Today, I'm going to show you how to turn
one simple platform into your own
software company. Yeah, you heard that
right. Not an agency, not a service
business, a full-blown software company
that brings in money every single month
while you sleep. This is the model that
smart agencies are switching to right
now. And most people have no idea this
even exists. We're talking about taking
existing software, white labeling it
under your own brand, and charging
monthly subscriptions like you built it
yourself. This is one of the easiest
ways to build real recurring revenue in
2025. and I'm breaking down exactly
which platform I'm using and how to set
it up step by step. Hey there. So, if
you haven't already noticed, I'm Nick
Ponte's AI avatar. While the real Nick
is busy helping businesses with Mina
Marketing, Hawaii's fastest growing
marketing agency, I'm here dropping the
latest AI hacks, tools, and money-making
strategies. The Real Nick reads every
single comment on these videos, so make
sure you comment below. And listen, if
you're serious about landing some AI
subscription-based customers, grab my
four-part AI FastTrack training that I
am currently offering for free. The
links in the description. All right, now
let's get into it.
Let me just say this upfront. When I was
working full-time as a mechanic, I never
thought I'd be talking about building
software companies. I was changing oil
and fixing transmissions. But one tool
completely changed everything for me. It
let normal people like you and me build
actual tech businesses without knowing
how to code. That's wild when you think
about it. The platform I'm talking about
is high level. And here's what most
people get wrong about it. They think
it's just another CRM tool. They use it
to manage their own clients, send some
emails, maybe build a funnel or two.
That's fine, but you're leaving so much
money on the table. It's actually
insane. The real play is SAS mode. And
no, I'm not talking about selling highle
as an affiliate. I'm talking about
turning your entire agency into a
software platform that clients pay you
for every single month. Think about it
like this. Right now, if you're running
a traditional agency, you're trading
time for money. Client needs a funnel,
you build it. They need email campaigns,
you set it up. Every single thing
requires your time. That model has a
ceiling. There's only so many hours in a
day. But when you flip to a SAS model,
you're selling software access. You set
it up once and then you can sell it to
10 clients, 50 clients, 100 clients,
same platform, same setup, different
logos and colors for each client. The
work doesn't multiply, but the income
does.
Here's how this actually works. High
Level has something called SAS mode
built right into the platform. When you
turn this on, your agency account
becomes a white label software platform.
That means everything gets branded with
your company name, your colors, your
logo. When your clients log in, they see
your brand everywhere, not high levels,
yours. This is huge because now you're
not just some agency reselling someone
else's tool. You're positioned as the
software provider. You become the
platform and clients pay you directly,
not high level. You control the pricing,
the packaging, everything. So, let's
talk about how to actually set this up.
First thing you need to do is activate
SAS mode in your highle dashboard. It's
literally just a toggle switch. Once
that's on, you get access to all the
white label features, upload your logo,
set your color scheme, and connect a
custom domain. So, clients access
everything through your website. This
part is critical because perception is
everything. If clients see highle
branding, they might Google it and
realize they can just buy it directly.
But when everything is branded as your
platform, they see you as the tech
company.
Now, here's where it gets interesting.
You need to create your packages. Most
people just throw together random
pricing and hope it works. That's
backwards. You want to build tiered
plans that make sense for different
types of businesses. Think starter, pro,
and premium levels. Your starter plan
might be around $97 a month. That gets
them basic CRM access, email marketing,
and maybe some simple automations. Your
pro plan could be 2.97 per month with
SMS marketing, appointment booking, and
more advanced workflows. Then your
premium plan at $4.97 or even $9.97 per
month includes everything plus AI tools,
unlimited users, and priority support.
The beauty of tiered pricing is it gives
clients options. Some will start at the
bottom and upgrade as they grow. Others
will jump straight to premium because
they need those features right away.
Either way, you're collecting monthly
recurring revenue. And here's the
kicker. Your costs with high levels stay
pretty flat. So, as you add more
clients, your profit margins get better
and better. If you're finding this
valuable, make sure to hit that like
button and subscribe. The real Nick
Ponty reads every single comment on
these videos. So, drop a comment below
and let me know what kind of recurring
revenue you're trying to build. And hey,
if you're serious about taking your
business to the next level, grab my
four-part AI FastTrack training that I
am currently offering for free. It also
includes a link to try out the highle
software I'm talking about in this video
for 30 days free. the links in the
description.
All right, so you've got your branding
set up and your pricing packages ready.
Next step is automating the money part.
You need to connect Stripe to your
Highle account for payment processing.
This is what lets you charge clients
automatically every month without
lifting a finger. Once Stripe is
connected, clients sign up on your
website, pick their plan, enter their
payment info, and boom, they're in. They
get instant access to their branded
dashboard, and you get paid. No invoices
to send, no chasing people down for
payments. It's all automatic. You can
even set up trial periods if you want.
