Asymmetric Client Tiering & Portfolio Strategy

Overview

As part of the broader ^[1] agency restructure, the client roster has been formally tiered to distinguish high-value strategic relationships from growth-potential accounts and low-ROI/troublesome engagements. The framework drives resource allocation, engagement cadence, and decisions about which clients to grow, fix, or exit.

The core principle: design the business around the clients you want, not around the clients you have. Tier placement reflects both current revenue contribution and strategic upside — a client can be small but still Tier 1 if the relationship is healthy and the potential is real.

The Tiering Framework

Tier 1 — A-List Clients

High-quality relationships with strong strategic alignment, healthy engagement, and meaningful upside. These clients receive the most proactive attention: weekly or bi-weekly calls with the ^[2], monthly strategy sessions with Mark, and priority production capacity.

Client	Notes
Doodla	Core strategic client; performance + retainer model ($4k + 4%); active work on inventory/B2B channel expansion
Aviary	Built ROI calculator tool (`aviacalculators.com`); strong example of AI-powered tool delivery
Advanced Health & Safety (AHS)	Pilot client for Hazard OS platform; small but high-quality; SaaS productization target
PaperTube	Performance-based engagement; similar model to Doodla
Trocte	A-list despite smaller size
Exterior	A-list; included in core strategic portfolio

Engagement cadence: Weekly or bi-weekly strategic calls. Monthly joint strategy review (Mark + Karly).

Tier 2 — Growth Potential

Clients with room to move up to Tier 1 if trust deepens, scope expands, or the agency finds a higher-value angle. Currently receiving solid but less intensive service. Sebastian handles more of the execution touchpoints; Karly engages monthly or quarterly.

Client	Notes
Corristone	Potential in Salesforce/CRM space beyond marketing; needs a value-add angle to justify Tier 1
Blue Point	Strong potential but relationship has been difficult ("bitchy"); moved from Melissa to Karly to stabilize
Cord Wainer	Pays well but relatively simple business; limited upside ceiling
Axley	Local law firm; happy but low expansion potential
Citrus America	Small business; limited headroom
Scallon	"Found money" — low effort, low complaint; keep unless capacity becomes an issue

Engagement cadence: Monthly or quarterly check-ins. Sebastian plays a larger role in day-to-day.

Tier 3 — Troublesome / Low ROI

Clients that are either in structural decline, generating friction disproportionate to revenue, or simply not a fit for the strategy-first model. These are candidates for price increases, scope reduction, or offboarding.

Client	Notes
Crazy Lenny's	Owner (65 years old) unwilling to change; business in decline; at ceiling of what's possible
Didion	Lost major USAID government contract; factory incident; ongoing legal issues; external factors dominate
Flynn Audio	Small; high effort for ~$2k/month; owner (Sam Flynn) struggling financially
Sonoplot	Not performing well; limited traction
Reynolds	National company with theoretical potential but no clear engagement path found yet

Note on Machine Source: One email/week for $1,500/month with zero complaints — flagged separately as "found money" and not necessarily a Tier 3 exit candidate despite small size.

Engagement cadence: Minimal proactive investment. Reactive support only unless a clear path to Tier 2 emerges.

Strategic Principles Behind the Tiers

Strategy-Driven Portfolio, Not Structure-Driven

The tiering exercise is an output of the agency's shift from a structure-driven to a strategy-driven model. Previously, the team served whoever was on the roster with whatever capacity existed. The new model asks: given what we want to be, which clients belong in this business?

"Do we want to design the business to handle these clients, or do we want to find clients to do what we do?" — Mark Hope

Minimum Engagement Size

Tier 3 clients highlight a systemic issue: too many small engagements consuming disproportionate team bandwidth. The restructure includes raising the minimum engagement threshold. New client acquisition targets $5k+/month retainers or meaningful project-based work.

Expansion Before Acquisition

Before adding net-new clients, the priority is deepening Tier 1 relationships — identifying additional problems to solve, building tools, expanding scope. Each Tier 1 client should have an active strategic roadmap maintained by ^[3] and reviewed monthly with Mark.

SaaS Productization Path

Tier 1 clients like AHS serve a dual purpose: they are both revenue-generating accounts and product development partners. Tools built for one client (e.g., Hazard OS for AHS) are architected as multi-tenant platforms from day one, enabling productization and SaaS sales to the broader market (target: ~18,000 hazardous environmental companies in the U.S. at $500/month).

See: ^[4]

Financial Context

Metric	Current	12-Month Target
Monthly Revenue	~$70k	$95k–$110k
New Clients/Month	~1	1–2
SaaS Revenue	$0	TBD (Hazard OS launch)

Reaching the revenue target does not require a large volume of new clients — it requires deepening Tier 1 relationships, pruning or repricing Tier 3, and adding 1–2 well-qualified new clients per month.

Operational Implications

Karly (Strategic Client Leader): Owns Tier 1 relationships and roadmaps; monthly/quarterly touchpoints for Tiers 2 & 3. Tuesday/Wednesday mornings blocked for strategic thinking — not to be consumed by reactive client requests.
Sebastian (Director of Operations): Translates Karly's strategic priorities into ClickUp tasks; manages production bench; quality gate on all deliverables.
Ben (Coordinator): Bridges Karly and Sebastian; handles scheduling, meeting prep, and packaging of deliverables for client delivery.
Melissa (departing): Several Tier 2/3 client issues (Blue Point near-loss, Heritage loss, Adavacare likely loss) traced to her account management. Termination planned for Feb 9–10 as part of restructure.