Harness & Hone

Harness & Hone is a Digital Consulting Accelerator that has taught dozens of service-based Solopreneurs how to package their core competency into a repeatable, sellable, scalable business.

Unlike other programs, you won't just get advice -- you'll start selling a codified offer in 90 days, shift your business from deliverables to outcomes, and graduate with a level of personal income you've never thought possible.

Founder

1,000 Routes

Join me every week as I explore the stories, learn the lessons, and track the uncommon routes that common Solopreneurs take to get more clients, earn more money, and plant their flag.

Founder & Host

IMPACT

As a creator and member of the marketing leadership team, my main challenge was to create and scale net-new revenue programs to maturity and iterate and improve on existing ones. 

My focus is on creating content programs that truly resonate with our target audience. Guided by qualitative audience and customer research, my aim is to engage them in a way that keeps them coming back for more, whether it's attending events, listening to podcasts, or sharing our content with their peers, we can build a loyal and dedicated following that will support our business for years to come.

Setting the vision and strategy, our challenge was to move internal subject matter experts into leading, well-known thinkers within the sales and marketing category.  

Using a category lens, I guided the creation, refinement, and distribution of IMPACT's category POV and intellectual property. Through our SMEs, we intentionally moved our problem<>solution framing, languaging, and messaging into the marketplace. Primary internal and external channels include podcasts, newsletters, publications, YouTube, and social media.

Responsible for generating Stage 2 pipeline and achieving revenue targets for the Mastery business unit,  as well as all revenue and marketing operations.

Director of Demand

I created the content, campaigns, lead generation strategy, and sales process needed to accelerate the referral and event partner program growth.

I executed joint marketing campaigns for partners (e.g, sponsor booths, courses, promotional videos, speaking engagements, blogs, email, webinars, etc.) in collaboration with our video production team, content manager, and web designer.  Worked with partner teams to develop, plan and execute sales initiatives resulting in 356% revenue growth.

Account Executive, Partnerships & Events

As a HubSpot Certified Trainer, I provided ongoing tool support and training for sales, marketing, and leadership teams for all HubSpot hubs. This includes ongoing 1:1 and 1:many training and workshop sessions. Consistently staying up to date on new features and best practices.

Additionally, I created and executed on inbound sales and marketing strategies for up to 12 clients simultaneously.

HubSpot Enablement Specialist & Inbound Marketing Strategist

Verizon

During my time as a Solutions Specialist, I continually exceeded my monthly sales targets for all mission-critical KPIs including net-new sales, customer renewals, and revenue per transaction.

My core responsibility was to create personalized hardware and software solutions for all customers, B2B and B2C.

Awarded as the #10 salesperson in the New England area. Additionally, I created a peer-to-peer recognition program which was adopted as a standard throughout the region.

Solutions Specialist

Overcome the perception of being a generic, cookie-cutter agency

Most Solopreneurs face the same problems. 

They can’t tell you what they do or how they do it. 

It's taking longer, it's been harder, and most of the time you're picking up clients that aren't a great fit.

You have enough to get by, but you can't say you're successful.

It's kind of a grind.

And if you continue to work the offer you have, **nothing will ever change.**

You know you need a change, but are not sure how to do it **without risking your current customers who are paying the bills.**

Leaving so many talented Solopreneurs questioning why they even started a business in the first place.

The truth is you can’t outwork this problem. With your current offer, more of the same clients will bury you in work, and most won't pay you what you're worth.

Harness & Hone solves that problem. We give you the structured guidance you need to design a service that leverages what you do best, creates tangible value for your clients, and charges for the outcomes you produce.

Nick Bennett

Most solopreneurs frame their offer (and the problem they solve) through a buyer's failure.

"Your pipeline is empty."
"You're struggling to close deals."
"You don't know what to do next."

And they wonder why they only attract desperate buyers with shallow pockets.

I learned this lesson the hard way when I first started helping solopreneurs. 

I tried to hard to articulate a visceral, painful problem.

The response? Tons of engagement from people who needed a parachute.

I saw similar patterns across a few clients, too.

So we reframed the offer (and problem) around a buyer's success.

Suddenly, the quality of conversations changed completely.

