensuring they deliver growth marketing to drive results. Talking of which, we get paid on success because we back ourselves and take the risk away from the client.

• We don't provide consultants with expensive plans that will never be delivered. We ensure that clients have the whole package.
• Strategy thinkers and planning experts select the proper channels and plan campaigns.
• Specialists per channel are selected to optimize the campaign and maximize ROI.
• Project managers control the entire process and ensure everything delivers on time and the results are in one place.
• Experts do an always-on audit of every stage of the customer funnel, looking at churn and conversion through every point to optimize performance continually.

We package all these skills with a solution that will track all your results in one place.

We are now working on a platform with pre-mvp solid traction, a profitable business model from day one, and dozens of happy clients, and we also believe that we are building not just an HRTech project but a company changing the future of work and collaboration between experts and companies.

Join us on our transformative journey and experience the power of team-as-a-service. Subscribe on our Linkedin page, or if you need help with your project or want to ask a question, leave a request on our website.