Tactical agencies are dead. Here's how to move on Ft. Chris DuBois

Buyers are pivoting to AI, heavily outsourced agencies are undercutting you and kids on TikTok are launching a new service offer every 5 minutes.

Let's face it - Running an agency that specializes in tactical deliverables with no real strategic approach is no longer feasible.

Chris DuBois, former agency CEO turned coach, has developed a blueprint for agencies looking to break through the six-figure ceiling. Here's what he teaches:

Chapter 1: Away from Deliverables and onto Strategic Solutions

AI tools can now produce basic content at scale, making traditional agency offerings like "4 blog posts a month" increasingly less valuable. You need to repackage your services as strategic solutions tied to business outcomes.

Take action now:

Conduct a thorough audit of your current service offerings

For each service, identify and list the strategic value it provides to clients

Rewrite your service descriptions to focus on outcomes rather than outputs

Set aside dedicated time each week for market research and experimentation with new strategies

Pro tip: Create a "strategy first" mindset in your team. Hold weekly brainstorming sessions to discuss how each deliverable ties into larger business goals.

Chapter 2: Implement Outcome-Based Pricing

Deliverable-based pricing is great if you're running a content mill or you're the cheapest shop in town, but as buyers become more educated on the role that marketing plays in their overall business strategy, this model will increasingly fail to produce raving fans & long-term clients.

Here's how to shift to outcome-based pricing:

List all your current services and the typical results they achieve

Develop 3-5 pricing tiers based on different levels of projected results

Create detailed case studies showcasing specific, measurable outcomes for past clients

Role-play sales scenarios with your team, focusing on communicating value over deliverables

Pro tip: Start with your most confident service offering. Test outcome-based pricing with a few trusted clients before rolling it out completely.

Chapter 3: Create a Self-Liquidating Offer

When you think of traditional lead gen, you can already picture all the unqualified calls your sales team will need to attend, only to follow up for 6-9 months before giving up and tagging the contact as "Closed Lost".

Here's how to create your self-liquidating offer:

Survey your top 20 clients about their biggest challenges before working with you

Identify a common problem that you can solve quickly and effectively

Develop a low-cost solution (e.g., course, template, tool) that addresses this problem

Price the offer to cover your ad spend and delivery costs

Create a clear upsell path from this offer to your core services

Pro tip: Use urgency and scarcity in your offer. Limited-time bonuses or "first 50 customers" deals can drive quick adoption.

Implementation Roadmap:

Weeks 1-4: Strategic Pivot

Day 1-2: Audit current services

Day 3-5: Develop new strategic offerings

Week 2-3: Rewrite all service descriptions

Week 4: Retrain team on new positioning

Weeks 5-8: Pricing Overhaul

Week 5: Define outcome metrics for each service

Week 6-7: Develop new pricing structure

Week 8: Create sales materials for new offerings

Weeks 9-12: Lead Generation Revamp

Week 9: Identify problem for self-liquidating offer

Week 10-11: Develop and test offer

Week 12: Launch marketing campaign for new offer

Track These KPIs:

Average Client Value (ACV)

Client Retention Rate

Lead-to-Client Conversion Rate

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) for self-liquidating offer

Clients tone during your account management meetings (kidding)

Action item: Set up a weekly "Metrics Monday" meeting to review these KPIs with your team.

By implementing these strategies, you're not just changing what you sell – you're elevating your agency's position in the market and building a brand that speaks for itself.

It's not always an easy shift to make. Depending on the maturity of your agency, you might have to do more while charging less, especially if you're running completely new experiments and don't yet have the case-study backed track record to show.

But, once you start producing real outcomes, the market will learn to trust you. Not only when you're delivering your standard offer, but also when you're making market predictions and experimenting with new methods.

Final action step: Choose one strategy from this guide and implement it in the next 30 days. 

Track your results and adjust as needed.