→ From failure indicator: "Your website gets no traffic" 
→ To success indicator: "Your website gets 50K visitors/month, but you're only converting 1% when industry leaders in your space are at 3-5%"

→ From failure indicator: "Nobody knows who you are" 
→ To success indicator: "You have strong brand recognition in your niche, but you're struggling to break into the enterprise segment where deals are 10x larger"

→ From failure indicator: "Your sales team keeps missing quota" 
→ To success indicator: "Your sales team is hitting quota, but you're leaving money on the table because your top performers can't scale their approach to the rest of the team"

→ From failure indicator: "You can't afford to hire more salespeople" 
→ To success indicator: "You're profitable enough to expand your team, but you need a system that ensures new hires ramp as fast as your best rep did"

→ From failure indicator: "Your marketing isn't generating any ROI" 
→ To success indicator: "Your marketing generates consistent ROI, but you're capped at your current spend level and can't scale profitably past $X/month"

→ From failure indicator: "You can't deliver on time" 
→ To success indicator: "You're delivering on time, but manual processes mean you can only handle 20 clients when demand exists for 100+"

The difference is simple, but it makes a massive difference in your marketing effectiveness and pipeline strength.

Failure indicators attract people looking for a parachute. 

Success indicators attract people looking for partners.

When you frame through failure, you're fishing in shallow water. 

You get buyers who need all the help in the world but can't really afford it. 

They're trying to stop the bleeding, not build something better.

When you frame through success, you're fishing where the big fish swim. You get buyers who have already proven they can execute. 

They have the means to invest because they've already seen returns.

One frame brings you clients who haggle over every dollar. 

The other brings you clients who ask, "When can we start?"

Most solopreneurs never realize they're filtering their pipeline with their first sentence.

#plantyourflag

Nick Bennett 🏴‍☠️

Digital offer and content creation for scaling solopreneurs | Co-Founder @ Duo

Most solopreneurs never ask themselves, "What am I building toward?"

They just work to the end of the week, wake up on Monday, and do it again.

Getting through the week is the "plan."

And you feel like you're living the same day, over and over and over again.

One day, they wake up and realize they overlooked one of the most important questions in business.

But if it's so important, why do most solopreneurs skip it entirely?

Because casting a vision feels indulgent, impractical, too "woo-woo," or too overwhelming. 

You've got clients to serve, content to create, and revenue to generate. 

You don't have time to sit around pondering your ideal life when there are deadlines to hit.

Plus, the conventional business wisdom is clear: focus on the metrics. 

Revenue, growth, and scale matter most. Vision is something you figure out later, once you've "made it."

Except that's exactly backwards.

Success doesn't magically cure your limiting beliefs. 

It exposes them.

And it usually leads to a point where you wonder, "Is this what I actually want?"

It's easy to put off vision work because it's confronting and challenging. 

But if you want to escape Groundhog Day, chart a course beyond the end of the week.

#plantyourflag

Most solopreneurs get stuck in the Recognition Gap because they haven’t made a clear decision about what they want to be known for. 

They rely on word of mouth, custom-scope every project, and try to grow a business without ever getting anchored to the one thing they do best.

In our experience, this happens because we’re scared. 

Scared of prospects thinking we can’t do more than advertised. 

Scared of losing hard-won skills to atrophy. 

Scared of being seen as unable or unwilling to solve versatile problems.

The result is a business that evaporates the moment referrals slow down.

Worst of all, most referrals come in ice cold without context for who you are, how you think, or what problem you solve.

(Not ideal when you're trying to standardize what you do.)

But they do bring in money, which is why too many solopreneurs miss the Recognition Gap signs:

→ You can’t articulate what problem you solve (or who it’s for) in a clear and consistent way

→ Most of your work comes from referrals, and the few cold inbounds seem like miracles

→ You dread when a client leaves because you realize there’s no process to backfill clients

If nobody beyond your bubble knows what you do—or how you think—you don’t have a sustainable business.

Being good at what you do is required; it isn’t enough to hedge against risk.

If your only marketing channel is “people who already know me," your business is one slow season away from chaos. 

That's incredibly stressful. 

And it's why you can be at $20K, $30K, even $50K+ months and still feel like your business could evaporate overnight.

It’s deceiving because you’re busy, making good money, and are excellent at your work. Until one day you look up and…

Panic.

#plantyourflag

Has your agency become a ball and chain, drowning you in a prison of your own making?

Wow. That's dark. 

Let's continue...

You started this business because you felt unemployable. 

The cubicle wasn't your fit. Yet, bills don't pay themselves. And while you can deliver work with the best of them, you've chosen one of the hardest businesses to make profitable.

Sound familiar?

