How Shaun Went From $2K to $25K/mo With His Amazon Agency

What's up, guys? Andre Hagel Jr. Back here with another client Ascension student Spotlight interview here with Sean Smith. What's up, brother?

What up?

How we doing, man? Yeah, happy to have you here as well, dude. I've been seeing you pop up in the community quite a bit, especially in the WINS channel. And so anytime I see that, I'm quick to invite them onto a Spotlight interview like we got here because I know there's lots of learnings and things that you're doing that's working that the audience and more people can learn from and benefit from. So I appreciate you taking the time to be here with us today.

Yeah, for sure. Glad to be here. Glad to be here. See how it can help.

So I always like to start off like, who are you and what are you currently working on? Like, what do you sell?

Yeah, so my name is Sean Smith and I have a Amazon brand management agency called your Amazon Pro. And what I do is I work with Amazon sellers and e commerce brands to launch and sell products on Amazon. I also have my own Amazon brands that I work on. But the main focus here and what I'm working on through Client Ascension is the your Amazon Pro. So I work with brands to help them grow and make more money selling on Amazon.

That's awesome, man. So did you start the agency before joining Client Ascension or like, when did you.

Yeah, so like I've been in the Internet marketing space. Like I'm, you know, older than most of the people in Client Ascension. So like I've been in marketing for like a long time since like 2008. So I started out, like all different types of direct response marketing stuff like back in the day. And then I started working on Amazon around 2015. Launched a couple brands before I came into Client Ascension. I had one main client for like five years and that client. Yeah, so like that client was really producing a lot. Like I had built that up into like multiple millions of dollars of sales from zero and had the really great revenue share deal on that. And towards the end of 2024, that deal had pretty much like fallen. It had ended, let's put it that way. And so like I was in a position where I had been comfortable with that and now I needed to develop more clients and expand on the agency. So really like where I was at when I started Client Ascension was pretty much having come out of. I technically had an agency, but I was pretty much at zero in terms of cash flow.

Interesting. So like during those five years you just didn't have too much of an ambition to like, want to scale past the one client.

So I had done some other stuff during that time where I had worked with a few other clients, but for the most part I was just like, I was making a really good money on that and I was just, I was like raising my kids. I was chilling. I had young kids at that time and I just wasn't really working that hard. I. Looking back, like, I probably. It would have been good if I would have had more lead flow and like, could have maxed out at that time. But yeah, it's not that I wasn't ambitious. It was just like, I was happy with where I was at and it was working. And you know how sometimes when you're involved in things, like, you just think it's going to go on forever. Like you don't really think about what's going to happen next. Yeah. So. But ultimately, like, yeah, I knew the day would come where I was going to have to branch out. And that's kind of where I was at at that time, like in the beginning of this year where I was like, it's time to kick it into high gear.

I got you. Yeah, it makes a lot of sense. And like, so that was when you joined Client Ascension, you had one client or did that start, like, did that process of kicking it back into high gear start before even Client Ascension?

So looking to expand out started before I came into Client Ascension, but I had basically moved on from that previous client. So I was in a position where I was doing like a few one off things here and there with clients and just making like a little bit of money, you know, not much. So I had left the previous client and I was like, all right, it's time to start kicking it up. But I was trying a lot of different ideas because I had never built an agency like that where. Because I had that client for so long and I was like, okay, how am I going to. What approach am I going to take? I was looking at different things, like, you know, productized service, building email lists, like just going after like referral clients or maybe just working for one big brand. Like, I was kind of exploring the options and that's when I fell into like watching Daniel's YouTube videos, which is actually what happened. And I'll get into that part of it. But anyways, yeah, so I was in this phase of like, okay, I'm taking on some clients. I'm just people that I know like here and there making some money. But I know I need to step it up. But I Just need to know exactly what's the framework that I'm going to follow to build the agency.

Yeah, yeah. So that's awesome to hear. And you mentioned a little bit about Daniel's YouTube video. So, like, how did you hear about Client Ascension? And I just think it's interesting, like, the moment you decided, like, you wanted to kick it into high gear and actually start making real efforts, built this as an agency rather than a couple of clients here and there or projects here and there. What was it about, like, Daniel's YouTube or whatever else you came across that, like, where'd you hear about client attention? And what about it, like, really spoke to you?

