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b'The Nitty Gritty\\n\\n* Why Maggie of Scoop Studios pivoted from working with online entrepreneurs to local, in-person clients \\u2014 and how tapping into her existing network made all the difference in finding leads\\n* How Maggie\\u2019s role within the agency shifted to Director of Sales when her business partner left \\u2014 and how that impacted the rest of the team structure\\n* Who updates standard operating procedures and when\\n* Why Maggie only works with clients on engagements six months and longer (hint: healthier cash flow and happier clients!)\\n\\nMaggie Patterson, Principal of Scoop Studios, recently made a huge pivot in her company. For the first year or so of business, Maggie worked primarily with online business owners. But when she saw that business wasn\\u2019t growing and finding leads became increasingly harder, Maggie knew it was time for a shift.\\nThat\\u2019s when she decided to stop working with online business owners and instead work with local business owners. The results? She\\u2019s getting paid more, \\xa0she\\u2019s working with her ideal clients, and she\\u2019s working with them on a longer basis. \\u201cI\\u2019m so glad we made that move,\\u201d Maggie says.\\nIn this episode of What Works, Maggie shares the process of pivoting her business, growing her team, and setting herself up for success over the long-term.\\nWe release new episodes of What Works every week. Subscribe on iTunes so you never miss an episode.\\nEmbracing local events to find clients\\n\\u201cI can walk in and be one of the smartest people in the room whereas online there are a lot of smart people. I have a different perspective than everyone else in that room. That enabled me to make a lot of connections quickly and really parlay that into business a couple months later.\\u201d \\u2014 Maggie Patterson\\n\\nDespite living in a town with a population of 500, a post office, and a pizza place, Maggie found there were more than enough leads right in front of her. But, as an introvert, she had to motivate herself to get in front of them.\\n\\u201cMy motto during that time was: every single day, I have to talk to people,\\u201d she says. \\u201cIt\\u2019s so easy when we work behind a computer to go an entire day and not connect with people. To not leave our house. To basically hide out and do our thing.\\u201d\\nSo as Maggie shifted from working with online businesses to local businesses, she knew she had to look elsewhere for leads. That\\u2019s why she started going to the Chamber of Commerce meetings and realized that her next clients were in that room.\\nReinvigorating your network\\n\\u201cI spent a lot of time reconnecting with past clients and reconnecting with people I worked with that were in different corporate roles. I was really reinvigorating my network and investing in those people and letting them know that I\\u2019m open for business. Because you can\\u2019t assume that people know what you\\u2019re doing.\\u201d \\u2014 Maggie Patterson\\nMaggie doesn\\u2019t just find leads from going to in-person events. She also reconnects with past colleagues or past clients to let them know: here\\u2019s what I\\u2019m doing and I\\u2019m open for business! Maggie stresses the importance of staying connected with those folks and investing in the connections that already exist. They are a goldmine!\\nLonger engagements = win\\n\\u201cLonger engagements are easier for us to manage because we aren\\u2019t doing the kind of project work where we\\u2019re parachuting in and out of someone\\u2019s business. There\\u2019s always so much context missing. When we\\u2019re doing ongoing work, month in and month out, we can provide a better work product. And, ultimately, it\\u2019s much easier for me to not be involved on a day-to-day basis for the smart cookies on my team to take that mantle and run with it. That frees up my time to really focus on running the business.'