◾Your team bombards you with questions they should answer themselves
◾Every decision, no matter how small, must pass through you
◾You're constantly hunting for leads, praying your marketing will work
◾Prospects haggle over price and services in your never-ending sales cycle
◾You feel compelled to chase shiny tactics just to keep up with competitors

And forget dreading Mondays—you're working through weekends.

Imagine:

What if your business could run itself? 
What if your Slack icon could stay on "away"? 
What if you didn't question why you started your agency in the first place?

Picture stepping away, and your agency still thrives. No more daily chaos. No more shackles.

Running an agency demands focus and energy. Resources that dwindle as you age. 

With mounting bills, kids, and responsibilities you didn't have a decade ago, it's crucial to install the right systems. You can't rely on sheer force to drive your business forward.

You need systems that deliver:

◾A proactive team that solves problems before they reach your desk
◾Offers that flood your pipeline, closing faster and with larger contracts
◾Organizational efficiency so solid that vacations become part of your quarterly rhythm

This isn't a pipe dream.

A powerful lesson from my Army days: If you know what you're up against and what resources you have, there's always a path to success.

Right now:

◾You know your challenges.
◾You know your resources.

I've got the map to get you there.

There's a way to run an agency without sacrificing relationships, sleep, and well-being. 

In as little as 3 months, you can shift your agency from "founder-driven" to "founder-led." 

You choose the direction. The agency follows. All without breaking your back carrying the business.

You can break free from the reactivity plaguing agency owners.

Ready to reclaim your freedom and transform your agency?

If you're interested in:

➡️ Becoming a talent accelerator that makes your agency more effective, efficient, and enjoyable
➡️ Leaning into your strategic expertise to increase revenue with less effort
➡️ Leveraging existing assets to achieve your goals faster

Shoot me a DM to get started. Your journey begins with a conversation.

Chris DuBois

Agencies: Stop trying to "productize" your service.

It's the fastest way to devalue your expertise and compete on price. There's a much better way.

I was talking with an agency owner that was wrestling with this.

His work is deeply contextual and it requires getting into the weeds with each client.

"How can I create a system when every client's situation is unique?"

It's the classic expert's dilemma.

You want to grow, but you're afraid that creating a process will kill the personalized value that makes you great.

The breakthrough isn't about creating a rigid product.

It's about shifting your thinking.

Stop trying to "productize" your service. Start "standardizing" it.

Here's the difference:

Productized feels like a one-size-fits-all box. 
It implies everyone gets the exact same thing, which rarely works for complex, creative, or strategic services

Standardized is about creating a reliable system with a flexible execution. 
You define the core steps, the required inputs for each step, and the expected outputs

The journey through those steps can adapt to the client's context, but the framework remains the same.


You're not selling a toothbrush, where every unit is identical.

You're building a system that guides different users to a consistent, high-quality outcome.

This is how you scale your wisdom, not just your time.

Helping marketing agencies gain control of their pipeline | Positioning + Marketing Engines for Sub-$1M Shops

I almost didn’t make it into the Army.

During college, while still in ROTC, I had a hiking accident that left me stranded on a mountain overnight in -70° temperatures.

This brought on some severe frostbite in my feet and it took months before I could walk again.

That was my senior year, when I should’ve been preparing to commission. 
Instead, I was bandaging my feet every day and trying to convince the Army to let me stay.

My cadre did everything they could to help me stay in. The final requirement: pass a PT test.

Push-ups? No problem. 
Sit-ups? Easy. 
Two-mile run? A nightmare.

I ran with my feet still wrapped, bleeding through my shoes by the end, but I passed. 

Barely.

And it was worth it.

That choice changed everything.

I’ve lived in Alaska and Georgia, met incredible soldiers and leaders, and built a family along the way.

I still serve in the Army Reserve, and I’m endlessly grateful for what this journey has given me.

I’ve no idea where I’d be today without my time in the service. But I do know that I’m better for it.

Happy Veterans Day to my father, my grandfather, and every man and woman who has ever worn the uniform. 🇺🇸

#VeteransDay #Leadership #Service

PS - Here. One of my former soldiers in the Reserve ran a film studio, so he recorded our battalion change of command ceremony. Enjoy.

We’ve officially wrapped the All-In Agency Summit.



Working replay links have been sent out so everyone who registered can bask in the brilliance of our presenters.

I want to give a huge thanks to all of those who helped make this happen.

