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May 19, 2017 · 20m · top-founders

664: How Agency Did $750k First Year, Now $100k+/Month with Webris CEO Ryan Stewart

Ryan Stewart · 9m spoken Nathan Latka · 7m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

In this episode of The Top, host Nathan Latka interviews Webris founder Ryan Stewart, who reveals how he scaled his SEO agency from $750,000 in year one to over $100,000 per month through YouTube growth hacking, productized courses, and disciplined team operations.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 44.2% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.8 Guest teaching 4.0 Guest disagreement 2.0 Nathan pushing back 2.7
05100:0010:0020:001:34–4:17 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Webris Agency Business Model and Revenue Milestones Latka methodically extracts Webris's financial metrics, calculating monthly recurring revenue ($100k/mo) and probing Ryan on additional course revenue streams.4:18–6:42 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Driving YouTube Algorithm Engagement and Growth Tactics Ryan details how front-loaded engagement triggers the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Latka pushes Ryan on whether leaving dead links in descriptions is a deliberate hack to force comments, telling him to own it.6:42–9:03 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 YouTube Domination vs. Blogging and Keyword Optimization Strategies Ryan explains why traditional blogging is saturated compared to YouTube video consumption, detailing how he uses clickbait listicles for suggested videos and targeted SEO for blog embeds.9:03–12:35 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Structuring Agency Operations and Sourcing Freelance Writers Ryan outlines his outsourced copywriting operations, explaining why marketing writers require up to $500 per article to satisfy discerning audiences. Latka demonstrates industry knowledge by naming the group moderator of Cult of Copy.12:35–14:59 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Career Pivot from Corporate Consulting and Reinvesting Agency Capital Latka questions Ryan's spent capital on an MBA and personal compensation. Ryan vents about the irrelevance of his business school curriculum and explains capping his own salary at $40k to reinvest in company culture.15:01–18:17 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Klipfolio Dashboard Solutions Following the Klipfolio mid-roll ad read, Latka executes the rapid-fire Famous Five format, asking Ryan to distinguish the exact functional differences between SEMRush and Ahrefs.1:34–4:17 · Guest teaching 2/10 Webris Agency Business Model and Revenue Milestones Latka methodically extracts Webris's financial metrics, calculating monthly recurring revenue ($100k/mo) and probing Ryan on additional course revenue streams.4:18–6:42 · Guest teaching 5/10 Driving YouTube Algorithm Engagement and Growth Tactics Ryan details how front-loaded engagement triggers the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Latka pushes Ryan on whether leaving dead links in descriptions is a deliberate hack to force comments, telling him to own it.6:42–9:03 · Guest teaching 6/10 YouTube Domination vs. Blogging and Keyword Optimization Strategies Ryan explains why traditional blogging is saturated compared to YouTube video consumption, detailing how he uses clickbait listicles for suggested videos and targeted SEO for blog embeds.9:03–12:35 · Guest teaching 5/10 Structuring Agency Operations and Sourcing Freelance Writers Ryan outlines his outsourced copywriting operations, explaining why marketing writers require up to $500 per article to satisfy discerning audiences. Latka demonstrates industry knowledge by naming the group moderator of Cult of Copy.12:35–14:59 · Guest teaching 3/10 Career Pivot from Corporate Consulting and Reinvesting Agency Capital Latka questions Ryan's spent capital on an MBA and personal compensation. Ryan vents about the irrelevance of his business school curriculum and explains capping his own salary at $40k to reinvest in company culture.15:01–18:17 · Guest teaching 3/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Klipfolio Dashboard Solutions Following the Klipfolio mid-roll ad read, Latka executes the rapid-fire Famous Five format, asking Ryan to distinguish the exact functional differences