Building a SaaS Revenue Arm for Your Agency with Shaun Clark of GoHighLevel

Gray MacKenzie interviews Shaun Clark, co-founder of GoHighLevel (HighLevel), about how agencies can build SaaS revenue streams into their business model. GoHighLevel provides an all-in-one platform that agencies can white-label and offer to their clients, covering CRM, marketing automation, website building, funnels, calendars, and more. Shaun shares the strategic thinking behind building a platform specifically for agencies and why adding a software arm fundamentally changes the economics of an agency business.

Why Agencies Should Think Like Software Companies

The traditional agency model has a fundamental vulnerability: service revenue is tied directly to labor, and clients can cancel retainers at any point. Shaun argues that adding a SaaS component to the business changes this dynamic in several important ways.

First, software creates stickier relationships. When a client’s leads, contacts, automations, and workflows live inside a platform you provide, switching costs are significantly higher than canceling a marketing retainer. The tool becomes embedded in their daily operations in a way that services alone cannot match.

Second, SaaS revenue carries higher margins than service revenue. Once the platform is running, each additional client on the software adds revenue without a proportional increase in labor costs. This margin structure improves the overall profitability of the agency and makes the business more valuable to potential acquirers.

Third, the combination of software plus services creates a competitive moat. A pure-play agency competes on service quality and price. A pure-play SaaS company competes on features and price. An agency that offers both has a differentiated position that neither type of competitor can easily replicate.

The GoHighLevel White-Label Model

GoHighLevel was built specifically to address the agency use case. Instead of requiring agencies to build their own software from scratch - a multi-million dollar endeavor with enormous technical risk - GoHighLevel provides a complete platform that agencies can white-label under their own brand.

This means an agency’s clients log into a platform that carries the agency’s name, branding, and domain. The client experience is seamless - they see the agency’s software, not GoHighLevel. Behind the scenes, GoHighLevel handles all the infrastructure, updates, and technical maintenance.

Shaun explains that this model democratizes access to SaaS revenue. Previously, only the largest agencies with dedicated development teams could offer proprietary software. The white-label approach lets a five-person agency offer the same caliber of tooling as a 200-person operation, leveling the playing field and opening up a revenue stream that was previously out of reach.

Increasing Client Retention and Lifetime Value

The retention benefits of adding software to an agency’s offering are substantial. Shaun shares that agencies using GoHighLevel as part of their client package see meaningfully lower churn rates compared to service-only agencies. The reason is straightforward: canceling a marketing retainer means finding a new agency. Canceling a platform means migrating all your data, rebuilding automations, retraining staff, and potentially losing leads in the transition.

This dynamic shifts the conversation from “are we getting enough leads this month?” to “this platform is integral to how we run our business.” The switching costs create a natural retention floor that service-only relationships lack.

Beyond retention, the software layer creates upsell opportunities. Agencies can offer tiered pricing based on features, contacts, or users. As clients grow, they naturally move to higher tiers - expanding revenue without requiring additional service delivery.

SaaS Revenue and Agency Valuation

For agency owners thinking about long-term exit planning, Shaun highlights the valuation implications. Service businesses typically sell at lower multiples because revenue is tied to people and relationships. SaaS businesses command higher multiples because revenue is recurring, margins are higher, and switching costs create predictable retention.

An agency with a meaningful SaaS revenue component blends the best of both models. The service revenue demonstrates expertise and client relationships, while the software revenue provides the recurring, high-margin characteristics that acquirers value. This blended model can meaningfully increase the multiple an agency commands at exit.

Getting Started with a SaaS Offering

Shaun’s advice for agencies considering a SaaS arm is to start with your existing client base. These clients already trust you and are likely paying for individual tools - a CRM here, an email platform there, a landing page builder somewhere else. Consolidating those tools under your own branded platform creates immediate value for the client (simplicity, integration, single point of support) while generating new recurring revenue for the agency.

The launch does not need to be complex. Start by migrating a handful of willing clients, refine the onboarding process, and expand from there. The goal is not to become a technology company overnight but to add a revenue stream that compounds over time alongside your service business.

Resources Mentioned

• Shaun Clark on LinkedIn - Co-founder of GoHighLevel
• GoHighLevel - All-in-one platform for agencies
• HighLevel Spotlight Sessions - Platform walkthroughs and use cases