First, the presenters:
Karl Sakas, Sean Lang, Dan Englander, Kurt Schmidt, Garrett Jestice, Marcel Petitpas, Ali Newton-Temperley, Alex James, Carl Smith, Dustin Riechmann 🔥, Logan Lyles, Danielle Fauteaux, Jack Porter-Smith, Steve Guberman

I have PAGES of notes from you and I was only on Stage 1. Gotta hit the replays. 

Second, massive thanks to our co-host and MC, Nick Salvatoriello. Literally couldn't have ran the event without you. 

Third, thanks to our sponsors: 
Mallow, Gia AI, Rize (rize.io)

These are tools I personally use and recommend. Go check them out. 

Finally, thanks to all the people who registered, attended, and joined in the discussion. 

It was a blast and I'm looking forward to next spring's event. 

If you attended, I'd love feedback so we can keep making this better. I'll drop a link in the comments for where you can share. 


Now, I need a nap.

Hiring is one of the strongest buying signals in B2B.

We just weaponized it for agencies.

In case we don’t know each other, hi, I’m Chris.

One of the things I’m running right now is the Dynamic Agency Community.

It’s a lot of fun, and there are a lot of super smart people in there.

BUT…you’re going to love one of our newest features.

The Dynamic Agency OS has partnered with Gia.

They’ve got a great product for agencies to help with content creation and surfacing buying signals to know when you should reach out to potential prospect.

I use the tool daily.

Well, their team just installed an app in our community Slack that hunts down companies currently hiring, and gives you the links to reach out.

We’ve selected the types of companies and the open positions based on a poll within the community (and can add with user requests). 

The idea is, if someone’s hiring for a position that your agency could help fill, you can reach out to the company with an offer.

Hiring signals are an awesome external trigger, and I’ve known some agencies that do this tediously through Indeed/ZipRecruiter. 

They hunt down companies in their ICP that are hiring for the service they offer, and then they reach out.

Thanks to Gia, we’re making it easier.

New signals are posted multiple times a day.


The community is only a hundred bucks per year, and we have a BFCM deal going.

Buy a membership, and you can give one to your favorite agency leader for free.

Want to buy some for your whole team? Let’s chat.

Add in the expert advice, the resources, and the peer referrals, and it’ll be some of the best money you spend this year.

#agencies #community

PS - We even had a guy learn to solve a Rubik's Cube because of the community. How’s that for a party trick?

Most agencies don’t have a marketing problem.

They have a referral reliance problem.

They’ve grown on reactive referrals. Clients who “just show up” when someone happens to mention their name.

And that’s a fine way to start.

But it’s a terrible way to scale.

Because when you rely only on reactive referrals, you never know where your next deal is coming from.

You’re just… waiting.

Here’s how to fix that.

Instead of chasing every new marketing trend, focus on two things: discovery and trust-building.

Step 1: Identify where your audience goes to discover solutions.

Ask: Where are they actively looking for answers?

It might be Reddit, Google, YouTube, or a specific community.

That’s your discovery channel.


Step 2: Know where they go to build trust.

Once they find you, where do they actually go to learn more and decide if you’re credible?

Maybe it’s LinkedIn, your podcast, or your newsletter.

That’s your trust-building channel.


Step 3: Build a bridge between them.

Create content that moves people from the discovery channel into your trust-building channel.

Make it effortless for them to explore your world and understand your point of view.


When you do this, you stop relying on random referrals…
and start attracting people who actually want to hear from you.

That’s how you build a predictable pipeline.

Not by copying “best practices,” but by aligning with how your buyers really behave.

#agencymarketing

PS - I’m launching a cohort as soon as we fill all 5 slots. If you want to nail your positioning so you can gain control of your pipeline, shoot me a DM.

A lot of agencies still think, “If I just pick the perfect niche, everything will click.”

It used to work.

Find a super specific audience and the clients would roll in.

Today the market is so crowded that niche alone is not a strategy. 

It's a starting point.

Here's what I recommend you do:

1. Find a niche with a real problem

Pick people you actually want to work with and confirm they’re dealing with a clear, painful issue.

Not a vague annoyance. A real problem.

2. Nail your positioning

This is the part most teams ignore.

How do you want to be perceived?

What do you believe about the problem that others in your niche don’t?

Your point of view is what makes you stand out when three other agencies show up to the same conversation.

3. Build an offer that reflects that positioning

Your delivery, your promise, your packaging

It all needs to match the identity you want to project.

Your offer should feel like the natural expression of what you stand for.

When you do this, you don’t get selected because you picked the “right” niche.

You get selected because you show up in the right way for that niche.

#marketing #positioning #agencylife

PS - Black Friday deal for the Dynamic Agency Community. 

