The Hidden Profit Already Inside Your Agency

Most agency founders think profit problems are sales problems.

Leads feel slow. Revenue feels tight. Pressure builds. So the instinct is simple: sell more.

But as Jhana Li explains in this Agency Growth Summit session, adding more revenue to a business with operational cracks often makes things worse, not better.

You don’t have a sales issue. You have a leaky bucket.

This topic matters now because agencies are trying to scale in an era of AI, automation, and rising delivery complexity. More clients, more tools, more communication, more noise. Without strong operations, growth amplifies chaos instead of profit.

Operations has one job: find the leaks and close them.

When the water stays in the bucket, profit rises—without adding new clients, spend, or stress.

The Six Hidden Profit Centers Inside Your Agency

Jhana outlines six places where profit is already leaking out, often invisibly:

• Your Team
  Most teams operate at around 50% of their potential. With the right roles, systems, and clarity, productivity can double without adding headcount.

• Technology (including AI)
  Tech should multiply what works—not amplify confusion. AI doesn’t fix broken operations. It exposes them faster.

• Leadership
  Micromanagement and over-involvement quietly train teams to be reactive. Strong leadership turns payroll into performance.

• Data
  Revenue is not enough. Profit per service, offer, and client tells you where margin is gained—or silently lost.

• Strategy
  Growth comes from doing fewer things better. Focus is a profit lever.

• Communication
  Endless meetings, Slack noise, and status updates consume paid hours. Less talking. More execution. Same payroll. Higher output.

Why This Is the Cheapest Way to Grow Profit

If your agency runs at 20% margin, 80% of revenue is being spent—or leaked. Moving to 30–40% margin doesn’t require new sales. It requires a tighter operation.

It is far cheaper to keep what you’ve already earned than to constantly chase more.

The Real Takeaway

The profit you want may already exist inside your business.

You don’t need to pour more water into the bucket. You need to fix the cracks.

This session is also featured as a chapter in the Agency Growth Book. Watch the full session video to see how Jhana breaks down each profit center in detail, then download the book to turn these ideas into action inside your agency.

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