After talking to 645 agency owners, I keep hearing the same thing: "I know I should be doing biz dev, but I hate it, so I just... don't."
Then three months later, the pipeline's empty and they're panic-scrolling LinkedIn hoping someone needs their services.
Here's what I've learned: The problem isn't that you're bad at sales. It's that you're trying to sell like someone you're not. You're a relationship person running a boutique agency. You do great work. Your clients love you. But when the projects end, you go quiet, and everyone forgets you exist.
The agencies that never worry about their pipeline aren't doing anything magical. They've just built simple systems that make their good work visible. That's it. They're not posting motivational quotes on LinkedIn. They're not cold-emailing 100 people a week. They're just consistently showing the world what they're already great at.
This article is about building those systems—the ones that work for people who sell through trust and relationships, not tactics and scripts.
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Every agency article tells you to "be consistent with outreach" or "build a content calendar." And you nod along, knowing you should do it, then... you don't.
Why? Because it feels gross.
Cold outreach feels desperate. Posting about yourself feels braggy. Sales calls feel manipulative. So you avoid all of it and tell yourself you'll get to it next week.
But here's the thing: You're already selling every day. When a client asks for a recommendation and you suggest the right approach? That's selling. When you walk them through options and help them decide? That's selling. When you explain why something won't work and offer an alternative? That's selling.
You're great at selling when it's about solving problems for people who already trust you.
The issue is that nobody knows to trust you yet. They can't see your work. They don't know the problems you solve. They don't know you exist.
That's the only problem we're solving here: making your good work visible to people who'd value it.
Not "becoming a thought leader." Not "building a personal brand." Just making it easy for the right people to find you when they need what you do.
Every successful boutique agency I've seen does two things well:
That's it. That's the system.
The agencies struggling with feast-or-famine cycles excel at #1 and completely ignore #2. They finish a successful project, feel good for a week, then move on to the next thing. Six months later, even the client barely remembers what they accomplished together.
The agencies with full pipelines treat amplification like part of the project itself. Not as an afterthought. Not as "marketing I should do someday." As a built-in step that happens every single time.
Let me show you what this actually looks like.
You already do good work. But there's a difference between doing good work and doing work that generates referrals.
Good work: You deliver what you promised, on time, on budget. Client is satisfied.
Referral-generating work: You deliver what you promised, make the client look like a hero internally, create visible wins they can brag about, and make the whole process so smooth they tell their friends unprompted.
Here's what that looks like in practice:
Your point of contact has a boss, or a board, or a business partner. When you make them look smart for hiring you, they become your evangelist.
How:
I've seen this play out hundreds of times. The client who can point to specific, visible wins from working with you will refer you. The client who just has a vague sense that "it went fine" won't.
"We improved their website" is not a talkable win.
"We cut their homepage bounce rate from 67% to 34% and added $18K in monthly revenue from improved conversion" is talkable.
Notice what makes it talkable:
During every project, track at least 3 measurable outcomes. Even if the work is subjective (like brand strategy), find the measurable thing—time saved, deals closed, clarity gained, decision made faster.
You need these numbers for case studies, but more importantly, your client needs these numbers to tell their colleagues why they should hire you.
This sounds obvious, but I can't tell you how many agency horror stories I've heard. The agency that took 4 days to respond. The one that missed deadlines. The one that required 6 meetings to make a simple decision.
When you're stupidly easy to work with, you become the comparison point. "God, after working with [terrible agency], finding you was such a relief." That sentence leads to referrals.
Stupidly easy means:
Being easy to work with is a competitive advantage that costs you nothing.
Now here's where most relationship-driven agency owners completely drop the ball.
You finish a great project. The client is thrilled. You delivered measurable results. And then... you move on. You don't tell anyone. You don't document it. You don't capture a testimonial. You just quietly add it to your mental list of "things I've done" and hope someday someone asks about it.
Three months later, you need new clients and you're starting from scratch. Again.
This is the pattern I see constantly. And it's fixable with simple systems.
Copy this. Use it after every single project. Should take 30-60 minutes total.
Within 48 hours of delivering final work:
☐ Request a testimonial while they're still excitedDon't wait. Don't "follow up later." Ask immediately, while the win is fresh.
Here's the exact message I've seen work hundreds of times:
"I'm so glad this project turned out well. Quick ask: Would you be willing to write a short testimonial about the results? Specifically, what problem you were facing before we worked together and what changed after. Even 2-3 sentences would be incredibly helpful."
