Build and handover vs a retainer agency
A retainer agency runs your outbound for you every month, and pipeline stops when the retainer does. A build-and-handover practice like ours builds the system inside your tools, trains your team and hands it over, so it keeps working after we’ve gone.
Updated November 2026
You do. The full system runs in your own accounts and in your name.
Usually the agency. Nothing you own.
There’s no retainer, and everything stays with you after handover. It’s yours to run.
Pipeline stops when the retainer does.
One build, paid in stages. You get a fixed price in your proposal.
Activity, every month.
Your team. AI handles the first touch, and a real person is notified to take over as soon as someone replies.
Usually the agency, as part of the activity it runs for you.
A trained team, and a named owner on your side to keep it running.
The agency runs activity for you every month.
Your team learns the system as it’s built, with a training hub of guides and videos to come back to.
Little to learn, because the agency runs it.
We document everything as we go, and it all stays with you.
What the agency knows stays with the agency.
Groundswell GTM
You do. The full system runs in your own accounts and in your name.
There’s no retainer, and everything stays with you after handover. It’s yours to run.
One build, paid in stages. You get a fixed price in your proposal.
Your team. AI handles the first touch, and a real person is notified to take over as soon as someone replies.
A trained team, and a named owner on your side to keep it running.
Your team learns the system as it’s built, with a training hub of guides and videos to come back to.
We document everything as we go, and it all stays with you.
Retainer agency
Usually the agency. Nothing you own.
Pipeline stops when the retainer does.
Activity, every month.
Usually the agency, as part of the activity it runs for you.
The agency runs activity for you every month.
Little to learn, because the agency runs it.
What the agency knows stays with the agency.
You do. The full system runs in your own accounts and in your name.
Usually the agency. Nothing you own.
There’s no retainer, and everything stays with you after handover. It’s yours to run.
Pipeline stops when the retainer does.
One build, paid in stages. You get a fixed price in your proposal.
Activity, every month.
Your team. AI handles the first touch, and a real person is notified to take over as soon as someone replies.
Usually the agency, as part of the activity it runs for you.
A trained team, and a named owner on your side to keep it running.
The agency runs activity for you every month.
Your team learns the system as it’s built, with a training hub of guides and videos to come back to.
Little to learn, because the agency runs it.
We document everything as we go, and it all stays with you.
What the agency knows stays with the agency.
Groundswell GTM
You do. The full system runs in your own accounts and in your name.
There’s no retainer, and everything stays with you after handover. It’s yours to run.
One build, paid in stages. You get a fixed price in your proposal.
Your team. AI handles the first touch, and a real person is notified to take over as soon as someone replies.
A trained team, and a named owner on your side to keep it running.
Your team learns the system as it’s built, with a training hub of guides and videos to come back to.
We document everything as we go, and it all stays with you.
Retainer agency
Usually the agency. Nothing you own.
Pipeline stops when the retainer does.
Activity, every month.
Usually the agency, as part of the activity it runs for you.
The agency runs activity for you every month.
Little to learn, because the agency runs it.
What the agency knows stays with the agency.
When a retainer agency is the better choice
A retainer agency is likely the better choice if:
You’re running outbound for the first time.
You’re an early-stage startup.
You’d like an agency to run everything for you on retainer.
If that’s you, we’re not the right fit.