There are roughly 88,000 digital marketing agencies in the US and Hawke Media is the fastest-growing amongst them.

What is the secret sauce to this kind of growth?

Well, according to Erik Huberman, Hawke’s founder and CEO, it all boils down to working harder than everyone else and actually delivering on your promises.

In this episode, Erik walks us through the origin story of Hawke Media, from its almost accidental beginnings, to how he scaled the business to its current value of over $150 million.

He reveals the challenges he faced while growing the business, how he sustains Hawke’s rapid growth, and how he motivates his team to keep innovating. According to Erik,

“Most people won't push themselves to the limit versus getting pushed. That’s why every major athlete wants a coach and trainer. It's not like Kobe didn't know how to do a workout. But having that outside push and that outside perspective is really helpful. And as the owner of the business, that extra push has to come from you."

Erik also sheds light on one of his key growth strategies; acquiring other agencies. He explains the benefits of this strategy, and how he integrates those agencies and their owners into Hawke’s existing ecosystem.

If you’re looking for first-hand knowledge on how to scale an agency to a 9-figure valuation, then look no further.

• Erik’s background and what led him to create Hawke Media (02:05)
• What Erik did to help Hawke Media become the fastest-growing consultancy (10:02)
• How Erik sustains his agency’s rapid growth (14:30)
• The biggest challenges Erik faced when growing Hawke Media (16:23)
• Why Erik started acquiring other agencies (20:11)
• There’s always a deal to be made (27:46)

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• Empire Flippers Marketplace
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• Hawke Media

Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn what it takes to scale your digital agency to the moon.

Why start from scratch when you can leverage an existing business’s traction and capitalize on its untapped potential?

That is the power of entrepreneurship through acquisition.

Mike Swigunski, a skilled entrepreneur and globe-trotting author, discovered this for himself while building his portfolio of profitable online businesses.

In this episode, he walks us through one of his most profitable acquisitions, a SaaS business that he grew to 4x in revenue in just a year.

Mike walks us through the acquisition from start to finish, from uncovering the business’s rare potential to the creative deal structure he negotiated and seizing low-hanging fruits for post-acquisition growth.

Mike also shares his expert insights into the online business industry, including the lucrative gap in the market he spotted when it comes to acquisitions. According to Mike,

“The 500K - 750K range of online businesses seems to be like no man's land. It’s often too big for solopreneurs, and too small for portfolio buyers. It’s a sweet spot that can offer buyers a bit of strategic leverage to negotiate a good deal. Sellers are often more motivated and more open to seller financing and creative deal structures.”

Mike’s firsthand experience and expert knowledge offer a roadmap to successfully acquiring and scaling online businesses. Don’t miss a minute of this insightful episode!

• Mike shares his background and his entrepreneurial journey (02:17)
• A look at of one Mike’s most successful acquisitions - a $500K SaaS business (07:47)
• The creative deal structure that Mike negotiated (13:57)
• The dynamics of buying a business in partnership with another entrepreneur (16:36)
• Finding the right developer to work on a new SaaS acquisition (18:22)
• Mike's unique due diligence process for this acquisition (24:42)
• How Mike 4x’d his revenue by capitalizing on low-hanging fruit post-acquisition (26:59)
• Mike's growth strategies and future goals for his SaaS acquisition (37:57)
• An overview of Mike’s business portfolio (45:52)
• Mike’s productivity tips for digital entrepreneurs (51:06)

• Empire Flippers Podcasts
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• Mike’s site (with links to his socials)
• Copy Sharks
• Fast Food Spaghetti blog post
• Rize productivity app
• Trello

Sit back, grab a coffee, and get the inside scoop on how to source and scale a SaaS acquisition!

Two of the fastest ways to grow your business are to increase your customer base and improve your offering to attract higher-value customers.

What if I told you there was a way to expand your customer base exponentially and enhance your offering in one clever move?

That is what Josh Springer does through the power of acquisitions. Josh is the Head of Corporate Development at Hawke Media, a powerhouse marketing agency.

Josh specializes in acquiring other agencies and merging them into Hawke’s existing ecosystem. This not only enhances Hawke's services but also brings in a ready-made customer base overnight.

Now they have a more powerful team and a larger pool of clients.

In this episode, Josh joins us to explain his approach to acquisitions, from sourcing potential targets to sealing the deal.

He explains the different types of deal structures he negotiates, his growth strategies post-acquisition, and the key to smoothly merging a new agency into Hawke Media’s framework.

One of the key areas that Josh prioritizes is employee retention. According to Josh,

“The value behind an agency is the people that it comes with. If you start cutting people, you start losing clients, you start messing with culture, then all of a sudden you're left with a shell that doesn't really resemble what you were trying to buy in the first place.”

If you're hungry for rapid business expansion, this episode lays out the blueprint for scaling up through strategic bolt-on acquisitions. Don’t miss it!

• Josh’s background and how he ended up working in M&A (02:26)
• Assessing the right time to acquire a new agency as a growth play (05:10)
• The key to employee retention during an acquisition (08:15)
• How Josh integrates acquisitions into Hawke Media’s existing structure (10:46)
• How Josh sources his acquisitions (14:36)
• The profit margins agencies should aim for at different valuation levels (23:36)
• The quick growth levers that Josh has learned to pull on his agency acquisitions (25:48)
• The types of deals Josh negotiates and structures (30:03)
• How Josh measures the success of his acquisitions (38:38)
• The lessons Josh has learned from all of the acquisitions he has overseen (42:55)

• Empire Flippers Podcasts
• Empire Flippers Marketplace
• Create an Empire Flippers account
• Subscribe to our weekly newsletter
• Hawke Media
• Josh’s LinkedIn

Sit back, grab a coffee, and learn how to scale your business through mergers and bolt-on acquisitions!