The hidden cost of running an agency across too many tools

I’ve been thinking about the real cost of all the tools small agencies use.

Individually, each tool can feel inexpensive:

- project management
- uptime monitoring
- helpdesk/support
- reporting
- password management
- renewal tracking
- file storage
- team communication

But once you add them together, the monthly cost starts to creep up.

Even then, I think the bigger cost is the admin time: switching between tools, checking where things were recorded, finding old client/site notes, and making sure renewals or support issues do not fall through the cracks.

That’s one of the ideas behind Over.Site:

https://over.site/

It is aimed at bringing more of the agency/site management picture into one place, especially for smaller web agencies.

I’d be interested to hear how others think about this.

Do you measure the cost of tool sprawl in your business, or do you just accept it as part of running an agency?