Notice: You're asking for specifics (problem → solution), not generic praise. And you're making it short (2-3 sentences, not an essay).
☐ Ask permission for a case study
Different from a testimonial. This is you telling the story.
"Would you be comfortable with us writing a case study about this project? We wouldn't include anything confidential, and you'd review it before we publish. The main points would be [X problem you solved] and [Y result you achieved]."
Most clients say yes if you ask. Most agency owners never ask.
☐ Document the before/after with real numbers
Open a Google Doc right now. Title it "[Client Name] Case Study - [Month/Year]"
Write down:
This takes 15 minutes now and saves you 3 hours later when you need a case study for a proposal.
☐ Ask for referrals directly (and make it stupidly easy)
This is the moment. Right after you delivered great results and they're happy. Not 6 months later.
Most agencies ask for referrals like this:"This project went really well! Do you know anyone who might need our services?"
That's too vague. Your client's brain goes blank. They can't think of anyone. You both move on.
Here's what actually works: Do the thinking for them.
"This project went really well, and I'm looking to work with 2-3 more [type of company] this quarter. I looked at your LinkedIn and noticed you're connected to [Name at Company A], [Name at Company B], and [Name at Company C]—all look like they might be dealing with [specific problem you just solved]. Would you be comfortable introducing me to any of them?"
Notice what's different:
Even better? Draft the intro email for them.
"If you're open to it, I can write a short intro email you can just forward. Something like:
'Hey [Name], wanted to connect you with Bailey at Gia. We just wrapped up [project] together and the results were [specific outcome]. They specialize in [specific thing] for [specific type of company], and I know you mentioned dealing with [problem]. Worth a conversation if you're looking for help with this.'
Feel free to edit however you want, or I'm happy to adjust it."
Now you've made it brain-dead easy. They just have to copy-paste and hit send.
How to actually do this at scale:
You could manually research each client's LinkedIn connections and draft emails yourself. Or you could use tools built for this.
This is exactly what we built Gia to do—it analyzes your client's network, identifies the best-fit connections based on your ideal client profile, and drafts personalized intro requests you can send. But whether you use Gia or do it manually or use another tool, the principle is the same: make the referral process so easy that your client just has to say yes.
I've seen agencies 3x their referral rate just by switching from "know anyone?" to this specific, pre-drafted approach.
The clients who love your work want to help you. You just have to make it easy enough that they actually do it.
Here's what I see kill most agencies' content efforts: They decide to "do content marketing," schedule 30 blog posts, write for 3 weeks, get no immediate results, and quit.
That's not amplification. That's just creating noise.
Amplification is showing your actual work to people who'd find it valuable. And you can do that in 15 minutes a week.
Every Monday (or whatever day works):
That's it. 15 minutes. Done.
Do this for 6 months and you'll have 24 examples of your work visible to the world. That's 24 more than most agencies have.
I hear this constantly: "I don't want to just post about myself. It feels gross."
I get it. But here's the reframe: You're not bragging. You're showing proof that this type of problem is solvable.
When you share a client win, you're not saying "look how great I am." You're saying "this problem you might be dealing with? It's fixable. Here's evidence."
Things that feel braggy (don't post these):
Things that provide value (post these):
See the difference? The first set is about you. The second set is about insights your audience can actually use, with your work as proof.
After reviewing what's worked for hundreds of agencies, here's what actually brings in qualified leads:
1. Detailed case studies with real numbers:
This is #1 for a reason. Nothing builds trust faster than "here's a problem similar to yours and here's exactly how we solved it, with proof."
Don't write these like boring corporate case studies. Tell the story:
One detailed case study is worth 50 generic blog posts.
2. "What we're seeing" pattern posts:
You work with multiple clients in similar situations. You see patterns they don't see. Share those.
"Worked with three e-commerce clients this month. All three made the same mistake: [specific thing]. Here's what we did instead and why it worked."
This positions you as someone who sees across multiple companies and can spot trends.
3. Honest post-mortems of what didn't work:
Everyone shares wins. Almost nobody shares failures. When you do, it builds trust instantly.
"Tried [tactic] with a client. Completely flopped. Here's what we learned and what we'd do differently."
The agencies I see do this well get DMs from prospects saying "I appreciate the honesty. Can we talk?"
