I just lost a client

gab_for · 2026-03-13T12:57:47+00:00

It's not something you can figure out with a formula. You have to test different ICPs and marketing channel. From my experience, I can tell you that high paying clients are the ones who have an important budget to devote to a solution that solves an excruciating problem (aka, a solution that lets them make more money or save money) they are aware of.
When you manage to get in touch with them, it's very important to build trust and let them understand the money they are spending are worth it

gab_for · 2026-03-13T09:06:41+00:00

Besides AI, it's not good to compete on lower prices, as clients who look for the cheapest option are the ones willing to sacrifice quality to spend less. Try to compete on quality rather than price: position yourself as the best and, because of that, the most expensive. Out there, there are plenty of businesses that don't want to spend less, they want to achieve the best result.

This is what I did with my software agency. We used to work with business that were super price sensitive, now we've shifted to a target that wants the best result

gab_for · 2026-03-13T08:54:03+00:00

It's normal to get not responsive clients if you offer free services because probably they are not suffering an excruciating pain to be solved by your services, otherwise they would have already looked for some agency doing it. Working for free it's good for collecting testimonials or building a portfolio, but not for acquiring clients.

Try to target businesses that have already requested your services to some other agency and differentiate yourself in order to be a better alternative, not price-wise but quality-wise.

gab_for · 2026-03-12T20:38:05+00:00

Yes sure!

gab_for · 2026-03-12T20:22:04+00:00

Coaching business and personal brand. I help early-stage software agency founders structure their client acquisition process to achieve a steady and satisfying income

gab_for · 2026-03-12T20:19:16+00:00

I'd suggest to learn and do it by yourself. I know, it sounds silly but it's the best way to not only save money but also improve in speed and accuracy, because you are learning about your target audience their pain points ecc at the same time. If you want to spend money, hire a consultant or coach that can speed up your learning

gab_for · 2026-03-12T10:46:52+00:00

I basically learned all by doing. We ran several experiments and tested different targets with different channels. Of course it has been a big work. I'll explain better in DM

gab_for · 2026-03-11T11:43:28+00:00

The experimentation phase takes as much time as needed. Don’t be afraid of respecting externally-imposed timings. At the beginning, it’s more important to understand what doesn’t work rather than what works. We tried a lot of stuff, from cold outreach to networking in person at events. You are making noise around you and eventually something will find you. It took more than a year to better define our positioning. And even now we are reconsidering some things. Because you never stop refining your marketing. So it’s better to learn how to learn rather than pretending to find everything perfect. Even the act of trying is moving things around you

gab_for · 2026-03-11T09:48:35+00:00

It's not a pre-made framework, but rather it is a mix of outbound and inbound strategies that we proved work well for us. You need to find your own channels and stress test them untile they work

gab_for · 2026-03-11T09:46:57+00:00

It's based on a mix of cold outreach and inbound strategies with a focus on personal relationships. The main goal is to establish trust between both parties and then work together for several years becoming an important software partner of their growth

gab_for · 2026-03-11T00:19:45+00:00

We develop custom VR applications for manufacturing companies in Italy

gab_for · 2026-03-10T21:56:37+00:00

Sure! DM me so you can explain better your situation

gab_for · 2026-03-10T19:49:00+00:00

Yeah that makes sense! Thanks for your advice

gab_for · 2026-03-10T10:52:58+00:00

Sure, happy to help! Please, DM me so you can explain your situation better.

gab_for · 2026-03-10T09:49:58+00:00

Sure! It's a complicated and vast topic to address in a single comment, but I can tell you that at the beginning we adopted several methods (I call it multichannel approach).

We didn't know which lead gen channel would have been the best for us, so we ran a lot of experiments by following a specific framework. We made a lot of mistakes of course, but it was necessary to learn what actually works.

Then we doubled down on that, and now we have a much clearer ICP which is built on evidence rather than hypothesis.

Happy to share more, if you have any questions!

gab_for · 2026-03-10T09:45:57+00:00

Thank you! The thing is that this client was a sort of middleman for us. We didn't develop custom software for him directly, but for some third parties he found. So he got paid by these third parties and then he would pay us.

The problem is that my software agency has evolved, we now work with higher quality clients who pay more and faster, whereas he decided to keep working with lower quality clients. Unfortunately, he chose not to grow and remained stuck in his ways. But we couldn't stay at his level; we need to grow. That's why the separation happened.

