Client Onboarding Is Where Scope Creep Starts
Scope creep doesn't start in month three. It starts in week one, when the boundaries aren't established clearly enough to notice when they're moving.
A
Amelia S. Gagne
CEO and co-founder of Kief Studio. Full-stack developer and strategist. Perplexity AI Business Fellow. In tech since 2012.
https://ameliasgagne.com146 articles
If the Recommendation Came Before the Questions, It's Not Advisory
If a specific product is named before there has been a substantive conversation about your current environment, that is a sales motion presented as advisory. The framing may sound consultative. The process isn't.
What to Ask Your Vendors About Security
Your vendor's security posture is part of your security posture. When they have access to your systems, your data, or your clients — their breach is your breach.
What Client Retention Actually Measures
Retention is often described as a metric. It's actually a verdict — the aggregate judgment of clients who had options, and chose to stay.
Internal Linking Is the Most Underused SEO Tactic (And It's Free)
Adding 2-3 contextual internal links per page consistently improves rankings for the linked pages within 2-3 weeks. We've measured it across every client site we manage.
How We Test What Works: A/B Testing SEO Across Platforms and Budgets
We manage many websites across different industries, platforms, and budgets. That gives us something most agencies don't have: a testing lab with real traffic and real data.
Behavioral Analytics: What Your Website Visitors Are Telling You That Google Analytics Can't
Google Analytics tells you what happened. Behavioral analytics tells you why. The difference between the two is the difference between data and insight.
What I Got Wrong About Hiring
The contractor-first assumption, the "culture fit" shorthand, and hiring before the process exists. Three beliefs that cost more than the headcount they were meant to optimize.
Local SEO for Businesses That Operate Across Multiple Locations
Local SEO isn't just for restaurants and dentists. Any business that serves clients in specific geographic markets — including technology studios — benefits from location signals.
Pricing for Value, Not Time
Hourly pricing aligns your incentive with speed and the client's incentive with volume. Value-based pricing aligns both with outcomes. The math isn't close.
Data Governance for Growing Companies: Where to Start When Everything Is Scattered
Your data is in four SaaS tools, three spreadsheets, and someone's email. That's normal. Here's how to fix it without stopping the business.
What Building for Regulated Industries Actually Requires
Cannabis, healthcare, legal services, financial services — regulated industries share a common technical problem: the software has to be right in ways that are verifiable, auditable, and defensible. That changes how you build.