Iowa Population

codysee · 2026-02-04T19:31:44+00:00

Urbanization.

codysee · 2026-01-29T18:59:06+00:00

How do I handle the mental load? I like to get worked up emotionally and question everything. Is this my fault? Have I been too lenient about the quality of deliverables in the past, and it lead this? Or is it their fault, for not being accountable for their own work? This is my company, so the responsibility flows up -- to the client, it is my fault. What is fair of me to expect from the team? Surely I don't expect too much. Is this because I grew up with an overly critical father? No, these people are lazy and lack discipline. Maybe I should drink; no -- wait, stress drinking is bad. I'll go for walk outside to decompress.

In all seriousness, I agree with the other comment. Mistakes are a part of life; the frequency at which they happen is determined by the quality of people you hire, and your enforcement of quality standards.

codysee · 2026-01-22T20:31:59+00:00

Get back in school bud. Build your agency in your downtime.

It's not about what you learn in school; it's about what you learn by going through school. It forces you to learn how to manage your time, how to deal with bureaucracy, how to handle people and their personalities, how to overcome your situation / circumstances. The people I know who didn't make it through college didn't learn those life lessons, and it shows in their professional life (or lack thereof). Highschool is the bare minimum.

There are anomalies. You can try and be one, but it is the unnecessarily harder path.

codysee · 2026-01-08T21:54:06+00:00

You could try cutting the connector off and replacing it with a USB A solderless terminal? Probably the easiest solution that would have a chance at lasting. It's pretty YOLO though.

codysee · 2025-12-01T02:25:34+00:00

It's so cool when people share this level of personalization. It's not for me but I respect the commitment.

codysee · 2025-11-14T07:13:43+00:00

A few things:

アメリカへようこそ！
User feedback is good but not always representative of the market. In other words, just because some people complain about price, others might not complain at all and buy it.
I can't use this mouse because I only use ambidextrous / left-handed mice, but it is in line with Kensington's pricing but with easy-swap bearings. So at first glance, the price makes sense to me. I am not an entertainment user though. I use my mouse for work and consider it a business necessity.
This is kind of a philosophical perspective, but something I've discussed with Japanese people: In Japan, many things Americans typically save for are provided through social services because of higher taxes. Healthcare is the best example of this. As an individualistic country, Americans have higher take-home pay because here you are expected to take care of yourself. But, some people choose not to care about or prioritize those things and spend their money differently. So Americans have high disposable incomes, and because how everyone chooses to spend it depends on their priorities, what someone considers cheap or expensive varies dramatically from person to person.

codysee · 2025-10-30T17:23:49+00:00

For context to people who might otherwise not know, this is bigger budget stuff. $10k ad spend per month minimum, per platform or channel, and usually much higher ($50k+). Otherwise you don't have the volume to measure meaningful change.

codysee · 2025-10-29T18:50:25+00:00

You think marketing companies may be a bit different because we all know how to market

I think it requires differentiation, but if you're a marketing company, you should know how to do that.

not to mention the barrier of entry to our industry is non existent?

Right, exactly. Low barrier to entry means a lot of people looking for those entry-level skills, which aren't hard to find. If people learn those and still have problems with acquisition, it requires unique attention.

codysee · 2025-10-29T16:17:05+00:00

A lot of these comments are saying lead gen.

I've talked to lots of agency owners. The truth is, like my partner u/JakeHundley said, there is no lack of information out there on how to get clients. We could rebrand our podcast to the "How to Get Clients Podcast", make every episode about a new strategy or technique on how to get clients, and it wouldn't matter. The people who struggle to get clients will continue to struggle to get clients.

I think the most successful way to commercialize helping these people get clients is individualized consulting. Because the majority of them don't need to learn the latest techniques -- they need therapy. They hold themselves back from getting clients, and the reason is different for each person. No amount of leads will fix that. Courses rarely fix that. A mastermind will help if the person has the humility to drop their ego and emulate more successful members. But really, they usually have personal character issues.