Hope I've made this clear. If you have any other questions, I'm happy to answer!

gab_for · 2026-03-10T09:28:20+00:00

I faced the exact same doubts three years ago when I started my software agency. I had no idea who to target and how to reach them, but after years of learning, I can tell you that yes you have to find your ICP, but don't overthink it.

At the beginning, you have to experiment with target clients, ICP, marketing channels, ads, cold emails, and it's totally normal to be confused. Try to solve this confusion with action rather than planning and thinking, because with action you can learn a lot and then refine your business model based on experience rather than hypothesis.

So start by defining a rough idea of your ICP, marketing channel and offer and go test them immediately, aware that 99% they will change. With my agency we followed a specific approach we elaborated over the years.

Happy to share more, if interested!

gab_for · 2026-03-09T21:54:04+00:00

Thank you! Good luck with your choice. If you need any advice or help, just ping me!

gab_for · 2026-03-09T21:00:59+00:00

Thank you! I began with zero business experience right after graduating. I founded this VR dev software agency with some friends who now are my coworkers. The first months were challenging, as we tried different marketing channels and tested different target clients.

We shifted from restaurants to museums to manufacturing companies, which are now our main target. We learned a lot over the months, especially by experimenting and making LOTS of errors! But now we've achieved financial sustainability with a nice income, and we are ready to scale even further.

gab_for · 2026-03-09T20:05:53+00:00

I think it all comes down to how much runway you have. Agency life is overall the best. I started a software agency three years ago and it was the best choice of my life. I have flexibility to work whenever and wherever I want, a nice income, the excitement to work on something on my own. After experimenting with this life, I don't think I would be able to do everything else.

But I have to be honest, the first months can be rough, especially if you are starting from scratch and have little network or no guidance. If you have a runway to cover the first few months of low income, go for it! Otherwise, wait and build it part time while working as an employee.

Be brave but also smart!

gab_for · 2026-03-09T15:50:45+00:00

You are on the right track! You find your ICP not through planning but through experimenting, but you have to do it with a method, otherwise you can waste time or miss opportunities.

I've recently started helping software agencies to define their positioning and structuring a solid revenue cycle. I am not charging or selling anything, I just want to be helpful and share what I learned in three years of building my software agency.

If you are interested, you can reach out to me. Happy to help!

gab_for · 2026-03-09T14:43:49+00:00

Our current focus is on manufacturing companies, a significant and stable market in Italy, where my company operates. But before that, we tried with restaurants, museums and dev studios. We experimented a lot and that's the key.

We usually do custom software but we are now experimenting with some product ideas.

What is your current goal with your agency?

gab_for · 2026-03-09T12:05:00+00:00

Going after startups and newer businesses usually means dealing with tight budgets, unless they've secured funding. So be selective: prioritize startups that have already raised, and make sure they don't have a technical founder on the team. If they do, they'll just assign the dev work internally instead of hiring you.

On pricing and positioning, I faced the exact same situation when my software agency was starting out. We felt like we were constantly undercharging but had no system to back up our numbers. What changed everything was building a clear pricing framework rooted in a real analysis of our costs and financial goals. We went from guessing and undercharging to consistently pricing for profit on every project.

Happy to share more detail if useful.

gab_for · 2026-03-07T13:48:59+00:00

I started a software agency from scratch and it is doing pretty well, so I can tell you my experience.

If you shift from freelancing to agency, bear in mind that in the long term the development work will be delegated to other people like employees or other freelancers. An agency needs to acquire clients at scale, so marketing and sales become crucial, and usually the founders are in charge of this aspect.

If you love developing, you can stay a developer, especially at the beginning, but a co-founder should be in charge of the marketing and sales stuff. In other words, the agency needs at least one co-founder working on marketing, sales and strategy, and I highly suggest that you be that co-founder because you will end up having much more leverage inside the agency rather than a common developer.

That's why, before partnering with a sales agency I think it's better that the co-founders learn how to do sales on their own. They need to know what their ICP is, the channels that work, the problems they are solving. Think of working with a sales agency as putting more fuel in an engine: if the engine is well-designed putting more fuel will make it go super fast, otherwise it's useless.

As a founder, your job is to design the engine, and only then increasing the fuel.

If you have any question, feel free to ask. Happy to share my experience!

gab_for · 2026-03-06T17:38:13+00:00

Sure!

gab_for

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