I found Daniel's YouTube through another YouTube video, which was totally random, like, because I was into, like, YouTube videos and stuff, like, learning how to do creation for YouTube videos, stuff like that. So some. Some guy had a video. I don't even remember who it was talking about creators doing videos in this new style where it was like, you know, like the rant style, like, what people are doing now. The stuff that Daniel's doing and he gave. It wasn't even a marketing channel. And he was like, this guy, Daniel, he does these videos. You should go check them out. And so I just happened to go over to Daniel's YouTube from that video. Like, I had never heard a Client Ascension. I had no idea who Daniel was, nothing about any of this stuff. I. I never sent a cold email in my life or anything. I see Daniel's video, I was like, yo, this dude. Like, what this dude is saying, this is legit. This is really good. That was the perfect target. And so at that time, it immediately hit me, like, this is definitely what he's saying is the way I need to approach this agency. Because in my mind, the one thing I was always trying to figure out is, okay, I'm going to build this agency. I'm in some Amazon Mastermind, stuff like that. But how am I going to generate leads? How am I going to get leads for this thing? And what I was thinking is, oh, I'm going to build a YouTube channel and stuff, but that's just going to take forever. So what Daniel was saying, I just kind of could feel it. I was like, this is great. So then I immediately signed up for a call with Client Ascension. Basically, I watched his video within the first, like, five hours, whatever, right? Immediately I signed up for the call. And so I got on the call, and then I just started the process from there. It was like a direct hit. Daniel's message and, yeah, it just clicked.

Right away for you that this is something that you needed to do.

Yeah, yeah.

And it's something you hadn't done before as well. And so, like, having Daniel's, like, authoritative approach of, like, I've been doing this for this long, and these are all the results I've generated in doing it. That's what really spoke to. Yeah, yeah, that's. That's awesome to hear. And my favorite question to ask is, like, because I've been through courses and coaching programs, and I've followed guys like Daniel on YouTube before, and their videos get you all amped up and hyped up and, like, set on this new direction that you think is like the best next best thing since sliced bread or whatever. And then you get into the program and it's just like, not at all what you thought it would be. But obviously we're sitting here a couple months into Client Ascension, it's not the case. And so what was your experience when you first joined the program compared to, like, what you thought it would be?

What I hoped it would be and what I thought it would be is what it turned out to be. Right. So, like. Because the big thing about. So there's Daniel's message. Right. But the thing that really spoke to me about what Client Ascension had was the structure around how to get from where I was to where I wanted to be. So it was like, what I wanted there to be with structure and guidance and accountability. Because having come from the marketing background, like, I know the steps I need to do. I know what I need. I know I need to, you know, generate leads. I know I need to have a funnel, this and that, but what I needed is, like, someone to help me through it. So getting into the program and, like, what it ended up being was like, this is the thing for me has been the greatest aspect of it, where it was like, the structure and the support was there for me to help me get through all of the challenging steps and walk me through the process. So ultimately, what I thought and hoped it would be would be something like that. And that's what it turned out to be and more. Right. So I think that answers the question you asked.

Yeah. Awesome, bro. Yeah. I guess my. My follow up question that would be, like, when you joined the program, like, what were some of the things you did early on? Like, what were some of the steps you took or some of the strategies or things that we taught that you implemented that you started to see, you know, an impact from?

Yeah, I mean, just like, following the structure from the very beginning, like, exactly the way you guys have it laid out. Like, I just started ripping into the content in the kajabi, like everything in the exact way that you guys said to do it. I did it and I looked at it like I was back into the college course. I'm going to have to put in a few months of massive amount of learning here. And I mean, what I immediately did was implemented, you know, started developing the offer, the script, watching Daniel's offer videos, coming up with my vsl, filming the vsl, developing my landing page, built the landing page, got all my cold emails set up. Like, it was all done within the first. I mean, everything was ready to go within, like the first 60 days. I mean, realistically, like, I think I moved as fast as I humanly possibly could have. I was pushing it pretty hard. But I mean, I did. I just implemented everything. And at this point, I have everything more or less implemented. I just need to, you know, kind of keep the flow moving.