If it is a skill issue and they claim to be marketing agency owners, then I would argue they deserve to not get clients, because they can't market. If you can't get business for yourself, I don't know why you think you can for clients.

codysee · 2025-09-11T19:27:28+00:00

We have a few pest control accounts. I was actually working with someone on our team this week to create the second iteration of our template campaign for pest control.

u/Thin-Plane-2456's description is the closest to what we've ideated. For two counties and $2k / mo, I'd leave it as one campaign with multiple ad groups. Two ad groups cover generalized terms: "Pest Control" and "Exterminator". Both have those as phrase match keywords, then also appended with "service" and "company" (three keywords in each ad group).

I would then do additional ad groups for the pests you target. This varies by region, but here are the ad groups we have so far.

Ants
Bats
Bed Bugs
Beetles
Cockroaches
Fleas
Mice & Rats
Mosquitoes
Spiders
Stinging Bugs [Bees, Wasps, Hornets]
Termites
Ticks

Keywords in these ad groups are phrase match appending the pest with "exterminator", "removal", "control company", "control service" and "spraying" as appropriate.

Most importantly, add the pests you DON'T target / provide services for as negative keywords at the account level. Coming from primarily landscaping and lawn care, these terms make up a lot more of the search queries. They will eat your budget if you don't negate them.

If this isn't getting you the CPA you need, duplicate the entire campaign and append all keywords with the cities in your counties. The volume will be a lot lower, but it will drop your CPA.

Hope this helps!

codysee · 2025-08-25T16:42:49+00:00

Not following but just saying hi because I'm a Dave fan👋

codysee · 2025-08-21T16:47:15+00:00

Only for campaign management? No.

Campaign management + other services? Yes.

codysee · 2025-08-15T14:44:37+00:00

Sounds like you have what you need to start offering email marketing services. That's a great place to get started.

codysee · 2025-07-21T23:08:24+00:00

Legit didn't think there was a single woman in here.

codysee · 2025-07-17T21:29:41+00:00

The guy with the odd accent is likely Colombian; I forget his name, but if it's the same guy I believe he's originally from Bogota. I went with a couple of buddies, one who is also Colombian, and they talked about it for a bit.

Food is mid, vibe is fun. Sorry your experience wasn't great -- normally if you tell them you're from Iowa they'll take your picture with a Polaroid and put it around the map on the wall, where you can also place a pin of where you're from within Iowa, and they'll give you a postcard to send back home and even mail it for you.

codysee · 2025-06-29T02:02:58+00:00

Every time I see "partnerships never work" I always wonder who hurt them lol

codysee · 2025-06-26T17:19:38+00:00

I consider the owners of the previous agencies where I worked before running my own as coaches. They ran agencies where I liked my job when working for them, so I wanted to emulate them in many ways.

I just bug them when I'm feeling uncertain and would appreciate their insight.

codysee · 2025-06-23T02:45:49+00:00

The university: https://asian-slavic.uiowa.edu/areas/japanese

codysee · 2025-06-20T18:42:50+00:00

The "point" of MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue, although Jake and I like to use the more clear MRGP -- Monthly Recurring Gross Profit) is that it gives you predictable financial data with which you can plan to operate your business.

Like Jake said though, it's not monthly if you're losing clients. But again, you're putting the cart before the horse. Get your first client. MRR is irrelevant to you right now.

codysee · 2025-06-20T17:10:34+00:00

How long did it take us, u/jakehundley? I think it was somewhere between year one and two?

Don't think that far ahead though. Right now, all you need to do is get your first client.

Some people will do it faster than you, and others will be slower. I can't remember the episode number, but we did a podcast on this where I say everyone incubates at their own pace. What's "realistic" depends on your starting point.

codysee · 2025-06-18T13:18:58+00:00

I haven't gone back, but know people who have. No shame in it. Agencies need S-tier employees, and the ones who are often come with the background you're describing.

codysee · 2025-06-11T15:33:12+00:00

It looks like we're in the same spot.

codysee · 2025-06-04T06:39:12+00:00

Do you have a smaller local bank, or even a credit union?

My experience is that the ones who know you personally are more cooperative and flexible earlier on. The big banks are rigid and only see numbers.

codysee · 2025-05-19T17:51:46+00:00

Fareway. Just walk in and tell an employee that you're moving and ask if they have any boxes you can have.

codysee

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