Research
Last updated: November 2026
Most agencies say their growth engine is not strong enough: 93% of marketing and professional services firms, per the RSW/US 2025 Agency Survey.
DemandOS for Agencies collects the published statistics that explain why founder-led growth stalls and why demand matters, each with its source and conditions. Market numbers belong to the sources named; Tim Kilroy's own figures are labeled as his. Use them to frame decisions, not as promises about any single agency.
According to the RSW/US 2025 Agency Survey (September 2025), as cited by Haus Advisors, 93% of marketing services and professional services firms say their growth engine isn't strong enough.
Haus Advisors also reports more than 71,000 digital agencies in North America alone. In a market that crowded, standing out is a positioning problem as much as a lead problem.
A crowded market (71,000+ North American agencies) and a near-universal sense that the growth engine is weak (93%) point in the same direction: referrals and founder effort alone are not enough.
Margins add pressure. An average 13% after-tax margin in 2025, below the long-run 15%, leaves little room to buy growth through expensive pitching. Expanding existing clients and building demand from the team are cheaper routes.
Treat each figure as context, not a forecast. Read the conditions column: a number for software development firms, or for agencies in one ranking, does not automatically apply to yours.
The most useful numbers are your own. Run the leak test on the sales process page and compare your stage-to-stage conversion with last quarter's, not with an industry average.
Figures are quoted as published. Where a number was cited by a secondary source, both are named.
93%
Of marketing and professional services firms say their growth engine isn't strong enough (RSW/US 2025 Agency Survey, September 2025).
Source: Haus Advisors
71,000+
Digital agencies in North America alone.
Source: Haus Advisors
13%
Average after-tax net margin for digital agencies in 2025, down from a long-run average of about 15% since 2015.
Source: Haus Advisors
33%
Of agencies have fully implemented AI, with 48.5% exploring and 18.5% unsure or with no plan, in a survey of 1,452 agencies.
Source: Promethean Research, 2026 Digital Agency Industry Report
87%
Of digital agencies employ fewer than 50 people.
Source: Promethean Research, 2026 Digital Agency Industry Report
51%
Of B2B software buyers start research in AI chatbots more often than Google (G2).
Source: 100signals
| Statistic | What it measures | Source | Date or conditions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 93% | Firms saying their growth engine is not strong enough | RSW/US Agency Survey, via Haus Advisors | September 2025; marketing and professional services firms |
| 13% | Average after-tax net margin | Haus Advisors | 2025; digital agencies; long-run average about 15% since 2015 |
| 95% | "95% of your market isn't buying IT services right now" | 100signals | Stated for software development and IT services firms |
| $9,000 a month | 100signals' own demand generation program price | 100signals | Four months; application-only |
| 60 to 70% vs 5 to 20% | Probability of selling to an existing client vs a new prospect | Marketing Metrics (Paul Farris), via timkilroy.com | As cited in Tim Kilroy's account growth playbook |
| $23 million | Average gross income of agencies in the report | B2B Marketing, US Agencies Showing the Strongest Growth 2026 | Agencies included in that 2026 US report only |
Usually not on their own, because referrals do not scale on demand. Tim Kilroy notes you cannot decide to get more referrals today; they come from past work and relationships. The RSW/US 2025 Agency Survey, as cited by Haus Advisors, found 93% of marketing and professional services firms say their growth engine is not strong enough.
Longer than lead generation, because demand works on buyers who are not shopping yet. Research cited on timkilroy.com, from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute and LinkedIn B2B Institute, puts about 95% of B2B buyers out of market at any given time. Tim Kilroy's positioning playbook also notes that repositioning takes years, while headlines can change in a week.
No. Lead generation catches the hand that is already raised. Demand generation makes sure your agency is the name buyers think of when they finally have a reason to raise it. Tim Kilroy's content playbook describes the goal as getting into the two to four names that surface when someone says "we need help with this."
Yes. timkilroy.com publishes long-form playbooks on agency sales, discovery calls, positioning, cash flow, follow-up, and account growth, plus a two-minute WTF Assessment. Discovery Lab and Call Lab Instant are listed as free tools. This site summarizes the DemandOS side of that material and links back to the originals.
DemandOS is custom and scoped after a diagnostic conversation, so there is no published flat price. For context, Tim Kilroy's productized programs are listed at $399 a month for Agency Studio and $999 a month for Agency Studio+. Outsourced demand generation is priced differently: one agency's page (100signals) lists $9,000 a month for four months, application-only.
Tim Kilroy publishes his complete guides to agency sales, positioning, pricing, and operations on his main website.
Published by Tim Kilroy