But, yeah, keep the system running. Yeah, that's the cool thing too. It's like a lot of what you mentioned, like, VSL landing page offer. Like, you've been in business long enough to know what all of these things are. So like, on the surface level, it seems like, oh, you could have just done these things on your own or you already knew you needed to do those things. But the, the way we approach a VSL is so much different than anyone else or the way we approach creating an offer. The way Daniel teaches about offers is different than anyone else. And it sounds like that attention to detail and like the specific way to do it, and then you having access to like, the coaching and like the accountability to check that you did the way that we teach is really what, like, unlocked that next level of growth for you.

Yeah, it's the structure, of course, the attention to detail is there with what you guys have put together inside of the program. Definitely, like, the amount of effort that you guys have done to make that all come together is definitely commendable. I'm really impressed at what you guys have been able to do as a team and also just like the results that have come out of it. Like, yeah, I could have done it on my own. I literally know every step of the process, aside from like having never done cold email, but I mean, that's just could have figured that out one way or the other. But like having that success coach and having somebody who's like, yo, okay, like, do this and then do that, and then having. Just having a person who, like, for example, like, okay, get your offer approved. Just get it approved. Because, you know, when you're. When you're coming up with concepts or you're trying to build a business, so many ideas are in your head, and some of them are good, some of them are bad. But it's. Sometimes it's hard to have someone that's like, can tell you exactly, yes, this is good. Do it. Move forward. Go to the next thing. Now you know. Okay, yes, your VSL is good. Okay, move to the next thing. Oh, your landing page is good. Okay, move to the. You know what I'm saying? Like, every step, you guys have it like, boom, boom, boom, laid out.

Yeah. Yeah, I love to hear that. Dude, that's. That's by design. It's something we've been working on for the last two or three years. And I love how you said the way you approached the program was like, if you were back in university, because that's the exact way the program was designed is based on, like, universities and how people learn in, like, a classroom setting. And the best results I've seen students get, they all have the same thing to say, which is, like, I approached it like university, where I dove deep into all the content, learned everything there was to learn, and then did exactly what they said, like, actually implementing the exact way we teach them or show them to implement. And so it's like, no secret that when you join a program like Client Ascension, the way to get results is to, like, be a sponge in terms of learning everything there is to learn and then doing everything you just learned about the exact way you learned about it, and then using the reinforcements of, like, the coaches and the review system to make sure that you're doing things correctly, which is really cool. What were some of the results you started to see? Because for me, like, I'm results driven. So, like, if I do something, I'm kind of, like, reconfirmed that I'm on the right path or doing the right things as results start to show up for me. So, like, what was that like for you early on in the program or once you started to, like, launch cold email campaigns or put the new versus on the website and stuff like that?

Yeah. So, I mean, results, they were as quick as I wanted them to be, but the effort to get to those results was, like, it definitely took a lot. Like, I definitely had to follow a lot of stuff, go through it. But, yeah, there's no, like, getting around doing the work. Right. That's the important thing to also recognize here. But Like, I mean I just started a big, in terms of the beginning of the program, the response handling aspect of it and having like Orey as a coach in there and having someone who could help me work through my deals and learning how the structure of deals, how you should present them to people for agency, stuff like that. Like I closed deals in the first month that I had like in the pipeline and stuff that were kind of far away but like they. I was able to close the deals because of the advice and the guidance that I got in Client Ascension. I started out the end of January. Like February is really like the first month that I was in and I probably closed like one deal in February for a couple thousand bucks or something. Like maybe I got three or five grand or something. But I mean it's only been so what is that? February, March, April, and now it's May. Right. And now I'm at like this month so far I'm at 18,000 in revenue and I have another deal. I'd say I'm. I'm gonna hit 25k this month.

Oh wow.