Purchasing an annual membership (only one hundo) lets you gift an annual membership.

What a nice way to help an agency owner in your life. 🎅

Agencies keep obsessing over building a signature framework.

But your framework is not the differentiator.

Everyone copies the good ones anyway.

I’m watching it happen in real time, right now, with a successful agency. 

Others are literally copying their frameworks and models without even editing the colors of the graphics. 

Now, they all sound identical and the only weapon left is a cheaper price. 

That’s not differentiation.

True differentiation starts with your positioning. 

Your positioning shapes your point of view. 

It defines how you'll deliver your offer and engage with clients. 

It guides your messaging and how your team makes decisions. 

A framework is still useful. It just won’t set you apart.

Your positioning will. 


We're launching another cohort with the Dynamic Agency OS to help agencies map their niche, nail their positioning, and create compelling offers they can take to market. 

If you want more information, hit me with a DM. 

We cap at five agencies per cohort and only have a couple of slots remaining.

Fun fact: you can disagree over the "right" way, without anyone being "wrong."

There's no ONE way to solve most business problems.

We all have different experiences and ideas that can get us to the same destination.

Your point of view in how to do that is at the core of your positioning.

"Many people believe X. I believe Y because Z."

Your belief structure is what attracts people.

If it doesn't resonate, there's probably a different method that would work better for them.

And if they're not bought in to your belief, they'd probably be a hard client to work with anyways.

This isn't to say you can't market to people with different beliefs. Shifting beliefs is part of marketing.

We just need to acknowledge that because a competitor has a different way of doing things, it doesn't mean they're wrong.

They're the best fit for someone who aligns with their thinking and fits their context required for success.

#agency #positioning

PS - if you believe your positioning is more than a niche and offer, and you want to take control of your marketing, we're kicking off a cohort to help you do just that.

DM for details.

A lot of agencies think delegation is about clearing your plate.

Hand off the tasks.

Buy back your time.

Feel like a “real” leader.

What I feel everyone misses is that delegation is really about improving your speed-to-informed.

When you put someone in a leadership role, it's not just so they can manage the people below them.

It's so they can gather information, filter it, and pass it up to you in a way that lets you make better decisions faster.

Great leaders are not protected from information.

They are fed the right information at the right time.

And that only happens when you have people on the ground who know what to look for and know how to send it upstream clearly.

So no, delegation is not a luxury.

It’s not even about reducing stress.

It’s about improving the velocity and quality of your decision-making.

Because the sooner you are informed, the sooner you can adjust, pivot, or course correct.

Our decisions are rarely limited by time.

They’re limited by information.

So, you want to operate at a higher level?

Stop delegating tasks.

Start delegating visibility.

The faster you can collect the right information, the easier it is to win.

#agencylife #leadership #operations

PS - Want to really improve your speed-to-informed? That’s the metric I prioritize in the Dynamic Agency Community.

Not conversations. Not active users.

I track how fast we can get an answer to someone’s question, so you’re never blocked in your growth.

We’re running a BOGO offer for all memberships until December 1st, so you can gift your favorite agency leaders.

Agencies, let me give you free content ideas for a month.

All it takes is five minutes of your time.

Your point of view is what helps you stand out as an agency.

It's what actually differentiates you as a potential solution.

Because when everyone else is saying the same things, the buyer has to base their selection on price and deliverables.

So, I created a simple GPT to help you pull out your thoughts in a way that will resonate with your buyers.

It only takes three steps.

1/ Tell it about your ICP.
2/ Tell it the topic you want to address.
3/ Give it your thoughts on the topic.

The GPT will then outline all of the conventional wisdom your ICP has around that topic and provide you with ideas for where your perspective can flip that conventional wisdom.

Like with everything you do using AI, context matters. So I'd recommend using a tool like Wispr Flow and speaking all of your thoughts into the GPT.

Tell it everything you can about the ICP, everything you can about the topic, and don't hold back on your point of view.

It'll then give you 20 ideas for content you could create this month.

Link is in the comments. You're welcome in advance.

#agency #content #positioning

PS - And if you like little GPTs like this, I'm constantly creating simple tools and adding them to the Dynamic Agency Community.

And that community could be the best $100 you spend this year.

taplio

The Battle

Nick Bennett

Chris DuBois

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreNick Bennett's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreChris DuBois's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Nick Bennett

Chris DuBois

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Nick Bennett's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreChris DuBois's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreNick Bennett's LinkedIn Performance