In the traditional agency model, you eventually reach a phase of the engagement where the core app has been built, and further features will be billed at an hourly rate for a dev managed by the agency. That hourly rate can be double or triple what the dev is receiving - because the agency will provide management services or some other kind of support alongside those hours. But by the agency charging rent on every hour that dev works, they become a pebble in the client's shoe, making it that much harder for them to accomplish their goal of building a successful product. It is unlikely that they are providing value on every hour that the dev works, to where a 2-3X multiple is justified. If our north star is the client's success, then it seems that a more favorable arrangement can be made; the client working directly with the dev, without the agency's involvement. For the client, they get a dev who is already trained, and the cost of hiring them just went down. For the dev, they get a client they are familiar with, and a raise relative to what the agency was paying them. For the agency, the amount of hours doing management work just went down, and the amount of hours doing high impact work just went up. You have allowed yourself to step out of where you are not adding much value, and step into areas where you are most needed. Areas such as training the client and their team in how to manage Stripe subscriptions themselves. Showing their UI/UX designer how to go straight from Figma to WeWeb, streamlining their development process. Workshops for their backend developer in how to use Xano, so they can bind data directly to the front end and eliminate bottlenecks. You can also continue to provide management to the dev, according to a set schedule. The agency becomes a high-impact catalyst, enabling the client to stand on their own two feet faster and more effectively. By focusing on empowerment rather than dependence, you can create a win-win-win scenario for the client, the dev, and the agency. The client gets a successful product, the dev gets on-going work, and the agency gets to make a real difference while maintaining healthy margins.

I am currently staying in this Yurt for the next few days, so I'm taking the time to share more about some of what I've been working on lately! For those of you who came from StateChange or know of Ray Deck, him and I have been collaborating to develop a system that not only produces products, it produces producers. The great opportunity of low-code/no-code is speed and own-ability. These tools enable businesses to create software themselves that's going to deliver great value for their customers with both a high rate of speed and where they are in control. Instead of being an agency, we act as change agents. We bring the business people closer to the technical side - and bring the technical people closer to the business side. But this requires working closely with the client and their team. This isn't an initiative they can throw far away from themselves - it is an investment in themselves and the skills of their internal team. We believe the results of this process will overtake the agency model, and we are already putting that theory to the test with clients.

I have decided to give Snappy away for free to this community! To gain access, all you need to do is reach Level 2! I spent hundreds of hours putting Snappy together so that anyone could easily establish the critical parts of their web app in as little as 20 minutes. That means User Authentication, Stripe Payments, Google OAuth, Magic Link Password Reset, Stripe Connect, Stripe Subscriptions, and more, all ready to go. I've considered offering it for $250, $500, or even $999...but I've decided what I would rather have in exchange is you taking part in this community. I figure that this way, you can get started with building your web app, and if you need private help, you can reach out to me for further investment. By the end of this week, Snappy will be available in the community classroom to anyone at Level 2 or higher :) Eventually, this might be raised to Level 3. To reach Level 2, simply get 5 "thumbs up" on your comments or posts. Once there, you'll get access to the Snappy Boilerplate and can join our weekly calls to learn how to use it to build your idea. Feel free to invite other motivated builders to join this community. Low-code is growing, and so is our group! If you'd like to learn how low-code can boost your earnings and save you money, join our office hours calls or send me a DM!