Quick and Comprehensive Advice to Scale Your Agency
Phase 1: The first step to getting unstuck, this year and beyond!
Need an outside perspective? Help is here!
At Sakas & Company, we’ve helped agency owners overcome revenue plateaus, gain work-life balance, build high-performing teams, or prepare for a profitable exit… and sometimes all of the above.
How? For each agency, we believe there’s no “one size fits all” answer. It’s incredibly important to get to know you and your values, and what makes your agency tick. That’s why we start with what we call a “Phase 1.”
Phase 1 is more than just “paid discovery”—you’ll get custom advice on quick wins, long-term strategy, and validation (and tips) on current plans. We start with a deep dive into your agency, apply our experience working 1:1 with 600+ agencies worldwide, and share your unique recommendations.
After all, running an agency is easier when you know what to do next.
You’ll Benefit from Experience Across Hundreds of Agencies
Your custom advice starts with a thorough analysis of where you’ve been, where you are, and where you want to go. You’ll get my comprehensive insights and advice—what to change now for quick results, feedback on existing plans, and recommended priorities for long-term strategy.
What does that process look like?
Proprietary Discovery Process
You get custom advice, thanks to our proprietary discovery process, plus a DiSC assessment to help you get better results from your team. We’ll also review any existing strategic plans, like an EOS V/TO.
Custom Feedback
I will analyze your discovery inputs, and share my custom advice. It’s based on the process and experience I’ve developed over the past decade, including 1:1 work with 600+ agencies in 36 countries. You’ll receive this deliverable within ~1 month from kickoff.
Q&A Call
Once you review my advice, we’ll do a Q&A call—where I can answer your questions about implementing recommendations. (It’s not just what to do… it’s what to do next.)
Optional: Add Further Support
You can confidently take it from here. But if you want further support, you can add a custom “Phase 2″—a custom project or Executive Coaching with me, to accelerate your progress.
“Karl came highly recommended to us by a trusted colleague from another agency who had benefited greatly from his expertise. We had reached a point of frustration with our in-house results and needed an outside perspective to get unstuck.
Karl helped us shift from reactive and tactical, to being proactive and strategic. As he says, we could finally go from ‘firefighter’ to ‘fire marshal’. The owner and I finally have more time to think strategically. We’ve also increased the value we provide for clients, which will continue to pay off for years to come.”
— Pritpal Aujla, Director of Operations, Levergy
What’s the Investment for Your Agency?
“Phase 1” is a flat, all-inclusive investment.
The financial investment depends on the number of stakeholders involved in the project. That includes all owners, and sometimes includes key executives (e.g., COO or a hired CEO).
You can expect to spend a total of 7-10 hours (per stakeholder) over the course of 4-6 weeks.
The price includes my comprehensive analysis, advice, and strategy recommendations to help you get clarity on your direction, and your initial “let’s go!” priorities and plans.
One
Stakeholder
$8,000 USD
Two
Stakeholders
$10,000 USD
Three
Stakeholders
$13,000 USD
Four
Stakeholders
$17,000 USD
Optional “Phase 2”: Ongoing Coaching, or Project-Based Consulting
Want my support as you implement the Phase 1 advice? I can identify custom-to-you options.
Doing an optional “Phase 2” typically involves budgets of $1,200 to $10,000 USD per month.
Contact Us to learn more about Phase 1
Hi, I’m Karl Sakas
I’ve advised over 600 agencies worldwide. Here’s how I can help you.
As a management consultant and executive coach, I has personally advised hundreds of agency owners worldwide. His clients often call me their “agency therapist.”
Through Sakas & Company, I offers a range of custom services including consulting and training programs to help agency owners “up-level” at their agency.
I am a fourth-generation business owner with over 25 years of consulting experience. Before launching Sakas & Company, I worked as the head of operations at two digital marketing agencies.
I’ve written three books—including Work Less, Earn More: How to Escape the Daily Grind of Agency Ownership—and 400+ articles on agency management. I’ve presented at INBOUND, Bureau of Digital, Traffic & Conversion Summit, Content Marketing World, SoDA, AMA, AAF, and other events.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of results might we see?
Each agency is unique, but here’s what agency owners and executives have shared getting from “Phase 1”:
- Aligned their leadership team, by finally getting everyone on the same page.
- Validated their existing growth plans, while getting tips to optimize things.
- Identified “quick win” opportunities, to help improve before the end of the year.
- Helped feel more energized and confident, in having specific next steps to implement toward their long-term goals—this year and beyond.
Curious about your potential results? Get in touch, and I can share a more specific preview.
Do you guarantee the results I'll get?
No consultant or coach can guarantee specific results—so much depends on implementation, luck, and other factors beyond my control.
That said, you’ll always get the best advice I can give you. My approach focuses on sharing the advice I’d give myself if I were in your situation, with your values, goals, and resources (VGR).
It is unique to you… but I’ve fine-tuned the process over 10+ years in my work with 600+ agencies worldwide. It’s about improving your business, but also about improving your life.
What are the deliverables?
You’ll get custom advice in written, video, and Zoom form. This includes:
- Quick Wins (things you can implement now, to make an initial impact)
- Longer-term strategy (things that will take longer, but with a bigger impact)
- Validation on existing plans (including tips to help you get better results)
Will we work directly with Karl Sakas?
