How Digilatics Scaled Their Agency From 1 to 50+ Clients in 3 Years

As a child, Khurram Shahzad, Founder of Digilatics, often called phone numbers on newspaper ads to ask, “Why did you choose this type of ad?”

It was that innate curiosity that paved the way for the formation of his full-service digital agency, which exclusively serves the home services niche and specializes in PPC, SEO, and web development.

In just three years, Digilatics transformed from a solo venture to a thriving agency with a growing roster of 50+ clients and a team of 40 employees. 

Khurram not only launched his agency during the challenging COVID-19 pandemic but also successfully established physical offices in the US and Pakistan. Together, these highly skilled teams seamlessly collaborate to deliver exceptional, cost-effective services to their clients. 

Digilatics’ impressive growth trajectory also includes partnerships with five of the top home service providers in the US. This achievement–along with a 90% client retention rate–underscores their sustainable growth strategy and proven ability to drive results.

Today, we’ll explore exactly how this niche agency built a solid foundation, expanded their operational footprint in two countries, and created a unique value proposition for the home services sector.

Turning Setbacks Into Stepping Stones

From a young age, Khurram understood the core ingredients of a successful marketing campaign: to-the-point copy, eye-catching visuals, and concise calls to action.

This aptitude led him to pursue a career in marketing, first beginning as an intern at a US-based company. With some early experience under his belt, Khurram was eager to further enhance his understanding of the industry with additional studies.

After successfully completing an MBA in 2010, he moved to the Middle East to pursue a marketing opportunity. Khurram continued to gain experience in the field, all while broadening his horizons and fortifying his professional path.

In 2018, he moved to the US to pursue a senior managerial position at a company that specialized in the home services industry. It was a role that gave Khurram first-hand insight into the needs and aspirations of US-based home service providers, which eventually influenced his decision to specialize in this niche.

Seemingly at the peak of his career, Khurram faced an unforeseen setback. The company where he worked was forced to downsize during the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the removal of the marketing department and his unexpected job loss. 

This moment marked a significant turning point in Khurram’s story, presenting a unique challenge and an opportunity for change.

"The pandemic happened, and nobody planned for it. I always heard that if you want to start your own company, you’ve got to save up six months of monthly expenses before taking the risk. At that point, there were no savings, and everyone was put into survival mode," Khurram reflects.

Needless to say, it was a tough time with many changes. But it was Khurram’s interest in serving his home services client–a niche he describes as “underserved”–that kept him going and eventually paid off.  

Image: Founder of Digilatics, Khurram Shahzad, speaking at the InspectionGo conference in Maryland, USA.

Local home services businesses thrive by showing up in search results, both organically and through paid advertising. Beyond that, the right marketing strategy is needed to drive qualified lead generation, such as effective copy and an appropriate bidding strategy.

But Khurram noticed that many marketing service providers simply focused on creating a couple of ads, racking up clicks, and calling it a day. Few agencies specialized exclusively in the niche, and those that did seemed to be delivering underwhelming results.

Upon identifying this hole in the market, Khurram set his sights on securing more home services clients and firmly establishing his niche. 

“I wanted my agency to be more than showing just clicks and impressions to the clients. Instead, it all boils down to ‘Digital’ plus ‘Analytics,’ which is how the name Digilatics came about,” Khurram shares.

After six months of working around the clock, Khurram started to secure word-of-mouth referrals from this first successful agency-client relationship. At this point, he began hiring staff and came up with the idea to open two physical offices–one in Pennsylvania and the other in Pakistan. 

Image: A cozy winter view from the Digilatics office terrace in State College, Pennsylvania–an area famously known as ‘Happy Valley’.

Building High-Value Offshore Marketing Support

Despite working around the world, Khurram has always maintained a strong connection with his home country, Pakistan. 

Establishing Pakistani operations seemed natural, given his robust network of personal and business relationships there. Doing so enabled him to leverage his extensive contacts, tap into an international talent pool, and offer significant cost savings to his clients, who are all based in the US and Canada.

“I always worked with Pakistani teams and contractors, even while I was outside of the country. That made me realize I could offer a high level of marketing services in the US but at a more competitive rate,” Khurram says.

“For example, a good SEO expert in the US may charge upwards of three thousand dollars per client. I found a way to offer this same type of service for less than a thousand dollars for the same service. That was my reasoning behind setting up a Pakistan office–to find qualified resources and offer lower-priced services with no quality compromise.” 

Setting up business operations in Pakistan streamlined the process of finding talent abroad, bypassing complex hiring hurdles and ensuring a smoother operational flow. 

Today, the Digilatics team consists of 40+ experts, including Digital Advertisers, Web developers, and seasoned SEO professionals, who often handle specialized parts of client projects. 

“At the Pakistan office, our Ads and SEO specialists have worked on large-scale projects in the US before working with us,” Khurram shares.

Their US-based team focuses on day-to-day client interactions, agency project management, and other aspects of campaign execution, such as local ad creation. Together, both units offer a unique blend of expertise and skills while passing the cost benefits to Digilatics’ clients. 

Image: A few members of the Digilatics team at their office in Pennsylvania.

A proven quality assurance check ensures that there are no internal siloes or oversights before client deliverables are completed. 