between SEMRush and Ahrefs.1:34–4:17 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Webris Agency Business Model and Revenue Milestones Latka methodically extracts Webris's financial metrics, calculating monthly recurring revenue ($100k/mo) and probing Ryan on additional course revenue streams.4:18–6:42 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Driving YouTube Algorithm Engagement and Growth Tactics Ryan details how front-loaded engagement triggers the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Latka pushes Ryan on whether leaving dead links in descriptions is a deliberate hack to force comments, telling him to own it.6:42–9:03 · Guest disagreement 2/10 YouTube Domination vs. Blogging and Keyword Optimization Strategies Ryan explains why traditional blogging is saturated compared to YouTube video consumption, detailing how he uses clickbait listicles for suggested videos and targeted SEO for blog embeds.9:03–12:35 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Structuring Agency Operations and Sourcing Freelance Writers Ryan outlines his outsourced copywriting operations, explaining why marketing writers require up to $500 per article to satisfy discerning audiences. Latka demonstrates industry knowledge by naming the group moderator of Cult of Copy.12:35–14:59 · Guest disagreement 3/10 Career Pivot from Corporate Consulting and Reinvesting Agency Capital Latka questions Ryan's spent capital on an MBA and personal compensation. Ryan vents about the irrelevance of his business school curriculum and explains capping his own salary at $40k to reinvest in company culture.15:01–18:17 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Klipfolio Dashboard Solutions Following the Klipfolio mid-roll ad read, Latka executes the rapid-fire Famous Five format, asking Ryan to distinguish the exact functional differences between SEMRush and Ahrefs.1:34–4:17 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Webris Agency Business Model and Revenue Milestones Latka methodically extracts Webris's financial metrics, calculating monthly recurring revenue ($100k/mo) and probing Ryan on additional course revenue streams.4:18–6:42 · Nathan pushing back 4/10 Driving YouTube Algorithm Engagement and Growth Tactics Ryan details how front-loaded engagement triggers the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Latka pushes Ryan on whether leaving dead links in descriptions is a deliberate hack to force comments, telling him to own it.6:42–9:03 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 YouTube Domination vs. Blogging and Keyword Optimization Strategies Ryan explains why traditional blogging is saturated compared to YouTube video consumption, detailing how he uses clickbait listicles for suggested videos and targeted SEO for blog embeds.9:03–12:35 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Structuring Agency Operations and Sourcing Freelance Writers Ryan outlines his outsourced copywriting operations, explaining why marketing writers require up to $500 per article to satisfy discerning audiences. Latka demonstrates industry knowledge by naming the group moderator of Cult of Copy.12:35–14:59 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Career Pivot from Corporate Consulting and Reinvesting Agency Capital Latka questions Ryan's spent capital on an MBA and personal compensation. Ryan vents about the irrelevance of his business school curriculum and explains capping his own salary at $40k to reinvest in company culture.15:01–18:17 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Sponsor Spotlight: Klipfolio Dashboard Solutions Following the Klipfolio mid-roll ad read, Latka executes the rapid-fire Famous Five format, asking Ryan to distinguish the exact functional differences between SEMRush and Ahrefs.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 70% · guest 30%0:00 · Nathan 70% · guest 30%3:00 · Nathan 18.6% · guest 81.4%3:00 · Nathan 18.6% · guest 81.4%6:00 · Nathan 35.2% · guest 64.8%6:00 · Nathan 35.2% · guest 64.8%9:00 · Nathan 19.5% · guest 80.5%9:00 · Nathan 19.5% · guest 80.5%12:00 · Nathan 22.4% · guest 77.6%12:00 · Nathan 22.4% · guest 77.6%15:00 · Nathan 71.2% · guest 28.8%15:00 · Nathan 71.2% · guest 28.8%18:00 · Nathan 99.3% · guest 0.7%18:00 · Nathan 99.3% · guest 0.7%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 13:06 Ryan vents about useless MBA coursework

