Episode #61
Pros and Cons of Hiring In-house vs Agency vs Consultant
September 30, 2016

In Episode #61 Neil and Eric talk about the differences between hiring in-house, hiring consultants and hiring agencies. Listen as they highlight the pros and cons, share what works for their own businesses, and the stunning advantages of outsourcing.

Time Stamped Show Notes: 

  • 00:29 – Today’s Topic: The Pros and Cons of Hiring In-house Versus Agency Versus Consultant
  • 00:42 – Neil never hires agencies—only specific consultants
  • 01:08 – Eric has an agency but would not hire an agency
  • 02:08 – How the Forced Hiring tactic works
    • 02:10 – Using LinkedIn
    • 02:52 – The easy way is to just look for an agency
    • 02:58 – Agencies do not fully understand your product
  • 03:18 – Be mindful of relationship dynamics
  • 03:26 – Think about why you want to hire
    • 03:34 – In-house for managing the whole process
    • 03:42 – Freelancer for a specific task
    • 03:48 – Consultant for helping in strategy
  • 04:10 – It depends on the task you want to get done
  • 05:00 – Optimize costs and results
  • 05:40 – Working with the big ones means paying for the brand name
  • 06:35 – Consider your company’s culture—don’t hire solely for the results
  • 07:16 – End of today’s episode!

3 Key Points:

  1. Agencies bring convenience, but significant expense as well.
  2. Hiring for what you need done and what fits your culture.
  3. Don’t look at just the costs; look at the results as well.

Resources Mentioned:

  • Angel List and Indeed – Where Eric would search for consultants
  • Forced Hiring – A tactic which Eric wrote a blog about
  • LinkedIn – A social media platform where you can generate leads

Leave some feedback:

  • What should we talk about next? Please let us know in the comments below.
  • Did you enjoy this episode? If so, please leave a short review.

Connect with us:

Discover Latest Episodes

Episode
The Wells Fargo Client Retention Strategy That Actually Works
October 16, 2026

Some agencies win clients by inviting decision makers to Formula One boxes, but Neil prefers the way banks play the wine and dining game. Bank of America sent his CFO to a World Cup game with the hote...

Episode
ChatGPT Took Our YouTube Views From 800 to 15,000
October 16, 2026

Eric built thumbnail, editing and posting skills, and his long-form YouTube videos went from about 500 views to 15,000 to 25,000. Some of the team wouldn't use them, so they had to let people go, and ...

Episode
ChatGPT Plugins Added $500K ARR in Days
October 14, 2026

Someone added $500K in ARR in a week by putting their app in ChatGPT plugins, and Eric wants Carrot, Answer the Public and Ubersuggest in there too. Neil says that at scale, plugins help retention mor...