Judge Graham: The Man Behind Huge Digital Agency Exits

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Judge Graham. Judge is a veteran in the digital marketing space and has exited from multiple agencies for hundreds of millions of dollars. We talked about how he got started, his experience, and more. 

• Hey Judge, what does your experience in the digital marketing space look like? 

Judge: After making a high 8-Figure exit from one of my agencies, I moved on to another agency and replicated my processes and helped sell that agency for a 9-Figure exit.

• How did you position your agencies to sell?

Judge: A few pivotal things I teach on were key to positioning to sell. The first is recurring revenue. If your business isn’t generating recurring revenue, you won’t be able to sell it for a lot of money. The second is culture, I worked relentlessly to build a rock-solid culture in every business that I am involved with.

• Was selling your agency always the goal? 

Judge: It was always the original goal to make an exit from my agencies. When starting, your positioning is much different if your ultimate goal is to sell.

• What shifts have you seen in digital marketing?

Judge: I tell all my consulting and mentorship clients this today. In 2019, digital marketing has progressed so much, that we live in the best time to start an agency. The marketplace has become much more educated, and the software has become much easier to use.

• What would you tell an agency owner just starting out?

Judge: Find a good mentor, and position your agency to sell. 

• If you were to start an agency today, what steps would you take to secure another big acquisition? 

Judge: The same process I took in the past, build recurring revenue and a great culture and stop selling tactics, sell revenue.