Yes, you’ll work directly with me on the Phase 1. This ensures you get great advice while also getting attentive client service. Prospective clients often speak with my colleagues Diane Stadlen or Kate St. Cyr, as we sort out whether your agency would benefit from Karl’s help. Once you start, Kate or Diane will lead the client onboarding process, and then I’ll take it from there.
How soon can we start?
Due to current client commitments, I’m often running a backlog—but I seek to start helping you as soon as I can. Once we begin onboarding, you can expect to receive the initial Phase 1 deliverable within 4-6 weeks of kickoff. Reach out to me and my team, and we can discuss your goals and timing.
How long does Phase 1 take?
You’ll get advice within about a month of our starting the Phase 1 project. Then, we’ll do a Q&A call to answer your questions about implementing the advice.
The total project takes 4-6 weeks. I work quickly—as the oldest of five kids from a military family, I have a high sense of urgency. My clients like that.
What's the time commitment?
Plan on spending 7-10 hours (total) per stakeholder, over 4-6 weeks. Most of that is at the beginning (as you share initial data) and the end (as you review the custom-to-you advice).
How do we decide how many stakeholders to include?
All owners (one, two, or three people) need to be involved. With rare exceptions, I don’t work with agencies that have more than three owners.
If you have a hired CEO, they usually should be part of the project. If you have a COO, they likely should be included, too.
Some clients will do “owners only” for Phase 1, and then include their executive team later.
What's the Phase 1 price or investment? How much it cost?
“Phase 1” is a flat price based on the number of key stakeholders, in USD:
- $8,000 (one stakeholder) — e.g., one owner
- $10,000 (two stakeholders) — e.g., two owners, or an owner and their COO
- $13,000 (three stakeholders) — e.g., 2-3 owners, plus key executives
- $17,000 (four stakeholders) — e.g., 2-3 owners, plus key executives
Payment is due in advance, to officially schedule your Phase 1 project.
What forms of payment do you take?
Clients in the U.S. pay online via ACH bank debit (aka “eCheck”), through Intuit QBO. If you’re outside the U.S., we’ll make alternative arrangements to pay via Stripe.
Do you work with clients outside the US?
Yes. I’ve helped clients in 36 countries so far, on every inhabited continent. (Sorry, Antarctica.)
We do calls via Zoom. I’m in the same time zone as New York City. For clients in the Asia-Pacific region, I’m glad to schedule morning calls your time (my late-afternoon or early evening). For clients in EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), I’m glad to schedule afternoon calls your time (my morning).
Calls are in English.
Can I speak with client references?
Most clients hire me without doing reference checks, because they’ve followed my advice for months or years or because they’ve reviewed my case studies.
If we’re a good match but you’re still on the fence, I may share a specific reference or two at the end of the sales process. Once we get to that point, let me know what info you’re seeking and I can connect you to references who’d be a good match to answer your questions. It’s important for me to respect my clients’ time.
Can you recommend other consultants, if we're not a match?
Yes, I’m glad to recommend other agency consultants and coaches—including specialists on M&A, legal services, fractional CFO services, business development, and more. If you reach out and someone else would be a better match for you, I’ll point you to them quickly. It’s a small industry, and fit is important—I want you to find the right person to help you.
How do you maintain confidentiality?
The client agreement includes a confidentiality clause—but my approach to confidentiality goes beyond any paperwork. How so? We’re in a small industry—I’d go out of business if I developed a reputation as someone who shared confidential information with other people.
Have you worked with any of my competitors?
How do you handle conflicts of interest?
- In one case, Agency B reached out for help, and I knew they were Agency A’s biggest whitelabel client. I referred the new agency owners to one of my competitors.
- In the other case, Agency C recommended me to Agency D, which did subcontracting for Agency C—so they both knew we were working together. But I didn’t share anything the other told me, and vice versa.
If I receive a referral fee, I disclose this when I make the recommendation.
How is this different from Executive Coaching or a consulting project?
Phase 1 is a one-off mini-project, designed to provide custom advice based on a comprehensive review of your agency. It’s not an ongoing relationship, although you have the option to add a custom “Phase 2.”
Executive Coaching is an ongoing relationship, where you get advice and accountability to reach your long-term goals. Coaching starts by doing a Phase 1 project. After that, it’s month-to-month—but new clients typically commit 6-12 months to start. Including same-day emergency support, this is what some clients call “agency therapy” (note: I’m not a therapist).
A custom consulting project focuses on solving specific large problems. The project typically runs over a short period of time (e.g., 2-4 months).
Both Executive Coaching and custom consulting require starting with a Phase 1 project.
Is a "Phase 1" project just a form of "paid discovery"?
We won’t solve all of your problems in 4-6 weeks, but Phase 1 is more than “paid discovery.” During the project, you’ll receive custom advice (quick wins, long-term strategy, and feedback on your existing plans).
After Phase 1, you can move forward more confidently on your own—or add an optional custom Phase 2 to accelerate your progress.
What if I have a different question?
Glad to help! Email my team at concierge@sakasandcompany.com with your question!