You keep getting asked for things you don't sell
Your client signs you up for paid ads or SEO. Three weeks in, they ask if you can also help with customer service. Then with order processing. Then with email automation setup. Then with a CRM cleanup.
You either say yes (and bleed time on work outside your scope), say no (and watch them hire someone else who absorbs your account), or build a service line you didn't actually want to build.
We're the third option. We handle the ops they're asking for. You stay focused on what you actually sell. Your client gets the problem solved without leaving your relationship. You earn a referral fee for the introduction.
That's the partnership. No exclusivity, no white-labeling required, no service obligations. Just a clean way to monetize requests you would have turned down anyway.
How the partnership works
You make the introduction
A quick email or warm intro to your client. We give you a referral template so you don't have to write from scratch.
We handle everything from there
Discovery call, qualification, pricing conversation, contract. You don't show up unless you want to.
We place and manage the engagement
Your client gets their specialist in 5 business days. They continue working with you on what you sell — we handle ops in the background.
You earn your commission
15% of their first month, paid 30 days after they sign. Quarterly retention bonuses for clients who stay active past month 6.
Built for agencies that work with operating businesses
Good fit
- —E-commerce and DTC marketing agencies (your clients constantly need CS support and ops help)
- —SaaS marketing and growth agencies (your clients need ops admin while they focus on growth)
- —B2B demand gen agencies (your clients need lead follow-up and CRM work)
- —Founder-led boutique consultancies (your clients trust your recommendations)
- —Web design and dev agencies (your clients need post-launch ops coverage)
Not a fit
- —Recruiting agencies (conflict — we'd be competing)
- —Staffing firms (same conflict)
- —Other VA agencies (obvious conflict)
- —One-off project agencies without recurring client relationships (low referral velocity)
If your business doesn't fit, we'll tell you on the partner call. We'd rather not partner than partner badly.
Partner economics
Referral commission
15%
Of your client's first month, paid 30 days after they sign. Capped at $720 per referral (15% of Executive at $4,800).
Plan upgrade bonus
+$200
Additional bonus when your referral signs onto Standard Plus or Executive. Designed to align incentives with the right fit.
Quarterly retention bonus
$100/qtr
Per active client per quarter, paid for clients still active 6+ months in. Refer 10 clients who stay — earn $4,000/year in recurring commissions.
Example economics
You refer 5 clients in a quarter, all signing Standard Plus.
For a busy agency, this can be a meaningful additional revenue stream without taking on additional service work.
We don't replace you. We complement you.
A real concern with referral partnerships is the partner taking over the relationship. Here's how we structure it so that doesn't happen.
We never pitch services that overlap with yours
If you do paid ads, we don't suggest they hire someone for paid ads. If you do email marketing, we don't suggest they hire someone for email.
We coordinate with you on roadmap
If you have plans for the client, we make sure our specialist's work supports yours, not duplicates or contradicts it.
We tell the client you sent us
We're transparent about the referral. They know you brought us in, which strengthens your relationship rather than threatening it.
You can co-brand the introduction
Some partners prefer to be visible throughout the relationship; others prefer to introduce and step back. Both work.
What this looks like in practice
A growth marketing agency with 12 e-commerce clients. Their pattern: every 4–6 months, a client reaches a stage where they need ops help and complain about it on a strategy call. Previously, the agency would lose 4–8 hours trying to "help" with ops, or watch the client hire elsewhere.
Now, the agency mentions us. The client signs up (typical: Standard Plus). The agency earns ~$620 first-month commission and ~$400/year recurring per retained client.
Time invested by the agency: roughly 1 hour per referral (the introduction email and a follow-up). All other work is handled by us.