Quit Your Job to Launch a Creative Agency? (Here’s How)

Cutting the cord from a steady job can be frightening.

No more twice-a-month paycheck. You’re running the business. All decisions are yours.

But the upsides can be tremendous. With planning and some luck, you can earn more than ever. You’ll run the business the way you think it should be. Make decisions that are best for you and the company. You’re now the boss.

Are You Ready to Launch Your Creative Agency? (7 Key Indicators)

1. Your freelance business is the basis of your creative agency

If you’re currently in a full-time job and thinking of starting your own agency, you should have built up a roster of freelance clients while you’re at the 9 – 5. If you haven’t, do that first.

These freelance clients will be your first agency clients. Some of them will give you much more work now that you’re working at your agency full-time.

2. You’ve built a strong network

You have contacts you can call on for services that your agency provides. If you’re a copywriter, you have your favorite designers and programmers in your network.

You can bring them in as needed on your projects. As your agency grows, they may even become employees or partners.

3. You’re building a website for your agency

You want your website ready for the day you launch. You’ll tell everyone about your new agency, and you’ll want to send them to your site.

Build it in stealth mode, and be ready to launch on day one.

4. You’ve strengthened your social media presence

Build those networks, and get ready to announce your new agency. You’ll want a powerful launch.

5. You have money in the bank as a cushion

Before you get too far into launching your new agency, make sure you’re financially ready. Do a realistic evaluation of your situation. Add up your monthly expenses and income. Being broke is no way to start a business.

Also, consider how you want to work at your agency. Do you need to rent space, or are you running it out of your home? Look at all aspects of your life to cut expenses as you start up.

6. Ideally, you have a partner/spouse with a steady income

This is a typical scenario—you can count on a partner’s steady income, along with your savings, as your agency gets going. If not, make sure you’ve saved enough. Even when you’re busy, your cash flow can be bumpy.

7. The rest of your life is in order

This is a tough one, but in an ideal world, your family, relationships, and health aren’t a major distraction. You’ll need a lot of energy and focus for your new agency. If you have serious issues to work through, this might not be the time to launch.

Will You Need an Accountant?

It might seem like just another expense, but I had an accountant when I launched both of my agencies.

With an accountant by your side, you have someone to answer your financial questions, help you plan, ensure your taxes are taken care of, and so much more.

I wrote about why freelancers and creative agencies need an accountant here.

Will Your New Creative Agency Have a Niche?

Your initial freelance clients might be a grab bag of companies and organizations. And that’s fine, you need the money.

But soon, you want to define a niche for your agency. It will start to come naturally as you work with similar clients.

I wrote how to pick a high-paying niche here.

Learn more about launching a creative agency in my book, How to Start a Successful Creative Agency. It’s the essential business guide for graphic designers, copywriters, filmmakers, photographers, and programmers.

Buy Your Book Here

Over 300 pages and 23 chapters, available at Amazon (Paper & Kindle), Kobo (ebook), Apple Books (ebook), and Gumroad (PDF).

The book is packed with useful information to help creatives start and grow their business.

Recommended!

“Hi Andy, just finished reading your book. Loved the sections on estimates, billable hours, and timesheets. Recommended to some other creative friends who are running their own biz. Thank you for writing the book :)”

Kasun Pathirage, Freelance B2B Writer, from a DM on Twitter

Get a FREE Chapter of The Book Now

Sign up in the footer below to get a free PDF of Chapter 14, Working With Clients.

This chapter covers essential areas such as Clients vs. Projects, Corporate Clients vs. Small Business Clients, How to Create an Opportunity Document, Benefits of Finding a Niche… and much more.

Questions? On Twitter, I’m @StroteBook. DMs are always open. Ask away.