Ty Smith
Founder. Runs two marketing agencies on the product.
Founder of Verbial. Passionately ran an agency holding companies for almost a decade. Now he passionately builds software for them.
Guides
Long-form guides by Ty
When to hire at a marketing agency (and when to let someone go)
When to hire at a marketing agency: the utilization, retainer load and pipeline triggers, the payback math on a new seat, and the signs pointing the other way.
Oct 2, 2026GrowthMarketing agency KPIs and benchmarks: the 10 numbers that run the business
The marketing agency KPIs that run the business: ten numbers with formulas, healthy ranges, warning thresholds, a worked scorecard and the fix when one slips.
Oct 2, 2026GrowthHow to scale a marketing agency past the seven figure plateau
How to scale a marketing agency from under $1M to $10M+: what breaks at each revenue stage, the hires that free the founder and the numbers to review monthly.
Oct 2, 2026GrowthHow marketing agencies are valued, and how to build one worth buying
Marketing agency valuation explained: SDE vs EBITDA, add-backs, multiples by size, earnouts and the drivers that move the price, with a two-year worked example.
Oct 2, 2026GrowthClient concentration risk: when one client is too much of your agency
Client concentration risk for agencies: measure top client share and a simple index, know the 20% and 50% flags, and dilute a big account over 18 months.
Oct 2, 2026GrowthCash flow management for marketing agencies: profitable on paper, short on payroll
Cash flow management for agencies: why a profitable shop runs short before payroll, how to read DSO, build a 13-week forecast and size a cash reserve.
Sep 3, 2026MigrationReplacing HubSpot, Harvest and PandaDoc with one agency stack
Compare agency tools around client margin visibility, connected processes and a practical migration order.
Sep 3, 2026PricingHow to price agency retainers
Price retainers department by department from the people doing the work, target 50 to 60% gross margin on labor, and reprice at renewal from usage statements.
Sep 3, 2026InvoicingHow to invoice retainer clients
Bill retainers in advance, send a monthly usage statement, pre-pay overages, keep pass-through costs separate, and run a dunning schedule that protects cash.
Sep 3, 2026ProfitabilityClient profitability for marketing agencies
How to measure client profitability from contracted revenue and absorbed labor cost, with worked tables, benchmarks and what to do with a loss-making account.
Sep 3, 2026OperationsAgency utilization and capacity planning
How to calculate agency utilization rate, set targets by role, compute team capacity in hours, and decide when to hire or use contractors.
Blog
Posts by Ty
Proposal signed → invoice + project without retyping (proposal-to-cash for agencies)
How marketing agencies turn a signed proposal into a project and invoice without retyping. The agency management software path that replaces the HubSpot / Harvest / PandaDoc cash handoff.
Sep 23, 2026OperationsProductive.io vs Verbial for marketing agencies
Honest comparison of Productive.io and Verbial for marketing agencies: PSA strengths vs agency management software, criteria table, and when to migrate.
Sep 14, 2026ProfitabilityAgency profitability: hours × rate is lying to you
Hours times rate books free work as revenue and hides idle. How agencies calculate real retainer margin, and what Agency Management Software must show.
Sep 8, 2026CRMHubSpot vs Verbial for marketing agencies
Honest HubSpot vs Verbial comparison for marketing agencies: CRM depth vs agency OS for retainers, proposals, time, invoices, and mid-month margin.
Sep 7, 2026OperationsWhat is an agency operating system? (And what AI still gets wrong)
Definition of an agency operating system (agency management software for marketing agencies: CRM, proposals, time, invoicing, and margin on one client record) vs CRM, PSA, and what AI still gets wrong.
Sep 1, 2026Time trackingTime tracking for agencies: pace the retainer, don't police the team
Pace retainers by department: cap used, days left, projected burn. Billing-model rules, role visibility, and Verbial Agency Management Software for owners.
Aug 25, 2026InvoicingInvoicing for marketing agencies: the four billing models
Retainers in advance, pre-paid overages, hourly in arrears and media pass-through on one invoice, with a sample invoice, terms and dunning schedule.
Aug 18, 2026CRMCRM for marketing agencies: what a generic CRM gets wrong
A generic CRM stops at closed-won. See the entities, pipeline stages and permissions an agency CRM needs to carry scope into delivery and billing.
Aug 4, 2026PricingHow to price a marketing agency retainer (and stop giving work away)
A practical way to price drawdown retainers by department, write an overage rule that holds, and track the servicing gap so the account stays profitable.
Jul 21, 2026Time trackingTime tracking that agency teams actually do
Time tracking fails when the rules beat your billing. The six settings that make agency teams log hours: rounding, notes, approvals, locks and targets.
Jun 16, 2026Client reportingWhite-label client reporting: what 'on your own domain' really means
The checklist for reports that look like they came from you: domain, fonts, colors, footer, email identity, and the numbers a refresh must never touch.
May 27, 2026MigrationSwitching agency software: a migration checklist that doesn't lose a month
The order to migrate CRM, time and billing data, how to dry-run an import, and what to keep read-only until you are certain nothing was lost.