The 3 phases of scaling an agency
When scaling an ecommerce agency, there are 3 main phases: sales, team building, and growth. The sales phase focuses on establishing effective sales channels for consistent lead generation. Once the sales foundation is set, the second phase involves finding the right talent to expand the team. As growth continues, the challenge becomes maintaining a cycle of finding talent to support sales and ensuring sales cover the costs of the growing team.
Scale your team in a cost-effective way
Here are 3 key steps to take to efficiently scale your team:
- Create an ecommerce marketing team
- Implement an employee onboarding process
- Standardize key processes
Create an ecommerce marketing team
A scalable team structure allows for flexibility. A campaign manager leads each team and handles client-facing work and strategy. The campaign manager is supported by a team of Klaviyo specialists who handle execution. Initially, you can hire generalists with skills in multiple areas. As your team grows, you can invest in specialized talent.
Implement an employee onboarding process
Effective onboarding saves money and supports growth, particularly when working with external contractors or outsourced talent. Develop a comprehensive onboarding plan that includes essential tools, process documentation, and project timelines. For example, create a 30-60-90-day plan that outlines specific goals and milestones for new hires.
Standardize key processes
Identify repetitive processes throughout the client journey and create templates to streamline them. For example, create a customizable proposal template, including deliverables, timelines, and expected outcomes. By standardizing this process, team members can personalize pitches for each client by inserting relevant information into the template instead of starting from scratch.
You can create other templates, including sales decks, discovery call scripts, and onboarding checklists. The more detailed and prescriptive the templates are, the easier it will be for employees to adopt them.
Source talent
When you’re just getting started, you’ll likely leverage contractors or freelancers for some roles. For example, organizations like Grunt Workers provide offshore Klaviyo specialists at a fraction of the cost of hiring full-time employees. However, when you find good talent and your budget allows, it’s a good idea to lock them in for a specific number of hours per week (or month) to ensure you have their undivided attention to cover specific projects.
Consider asking your contractors and freelancers to work exclusively for you (even on a contract basis). Building relationships early on will be hugely beneficial when it’s time for you to expand your team.
Hire your core team
As your department grows, consider hiring an internal team of specialists to enhance efficiency, design visually appealing assets, develop effective strategies, and create compelling content. This holistic approach helps maximize ROI by driving engagement, increasing conversions, and nurturing customer relationships.
Here are the 4 core members every growing agency should consider hiring:
Campaign strategist
Initially, your agency's campaign strategist will be versatile and responsible for strategy, client communication, and even copywriting.
A campaign strategist develops effective campaign strategies, including segmentation, personalization, and automation. They also analyze data to ensure you target the right audience, and optimize campaigns based on customer behavior and preferences. In addition, they ensure emails are relevant, targeted, and result-driven, which maximizes ROI and customer engagement.
Designer
Hire an experienced designer who can create visually appealing email templates aligned with a brand's style. A designer can enhance the aesthetic of emails to improve open rates, increase click-through rates, and drive conversions.
Copywriter
Engaging copy is vital to conversions. A talented copywriter understands the importance of writing compelling email copy designed to grab the readers’ attention, drive action, and communicate a message effectively.
In addition, a good copywriter understands the client's tone, voice, and customer base. They are skilled at creating emails for different stages of the customer journey, as well as incorporating promotional and educational content. They can also help you create persuasive subject lines, engaging body content, and strong calls to action.
Project manager
As your services scale, hire a dedicated project manager focused on client success.
A project manager ensures smooth operations, coordinates campaigns, and manages timelines to improve overall efficiency and productivity. They help streamline workflows, minimize errors, and keep projects on track, resulting in timely and successful email campaigns.
Their responsibilities include ensuring timely completion of tasks within the budget, managing the email department's workload, delegating tasks, and implementing client feedback. Consider investing in the development of the project manager's managerial and leadership skills for long-term success.