Ryan forcefully criticizes his $50k MBA education, using profanity to question why business schools teach supply chain management when manufacturing is outsourced.

 Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 5:59 Latka challenges Ryan on deliberate dead links

Latka refuses to let Ryan downplay missing description links as an accident, pressing him to admit it was an intentional tactic to drive comment engagement.

 Biggest teaching moment ▶ 6:47 Ryan explains the superiority of YouTube over blogging

Ryan educates Latka on content consumption metrics, arguing that written blogging is saturated and demonstrating how 30 seconds of video view delivers higher user engagement value.

 Nathan holds their own ▶ 10:40 Latka identifies the Cult of Copy founder

When Ryan mentions the niche copywriting Facebook group Cult of Copy, Latka immediately names the administrator Colin, verifying his insider marketing domain knowledge.
the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Webris Agency Business Model and Revenue Milestones 5212 Latka methodically extracts Webris's financial metrics, calculating monthly recurring revenue ($100k/mo) and probing Ryan on additional course revenue streams.
Driving YouTube Algorithm Engagement and Growth Tactics 5524 Ryan details how front-loaded engagement triggers the YouTube recommendation algorithm. Latka pushes Ryan on whether leaving dead links in descriptions is a deliberate hack to force comments, telling him to own it.
YouTube Domination vs. Blogging and Keyword Optimization Strategies 5622 Ryan explains why traditional blogging is saturated compared to YouTube video consumption, detailing how he uses clickbait listicles for suggested videos and targeted SEO for blog embeds.
Structuring Agency Operations and Sourcing Freelance Writers 5533 Ryan outlines his outsourced copywriting operations, explaining why marketing writers require up to $500 per article to satisfy discerning audiences. Latka demonstrates industry knowledge by naming the group moderator of Cult of Copy.
Career Pivot from Corporate Consulting and Reinvesting Agency Capital 5333 Latka questions Ryan's spent capital on an MBA and personal compensation. Ryan vents about the irrelevance of his business school curriculum and explains capping his own salary at $40k to reinvest in company culture.
Sponsor Spotlight: Klipfolio Dashboard Solutions 4312 Following the Klipfolio mid-roll ad read, Latka executes the rapid-fire Famous Five format, asking Ryan to distinguish the exact functional differences between SEMRush and Ahrefs.

Statements from this episode (13)

Disclosure
Stewart: Webris charges a monthly retainer between $5,000 and $6,000
“So we pretty much have like a set retainer model. It's between five and 6000 a month.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 2:00
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Stewart: Webris generated $750,000 in first-year agency revenue
“No, we did about seven 50 the first year for just agency revenue.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 2:52
Disclosure
Stewart: Webris sold 250 link building courses at $1,000 each
“And that's, that sells for about a thousand dollars, and we sold about I don't know, 250 over the last, probably nine to 12 months.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 3:51
Disclosure
Stewart: Organic email and social engagement replaces YouTube advertising
“I don't do any advertising on YouTube, but I've got, like, a pretty good content, like, I know how to rank, I know how to get more views on YouTube, but it's based highly on engagement so I have a pretty good email list, I've got a Facebook group with 10,000 p…”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 4:19
Insight
Stewart: 30 seconds of video attention beats reading an entire guide
“Like if somebody watches 30 seconds of a video, it's far more valuable than somebody reading an entire guide.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 7:13
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Stewart: Webris email list has 10,000 subscribers with 30% open rate
“It's about 10,000 right now. It's got like a 30% open rate. It's a good active list.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 7:37
Insight
Stewart: YouTube discovery relies on suggested feeds and clickbait titles
“People discover videos so much more through the suggested video sheets. So it's really more about grabbing attention with more clickbaitish titles.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 8:33
Disclosure
Stewart: Webris employs 7 local staff and 20 offshore contractors
“Locally we're hiring our seventh person locally here in Miami. And we use, I mean, I'm a big offshore person. We've got probably like 15 to 20 people that we use offshore at any given time, plus, like, some little, some freelancers in the states, too, for, lik…”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 9:06
Assertion Contradicted
Stewart: Cult of Copy Facebook group is a top writer resource
“There's a, there's actually a Facebook group called Cult of Copy. That's got like 10,000 different copywriters in it. It's a really good resource.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 10:22
Disclosure
Stewart: Webris pays upwards of $500 per article for marketing writers
“Like upwards of 500 bucks in the marketing space.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 11:45
Disclosure
Stewart: Spent $50,000 on an MBA before dropping out
“Well, literally, 50 grand.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 13:01
Disclosure
Stewart: Took out only $40,000 in personal disbursements from Webris last year
“40,000 dollars. That's how much I took out in disbursements from the company last year.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 14:05
Opinion
Stewart: Ahrefs excels at link indexing; SEMrush wins for content analysis
“Ahrefs is much better for link indexing. SMRush is much better for content, keywords, tracking, competitors.”
Ryan Stewart May 19, 2017 ▶ 17:03
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