7 Steps to Scaling Your Marketing Agency
A one-person show is always an option for your social media management business! But, if you have high hopes of scaling into an agency model when you picture the social media management business of your dreams, we are here to say, you can make that happen!
You can approach scaling your business, it's going to feel overwhelming! Growing pains are difficult in any aspect of life, especially when your business is your literally baby. So, let's break it all down so it feels less stressful and more exciting. After all, scaling your company is a GOOD thing!!!
01. Audit
Audit where you are currently at. It's important to see where you shine and where there might be cracks so you can address this before moving forward. Look at your company with fresh eyes to find your highs and lows, that you can capitalize on as you scale. Try a SWOT analysis to go over your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.
02. Brainstorm
This step will be important in the long run. Think about what you want your company to look like one day. This can be your "why" and set the tone for intentions to help you make big decisions. Stop and brainstorm exactly what you have in mind - practical, impractical, things that seem FAR down the line, or unreachable at the moment, write it all down!
03. Strategy
Just like social media accounts, your company needs a strategy, too (aka a business plan!) If you haven't created one already, now is the time! Include things like:
Company Description + Mission Statement
Milestones, Goals, and KPIs
Target Market
Operations
Sales
Marketing
Financials
04. Systems, Tools, and Processes
You are only as strong as your systems and tools! Think about how you can alter your systems and processes to fit your growth. Then move on to tools. Will you need to expand your toolkit? Can you add users to your tools? How can you leverage your tools and systems to automate things for you?
05. Team Structure
One of our FAQs is "Who do I hire first?" And it's all over the board depending on how you want to structure your team and what you want your involvement to look like as a CEO. What do we mean by that? Think about the tasks that bring you the most joy! You should have to throw those things away just because you are adding to a team. So, what tasks do you not love doing or feel you are your personal "weakness?" These can be turned into your first hire!
06. Hiring Process
Get started on your hiring process! Start with job descriptions, market the opportunity, and move into interviewing. Once you have this, consider your onboarding process for your new team member(s), and how you'll set up consistency with meetings, tasks, and projects.
07. Auditing system
When companies expand, this can be how you see things slip. I'm sure you've heard of restaurant businesses not wanting to franchise because they have less control or are worried about someone else representing their brand, right? Think of yours as the smaller scale of this, except you're the success story because you take the time from the start to figure out how to measure your slips and successes.
Happy scaling!!
The process might seem overwhelming at first, but you got this! Take everything one step at a time, because you know we have to throw out the "Rome wasn't built in a day" phrase here. You can go at your own pace and create the company you've always dreamed of!
Get all our scaling resources, templates, and lessons inside our mentorship!
