Client case study
Stuck for a year, and it was never the effort.
Shawn's agency was busy, well regarded and flat. The revenue line had not moved in over a year, and the reason turned out to be arithmetic rather than sales.
5 to 6
Figures a month, within 3 to 6 months
2x
Profit margin, before against after
Upfront
Payment terms, previously in arrears
A real client result, not a worked example. Figures are this agency’s own and are not a prediction of what another business would achieve.
Busy, respected, and flat
From the outside the agency looked healthy. Work was coming in, clients were happy, and the team was fully occupied. From the inside, the revenue line had sat in the same place for more than a year.
The pattern underneath was familiar. Prices had been set early and never revisited. The service list had grown to cover whatever clients asked for. Invoices went out in arrears and were paid late, so cash was permanently tight even in a good month.
The harder the team worked, the more stuck the business felt. That is usually the signal that effort is not the constraint.
What we did
Three changes, in this order
- ( 01 )
Reprice on what delivery actually costs
Every service was measured on the time it consumed and the profit it returned. Each was then priced against that, rather than against the number quoted years earlier, and the strongest work was repositioned as premium.
Why it mattered
The old pricing rewarded volume. Each additional project brought in revenue and took out more margin than anyone had counted, so growth made the problem worse rather than better.
- ( 02 )
Cut the service lines that drained the team
The full offer list was reviewed against margin per hour. The lines that occupied the team and returned almost nothing were dropped, and the two strongest services were doubled down on.
Why it mattered
Busy and profitable are different numbers. A service that fills the calendar at break even blocks capacity that a profitable one could have used.
- ( 03 )
Change when the money arrives
Payment moved to upfront, collection windows were shortened, and terms were written into the contracts rather than assumed.
Why it mattered
Growth needs cash before it needs sales. The agency did not have a demand problem, it had money sitting in other people's accounts while its own payroll ran.
Before and after
What actually changed
| Before | After |
|---|---|
| Flat at five figures a month | Consistent six figures a month |
| Prices set years earlier | Priced on current delivery cost |
| A long list of weak services | Two strong services, resourced properly |
| Invoiced in arrears, paid late | Paid upfront, on written terms |
| Cash tight in a good month | Cash ahead of payroll |
The outcome
What changed, and how fast
Inside three to six months the agency moved from flat five figures a month to consistent six figures. Profit margin doubled over the same period, which matters more than the revenue line, because the second one came from the first.
Cash stopped being the weekly problem. Chasing late payers came off the founder's desk, and the decisions that had been waiting on money became decisions that could actually be made.
If I were to describe Aprecity's team in one word: Efficient. Response is quick and insightful, and every advice they give is intentional and focused on what you could do next.
The lesson
Most agencies that plateau are not working too little. They are working against arithmetic that was set years earlier and never revisited. Prices, service mix and payment timing are three numbers you control, and all three were wrong here.
Questions
What people ask about this
01Is this a typical result?
No result is typical, and we will not claim one is. This describes what happened at one agency whose pricing had not been revisited in years. What the work finds depends entirely on what your own numbers are already doing.
02How long does a repricing exercise take?
The analysis runs off your last twelve months, so the first read lands in weeks. Putting new pricing into the market takes as long as your renewal cycle, which is why the change here showed over three to six months.
03Do we have to drop services to see a change?
Not always. Cutting was right here because two lines were consuming capacity at close to break even. Sometimes the same margin comes from repricing alone, and the analysis tells you which case you are in.
04Will clients accept upfront payment terms?
Most did here, and the ones who pushed back were the accounts already paying slowest. Terms are easier to change at renewal, and easier again when you can show what the work costs to deliver.
The service behind this
Fractional CFO
We read your numbers every month and bring you the decision. Profit on each client, a forecast that reaches past the next payroll, and a straight answer on pricing and hiring.
Next step
Find out what your own math is doing
Twenty minutes on your last twelve months tells you whether pricing, service mix or payment timing is the one costing you.