Give people seven days or 14 days free
to test drive your platform. Studies
show that once someone starts using
software and gets their stuff set up
inside it, they're way more likely to
stick around and pay. Now, let's talk
about onboarding because this is where a
lot of people drop the ball. You can't
just give someone access and disappear.
They need to know how to use your
platform. The good news is you can
automate most of this, too. Set up a
welcome email sequence that goes out
automatically when someone signs up.
Include video walkthroughs showing them
exactly how to use the main features. To
make it super simple, HighLevel has
these things called snapshots, which are
basically pre-built templates. You can
create snapshots for different
industries. Like, if you're targeting
real estate agents, build a snapshot
with all the funnels and automations
they need already set up. When they sign
up, you just load that snapshot into
their account and they're ready to go in
minutes instead of hours. This is what
separates the pros from the amateurs.
Amateurs make clients figure everything
out themselves. Pros make it so easy
that clients can't imagine going
anywhere else. Here's
something most people don't think about.
You need to market this thing. Just
because you build a SAS platform doesn't
mean clients will magically appear.
You've got to get the word out. The
easiest way to start is with your
existing network. If you already have
agency clients, offer to migrate them to
your new SAS platform. Give them a sweet
deal for being early adopters. Once
you've got some people using it, you can
start using their results as proof when
you're talking to new prospects. For
cold outreach, LinkedIn is gold. Find
business owners in your target market
and send them personalized messages.
Don't pitch right away. Start
conversations, provide value, then
introduce your platform as a solution to
problems they're already dealing with.
You can also run paid ads on Facebook or
Google. The key is to focus on the
transformation, not the features. Nobody
cares that your platform has email
marketing. They care that it can help
them get more customers without hiring a
marketing team. Sell the outcome, not
the tool. [snorts]
Now, let's talk about keeping clients
around because that's where the real
money is. Recurring revenue only works
if people keep paying month after month.
If you're constantly losing clients,
you're just spinning your wheels. The
secret is making your platform valuable
enough that leaving feels impossible.
You do this by including automation
workflows that actually make their lives
easier. Things like missed call text
backs, appointment reminders, and
automated review requests. When your
software is actively bringing them
customers and saving them time every
single day, they're not going anywhere.
You can also offer yearly subscriptions
at a discount. If someone pays for a
full year upfront, give them two months
free or something like that. This locks
in revenue and reduces churn because
they're committed for the long haul.
Here's the part that gets really
exciting. Scaling this model is way
easier than scaling a traditional
agency. With services, if you want to
double your revenue, you basically need
to double your team. But with SAS, you
can add clients without adding much
overhead at all. Sure, you'll need to
handle support as you grow, but you can
automate a ton of that with AI chatbots
and help desk systems built right into
High Lee. For the questions that need a
human, you can hire part-time support
people for way less than it costs to
hire full-time marketers or designers.
The math is pretty wild when you think
about it. Let's say you get just 50
clients paying you $200 a month. That's
$10,000 in monthly recurring revenue. A
100 clients, 20,000 per month. And
remember, your costs don't go up much as
you add clients. So, your profit margins
get better as you scale. Compare that to
traditional agency work where you might
charge $5,000 for a website build.
That's nice, but it's one-time money.
You've got to find another client next
month and do it all over again. With
SAS, you build it once, and the money
keeps coming in.
Let me give you some real talk, though.
This isn't a get-rich quick thing.
You've got to put in the work up front
to build your platform, create your
packages, and get your first clients.
But once that flywheel starts spinning,
it gets easier and easier. The biggest
mistake I see people make is over
complicating it. They try to build this
massive platform with a million features
right out of the gate. Don't do that.
Start simple. Pick one niche, create one
solid package, and get 10 clients. Then
improve based on what they tell you they
need. So, here's what you need to do
next.
If you don't have a highle account yet,
go get one. Activate SAS mode and start
playing around with the white label
features. Build out your branding.
Create at least two or three pricing
packages. Connect Stripe. Set up a
simple onboarding sequence. Then reach
out to five people you know who could
use a platform like this. Show them what
you've built and offer them a founding
member discount to get started. Those
first few clients will give you the
feedback you need to make your platform
even better. This is one of those
opportunities that's sitting right in
front of people, but most won't do
anything with it. They'll watch this
video, think it's cool, and then go back
to trading hours for dollars. Don't be
that person. The agencies that are
winning right now are the ones building
recurring revenue streams. If you want
to go even deeper on this, I've put
together a free four-part AI FastTrack
training where I break down exactly how
to land highpaying AI subscription-based
clients. I also give you access to try
the highle software for 30 days free.
The links in the description. And
seriously, [clears throat] drop a
comment and let me know if you're going
to build this out. I read every single
one and I want to hear what you're
working on. All right, that's it for
this one. Go build your SAS business and
I'll see you in the next video.