4. Quick, tactical insights from recent work:
Not "10 ways to improve your marketing" (generic, useless).
More like: "Discovered that for B2B service companies, Tuesday emails at 10am get 2.3x more replies than Thursday afternoon. Tested this across 8 clients. No idea why, but it's consistent."
Specific. Useful. Based on actual data you collected.
5. Strong opinions on industry BS
You have opinions about what works and what doesn't. Share them.
"Everyone's obsessed with going viral on LinkedIn. Meanwhile, the agencies I know with full pipelines just publish one useful thing per week and have actual conversations. Consistency beats virality every time."
Take a stand. The right people will agree and reach out. The wrong people will unfollow. That's good.
The pattern I see:
Then 6 months later: "I should really start doing content..."
Here's what actually works: Lower your expectations dramatically and commit to the minimum.
Not 3 posts per week. One. Not perfectly designed graphics. Just text.Not researched think-pieces. Just observations from your actual work.
The agencies with full pipelines from content aren't the ones publishing daily. They're the ones who published something useful every week for 18 months straight.
Consistency beats intensity. Every single time.
Helen, an ex-accenture consultant is a great example of consistency paying off.
Okay, so you're amplifying your work. People are starting to see what you do. Now what?
This is where relationship-driven agency owners should have an advantage—but somehow, networking still feels terrible.
Why? Because you're doing it wrong.
What doesn't work: Going to events, handing out business cards, doing your elevator pitch, following up with "just checking in" emails, hoping someone needs your services.
What does work: Actually giving a shit about people and helping them before they can ever hire you.
Forget generic networking events. You need to be where your ideal clients already are, talking about the problems you solve.
Online communities where your clients hang out:
If you serve e-commerce brands, join e-commerce Slack groups and subreddits.If you work with SaaS companies, find the communities where founders discuss growth.If you specialize in professional services, find those forums.
Then—and this is critical—just help people for 3-6 months without pitching anything.
Answer questions. Share what's worked for your clients. Offer perspective. Be useful.
I've seen agency owners build their entire pipeline from a single Slack community. Not by promoting themselves. By consistently showing up and being helpful until people started DMing them: "Hey, we're dealing with exactly what you mentioned. Can we hire you?"
If you go to conferences or events (where your clients are, not just other agency owners), here's the approach:
Before the event:Look at the speaker list and attendee list. Identify 5-10 people you'd genuinely like to learn from. Not "people who might hire me." People doing interesting work you're curious about.
During the event:Talk to those people. Ask about their work. Ask what they're seeing in their industry. Ask what challenges they're dealing with. Actually listen.
Don't pitch. Don't even mention what you do unless they ask.
Take notes after conversations (just quick notes in your phone about what you discussed).
After the event:Within 48 hours, follow up with something useful:
Not "great to meet you!" Not "let's stay in touch!" Something that adds value.
Then put a reminder in your calendar to reach out again in 30-60 days with something else useful.
This is how you build real relationships. Not transactional "networking." Actual relationships where people think of you when they need help because you've consistently shown you know what you're talking about.
"Just checking in!" emails are the worst. Everyone hates sending them. Everyone hates receiving them. Stop.
Here's what to do instead: Every follow-up should give them a reason to respond beyond obligation.
Bad follow-up:"Hey! Just wanted to check in and see if you've given any thought to working together. Let me know if you want to chat!"
(Translation: "Please hire me. I need money.")
Good follow-up:"Hey Sarah—saw that [specific thing related to their business]. Made me think of our conversation about [problem they mentioned]. Curious if you ended up trying [approach you discussed]? I just worked through something similar with another client and learned [specific insight] that might be useful."
(Translation: "I'm paying attention to your business and have relevant insights to share.")
Every touchpoint should either:
If you can't think of anything like that... don't follow up yet. Wait until you have something actually worth sharing.
Other agencies aren't your competition. They're your referral network.
Find agencies that serve the same clients but offer complementary services:
Build actual relationships with 3-5 of these agencies. Refer work to each other. Collaborate on bigger projects. Share insights.
I know agencies that get 30-40% of their new clients from referrals from 3-4 partner agencies. They built those relationships by consistently sending good referrals first, before ever receiving one.
Give first. The agencies that grasp this never struggle for leads.
If you've done everything above—delivered great work, amplified it consistently, built real relationships—your sales conversations will barely feel like sales.
