How this marketing agency scaled 6,812% and eliminated late payments with Ignition
Leaders Online was scaling rapidly—but with growth came inefficiencies, like time-consuming manual invoicing and proposal management. Founder Katie Thomas, CPA knew she needed a smarter, automated solution to streamline operations, eliminate accounts receivable, and free up time to focus on client growth and strategy. That’s when she turned to Ignition.
Leaders Online's playbook for business success as a marketer
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Leaders Online's playbook for business success as a marketer
“Ignition grows with you and scales with you. The business has grown so much, and having a tool that automates proposals and payments has been a game-changer.”
Katie Thomas, CPA, Founder of Leaders Online
The challenge: simplifying contracts and payments for a growing business
As a CPA-turned-marketer, Katie Thomas understands both the technical side of accounting and the marketing strategies needed to help accounting firms thrive in a digital-first world. That’s why she launched Leaders Online, a marketing agency built specifically to help CPA and accounting firms grow their brand, expand their thought leadership, and attract high-quality clients.
Leaders Online offers a full suite of marketing services, including:
- Inbound and outbound marketing strategies
- SEO and content development
- LinkedIn and social media growth
- PR and thought leadership positioning
- Multi-channel marketing campaigns
- Podcast production
- Fractional chief marketing officer services
With a niche focus on accounting firms, Katie and her team work directly with managing partners and marketing directors to implement custom marketing solutions designed to increase visibility and generate leads. But while Leaders Online was rapidly growing, Katie found herself spending too much time on administrative work—especially on proposals, contracts, and payments.
“I wanted to solve three key things: sending proposals with ease, attaching the payment to the acceptance of a contract and making recurring payments seamless,” Katie explains.
At the time, she was using QuickBooks, which required her to manually generate invoices, track payments, and follow up on outstanding balances. Setting up recurring payments was a tedious multi-step process, and ensuring that payments were correctly processed added an extra layer of administrative work.
For a lean team of just four full-time employees and a network of contractors, every minute spent on admin was taken away from serving clients and growing the business.
“It was just a pain,” she recalls. “I had to go in and set everything up manually. There was always that risk of human error, which that impact cannot be understated.”
With 30+ monthly clients across the US and Europe, ranging in revenue from $1 million to $90 million, Katie knew that if she wanted to scale further, she needed a smarter solution for proposals, contracts, and payments.
The solution: Automating contracts and payments with Ignition
A year into running her business, Katie discovered Ignition, which turned out to be exactly what she needed.
“I signed up in 2020 because at the time it was the most simplified offering that had contracts and payments all in one,” Katie shares. “And it's just continued to get better and better over time. Any time I’d think, ‘I wish we could do this,’ it’d be in the software before long.
By implementing Ignition, Leaders Online completely transformed its sales and billing workflow:
- Proposals became effortless. Instead of manually creating agreements and waiting for clients to approve them, Ignition allows Leaders Online to send digital proposals with clear scope, pricing, and payment terms.
- Payments were automated. Once a client signs the proposal, Ignition automatically captures payment details and schedules recurring billing—eliminating the need for manual invoicing.
- Accounts receivable were almost entirely eliminated. With payment collection tied to proposal acceptance, Katie no longer had to chase down invoices or manually reconcile transactions.
“Ignition allowed us to set clear expectations with clients upfront,” Katie says. “Everything is outlined in the proposal, so there’s no confusion about what’s included, and we’re not dealing with scope creep.”
Instead of wasting time on administrative tasks, Katie and her team were now free to focus on what they do best: helping CPA and accounting firms grow their brands and businesses.
Delivering efficiency at scale
For Leaders Online, the impact of Ignition has been nothing short of transformational.
- Since implementing Ignition, the business has grown an astonishing 6,812.62%.
- Every proposal now takes minutes instead of hours—saving an estimated one hour per proposal sent.
- Recurring payments are completely automated, ensuring almost zero accounts receivable and predictable cash flow.
- Katie’s lean team of 4 full-time employees and several contractors can handle more clients without increasing admin work.
“If you think about it, every time a proposal is sent, we save an hour,” Katie explains. “Multiply that across multiple clients, and that time savings is huge. Plus, because our clients typically stay with us for years, we’re not just saving time upfront; we’re also saving time on billing and renewals month after month. It’s a massive efficiency gain that frees us up to focus on delivering great work instead of chasing paperwork.”
This efficiency has been a critical driver of Leaders Online’s success. With Ignition handling the administrative heavy lifting, Katie and her team have been able to scale rapidly without increasing their workload.
“Ignition grows with you and scales with you,” she says. “The business has grown so much, and having a tool that automates proposals and payments has been a game-changer.”
Leaders Online's playbook for business success
Discover how to run the smartest business
Leaders Online's playbook for business success as a marketer
A business built for growth
Leaders Online has grown into a thriving, high-performing business by focusing on efficiency, automation, and delivering real value to its clients. By streamlining proposals, contracts, and payments, Katie and her team have been able to eliminate administrative bottlenecks and dedicate more time to scaling their services and expanding their reach.
Looking ahead, Katie is focused on continuing to grow the business strategically—expanding services, strengthening brand awareness, and refining internal processes to run an even leaner, more efficient operation. For other business owners looking to free up time and create a more scalable, stress-free business model, she offers this advice:
"If you’re spending time manually sending invoices, tracking payments, or chasing down contracts, Ignition will save you hours. It’s been a massive time-saver and growth enabler for us."
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