Retained Trust

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Greg Hickman, founder of Alt Agency. Greg shares his journey from running a full-service marketing automation agency to building a lean education and consulting company focused on helping agencies productize their services. They explore why productizing isn’t the enemy of creativity, how agency owners can structure a “service ladder”...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Ross Brown, founder of Flex Ops and former managing director of a fast-scaling influencer marketing agency. Ross shares lessons from helping agencies scale past early growth hurdles, revealing how fear, overcommitment, and lack of clarity often keep owners stuck below the $1 million mark. Together, they explore the emotional and opera...

In this solo episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes walks through the real-world process of selling a digital marketing agency. Drawing on his experience as both a buyer and seller, Karl lays out the key financial concepts—like EBITDA and SDE—that shape valuations, and explains what makes an agency attractive to buyers. He covers everything from owner independence and recurring revenue to dea...

In this episode of Retained Trust, Karl Hughes speaks with Lana Rafaela, founder at Cherry Red Content, a boutique agency focused on tailored content marketing solutions for early-stage, bootstrapped startups. Lana shares her experiences transitioning from freelancing and marketplace management at Contently to starting her own agency, highlighting the benefits of personalized client relationships....

In this episode of Retained Trust, Karl reunites in person with partner Manny to break down how they’ve scaled their agencies and the lessons they’re carrying forward. They discuss real growth numbers, sales call improvements, and smart client filtering to boost quality leads. Karl and Manny share hard-earned insights about strategic patience, SEO, referrals, and balancing family life with busines...

In this episode of  Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes talks with JD Graffam, founder of Simple Focus and operator of a portfolio of SaaS companies. JD shares how he grew from a small-town agency owner to running multiple businesses, balancing a love of craft (and nail guns) with a sharp eye for buying SaaS that makes sense. They examine today’s small acquisition market, agency mergers, cultur...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes sits down with Louis Shulman, co-founder of Orbit, to explore how a content marketing agency evolved into a multi-pronged venture encompassing data analytics, automation thannel to launching Orbit Marketing, Metrics, and Flows—each built arools, and an ambitious software roadmap. Louis shares the path from growing a viral YouTube cound a thoughtf...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Len Bruskiewitz, founder of Greater Heights Coaching, about how small business owners can better prepare for a successful exit. With decades of experience in tech and a background rooted in a third-generation family business, Len shares what it takes to move from running a business to exiting with clarity and value. They break down th...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes talks with Rebecca Mosner, co-founder of Maximize Partners, about the agency’s journey from a developer-focused content marketplace to a high-touch consultancy. Rebecca shares how she and her team 10x’d revenue in just four months, the challenges of educating technical founders on marketing value, and why they prefer working with early-stage star...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes sits down with Garrett Mehrguth, founder of Directive and Abe, to unpack what it really takes to build, scale, and sustain a high-performing digital agency. Garrett shares why he's drawn to the constant reinvention required in agency life, how he structures leadership across multiple teams, and the bold bets he's making—like launching a new Linke...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Aman Ghataura, founder of The Media Engine, about his evolution from a number two in a digital agency to starting and scaling his own business. Aman shares how his early agency experiences shaped his understanding of growth, and why he believes personal branding—especially on LinkedIn—is the most undervalued opportunity for agency own...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with John Doherty, founder of EditorNinja. John recounts the winding path from running a marketplace agency to building a thriving productized editing service. The two dig into the challenges of scaling, lessons from running managed marketplaces, and the operational trade-offs of productization. John shares what makes EditorNinja’s model s...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Susan Tyson, a fractional CMO and author based in Chicago. Susan breaks down how small business owners can handle marketing strategy without fluff or jargon. With a direct and practical style, she shares lessons from a decade of consulting and decades more in marketing across industries. From the value of a one-page strategy to the po...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes sits down with leadership coach and entrepreneur Patty Campagna to explore what makes entrepreneurial leadership unique—and challenging. Patty shares her journey from corporate banking to founding Leading Teams Inc., offering grounded insights from decades of working with leaders in startups and Fortune 100 companies. They examine common pitfalls...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes is joined by Michael Drew, founder of Book Retreat and a veteran of the publishing world with over 130 New York Times bestsellers under his belt. Michael opens up about his path from a high school dropout to a leader in book marketing, sharing lessons on influence, mentorship, and entrepreneurial growth. The conversation explores Michael’s innov...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Simon Severino, founder of Strategy Sprints, about building scalable and sustainable agencies. Simon shares insights from his 22-year journey in go-to-market strategies, offering practical advice on pricing power, ideal client selection, and creating repeatable sales systems. They explore how agency owners can balance high-ticket serv...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes chats with David Sliman, founder of Sales Proformance Consulting and a veteran entrepreneur. David shares his journey from launching a direct mail franchise in 1999 to building and selling a multi-million-dollar marketing business. He and Karl explore lessons learned in sales leadership, product positioning, business acquisition, and finding the...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Andy Hite, founder of Scaling Minds, about the often invisible role fear plays in entrepreneurship. Drawing on his coaching experience with high-performing founders and leadership teams, Andy breaks down how childhood conditioning shapes modern fear, how it blocks business growth, and how entrepreneurs can start addressing it. Karl an...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes sits down with Jim Huffman—founder of GrowthHit and CEO of Neat—to discuss the journey from agency work to e-commerce entrepreneurship. Jim shares his pivot from finance into growth marketing, how he built and scaled GrowthHit, and what led him to acquire a sweat-proof t-shirt brand. They explore the highs and lows of agency life, the challenges...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes talks with Tony Wilson, founder of Accquip, a firm specializing in fractional CFO services for digital agencies. Together, they explore the financial missteps that can lead to agency collapse, the importance of pipeline visibility, and how to build a resilient, sellable business. Tony shares actionable insights on budgeting for growth, evaluatin...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes speaks with Karlie Bliss, a seasoned sales leader specializing in lead generation and sales development. Karlie shares her journey from sales in the SaaS industry to building high-performing sales teams within agencies. Together, they explore the challenges agency owners face in creating predictable and scalable sales pipelines, the critical rol...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes sits down with James Hornick, Chief Growth Officer at Hirewell, to talk about hiring trends, employer prestige, and why LinkedIn feels like a necessary evil. James shares his journey from tech recruiting to becoming a partner at Hirewell, and why diversification in recruiting is key to surviving economic downturns. They discuss why employer pres...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes reunites with his business partner, Manuel Weiss, to share insights on scaling digital service agencies. They discuss lessons learned from recent acquisitions, the importance of building strong relationships between partners, and strategies for creating a sustainable growth pipeline. Manuel reveals their approach to leadership development and th...

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes sits down with entrepreneur and agency expert Sam Shepler, founder of Testimonial Hero, to explore the ins and outs of building, scaling, and acquiring service-based businesses. Sam shares his journey from running a generalist video agency to selling it, launching a productized service, and now expanding through strategic acquisitions. Karl and S...

In this episode of Retained Trust , host Karl Hughes speaks with Joey de Wit, founder of AgenCFO, a fractional CFO service specializing in helping agencies master their finances. Joey shares his journey from corporate finance to entrepreneurship, highlighting the importance of financial forecasting, pricing strategies, and sustainable agency growth. They discuss the challenges of scaling service-b...