How to Escape the Agency Hamster Wheel: The Counterintuitive Path to Recurring Revenue for Web Developers

Break free with 7 unconventional strategies

Web Development Hamster Wheel by AI Banksy

As a web development agency owner, you're likely familiar with the feast-and-famine cycle of project-based work.

But what if you could leverage your expertise to create steady, recurring revenue streams?

In this article, we'll explore seven unconventional strategies that cater specifically to SaaS and mobile app clients, providing ongoing value long after the initial build is complete.

1. User Onboarding Optimization Service

User onboarding is critical for SaaS success. Duh, right?

But according to Wyzowl's 2020 survey, 63% of customers consider the company's onboarding program when making a purchasing decision.

By offering an ongoing onboarding optimization service, you can help your clients significantly improve their activation rates and reduce churn.

This also shows you’re interested in their business, not just building stuff to build stuff.

Implementation strategy:

1. Develop a standardized onboarding audit process

2. Create a toolkit of onboarding best practices and templates

3. Implement analytics to track key onboarding metrics

4. Offer monthly or quarterly optimization sprints

Real-world example: Appcues, while not an agency, has built a successful business around user onboarding optimization.

They offer both a product and consulting services to help companies improve their onboarding processes.

Integration tip: Start by offering a free onboarding audit with every SaaS project you complete.

Use the insights from this audit to pitch your ongoing optimization service.

2. Churn Reduction Consultancy

You probably already know that reducing churn is also crucial for SaaS companies.

According to ProfitWell, even a 1% improvement in churn can increase company valuation by 12%.

That’s massive! (Go ahead, feel free to use this stat in your pitch!)

By offering a churn reduction consultancy service, you're directly impacting your clients' bottom line and long-term success.

Implementation strategy:

1. Develop a framework for analyzing churn causes (e.g., product issues, pricing, competition)

2. Create a system for collecting and analyzing user feedback

3. Implement cohort analysis to identify at-risk users

4. Offer monthly strategy sessions and quarterly deep-dives

Real-world example: ProfitWell (now part of Paddle) built a successful business around helping SaaS companies reduce churn through data analysis and strategic consulting.

Integration tip: Introduce churn analysis as part of your post-launch support package.

Use the initial findings to demonstrate the value of ongoing churn reduction efforts.

3. Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) for SaaS

For SaaS companies, even small improvements in conversion rates can have a significant impact on revenue.

According to Wordstream, the average conversion rate for SaaS websites is 3-5%, but top performers can achieve rates of 11% or higher.

Use that gap to your advantage to sell a recurring CRO service for SaaS.

Implementation strategy:

1. Develop a CRO audit process specific to SaaS signup flows and pricing pages

2. Create a library of SaaS-specific CRO best practices and case studies

3. Implement A/B testing tools and processes

4. Offer monthly testing and optimization sprints

Real-world example: CXL (formerly ConversionXL) has built a renowned CRO agency and education platform, working with numerous SaaS clients to improve their conversion rates. You can do the same with your clients.

Integration tip: Include a basic CRO audit in your initial website or app development process.

Use the findings to pitch an ongoing CRO service.

4. SaaS Metrics Dashboard (Micro-SaaS)

While this idea involves developing a product, it can be a powerful way to create recurring revenue and deepen client relationships.

SaaS companies need real-time insights into their key metrics, and a customizable dashboard can provide immense value.

Implementation strategy:

1. Document the most crucial SaaS metrics (MRR, churn rate, CAC, LTV, etc.)

2. Develop a flexible dashboard that can integrate with various data sources

3. Create tiered pricing based on features and number of data integrations

4. Offer onboarding and customization services as upsells

Real-world example: Baremetrics has built a successful business providing very detailed analytics dashboards for SaaS companies, starting as a micro-SaaS and growing into a comprehensive analytics platform.

Now they’re big, but not everyone needs everything they have. Go micro here.

Integration tip: Offer the dashboard as a value-add for your larger SaaS clients initially.

Use their feedback to refine the product before offering it more broadly.

5. Compliance-as-a-Service

With regulations like GDPR and CCPA becoming more prevalent, compliance is a growing concern for SaaS companies.

According to a 2020 survey by Hyperproof, 62% of companies planned to increase their compliance budget.

Implementation strategy:

1. Develop expertise in key regulations affecting SaaS companies (GDPR, CCPA, HIPAA, etc.)

2. Create a compliance audit process and remediation roadmap

3. Implement ongoing monitoring tools for compliance adherence

4. Offer quarterly compliance reviews and annual comprehensive audits

Real-world example: Securiti.ai has built a successful business around AI-powered data compliance and security for enterprises, including many SaaS companies.

Integration tip: Include a basic compliance review in your security audit process for new projects.

Use this to introduce the concept of ongoing compliance management.

6. Localization and Internationalization Support

Expanding into new markets can significantly grow a SaaS business.

A study by CSA Research found that 76% of online shoppers prefer to buy products with information in their native language.

Implementation strategy:

1. Develop a process for assessing internationalization readiness

2. Create partnerships with translation services or build an in-house team

3. Implement a system for managing multilingual content and versioning

4. Offer ongoing localization updates and cultural adaptation services

Real-world example: Lokalise has built a successful business around translation management systems and localization services for software companies.

Integration tip: When building SaaS products, implement internationalization best practices from the start.

Use this as a springboard to offer ongoing localization services as clients expand.

7. SaaS SEO Optimization

While idea doesn’t have to be you, it might be outsourced, you can still earn recurring revenue through referral fees or by white-labeling services.

SEO is crucial for SaaS companies, with Ahrefs reporting that 87% of their studied SaaS companies get an estimated 1,000+ monthly visits from organic search.

Implementation strategy:

1. Partner with SaaS-focused SEO agencies or consultants

2. Work with them to develop a basic SEO audit process to identify opportunities

3. Use their systems for tracking SEO improvements and ROI

4. Offer monthly strategy sessions and quarterly performance reviews (or let them do that and you take a cut)

Real-world example: Siege Media has built a successful content marketing and SEO agency with a strong focus on SaaS clients.

Integration tip: Include basic SEO best practices in your initial development process.

Use this to introduce the importance of ongoing SEO efforts and your partnership services.

Implementing These Strategies

To successfully integrate these services into your agency:

1. Start small: Choose one or two services to pilot with your existing clients.

2. Develop clear processes: Document your methodologies to ensure consistent delivery.

3. Train your team: Upskill your developers and project managers in these new areas.

4. Show value early: Provide quick wins to demonstrate the value of ongoing services.

5. Gather case studies: Document your successes to use in marketing these new services.

In the end, I want you to transform your web development agency from a project-based business to a valued, long-term recurring revenue.

I don’t want you to end up burnt out and stressed, looking for the next client, like I was, even if it was a 7-figure agency.

Not only will this create predictable, recurring revenue for your agency, but it will also deepen your client relationships and position you as a crucial part of their ongoing success.

Remember, the key to success with these strategies is to focus on providing ongoing value.

And hey, if you want to dive deeper into strategies for growing your agency with recurring revenue, or getting your SaaS business unstuck, grab some time and let’s chat.