This built-in agency process maintains a high caliber of work while also improving Digilatics’ overall efficiency.

A Hands-on Approach to Agency Leadership

As a leader, Khurram remains committed to nurturing the Digilatics team. “We’re not just a clock-in, clock-out company. We encourage our staff to fulfill their dreams. The only thing we expect from them is showing up and being present,” he says.

Despite a packed schedule, he dedicates time to mentoring employees, even offering valuable insights on effective client management.

For example, he often advises employees to break down complex marketing jargon into more digestible terms when speaking with clients. “I encourage my staff to sit back and ask, ‘How would I tell this to a 5-year-old?’ Clear, simple communication ensures things don’t get lost on the other side,” Khurram shares.

Digilatics also prides itself on providing career progression opportunities. In fact, most of their leadership team rose through the ranks by demonstrating great potential. 

This strategy of in-house promotion ensures that each team member feels like they’re growing with the company. 

“As we grow, I want to take the team with me. We have a few examples of team members who have grown up to three times in their roles, with adjusted titles and salaries. As a leader, I’m a sharing and caring person. I want everyone on my team to take a piece and benefit from our accomplishments,” he remarks.  

Even as Digilatics continues to grow, one thing remains a top priority for Khurram–being personable and creating authentic relationships with employees.

Image: Some of Digilatics' team members at a skydiving excursion in Austin, Texas.

That’s his reason for keeping an open-door policy. It’s a way to encourage open communication and eliminate intimidation about interacting with the head of the agency. 

“Everyone has access to me–even the most junior staff in the company. If they have an idea, roadblocks, or anything they’d like to share, they can approach me directly,” he emphasizes.

The Importance of Delegating and Hiring Right

Like all agency leaders, Khurram experienced his share of business growth pains. In the early days of Digilatics, he was used to doing things independently. 

As Digilatics grew, though, it became increasingly important to delegate and pass some of those reins to his team. It was the only way to keep his focus on high-level operations and continue his agency’s growth trajectory. 

“In the beginning, it was a challenge for me to delegate, especially since I never used to do this while working at other jobs. I always had high expectations with handing work over to someone else, and when things were not done in a perfect manner, I had to do it all again myself. It haunted me for a few years,” Khurram admits.

Over time, he learned how to hire the right people and trust them to get the job done. To avoid any hiccups down the line, Khurram plays an instrumental role in vetting resumes. 

“It’s still a challenge to find qualified resources. I noticed that many people learned how to do digital marketing during the pandemic. Some are really good, but many are still in the learning phase. I’m totally supportive of that, but if someone just started in the field and calls themselves a “Marketing Guru” on their resume, it usually doesn’t add up,” he shares.

Even so, Khurram keeps an open mind and has previously hired junior candidates who are willing to learn.

“There’s always room to help and coach people or give them an opportunity before they’ve earned it. If a candidate is really worth it, they’ll always prove it later down the line,” he shares.

Delivering Tangible ROI for the Home Services Niche

Over three years, Digilatics has maintained an impressive 90% client retention rate. Aside from their niche expertise and streamlined operations, there’s another primary reason for their success–delivering on client expectations.

It’s not about fluff and vanity metrics. More often than not, clients simply want to know, “How much ROI did this generate?”

That’s exactly what Digilatics sets out to deliver and show in reporting results. To maintain data transparency, Digilatics gives clients access to a straight-to-the-point dashboard that presents this data in a highly visual way. 

Image: A snapshot of Digilatics’ reporting dashboard that shows ROI to clients.

Aside from delivering these metrics, Digilatics also presents clients with ROI possibilities they haven’t yet capitalized on.

“In some instances, a client may have made 5X ROI, but there was a missed opportunity to make 15X ROI because of a gap in their internal sales process, for example. We share what is driving higher conversion rates across different businesses in the USA with client permission, of course,” Khurram shares.

The stakes are high for many of Digilatics’ clients. With clients spending upwards of $200K a month on advertising, not living up to their full potential “could mean leaving a million dollars on the table,” as Khurram puts it.

It boils down to analyzing each account, showing what results were achieved, and creating actionable ways to fuel that fire. It’s this multifaceted approach that keeps Digilatics’ clients coming back for more.

Creating an Agency Advantage

In 3 years, Digilatics has defied the odds and achieved tremendous growth during an era of global uncertainty. 

“I always wanted to start a marketing agency; it wasn’t an idea that was born in 2020. If you have a calling, sometimes you have to go for it. The worst-case scenario is that it won’t work. The most important thing is just to start,” Khurram shares. 

To sum it up, Digilatics’ agency story is a reminder to: 

• Think outside the box and leverage your existing resources. Whether it’s connections in another country or expertise in a particular industry, use it to create a unique agency approach.

• Invest in your employees, and they’ll invest in your company. Freely share any lessons learned as an agency leader, provide clear paths for advancement, and take a vested interest in all-around professional growth.

• Don’t be afraid to relinquish some control after hiring the right employees. If you’re serious about agency growth, it’s the only way to free up your valuable time and remain focused on high-level operational tasks. 

There isn’t always a right time to pursue your dreams. Sometimes, opportunities knock at unprecedented times.

As Khurram has shown, it’s a chance to reframe your experience, reignite childhood curiosities, and make a business impact.