Whose Client Is It Anyway? Why Loyalty in GHL Agencies Is on Shaky Ground

You spend hours building the perfect onboarding flow. You’ve wrangled domains, fixed DNS records, set up automations that would make Zapier blush, and maybe—just maybe—got your client excited about what’s possible inside GoHighLevel.

And then they leave.

Not because you failed. Not because you ghosted them. But because a Facebook ad promised them “a better version of the exact thing you just built for them.” Cool.

Welcome to the modern GHL agency landscape. Where agency-hopping is a new trend and affiliate links are being binned faster than yesterday’s spam folder.

Let’s talk about what’s going wrong—and more importantly, what we can actually do about it.

1. The Client Handoff Dilemma: Built It, Then Booted

If you’ve been in the HighLevel space for more than a minute, you’ve felt this pain: doing the heavy lifting only for someone else to take the glory. You set up the systems, train the team, create the workflows, and before the dust settles… the client jumps ship to a shiny new agency offering the exact same services, but with slightly better graphics and a smoother sales pitch.

And here’s the kicker: they often leave without even saying why.

They don't cancel because of poor results. They leave because someone else dangles a new carrot. Often built on the foundation you poured the concrete for.

It’s disheartening. It’s frustrating. But it’s also increasingly common.

2. The Community That Cannibalises Itself

HighLevel’s community is vibrant, passionate, and packed with talent. But it’s also become a bit of a feeding frenzy. Everyone’s an expert. Everyone has the “best snapshot.” And everyone’s promoting their affiliate link like it’s Black Friday.

The same group that helps you grow your agency is also a breeding ground for poaching.

Affiliate programs aren’t the problem—in fact, they’re a brilliant growth lever when used properly. But the way they’re used in the GHL world? It can get a bit murky.

Affiliate links often get deleted in Facebook groups, blocked by spam filters, or just lost in the noise. Even when someone does use your link, there’s no guarantee they’ll land with you. You can do all the educating, nurturing, and hand-holding… and someone else gets the credit (and the commission).

So how do we keep things fair?

3. What We’re Doing Differently: Asking Better Questions

In our world, we’ve started keeping things simple and transparent. No sneaky tracking, no awkward affiliate codes. Just two questions when someone comes knocking:

1. Why do you want to transfer?

2. Where did you hear about us?

That’s it.

These questions do two powerful things:

• They help you spot red flags (like clients who habitually agency-hop).

• They give credit to whoever did the hard work of referring or educating the client—even if it wasn’t us.

It’s not perfect. It’s not trackable. But it’s honest. And that feels like a good place to start.

4. Loyalty is Earned… But Also Supported

We’ve all heard “if you deliver great service, they’ll stay.”

Let’s be real: that’s not always true.

Clients are human. They’re influenced by shiny marketing, price drops, peer reviews, and fear of missing out. Delivering amazing support isn’t always enough to keep them locked in. You also need systems in place that make loyalty the default—not the exception.

Some thoughts on that:

• Own your support stack: If you’re leaning too hard on third-party tutorials and generic KBs, your clients will wander. Build your own onboarding experience. Brand it. Own it.

• Make switching painful (in a good way): Not through shady tactics—but by providing so much contextual value (custom automations, reports, support docs) that moving feels like starting over.

• Incentivise transparency: Let your partners and affiliates know they’ll get credit when they refer someone—even without a perfect tracking link. Trust builds loyalty.

5. A Little Respect Goes a Long Way

Here’s what this all comes down to: respect the effort behind the scenes.

Whether you’re the original agency, a new provider, or just someone watching from the sidelines—there’s a lot of unseen work in helping a client get up and running with GHL. Recognising that effort creates better collaboration, stronger referrals, and a more trustworthy ecosystem.

So next time a client wants to jump ship, maybe ask a few questions first.

Maybe don’t poach someone mid-build.

Maybe think about the agency that did the late-night Looms and fixed the broken workflows and explained what the hell a pipeline stage is.

We’re all trying to build something good here.

Let’s not burn each other’s boats while doing it.

Final Thoughts

If you’re a GHL agency owner feeling the sting of churn, know this: you’re not alone. The problem isn’t your work. It’s the Wild West vibes that the GHL ecosystem sometimes encourages.

But with a little more transparency, a little more respect, and maybe just a quick “where did you hear about us?”—we might just fix this together.

Catch you in the next one. And hey, if you are gonna swipe a client… at least send a thank you card 😉