Navigating Identity and Loneliness in Agency Sales

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Are you prepared to sell your agency if the right opportunity presents itself? Making your business sale-ready requires more than just financial preparation—it demands emotional readiness and the ability to set ego aside.

With pleasure, we are featuring a long time mastermind member on the show who, after recently selling his agency, now describes himself as a “recovering agency owner”. It was an unexpected opportunity that turned into an amazing deal for the seller and buyer. Jordan discusses the way he took control of his agency’s future by pursuing the sale, what he’d change about the process, and the importance of having a plan for post-sale integration.

Our guest is Jordan Choo, a recovering agency owner who previously founded, built, and sold Kogneta, a digital marketing firm focused on helping local businesses grow effectively. He is a longtime friend of the podcast who was mastermind member for sixy years before selling his agency. He is here to talk about the acquisition process, which began through an introduction from another agency owner rather than a typical unsolicited acquisition offer.

In this episode, we’ll discuss:

• Turning a potential partnership into an acquisition

• If you want to sell, leave emotions and ego at the door.

• Overcoming 2 common agency owner struggles. 

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Turning a Potential Partnership into an Agency Acquisition

If you run an agency, and especially if you’ve grown beyond a certain point, you should be really clear about your why and what you have in mind for the future.

There’s a chance you started as a lifestyle business. In that case, there isn’t much to worry about beyond maintaining profitability. However, if you started it with the intention to grow that business to eventually sell, then that will dictate how to grow your agency.

At some point, most agency owners have gotten the typical pitch email expressing interest in buying their business. In Jordan’s case, it all started with an introduction from another agency owner. The contact wasn’t specifically looking to purchase his agency, but for a white label partner to provide marketing services in order to expand their value to clients.

After a few conversations with this agency, Jordan realized it would make more sense for them to acquire his agency rather than getting into a longtime partnership. It was a pretty good fit in terms of their cultures and how their agencies were structured. Hence, he was encouraged to bring the matter up and ask them their thoughts about a potential merge.

What started as Jordan's curiosity about the buyer's serious intentions evolved into meaningful discussions about merging the businesses. The organic nature of these conversations led to a deal that benefited both parties, with the entire process—from initial talks to signing a formal letter of intent—taking approximately five months.

Selling Your Agency? Leave Ego and Emotions at the Door

Understanding that ego can be a deal-breaker in business transactions, Jordan approached his agency's sale by being pragmatic and emotionally detached. He established a realistic valuation range and minimum acceptable offer before negotiations began. Fortunately, his expectations aligned well with the buyer's assessment, which streamlined the negotiation process.

In the best case scenario, both parties are adequately educated on how the business should be fairly valued. But for that to happen, you need to separate the part of your identity that is closely linked to the business and have a clear path for what comes next after the sale. What are you looking for to doing post sale? Do you have plans to start a new business or follow a new interest? If you can’t answer these questions, maybe it’s not your time to sell.

In his case, Jordan wants to rest, take some time off, and then go back to focusing his time and energy on growing a brand, instead of focusing on several brands at the same time, like he used to do with his agency.

Overcoming 2 Common Agency Owner Struggles

Reflecting on his agency journey, Jordan identified two critical challenges that influenced his business's growth trajectory: team building and role transition. In the early stages, he struggled with making effective hiring decisions and came to realize that the team you choose defines how quickly or slowly you grow.

He also understands building the right team requires absolute clarity about the business's objectives. Without a clear vision, you cannot guide your team in the right direction and build the right foundation so they can make decisions without you. By investing time in the hiring process and ensuring alignment with the agency’s values and goals, owners can cultivate a team that is competent and motivated to drive growth.

As the agency expanded, Jordan faced another common challenge: the difficult transition from working IN the business to working ON it. While he was naturally drawn to sales activities, his role as owner demanded focus on strategic initiatives like business growth planning, marketing strategy, leadership development, and creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) for effective delegation.

This all goes back to delegation, a common struggle often stemming from a fear of losing control. Delegation, in this sense, should be not just about offloading work but about strategically positioning the right people in the right roles to achieve collective success.

Why You Shouldn’t Skip the Integration Plan

Jordan has no regrets about how the acquisition went down. In fact, he wouldn’t change anything about the negotiation process. However, he does wish he would’ve spent more time structuring an integration plan. To him, the first 90 days post sale should be laid out and planned for to ensure a smooth transition.

For agency owners considering a sale, Jordan recommends thoroughly understanding the buyer's motivations and intended use of the acquired agency. This understanding is crucial because it directly impacts the post-sale relationship. He advises against committing to lengthy employment agreements if the acquiring company doesn't have a clear need for the owner's continued involvement.

In his case, Jordan treated the purchase agreement and the employment agreement as two separate entities and two separate negotiations, which proved to be the best course of action.

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