Realities of Scaling Your Micro Agency (What the Scale Sharks Don’t Tell You)

Think scaling your micro agency is the key to success? Think again.

Today, we’re taking down the scale sharks and their flashy promises, exposing why chasing bigger isn’t just overrated—it could be your biggest mistake. Buckle up because it’s time to understand what scaling means.

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Today, we’re debunking one of the most pervasive and, frankly, infuriating myths about agency scaling: the idea that you have to constantly be scaling your agency to be successful.

If you’ve been in the online business world for more than five minutes, you’ve definitely come across the so-called ‘scale sharks.’ These people are constantly pushing the idea that you need to be focused on growing your agency to have more clients, team, and revenue.

But here’s the thing: scaling isn’t always what it’s cracked up to be, especially for us micro agency owners. So, buckle up because we’re about to expose the realities of scaling that the scale sharks don’t want you to know.

Who are the Scale Sharks?

Let’s start with a quick introduction to the scale sharks. Who are these people?

Well, they’re the ones with big, bold promises about how you can 10x your business in a matter of months. You’ve likely come across their social media ads telling you they can get you booked out with their proven formula or funnel.

It’s worth noting that scale sharks aren’t always bros in backward baseball hats. Sometimes they’re harder to spot as they seem more like you, and the message is slightly more subtle. They preach replacing yourself and making big bucks without breaking a sweat.

The scale sharks are selling you a D-R-E-A-M of what your agency could and should look like to sell you their courses, coaching programs, and masterminds that are supposed to teach you the secret to rapid growth.

They push the message of scale because it’s sexy and helps them sell their products—not because it’s anything close to reality.

Many of these so-called experts often have more experience selling their systems than they do in running a successful micro agency like yours. (Especially if you work primarily with corporate clients and not with online-based businesses.)

The reality is that the scale sharks don’t care about you or your agency, they care about their bottom line.

Growth Isn’t Scale

Scale sharks are a problem at a high level, as what they teach will grind you and your team into the ground. While scaling sounds enticing, there’s a fundamental lack of understanding of what it means to scale. Yes, you likely want to grow, but you very likely don’t want to scale.

Scaling a business means increasing your capacity to handle more work and generate more revenue without increasing costs. You aren’t just getting bigger; you’re maximizing your profit margins by optimizing your operations.

Growth isn’t scale, and a micro agency simply can’t scale continuously. You need time to sustain what you’re doing and not always push for more. You need time for you and your team to take a breath, or you’re likely to create conditions for stress, frustration and burnout.

Now, a quick confession. Early in my career, I worked with many startups that scaled very quickly, and I saw them have incredible growth and success. Fast forward years later, when I started my agency, I had ambitious growth plans, and honestly, I didn’t understand the realities of what it would take to scale the way I wanted to.

When I started my agency, I was coming off a year in which I’d grown my revenue by 2.5 times, so I thought 2X was a realistic goal for the next few years.

I think you know what happened next. The math wasn’t mathing, and I quickly realized that trying to 2X revenue multiple years in a row would make me incredibly miserable. This is really the point at which I recognized that I wanted to have my agency remain strategically small, embracing having a truly “micro” business.

Scale Sharks: The Bullshit They Teach

Now, let’s go back to the scale sharks, as the expectations I shared about how my agency would grow are just one thing they teach. There’s a steady stream of bullshit they hawk.

Myth #1: You need to scale to succeed

The scale sharks, whether they’re bros, babes or non-binary, rely on the overarching message that ‘you need to scale to succeed.’

I want to remind you that success isn’t one-size-fits-all, and for a micro agency, scaling can actually lead to more problems than solutions. They want you to believe that the only way to measure your success is by how big your business gets, how many clients you have, and how many team members you can add to your payroll.

But let me tell you, chasing after endless growth can stretch you thin, compromise your work quality, and lead to burnout.

Myth #2: More clients mean more money

In theory, that makes sense. But in reality, more clients often mean more headaches. When you’re a micro agency, you’ve got limited capacity. More clients can mean more late nights, stress, and chances for things to go wrong. Plus, when you’re constantly onboarding new clients, it’s easy to lose sight of the relationships and quality of work that got you to where you are in the first place.

Myth #3: The bigger the team, the better

This one really grinds my gears. Adding more people to your team sounds great until you deal with payroll, HR issues, and the general chaos of managing a larger group.

Not to mention, a bigger team means bigger expenses. If you’re not careful, you could end up with a bloated business that’s more focused on survival than success.

Myth #4: Automate everything

I could also call this one “No, a funnel will not fix everything.” While automation has its place, when you’re running a micro agency, it’s easy to over-automate and lose the personal touch that sets you apart.

The scale sharks love to promote automation as the be-all and end-all solution, but the reality is that not everything should be automated—especially when clients are paying for a personalized experience.

Slow Growth, Strong Foundations: Why Sustainability Trumps Scale

When I work with micro agency owners, I encourage them to consider the sustainability of their business rather than obsessing over scale. Focusing on building something sustainable prioritizes the health of the business and the well-being of you and your team.

Yes, this means you’re likely to grow slower, but you can grow in a way that doesn’t push you to the brink, making you feel like you’re always playing catch-up. This kind of stress isn’t sustainable in the long run and can lead to serious consequences for your health and business.

One of the biggest benefits of moving slower is that you can deliver quality work, build strong client relationships, and let your work speak for itself.  I can’t emphasize this enough, as it’s really easy to let things slip through the cracks when you’re focused on scale.

Maybe you’re rushing to meet deadlines, or maybe your team is stretched too thin to give each project the attention it deserves. Whatever the case, scaling can seriously impact the quality of your work, which, in turn, can damage your reputation and client satisfaction.

I’ve watched agency owners become so focused on scale that they alienate their existing clients, and their churn rate goes through the roof. Instead of adding new clients, they try to replace the ones they’ve lost. They do more harm than good by trying to move too quickly to grow.

And yes, that’s a cautionary tale, as the last thing you want to do is create a new business hamster wheel, as you’re not growing in a way that’s strategic or sustainable.

Then there’s the financial aspect. Scaling can be incredibly expensive. You’ve got to factor in the cost of hiring more staff, upgrading your tools, and possibly even taking on debt to finance your growth. If new revenue doesn’t come in as quickly as you’d hoped, you could be in a precarious financial position.

When you’re listening to the scale sharks, it can be really easy to think you can spend your way to success. But scaling doesn’t work that way!

Any big money moves (from your team to tools) need to be carefully considered so you prioritize the business’s financial well-being and ensure whatever you choose is viable for the longer term.

Next, build a resilient business. This means creating a business model that supports your lifestyle and goals without the need for aggressive scaling. It’s about being strategic with your growth—taking on the right clients, saying no to the wrong ones, and ensuring every move is sustainable in the long run.

Remember, the goal is to build a business that works for you, not one that you’re constantly trying to keep afloat or requires you to sacrifice your sanity to pursue growth.

If you do want to grow, consider selective growth. This means growing at a pace that works for you and aligns with your values. Not all growth is good with your micro agency; sometimes, it will come at too high a price.

Skip the Hype: Why Bigger Isn’t Always Better for Micro Agencies

I want to leave you with this: Scaling isn’t the only—or even the best—path to success for micro agency owners. Don’t let the scale sharks fool you into thinking that bigger is always better. Define success on your own terms. Focus on quality, sustainability, and building a business that supports your life, not vice versa.