Why Most Agencies Fail, and How Ciaran Finn Didn't
Ciaran Finn started an eCommerce growth agency while studying at university and working shifts as a nursing assistant. Nearly two years later he has a team of creative strategists, media buyers and performance marketers. He and Michael talk about reinvesting everything, learning delivery before hiring for it, a technical sales process, and why going all in and keeping clients are what separate agencies that last from those that fail.
Watch the episode
Topics covered
- Starting an agency while at uni and working in a hospital
- Not paying himself until 30k a month
- Learning service delivery before hiring
- A two-call technical sales process
- Why eCommerce ads are hard for beginners
- Agency vs freelancing
- Going all in, mentorship and client retention
Key takeaways
- Ciaran didn't pay himself anything until the agency hit 30 grand a month. He reinvested everything.
- Learn the service yourself. You can't hire well for something you don't understand.
- For his first five or six clients he did everything himself, with a third of each day on outreach.
- A two-call sales process with an ad account audit in between suits a technical offer.
- eCommerce ads are a hard first niche because of rising costs and competition.
- Freelancing, or working at an agency, is no shame. It's paid learning.
- If clients keep dropping off, chasing new ones will never work. Obsess over results and retention.
Show notes
🏥 Starting at uni, in a COVID hospital
Ciaran started his agency while at university, working as a nursing assistant in a COVID hospital and living at his mum's. He used his student loan and hospital pay to fund the business.
He says he wouldn't recommend eCommerce ads to beginners now because it's so competitive. Back then, ignorance was bliss.
🎮 Reinvesting everything
Ciaran didn't pay himself until the agency reached 30 grand a month. Now he pays himself a £1,000 monthly salary plus dividends up to the lowest tax bracket, about £48,000 a year. He has just brought on a fractional CFO.
He thinks of reinvesting in the business like a video game.
“it's literally like a video game you've got these like points that you can spend to get to the next level and generate more points”
Ciaran Finn, 7:09
🛠️ Learning delivery first
After landing his first clients, Ciaran stopped outreach to focus on delivery. His first client stayed five months and his second stayed 12. He tried hiring media buyers before he understood the work, and it didn't work.
After pivoting to eCommerce, he did everything himself for his first five or six clients, spending a third of each day on outreach. Then he built a media buying team and SOPs.
“how can you hire someone if you don't even know what it is”
Ciaran Finn, 9:25
🔍 A technical sales process
Ciaran runs a two-call sales process with an ad account audit in between. Because the offer is technical, he found it hard to hand sales to a rep, and he says he turns away more business than he takes on.
eCommerce ads have become harder since iOS 14, with a recession and rising CPAs. Michael suggests that beginners start with simpler offers.
⏱️ The grind, and when to shift
In his first year Ciaran worked 12-hour days, woke at 4am while at uni, and did night shifts on weekends. He is still the first in and last out.
This year his mindset changed. He is investing in his team and executive leaders, and his CMO will become a partner. He also says there's no shame in freelancing. Michael adds that working at an agency is a way to get paid while you learn.
🏆 Why he didn't fail
Ciaran points to three things. First, he went all in from day one. Second, he learned from everyone. He says he has spent over 60 grand on consulting, coaching and mentorship, including paying Michael for consulting, though not all of it was good. Third, he is obsessed with client results, experience and lifetime value.
“if you're spinning your wheels trying to sign new clients all the time because they're dropping off it's never going to work”
Ciaran Finn, 26:29
About Ciaran Finn
Ciaran Finn runs an eCommerce growth agency in the UK. Its core service is Meta and Google ads, and for some clients it also works on average order value, conversion rate, and email and SMS. His team includes creative strategists, media buyers and performance marketers.
He started the agency while at university and working as a nursing assistant in a COVID hospital. He has been in the agency space for nearly two years.
Episode links
Want cold email that books meetings without the guesswork?
Michael’s team at DFY Meetings has worked with 500+ companies and booked 5k+ calls.
Book a call →