Yeah. And that's, I would say that you know, like all that has to do with just like the work that I was doing here from the VSLs, from the cold emails, from the ability to have deals work with people. I've actually gotten like a few referrals from other members in Client Ascension who have led me over. Another thing that's happened is one of my big clients that I landed, he has a pretty decent sized like E Commerce brand and I've connected with other service providers in Client Ascension that are now working for this brand. So like I'm handing off referral deals to people in Client Ascension. I'm getting referral deals handed back over to me. So yeah, I mean ultimately it was like a progression. Like each month I'm growing and growing. My target right now is to get to 50k a month recurring revenue. I just want to stabilize out of that. Cause I'm also working on my E Commerce brand that I have. So the way I look at the agency for me is like cash flow and like higher. I just want to have like higher profit margin cash flow. Like I don't need it to go to like half a million dollars in sales a month or anything. Like I just want a nice steady cash flow business so that I can like still keep my time focused on other stuff too.

Absolutely, bro. That, that was the same approach we took with building our software list kit. It's like we had the agency that funded the Software development, because we knew that's something that we could scale a lot further and eventually exit. So it's a really great approach that works for us. And I know a lot of other guys in the program and it's cool to hear too, like, the deals that happen inside of a program, like client ascension, and like, there's just a higher level of confidence to refer other agency owners to some of your most valuable clients because you know that that agency owner made the investment in the program and like, that alone in a way qualifies them. Right. Like, client attention is not a program that you could just join easily. Like, you have to go through a pretty rigorous process to like, get on a call and then obviously make a pretty hefty upfront payment. And so, like, not every agency owner is going to be able to do that. So, like, naturally, the ones that are worth referring out to your best clients are the ones that have made it through that process. So I just think I always find it really cool to hear about how the deals and referrals kind of happen in the program. One of my questions as well is like, so like 25k this month, that's huge. What would you say has been like the biggest lever you've pulled that you learn about for the first time in the program, like Client Ascension, has it been cold emails or was it something totally different?

It's how to communicate a deal to closing. That was the big thing. Because, like, my whole kind of world in Internet marketing from the beginning was like, selling consumer products to people, like building email lists and selling through sales pages to landing pages, never getting on the phone and like closing a deal for like a big ticket. I don't like this. So, like cold emails, like I learned how to, like that whole question I had in the beginning, like, how am I going to generate leads? I'm generating leads now. So it's like I'm still working on dialing that in, but I'm having calls, I'm closing deals and I'm refining that. But the biggest thing that has made the biggest impact in my immediate ability to generate revenue, like where I'm at right now has been like, the structure on how to close deals, like how to send the emails, how to, you know, what to do in the first phone call, then what to do in between the first phone call to the second phone call, where to close them, when to close them. Normally, like, what I would have done in the past is try to sell the shit outta somebody, like through an email. I just would've been like, oh, here, I'm gonna give you all this crap in an email. Like, this is all the stuff that you should do. Like, actually I learned this like right when I first came in. My success coach was like, don't ever try to sell in the email. And I was like, oh really? He's like, get em on the phone. So this, to me, this has been like a big learning curve for like how to close agency clients, right? And it makes total sense. I had some referral deals that came through from like outside of the program. But like the ability to close those referral deals was because I moved them through the right structure and process rather than what I would have done before, which was like laid out some big ass thing about how they should work with me and what they're gonna get and everything else and the price and everything. You know what I'm saying?

Like, absolutely.

Which now I know, like, don't do that. Like just, you know, get them on the phone and just even the structure of how you guys like right in the beginning I saw how you close the deal through the Panda doc. You know, it's like this is still hard for me to get my head wrapped around from like a marketing perspective. It's like there's no sales page. I'm just like sending them the contract and they're putting their contract like their info in. Like it works, you know, it's hilarious.

It's funny. My brother's like getting into E commerce too and he's like, do you use Shopify? I'm like, no. He's like, what do you use? I'm like, stripe. He's like, where's your checkout hosted? I'm like, it's not like, just send the invoice. There's no formal checkout process for agency services. Rarely at least.

Yeah, I mean that's, to me that like, that is a huge shift from what I was thinking I needed to have. And it took so much unnecessary work off my plate in terms of like, okay, yeah, I need a landing page that's good with the call booking thing, but like, I don't need this like complex sales page to sell my services. They're gonna, you know, checkout page this and that. So love it. Definitely working.

