Are you ready for your agency to make more money and for you to keep more of the money you make?
AMI’s Money Matters course will bring clarity to agency metrics and help you add more money to the bottom line.
We guarantee it.
When it comes to money and agencies — there’s a big difference between the Wieden + Kennedy's of the world and you. Good news is — you can make as much money, if not more than they do — if you manage your finances right.

But you can’t do it the same way they do.

If your company has fewer than 500 employees, the great big numbers you read in the trade publications and all the research reports about advertising agencies, interactive firms, or public relations firms just don’t apply to you. Our agencies are different and we measure our performance and results differently.

Of course, we’re all in business to make a profit, but the way the big guys get there and the way we get there is really different. We’re lucky because our businesses are smaller and easier to manage.

If you try to manage your business financially the way the big guys do, the rewards won’t be as great.

Our on-demand course, Money Matters was developed especially for principals and financial managers in marketing communication firms (advertising, design, digital, marketing and public relations). Our objective is NOT to turn you into a bean counter. We want you to learn how to use the numbers to your advantage, maximize your profits and grow the company.

Most owners of small marketing firms have not had specific accounting training other than what they may have learned from their accountants. Our mission with Money Matters is to make it easy to understand if your agency is healthy if you can afford to hire more people and what parts of your business are out of whack. From there, you can leverage the results for even better profits and growth.

And, of course, Money Matters is about the benchmarks you should use to operate profitably. You will learn about the AMI Report Card and other critical dashboard elements that will let you know if your company is in trouble at a glance. 


 “I knew things were not right but I had no idea what or why. Now I actually look at the metrics you taught us and know where we’re in good shape and where we need to improve. I wish I’d known about Money Matters a decade ago!”
 ~ David Welch
Learn Which Numbers Actually Matter and What to do if They’re out of Balance
We will talk everything from profitability, the pace of healthy growth, how to know when you actually need to hire to how billable your people need to be for you to make a profit and much more.

We’ll talk operational best practices, dashboards, and best practices around cash management, billing and proposal writing. We will also talk about how you can get your money out of the business before you try to sell it and much more.

Get ready for 7 hours of learning about money and how to put more of it in your pocket. 

We'll cover:
  •  The financial benchmarks/reports you need to know your agency is healthy at a glance
  •  Pricing strategies – how to be paid for ALL your work (agency time, expertise, out of pocket profits)
  •  Billing strategies – doing this well can eliminate your cash flow worries
  •  Media strategies — how to get paid for your expertise and negotiating ability
  •  Agency-specific ratios — be confident that your staff, profits etc. are where they should be
  •  Fraud proofing your agency (agencies under 100 employees are the largest victims of fraud)
  •  The mistake you’re making that, if corrected, could put another 5% on your bottom line
  •  And so much more!
Bottom line – with proper benchmarks and metrics and some tools to make tracking it all easier – you’ll finally feel like you’re in control and in the know.  
In our Money Matters Course,
we’re going to teach you:

Where Are You Headed:

We’ll kick off the course by recognizing it’s pretty tough to get to a destination if you have no idea what the destination is or why you’re going there. In this module, we will define what you want your agency to be when it grows up and the choices you need to make to get there.

The Financial Metrics That Matter:

One of the cool things about today’s accounting software is that you can measure anything and everything. Thank goodness we don’t have to. But we do need to understand the financial metrics that drive our business, allow us to make informed decisions, and are industry best practices. In this module – we’ll walk through the numbers you need to track. I promise – it’s easier than you think!

People:

Whether you have a brick and mortar office filled with W2 employees or you have a hybrid of employees and contractors on your team – it’s pretty difficult to build your agency without them. Knowing who you need, how many you can afford, and how to create incentives and opportunities so they stay, is one of your most important jobs. There are financial truths and best practices to help you make those decisions wisely.

Client Metrics:

In this module, we’ll look at how managing your client mix and serving the right clients influences your bottom line. We’ll walk through how to design a plan to get you to the optimum blend of clients who will gladly pay a premium price for your expertise and guidance.

Pricing, Billing, Biz Dev and the Processes that Protect your Agency:

Have you ever wondered how other successful agencies price their services? Are you tired of having the actual work come in so much higher than your original estimate and having to eat all of that time? In this module, we’re going to walk through some best practices and metrics that will help you keep more of what you earn by being able to actually charge for it.

Exit Strategies:

Sooner or later, we all think about winding down our business. There are many options, and each comes with its own set of consequences, good and bad. In this module, I’ll walk you through the most common exit strategies and help you weigh your options. Knowing where you want to end up definitely influences the choices you make today.
Imagine a world where you know how financially healthy your agency is and if there’s a problem area – you know how to fix it. I know that’s possible. I see it happen every day in agencies where the owners invested in not only learning what we teach in this course but applying it. 

Aren’t you ready for a new reality?
What if you never had to go to another strategy session or oversee a client’s budget again?