#86: How Saying No to Big Contracts Saved the Business
When I started my agency journey, I believed what a lot of founders believe: build something great, stand for something meaningful, and the clients will come.
What I’ve learned since then through painful contracts, near cash flow crunches, team burnout, and hard hiring lessons is that agency scaling has far less to do with tactics and far more to do with foundations.
In my conversation with Roberto Martinez, CEO of Braven Agency, we unpacked what it actually takes to grow an agency without selling your soul, breaking your team, or bankrupting your future.
This isn’t a highlight reel. It’s a playbook built from scars.
The “Field of Dreams” Lie That Breaks Most Agencies
One of the earliest lessons Roberto shared was simple:
“If you build it, they will come” is a dangerous mindset in agency land.
Purpose matters. Mission matters. But revenue matters more in the beginning.
Braven was built around serving small and medium-sized businesses instead of Fortune 500s. That clarity of mission eventually attracted major partners, including a pivotal relationship that began at Stanford University and expanded through collaborations with organizations like Google.
But here’s the key:
The mission didn’t bring clients.
Alignment + positioning + proof did.
Agency Scaling Lesson #1:
Your “why” is a magnet but only if paired with operational credibility.
If you want better clients:
Burn the boats.
Make the positioning clear.
Accept the trade-offs (including smaller retainers early on).
Build community around your ethos.
The Contract That Almost Killed the Agency
Let’s talk about the mistake.
Government contracts.
Net 180 payment terms.
For a growing agency running aggressive margins, that’s lethal.
Here’s what happens:
You hire to service the contract.
You incur payroll immediately.
You wait six months to get paid.
That gap? It can suffocate your operations.
Agency Scaling Lesson #2:
Cash flow kills more agencies than bad marketing.
Before you scale:
Secure a line of credit before you need it.
Model worst case payment timelines.
Never confuse “big contract” with “good contract.”
Protect liquidity like oxygen.
A contract can grow you.
Or it can break you.
The difference is operational foresight.
Not Every Client Is a Good Client (And Saying No Is a Growth Strategy)
One of the clearest inflection points in agency maturity is this:
When you can afford to say no.
Roberto described giving back checks to misaligned clients.
That’s terrifying for early stage agencies.
But here’s the truth:
If your team is saying:
“This is hell for us.”
You’re already losing.
Culture Is the Immune System of Your Agency
I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again:
Culture is the immune system of your agency.
If you violate your own values for revenue:
Your team stops believing you.
Your standards erode.
Turnover increases.
Profitability eventually declines.
Culture isn’t fluff.
It’s a profitability lever.
Agency Scaling Lesson #3:
Protect the team > protect the revenue.
Revenue can be replaced.
Trust cannot.
The Hidden Cost of a Bad Hire (It’s Worse Than You Think)
We got into hiring benchmarks and they’re brutal.
A $70,000 salary hire that fails in the first 3 months?
You likely lose roughly that amount in:
Onboarding time
Leadership bandwidth
Opportunity cost
Team morale impact
Recruiting expenses
But here’s the part most founders underestimate:
Time.
You don’t get it back.
The Real Hiring Framework for Agencies
Roberto reinforced a principle every scaling agency must adopt:
Hire slow. Fire fast.
Here’s the operational approach I recommend:
Step by Step Hiring Workflow
Define Success in 90 Days
Clear KPIs
Behavioral expectations
Cultural non-negotiables
Assess for Mission Alignment
Do they care about what you care about?
Or just the paycheck?
Test in Small Stakes First
Paid project trial
Simulated client scenarios
Objective Evaluation at Day 60
If you're questioning it, go into data mode.
Avoid “kick the can” leadership.
Decide Before Day 90
Scale them up.
Or cut quickly.
Your agency doesn’t scale on good intentions.
It scales on disciplined talent acquisition.
The COVID Pivot That Changed the Business Model
Before COVID, Braven worked primarily one on one with small businesses.
After COVID?
They pivoted toward scalable digital enablement programs.
Roberto was appointed Entrepreneur in Residence for the mayor of Los Angeles and helped launch a citywide program to digitize small businesses.
That program evolved into multi million dollar partnerships and eventually into a SaaS play called Smarts.
This was the shift:
From servicing individual businesses
To build systems that scale across cohorts.
Agency Scaling Lesson #4:
If you want to grow, stop thinking of “clients.”
Start thinking systems.
What changed?
CRM driven tracking
Measurable digital connectivity metrics
Revenue lift benchmarking
Scalable curriculum frameworks
They weren’t just running ads.
They were building infrastructure.
That’s where profitability compounds.
AI, SaaS, and the New Competitive Edge
Most agencies are reacting to AI.
The smarter move?
Integrate it into operational diagnostics.
Braven built an AI powered business assessment tool:
Human in the loop validation
Rapid pain point diagnosis
Clear revenue growth recommendations
Digital connectivity scoring
This isn’t AI for hype.
It’s AI for accountability.
The Bigger Insight
As corporate layoffs increase, small businesses using AI effectively are:
Hiring more specialized talent
Becoming more competitive
Closing the digital divide faster
The opportunity isn’t replacing labor.
It’s amplifying specialists.
If you’re serious about agency scaling in 2026 and beyond:
Build AI into your internal workflows.
Productize diagnostic insights.
Stop selling deliverables.
Start selling transformation.
The Culture to Profitability Loop
There was one thread through the entire conversation:
Culture → Performance → Retention → Profitability.
Account managers and creative teams must trust each other.
If internal alignment breaks:
Deadlines slip.
Blame spreads.
Client acquisition suffers.
Profitability erodes.
Here’s how to reinforce culture operationally:
Tactical Culture Builders That Actually Work
Public recognition for wins
Cross department collaboration rituals
Clear promotion pathways
Transparent feedback loops
Fast payroll reliability (yes, this matters more than you think)
Culture isn’t team dinners.
It’s operational respect.
The Real Definition of Agency Scaling
Agency scaling isn’t:
More clients.
Bigger contracts.
Flashier brand.
It’s:
Predictable operations
Disciplined hiring
Aligned clients
Strong culture
Intelligent pivots
Systems that multiply impact
If you’re between $0–$3M ARR and feeling stretched, here’s your focus list:
Fix cash flow forecasting.
Audit client alignment.
Tighten hiring processes.
Document operational workflows.
Productize insights.
Build AI enhanced diagnostics.
Protect your team at all costs.
Final Thought: You’re Not Done Yet
At one point, I asked Roberto whether he ever sits back and reflects on how far the agency has come.
His answer?
He’s not finished.
That’s the mindset.
Agency building is a long game.
It requires courage, clarity, and constant recalibration.
The grind is real.
But if you build it on purpose
with strong foundations and clean operations
You don’t just scale revenue.
You scale impact.
And that’s a business worth building.
If you want to go deeper, you can run the full version at agencyuplift.co/mini.
Even if you never book a call, the clarity alone is worth it.