Why? Because prospects are coming to you already trusting you. They've seen your work. They've read your insights. They know you understand their problem.
The conversation isn't "let me convince you to hire us." It's "let's figure out if we're right for each other."
Completely different dynamic.
Traditional sales training teaches you to "control the conversation" and "overcome objections" and "ask for the close."
Ignore all of that. You're not selling used cars. You're starting what might be a multi-year relationship.
Here's what actually works:
Spend 80% of the call listening.
Ask questions like:
These aren't "sales questions." These are genuine questions that help you understand if you can actually help them.
Then summarize what you heard to make sure you understood correctly.
"So if I'm understanding right, you're dealing with [problem], you've tried [previous attempts], and you're hoping to achieve [goal] by [timeline]. Does that sound right?"
Then—and only then—explain how you'd approach it.
Not your generic process. Not your agency philosophy. How you'd specifically solve their problem based on what they just told you.
"Based on what you've described, here's what I'd recommend and why..."
Connect every part of your approach directly back to something they said. Make it obvious you were listening.
This is where trust-based selling gives you an advantage: You can be honest about fit.
If someone isn't right for your agency, say so. Directly.
"Based on what you've described, I don't think we're the best fit. You're looking for [X], and our sweet spot is really [Y]. I'd recommend [alternative] instead."
I cannot tell you how many times I've heard: "I told a prospect we weren't right for them, recommended someone else, and six months later they referred their friend to me."
Honesty builds trust. Trust generates referrals. Even from people who never hired you.
Red flags to walk away from:
You don't need every client. You need the right clients.
Don't bury your pricing. Don't apologize for it. Don't immediately offer a discount.
State it clearly and connect it to value.
"Our retainer for this type of work is $8,500 per month. Based on the conversion improvements we typically see for companies at your stage, that investment should generate somewhere between $30K-50K in additional monthly revenue within 4-6 months."
If they push back on price:"I totally understand. If the budget doesn't work right now, we could scope this down to [smaller version] for $4,500/month and expand later. Or I can recommend [alternative] who works at a lower price point. What makes more sense for you?"
You're helping them solve a problem, not defending your rates.
If they can't afford you, that's fine. Help them find someone who fits their budget. They'll remember you did that.
After a discovery call, don't send "just checking in" emails every three days.
Here's the cadence that works:
Within 24 hours: Send the proposal or next steps. Include a quick summary of what you discussed so they have something to forward to their team.
5-7 days later (if no response): Share something relevant."Hey—was thinking about your challenge with [X]. Just worked through something similar with another client and learned [insight]. Thought you might find it useful regardless of whether we work together. Any questions about the proposal?"
10-14 days later (if still no response): Direct ask."Hey [Name]—wanted to check if you're still considering this or if priorities shifted. Totally fine either way, just want to make sure I'm not bugging you if you've moved on. What's your thinking?"
If they say "not now": Set a calendar reminder for 60 days and check in with something valuable then.
Most agencies give up after one or two follow-ups. The agencies with full pipelines stay in touch (without being annoying) for months.
You can't improve what you don't measure. But most agencies track vanity metrics that don't correlate with revenue.
LinkedIn followers don't matter. Website traffic doesn't matter. Email list size doesn't matter.
Here's what actually matters:
Lead volume by source:Where are your inquiries actually coming from?
This tells you where to invest more effort.
Lead quality:Not all leads are equal. Score them:
Track your average quality score over time. If quality is dropping, your messaging or positioning is probably off.
Discovery call conversion rate:What percentage of inquiries become actual conversations?Should be 40-60%. If it's lower, you might be responding too slowly or your initial emails aren't compelling.
Proposal win rate:What percentage of proposals become clients?Benchmark is 25-30%. If you're way below that, examine your proposals and sales conversations. If you're way above (like 70%+), you might be underpricing or leaving money on the table.
Average deal size:Are you attracting the size of clients you actually want? If you want $10K/month retainers but your average is $3K, your positioning isn't working.
Time to close:How long from first touch to signed contract?For most boutique agencies, this is 30-90 days. If it's much longer, might indicate trust-building issues or unclear value proposition.
Client acquisition cost:What does it cost (in time and money) to acquire a new client?Factor in: your time on sales calls, proposal creation, marketing spend, free audits/consultations.
If you're spending 40 hours to land a $5K project, the math doesn't work.
Every Monday (or whatever day), spend 15 minutes reviewing:
This simple review prevents leads from falling through the cracks.
