The Hammer Analogy - HighLevel is every hammer

HighLevel is a Toolbox—Pick the Right Tool for the Right Job

Think of HighLevel as a hammer—but not just one kind. It’s a claw hammer, a sledgehammer, a framer’s hammer, a mason’s hammer. You don’t sell a sledgehammer to an electrician. The tool has to match the need.

Your job is to match the business model AND offer to the audience.

The Nine Business Models

I’ve developed a framework I call the Nine Business Models of HighLevel. Here's a high-level summary (pun intended):

Model 0: The Customer

These are end users—businesses using HighLevel to run their operations. Your job is to help them implement HighLevel.

Model 1: Pure Affiliate

You recommend HighLevel to your audience. They sign up, and you earn commissions. Simple and passive—best if you already have a large following.

Model 2: Value-Added Affiliate

You still earn affiliate commissions, but you add bonuses—templates, onboarding, support—that make your offer more valuable.

Models 3–6: The Agency Models

These cover different levels of client engagement.

• Model 6: Marketing Agency
  You provide full-service marketing using HighLevel—copywriting, SEO, email, etc.—but the client doesn’t touch the platform.

• Model 5: Marketing Partner
  Like Model 6, but the client is more involved—like an outsourced marketing department.

• Model 4: SWaS (Software with a Service)
  Clients use the software, but you also run marketing tasks—e.g., reputation campaigns or email sequences—for them.

• Model 3: SaaS Reseller
  Clients fully manage their own accounts. You sell white-labeled HighLevel and offer technical support.

Models 7–9: Support and Expansion

• Model 7: Coach / Consultant / Educator
  You teach others—either agencies or end users—how to use HighLevel effectively.

• Model 8: Support Provider
  You offer onboarding, training, white-label helpdesk support, etc.

• Model 9: Developer
  You build software—integrations or apps—for HighLevel agencies or the app marketplace.

Choosing the Right Model: Fastest vs. Most Stable Path to Cash

People often ask, “Which model is the fastest path to cash?”

The honest answer: it depends.

Let’s look at both “fastest” and “most stable”:

• Pure Affiliate (Model 1):
  If you have a large audience, this might be fastest—but it's often unstable due to high churn.

• Value-Added Affiliate (Model 2):
  Slower upfront, but more stable due to higher user success and lower churn.

• Agency Models (3–6):
  If you already have strong relationships, these can generate high-value sales quickly and provide recurring income. Potentially the most stable services because you are contributing directly to the client company's top line revenue.

• Supporter (Models 7 & 8):
  Helping agencies who use HighLevel serve their customers. Requires a high-level of HighLevel skills and business knowledge. The audience is easy to find; but, they have many people offering to help them.

• Developer (Model 9):
  Potentially high-value, but niche. You’re not selling to small businesses—you’re creating tools for the HighLevel agencies.

Ultimately, the right path is the one that aligns with your audience and your skills.

So… What Business Do You Want to Be In?

Ask yourself:

• Who do you want to serve?

• What problems do they have?

• How can you serve them best using HighLevel?

I’m Keith Besherse, I'm the Bald Guy Marketing. I help business owners using HighLevel (Model 0) and HighLevel agencies (Models 1–9) find the right model, offer, and strategy to succeed.

Alongside Devin Tracy, I also run GHL Business Launch, featuring the OmniHub Challenge, a program designed to help you implement the right business model and launch confidently.

The platform is powerful—but your success depends on how you use it to serve others.

One of the problems with HighLevel is that it can be so many different things to so many different people.

How do you decide what path is best for you?  .

Max Ghezzi, thank you for suggesting the analogy, https://www.linkedin.com/in/maxghezzi .

Many people who are introduced to the HighLevel operating system as a business opportunity approach the market from a product-centric perspective ("how do I sell X"); instead, we need to think in customer-centric terms ("what problem can I solve for A"). "How do I make a no-brainer offer to A?" (Steps 1-3 of the 9-point marketing plan.)

When you can offer many things to many people, narrowing down your offer is essential to avoid shiny object syndrome and sunk cost fallacy.

The hammer analogy.

Overview of the 9 Business Models. The 9 business models as a catalog of products.

Target market for each of the products (business models), client companies vs agencies.

The fastest and the most stable path to $3K+/mo with each business model.

Conclusion: what business do you want to be in, who do you want to serve, how do you want to serve them.

All other things being equal, people buy from people they Know, Like, and Trust: https://youtu.be/zbSs_HYC-PM