About this episode
Would you like access to our advanced agency training for FREE? https://www.agencymastery360.com/training Most agency owners stumble into their first business almost by accident, learning as they go. But have you ever considered buying your first agency as a way to enter the industry with a head start? The right acquisition can give you an established team eager to keep growing, a base of engaged clients, and strong positioning in the market. Today's featured guest took this path and is now the proud owner of a thriving agency. He always knew he wanted to run his own business, and when it came time to choose an industry, the agency model was the perfect fit for his love of project management and tech. He shares how he chose and purchased his agency, why he was fortunate to instantly click with the previous owner, the kind of deal structure he recommends for these situations, and the lessons he's learned along the way. Zander Barth is the Director of Colophon New Media, a website development and digital marketing agency in Charleston, South Carolina. He isn't your typical agency owner since he didn't start his agency from scratch. Before that, he was managing boiler houses and wastewater plants as a chemical engineer. His path went from factory floors and Tesla consulting gigs to agency owner. In this episode, we'll discuss: Why buy instead of build an agency from scratch? Retaining clients and culture in an ownership transition. Acquisition deal structure: earnouts, financings, and gotchas. Subscribe Apple | Spotify | iHeart Radio Sponsors and Resources E2M Solutions: Today's episode of the Smart Agency Masterclass is sponsored by E2M Solutions, a web design, and development agency that has provided white-label services for the past 10 years to agencies all over the world. Check out e2msolutions.com/smartagency and get 10% off for the first three months of service. Buy vs Build: Why Acquistion Wins Most agency stories start the same way: someone freelances, gets referrals, and suddenly they're running an agency. Not Zander. Having always wanted to work for himself, he was set on