Episode 73: The 3-Legged Stool: Why Agency Partnerships Fail Without All Three Relationships
Adam Weil of White Rabbit Group shares his framework for turning one-off white label projects into long-term agency partnerships, and the three stakeholder relationships that make or break them.
Episode 67: Why "Do You Know Anyone?" Is the Wrong Referral Ask and What to Say Instead
Dan Englander on why "do you know anyone?" kills referrals, why 80% of agency sales hires fail, and the counterintuitive AI play that isn't about AI.
Episode 58: How a 4-Person Shopify Agency Builds a Partner Engine That Actually Pays Off
Marcus started designing band websites for beer money and it turned into a four-person Shopify shop. A tight ICP of DTC merchants under $5M means sharper work, and most clients arrive reactive, after the cheap theme hit a wall.
Episode 49: Weekly Client Calls, Referral Networks, and 15 Years of Retention
Oyova kept one thing constant since 2009: more human involvement, not less. Weekly client calls cost more, and they're how you keep a client for fifteen years. Jon Tsourakis on why he won't use the word packages, and how the vertical focus came from wins they already had.
Episode 47: Why Most Software Projects Fail Before a Single Line of Code
Most failed software projects don't fail in development. They fail before development starts, when everyone jumps straight to estimates and requirements. Jeff Francis on creating clarity before code, and why a smaller first step converts better than a big-build pitch.
Episode 44: Sequencing Your Way Past the $2M Referral Ceiling
Andrew's agency DNA comes from academia: share what you learn, and don't attach strings to advice. He deliberately tries to make himself unnecessary to clients, which caps hypergrowth and has still produced 20 to 30% growth a year, almost all of it referred.
Episode 31: Why "Always Be Closing" Is Killing Your Agency Pipeline
Adam Kurzawa of Infinum on why always-be-closing is killing agency pipeline, and how to build outbound that survives slow seasons and strange markets.
Episode 27: The 4-Direction Partner Framework That Turns 3 Deep Relationships Into a Referral Engine
Most agencies believe in referrals and almost none treat it like a system, so both sides wait for the other to go first and nothing happens. Mike Wilner on why you start by making referrals rather than asking for them, and why three deep partners beat a long inactive list.
Episode 24: Why 50/50 Partnerships Fail Without a 15-Year Plan
Burnout, not ambition, is what started Wizardly. Meg Schlabs on why a 50/50 partnership creates friction fast without a shared long-term plan, and how 5, 10 and 15 year planning turns constant urgency into actual leadership.
Episode 5: Portfolios Beat Resumes
Ben never set out to run an agency. He kept saying yes to the next thing, got to Shopify early, and scaled on partnerships and systems rather than free work.