The Hidden Cost of Overdelivering in Your Agency
As a boutique agency founder, going above and beyond for your clients probably feels like a badge of honor. After all, you built your business on delivering high-quality work and being “the reliable one.”
But what happens when that generosity starts eating into your time, your profit margins, and your team’s capacity?
Let’s talk about the quiet cost of over-delivery—the kind that doesn't show up on your invoice but still takes a toll on your business.
What Over-delivery Really Looks Like
At first, it might feel like you're being service-forward:
The scope creep you didn’t flag because it “wasn’t a big deal”
The “quick fix” that turned into a 3-hour rabbit hole (okay, more like 10)
The Slack message that spiraled into a two-hour strategy call
Individually, these might seem harmless. Together, they represent a larger issue: a lack of boundaries.
And that lack is quietly draining your agency.
The Real Cost of Doing Too Much
Overdelivery isn’t just about time—it comes with deeper consequences:
✖ Your time: Spent on unscoped or unpaid work
✖ Your team’s trust: When expectations shift, your team feels the pressure
✖ Your profit margins: You’re giving away value you haven’t priced in
When we work with creative agency founders at Le Chelie, we often uncover that 30–50% of their time is spent on things they didn’t charge for:
Unbilled work
Drawn-out, unstructured sales processes
Team members burned out from unclear boundaries
This isn’t a one-off problem—it’s a structural one.
Le Chéile helps creative agencies like you deliver with excellence—without overextending your team.
Excellence Doesn’t Require Overextension
Let’s be clear: this isn’t about cutting corners or lowering your standards.
It’s about delivering what you promised—with excellence—and pricing accordingly.
When your scope is clear, your team is empowered, and your clients know what to expect, you create a stronger business:
One that’s more efficient
More profitable
And more sustainable in the long term
Ready to Reclaim Your Time?
If you’re constantly overdelivering and still feel behind, it’s time to look at your offer suite, your boundaries, and your pricing strategy.
Because real growth doesn’t come from doing more.
It comes from doing what matters—intentionally, and with clarity.
About the Author
Meredith Fennessy Witts,
Founder & Strategic Growth Advisor at Le Chéile
and Co-Host of Agency Darlings
With a background in financial and operational consulting and a successful track record of founding and scaling her own agency, Meredith brings deep expertise in strategic growth for indie creative and digital agencies.
Her company, Le Chéile, helps agencies scaling toward and beyond 1M+ in revenue to rightsize teams and payroll, increase founder pay, scale offers and packages and more. She helps clients to achieve their goals while clarifying their business strategy and finances.
She is a trusted authority on building mindful, profitable businesses—especially for underserved founders in the women, LGBTQ+, and BIPOC communities.