AI Summary
5 min readTwo founders sit down to brainstorm the most profitable AI business ideas, and the conversation quickly lands on a surprising thesis: the best way to capture AI's value right now might not be a software startup at all, but a pay-for-performance agency. One of the speakers, Eric, opens with a story about a friend whose agency does $80 million a year with 30 employees and $30 million in profit, simply by focusing on one industry and running paid ads. The key innovation is the pricing model: instead of charging retainers, the agency offers to run a test and only get paid if the leads convert. "If you're a good marketer, you would charge on performance," Eric argues. Most marketers aren't willing to take that risk, which creates a moat for those who can underwrite the bet. He points to another agency that started small, focused on telecoms, and eventually grew to over a billion in revenue by gift-wrapping customers for AT&T and Verizon. The model works best in industries with high customer acquisition costs — finance, crypto, hotels — where the upside justifies the risk. The trick is to create multiple branded landing pages for different verticals, so if one client cuts ties, you simply shift traffic to their competitor.
AI agents and the Klarna signal
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What you'll learn
- 1 (01:01) **Pay-for-Performance Agency** - Why this model is an exciting startup opportunity right now, with two case studies of successful agencies in different industries.
- 2 (05:11) **AI Agents for Customer Service** - How AI voice agents can replace or augment human teams, with a live demo example and a major company case study.
- 3 (07:04) **Capturing Value: Percentage of Savings vs. Going for Value** - The strategic debate on how to price AI-agent services, with a key insight from a podcast.
- 4 (08:49) **Pay-for-Performance CRO Agency** - A specific model for conversion rate optimization on a performance basis, with a real-world example.
- 5 (09:25) **Smart Contracts for Service Providers** - How blockchain-based smart contracts can solve payment trust issues between agencies and clients.
- 6 (11:34) **Gamifying Work with Crypto Micro-Incentives** - How to use crypto and leaderboards to boost employee engagement and performance.
- 7 (12:55) **Spatial Computing and Gamification** - The potential of Apple Vision Pro and spatial computing for gamifying everyday life.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
I’m joined by Eric Siu, Founder of the digital marketing agency Single Grain. We discuss million-dollar trends and opportunities entrepreneurs should have on their radar right now, including pay-per-performance agencies, AI customer service, AI transformation agencies, and so much more.
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Episode Timestamps
00:00 First business idea: Pay per performance agencies
05:05 Second business idea: AI customer service agencies
09:28 The potential of Smart Contracts
11:35 How to gamify daily life
15:50 Lifestyle trends to have on your radar
20:12 Existing products you can rebrand
23:39 Opportunities for agency owners
25:40 Third business idea: AI transformation agencies
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