Revenue up 36% and contractor cost down 38% at a video agency
A B2B video agency, engaged April 2026Margins the owner called razor thin, three modelled scenarios, and a 38% month-over-month cut in contractor cost. Honest caveat: the turn is not finished yet.
Percentages, multiples, counts and timeframes only. Client revenue, profit and cash figures stay private.
The situation
The business installs video production systems for B2B marketing teams. When we first talked, in February 2026, it was growing and the growth was the problem.
our margins are razor thin if not non-existent.
Owner, B2B video agency
He had a tax accountant and a bookkeeper, both working in what he called siloed operations. The bookkeeper was doing "the bare minimum," and the reporting that was technically in scope arrived inconsistently "despite prodding."
What he wanted wasn't more bookkeeping. It was this: "we want it to be even more ruthless and dialed in so that way we can make more informed decisions." And the constraint behind it, said plainly: "We're not financial people."
He was also honest that it had become urgent. "It's been a huge pain point these last few months," he said, "and not good for longevity, honestly."
What we did
Modelled three scenarios against a margin target, then picked one
The owner had a target operating margin he wanted to reach by year end. We built three paths to test whether it was reachable.
- Baseline. Change nothing, roll Q1 forward through the year.
- Growth only. Hold the cost structure and grow revenue at the historical 15% to 20% year over year.
- Blended. Modest revenue growth plus real cost reduction from the rebrand and operational changes.
Only the third one got there. That's the one the business ran. A forecast that offers a single number can't make that argument.
Rebuilt revenue reporting into five buckets
Revenue was arriving as one line, which made it impossible to see which offering carried margin. It now reports in five: legacy video production, event rentals, video install, video operator, and the historical course business. The QuickBooks income categories were realigned to match how the owner already thought about his offers, including transactions invoiced through Stripe.
Handed over a pricing calculator and a list of the clients to fix
Then the uncomfortable half: a list of recurring clients locked into older, low-margin offers. Knowing which accounts are underpriced is the prerequisite for repricing them.
Set an order of operations for every spare dollar
Build the cash reserve first, to two or three months of operating expenses. Owner pay comes after that, not before it. Written down and sequenced, so the question "can I take money out yet" has an answer that doesn't change with mood.
Modelled the hiring gate and a cash-on-hand target
Hiring gate thresholds, plus a goal of six or more months of operating cash on hand. Also a maternity leave payroll structure at a reduced rate, because forecasting the real calendar beats forecasting a clean one.
Separated the building from the agency
A building with event rental income was mixed into the operating picture, which made both harder to read. It now gets tracked as its own unit against its own break-even on rent and utilities, and it's been running slightly above that line. Two businesses with different economics, reported separately, so a soft month in one stops disguising a good month in the other.
Moved to async monthly, live quarterly
After onboarding, a Loom walkthrough of the numbers each month, with a live review call each quarter. Less meeting, same information.
Where it landed
Revenue was up 36% year over year for the first half, and contractor cost came down 38% in a single month to its lowest level in twelve. The reporting now separates five revenue lines, so which offering is carrying the business is visible rather than inferred.
What hasn't landed yet
This is a turnaround in progress, and the owner is clearer about that than we would be on his behalf: "it's not a light switch that happens over a day," he said, "it's going to take weeks and months to really turn the tides."
What did change immediately was knowing which lever to pull. "I felt definitely a great deal of optimism seeing that like what is possible," he said, "and knowing like what are the exact action items."
It feels like such a tailored approach to every decision we're making.
Owner, B2B video agency
On what the engagement is, in his words: it's "kind of like a fractional CFO, if I can call it that," or a financial controller "stepping in without having to add headcount." And on the reporting: "the detailed reporting and dashboards are easy to understand."
What this maps to
- Service: fractional CFO for agencies
- OS module: Agency Profit Engine, for the margin target the scenarios were built against
- OS module: Hiring Gate, for the thresholds that have to clear first
Questions
The ones people actually ask on the first callWhy model three scenarios instead of one forecast?
Because the useful output was not a number, it was a decision. Two of the three paths did not reach the margin target, which made the case for the third one on arithmetic rather than on opinion.
What does splitting revenue into five buckets actually change?
It shows which offering carries margin. With revenue arriving as a single line you can see the business getting bigger and still have no idea which work is worth doing more of.
Is this engagement a success story yet?
Yes, and it is not finished. The clarity is there and the momentum is building: revenue growth and the contractor cost reduction are both real and measurable, and the owner knows which lever to pull next. Turning a margin around takes months rather than weeks, and we would rather say so than pretend otherwise.
Why separate the building from the agency in the reporting?
Because they are different businesses with different economics. Blended together, a soft month in one hides a good month in the other and neither number means much. Separated, the building tracks against its own break-even on rent and utilities and the agency month reads clean.
What replaced the previous bookkeeper arrangement?
A single engagement covering the monthly close, the dashboard, an annual budget and twice-yearly forecasts, with quarterly calls. The previous setup had a tax accountant and a bookkeeper working separately, with reporting that arrived inconsistently.
Next step
A 30-minute call, and you will know whether this fitsMonthly bookkeeping, a Fathom dashboard, and fractional CFO advisory for marketing and creative agencies. Logan works every account, and the rates are published rather than quoted.