Most agencies lose deals not because of bad sales skills but because they forget to follow up. A simple system fixes this.
After 3-6 months of tracking, you'll see patterns:
"Referrals from Client X convert at 60% but leads from LinkedIn convert at 15%."→ Focus on getting more referrals from clients like Client X.
"Case studies about [specific problem] generate 3x more inquiries than other content."→ Create more case studies about that problem.
"Prospects who attend our workshop close at 50% vs. 20% for cold inquiries."→ Run more workshops.
Let the data tell you where to focus. Don't just do what you think you "should" be doing.
Okay. You've read all this. Now what?
Don't try to do everything at once. You'll get overwhelmed and do nothing.
Here's a realistic 90-day plan for one person running a boutique agency:
Week 1:
Week 2-4:
Week 5-8:
Week 9-12:
Review your numbers:
Then do more of what worked and stop doing what didn't.
After 645 conversations, I've heard every objection. Here are the big ones:
You don't need to "create content." You need to share what you're already doing.
That case study? You were going to document the project anyway for your records.That LinkedIn post? It's literally just 3 sentences about something you learned this week.That testimonial request? Takes 2 minutes to send the email.
This isn't about adding work. It's about making your existing work visible.
If you truly don't have 15 minutes per week, you need to fix your delivery process first.
Then ask differently.
Instead of: "Can we write a case study about your project?"
Try: "Can we share the results we achieved together, without using your company name? We'd say something like 'a B2B SaaS company in the HR space' instead of your actual name."
Most clients are fine with anonymized case studies. The specific numbers and outcomes matter more than the company name anyway.
And if they still say no? Share the insights without attribution. "Worked with a client who had [problem]. We tried [approach]. Result was [outcome]. Here's what we learned..."
You're not.
Sharing what you learned from solving a problem ≠ giving away your ability to solve it.
Think about it: I'm literally giving you this entire framework for free right now. Does that mean you don't need Gia? No. Because knowing what to do and actually implementing it are completely different things.
Your clients aren't paying you for ideas. They're paying you for implementation, expertise, judgment, and getting it done.
Share the ideas. Keep the implementation.
Let them.
You know what competitors can't copy? Your specific client relationships. Your exact processes. Your judgment calls. Your taste. The way you communicate.
The agencies worried about competitors copying them usually aren't sharing anything valuable enough to copy anyway.
That's because you're thinking about it wrong.
You're not promoting yourself. You're providing proof that certain problems are solvable.
When you share a client win, you're telling your audience: "Hey, that problem you're dealing with? It's fixable. Here's evidence."
That's not self-promotion. That's helping people understand what's possible.
Reframe it as providing evidence, not bragging, and it won't feel gross anymore.
Let me tell you what happens when you consistently do this for 12-18 months:
You finish a project. Someone reaches out the next week saying they saw your case study and need help with the exact same problem.
You post something on LinkedIn. Three people DM you asking to work together.
You run into someone at a conference. They say "Oh, I've been following your work for months. We should talk."
A past client refers someone without you asking. Because they've seen you share your work and want to support you.
You have sales calls where prospects already understand what you do, already trust you, and just want to know if timing and budget work.
That's what a working system looks like.
Not viral posts. Not thousands of followers. Just a steady stream of people who already know what you do and are ready to work with you.
Don't try to implement everything in this article.
Pick one thing:
If your positioning is unclear: Spend this week defining your ideal client and value proposition. Everything else depends on this being right.
If you have happy clients but no case studies: Use the post-project checklist on your next 2-3 finishing projects. Get testimonials and permission for case studies. Document the results.
If you have case studies but nobody sees them: Start the 15-minute weekly amplification routine. One post per week for the next 12 weeks. That's it.
If you're getting inquiries but they're low quality: Review your messaging and content. Are you being specific enough about who you serve and what you do?
If you're getting quality inquiries but not closing them: Record your next 3 sales calls (with permission) and listen back. Are you listening more than talking? Are you being direct about fit?
Pick your weakest link. Fix that one thing for 90 days. Then move to the next.
The agencies with full pipelines didn't get there by doing everything at once. They got there by doing one thing consistently until it worked, then adding the next thing.
You already know how to do great work. Now just make sure people can see it.
That's the whole game.
Bonus Guide: 25 Prompts to Turn Real Client Work Into High-Trust Content [View here]
