**Guest:** Valentin Raspe, founder of Up Collective, a Berlin-based remote performance marketing agency managing ~$1M/month in ad spend for e-commerce brands. After starting in-house as a Head of Growth, he went freelance and scaled into an agency where clients consistently stay for 2+ years, defying industry churn averages.

**Episode Summary:**

In this tactical, no-fluff episode, Valentin reveals the exact systems behind his agency’s industry-leading retention and profitability. He breaks down his strict cost-plus pricing model, how 40–50 living SOPs allow a small team to deliver elite, consistent quality, and his groundbreaking new workflow connecting Two Minute Reports to Claude AI to pre-write weekly client reports in minutes. Plus, get an exclusive walkthrough of his highly anticipated BFCM playbook and his bold vision for rebuilding Up Collective as a fully AI-first agency.

**🎁 Free Resource:** BFCM 2026 Playbook (Google & Meta Ads) ➜ https://drive.google.com/file/d/18ok6...

**Key Topics & Timestamps:**

✅ **(00:07)** Lessons from the in-house side & why platform-reported data often misleads founders

✅ **(02:37)** The 3 reasons clients stay 2+ years: deep context, radical transparency, and over-delivery

✅ **(04:59)** Scaling over-delivery using strict SLAs without losing money or scope creep

✅ **(07:05)** Keeping quality high while hiring: skills vs. cultural fit & onboarding with documentation

✅ **(13:05)** Building the 40–50 living SOPs your team will actually use and keep updated

✅ **(15:23)** Cost-plus pricing explained & the 50% gross margin rule for agency health

✅ **(18:57)** Communication as the ultimate key to retention: how often to actually talk to clients

✅ **(21:23)** Automating weekly reports: The exact Two Minute Reports + Claude AI workflow

✅ **(29:54)** Turning standard SOPs into AI project instructions for scalable, hands-off delivery

✅ **(30:42)** The exclusive BFCM 2026 Playbook walkthrough for Meta and Google Ads

✅ **(36:52)** The future: Rebuilding Up Collective as an AI-first agency

✅ **(43:26)** Valentin’s inspiring journey: What keeps him going (the $5K to $150K story)

**Links & Resources:**

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📌 **Episode Sponsor:** Two Minute Reports ➜ https://twominutereports.com/ (Automate your agency's reporting workflows seamlessly across 30+ platforms)

👤 **Find Valentin:** Website ➜ https://www.upcollective.de | LinkedIn ➜ /valentinraspe

👤 **About the Host:** Paul Jebasingh Emmanuel is the Founder and CEO of GoX.ai and Two Minute Reports, helping agencies and marketers automate reporting workflows.

LinkedIn ➜ /pauljeba | Two Minute Reports ➜ https://twominutereports.com

🎙️ **Listen to Paul’s Agency Podcast:**

YouTube ➜ /@gox-ai | Spotify & Apple Podcasts ➜ [Links in description]

*Disclaimer: Discussions and insights are based on personal experiences and intended for educational purposes only. Results vary by market, execution, competition, and timing—use your judgment and adapt strategies to your specific business.*

**Hashtags:**

#AgencyGrowth #PerformanceMarketing #ClaudeAI #AgencyOwner #EcommerceMarketing #FacebookAds #MetaAds #GoogleAds #SOPs #ClientRetention #BFCM #AIforAgencies #MarketingAutomation #AgencyPodcast #TwoMinuteReports