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$5K/mo Retainer Vs $15K Projects

9 May 2026 · 1 min

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In this short promotional video, Eric Deeran argues that a $5,000‑per‑month retainer model is superior to a one‑off $15,000 project for agencies and consultants. He outlines seven specific advantages: (1) predictable, year‑long cash flow that extends customer lifetime value; (2) hiring stability because revenue is guaranteed each month; (3) outcome‑based billing lets you focus on results rather than deliverables; (4) renewals compound LTV over multiple years; (5) strategic work commands premium pricing; (6) cash flow becomes smooth and non‑lumpy; and (7) deeper client relationships generate more referrals. He ends with a call‑to‑action directing viewers to a short follow‑up video that explains how to implement the retainer model.

Chapters

Here's why $5K a month retainers beat $15K projects. Number 1, you get 12 months of cash if they stay for an entire year. This beats the one-off check that you get for $15K, and obviously equals more money because they're paying over a longer time horizon, which extends the LTV of the customer. Number 2, you can hire people without gambling because you know that you're making a certain amount of money next month because you have a consistent retainer coming in every single month. Number 3, the client's paying for the outcomes, not deliverables, meaning you can probably do less videos simply because you're getting them better outcomes on a longer time frame. Number 4, renewals compound LTV, meaning that if you renew them year after year after year, the amount that they pay you expands and is a lot more than if they just paid one time for a $15K project. Number 5: strategy work commands premium pricing, meaning if you're doing higher-level strategy work, content strategy work, and not just making videos, they end up paying you more. Number 6: cash flow is predictable, not lumpy. And number 7: relationships get deeper, meaning that you get more referrals because you have a better relationship and a longer relationship with the actual client. If you want to learn how you can start doing this, put together a short video on the next page. Click link below, you can check it out. We'll see