Yeah, you're crushing it, dude. You're crushing it. It's awesome to talk with guys like you who like join the program and approach it the way you have with just like the learning curve and being patient with the timeline and now seeing all of those results compound like it, it's really cool to see. And so my question for you is, you've probably seen this too, being in the program, in the community, like, not everyone is always active. Not everyone is always posting in the WINS channel. There's really always, like, a select group of guys that you see are consistently winning, and it's because of a few things that they do. And so what are those things that you do that you believe have, you know, helped produce the results you've produced compared to guys that join the program, go through it and don't have any change? And business results? Like, what. What are those things that if I'm going through the program as a new student that I should focus on and make time to do because it's what's going to lead to results?

The first thing I'd say is, like, I don't know what they're doing, but I know what I did, right? Start the process, follow the process and do exactly what is told of you to do in the program. Like, it's easy to think you know better or, oh, this is not that. What I do is like, follow exactly what's in the program exactly the way that you say to do. And then I also make sure that I'm on the calls because there's so many coaching calls, right? So, like, I get on the calls especially in the areas that I'm working on at that given time because, you know, it's like so much time in the day. But, like, if I'm working on something specifically in the program, I'm getting on those calls and I'm asking questions. Like, I try to get on early so that I can, like, get in and ask the question that I need to ask. Because what I need is like, okay, I need to get to the other side. I am in conversation in connection with my success coach. We have a good relationship. Like, he's always there to help. I just ask the questions. And I also, like, make connections and talk to other members in the program. So I try to be, like, connected and friendly with people. And I like, I DM people if they said something in one of the coaching calls or something, like, I'll just have conversations. And there's a few other of us in the program who are like Amazon agencies. So we have like, a little, like, subgroup together inside of the program where we're having calls connecting with each other. So connect in with the community, follow the directions, go to the calls. Ultimately, like, it's not rocket science. Just follow, like, what there is to do. Because, like, 20% of the people are going to produce 80% of the results in any given situation. Right. And it's always going to be the case and be part of the 20% and just go a little bit, just follow the directions. That's it.

Dude. So simple. The way you broke it down was, was perfect right there. It's, it's literally go through the actual course content and implement the things we teach, show up to the coaching calls to ask questions that you have that come up after going through that content and then use the community, connect with others, especially others that are running the same business model that you're running. Because like, when you join client attention, it's not like you join with an innovative offer. It's like there are other people that offer email marketing or cold email, Legion or Amazon services like you, and that's to your advantage. Right? Because I know like in Client ascension, one of the most popular models is email marketing for e commerce brands. And we have like 30 or 40 guys in there in their own pricing. So like, there's enough to go around for everyone in the agency space, which a lot of people just don't realize. And so I love, I just love, like, how simple and straightforward each of those pieces of advice were. Because it's really easy for anyone to do those things, I think. And it's cool to hear from you, especially Sean, because you've been in the marketing game for so long. I think a lot of people come into the program and they go through the content and they're like, oh no, like this way is better. I'm actually going to do it this way because I think this is better. So, like, you didn't come in with like an ego of like, I'm learning from guys that probably haven't even been in marketing as long as you have. Like, you just went through it, implemented no ego, and are now obviously reaping the rewards. I just think that's really cool.

Yeah, I mean, I think about that. I'm just like, look, these guys have put in the work to figure out what's working now because things change. I mean, the basic fundamentals of marketing remain the same, but when it comes to Internet marketing, like, what works changes. So I'm like, these guys are doing what works now. Let me follow their system and get to where I need to go. I don't need to pave the way. So like, back in the day, like when I first got into Internet marketing, there was one course that I would say was like, similar. It was very different, but it was called I don't know if you even know who this is, but Jeff Walker's product launch formula. So, like, it's. He used to be like, yeah, so, like, that was. That was my entryway into Internet marketing. And, like, when I got that course, it totally changed my life. It was nowhere near as comprehensive as what you guys are doing. It was just like a. It's an info course. But he was pretty good. He had, like, coaching calls and stuff. And I ended up, like, selling millions of dollars through that product launch formula system of products. Like, I was in the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu niche. Like, we were selling DVDs, building email lists. I was like, the product launch guy. Like, I was working with UFC guys. Like, even, like, Anderson Silva. We were launching products with him. Yeah, it was crazy, bro. He would post one thing on his Facebook and we'd get 20,000 emails. But what I'm saying is that course was a life change.