Case study · Wolf IQ · Digital Marketing Agency Sale
Wolf IQ, a Sydney web and digital agency founded in 2014, was sold just four and a half months after Exit Advisory Group launched the business to market. With a remote team managing day-to-day service delivery and 71 per cent of its revenue coming from recurring services, it offered buyers ongoing client income and an experienced delivery team.
Lead adviser: Brent McDonald
The challenge
After more than a decade building Wolf IQ, its founder and owner, Heath Maguire, wanted to spend more time with his family and support his wife's business. Selling the agency was a decision he had been considering for several years.
While the team managed much of the day-to-day service delivery, Heath remained closely involved in client relationships and commercial management. Ensuring those responsibilities could transfer to a new owner was an important consideration in planning his exit.
Heath began with a market value assessment from Exit Advisory Group before formally appointing the firm to manage the sale.
Preparation
Before taking Wolf IQ to market, Exit Advisory Group reviewed the agency's financial information to give prospective buyers a clear understanding of its earnings.
The firm examined how staff costs were accounted for in the earnings calculations and reviewed revenue forecasts with Heath. The financial information presented to buyers also included an allowance for a full-time manager's salary, reflecting the cost of taking over Heath's management responsibilities.
This preparation helped buyers assess Wolf IQ's financial performance with a clearer understanding of the ongoing costs of running the business.
The campaign
Following sale preparation, Exit Advisory Group launched the campaign, using market research and targeted buyer identification to reach potential purchasers. The campaign combined direct approaches to a screened list of potential buyers, a confidential listing on an online business-sale platform and a separate paid advertising campaign.
Brent McDonald, the Senior Adviser who led the sale, has taken many owners through this process. Before any approach was made, he worked with Heath to agree which buyers to approach and which to leave out entirely, so the campaign reached the right parties and respected Heath’s confidentiality from the first day.
The successful buyer, Andy Crebar, responded to the confidential online listing. Andy is the CEO of Wolf IQ Group, which acquires and grows web agencies. He intended to be involved in running the business and showed particular interest in the quality and reliability of Wolf IQ’s recurring revenue.
Throughout the campaign, Exit Advisory Group managed initial buyer enquiries, provided relevant business information and assessed buyer interest. Heath received monthly written reports on buyer activity and the progress of the campaign.
As discussions progressed, Brent coordinated engagement between Heath and serious prospective buyers, helping the parties address key questions and keeping the sale process moving forward.
The terms
Beyond the purchase price, Brent worked with Heath and Andy to negotiate the conditions of the sale, with particular attention to Heath’s responsibilities and plans after completion.
As discussions progressed, several conditions required further consideration and negotiation. Brent helped the parties work through these matters, clarify their respective positions and reach agreement on terms that addressed Heath’s priorities while allowing the transaction to proceed.
Heath was approachable and collaborative throughout, and that made the process better for everyone involved, the buyer included. He kept his records in order, asked the right questions and made decisions when they were needed. Sellers like that get better outcomes.
Brent McDonald
Senior Adviser, Exit Advisory Group
In the owner’s words
The amount that I learned from Brent was incredible. Buyers and sellers always look at a deal from different angles. Brent really helped facilitate the discussions, kept things moving and made sure both sides were heard. Couldn't have done it without him.
Heath Maguire
Founder, Wolf IQ
The buyer’s view
I was looking for an agency where customers stayed because the work was good. Wolf IQ had that, and a team that already ran delivery well. Heath and I both wanted the business and its customers looked after, and the handover did exactly that.
Andy Crebar
CEO, Wolf IQ Group
Andy was a good buyer to work with. He was reasonable, kept an open mind about the business and took the time to learn what he needed to know to make an informed decision. That made it easier for both sides to reach a deal that worked.
Brent McDonald
Senior Adviser, Exit Advisory Group
The outcome
Following an initial market value assessment and sale preparation, Exit Advisory Group brought Wolf IQ to market and completed the share sale within four and a half months.
The formal sale engagement took approximately six months, from appointment through to completion.
A separate three-month handover was agreed to support the transfer of Heath's client relationships and management responsibilities to Andy, as the new owner.
The completed sale allowed Heath to move on from ownership, with an agreed transition period to support continuity for the business and its clients.
How it ran
Exit Advisory Group’s sell-side process, from valuation to completion, as it ran for Wolf IQ.
Valuation
Market value assessment, before any decision to sell
Preparation
Earnings reviewed and the information pack built, every asset client-approved
To market
Information Memorandum, a screened buyer list, a confidential listing and paid advertising
Buyer engagement
Enquiries qualified, information released with the client's permission, monthly written reports
Indicative offer
First offer received, then clarified and refined into a term sheet
Due diligence
Data room opened. Recurring revenue and its composition tested in detail
Completion
Share sale completed, then a three-month handover
Common questions
Wolf IQ's sale took approximately six months from Exit Advisory Group's formal appointment to completion, including four and a half months from market launch to the completed sale.
A separate three-month handover was agreed to support the transition to new ownership.
Every business sale is different, and the time required depends on preparation, buyer interest, due diligence and negotiations.
Yes, although the owner's responsibilities need to be considered when preparing the business for sale. At Wolf IQ, the team managed much of the day-to-day service delivery, while Heath remained responsible for key client relationships and commercial oversight.
Exit Advisory Group ensured the financial information accounted for the ongoing cost of managing these responsibilities, and the parties agreed to a three-month handover to support the transition.
A business sale adviser can help prepare a business for sale, identify and assess potential purchasers, manage buyer enquiries, coordinate due diligence and negotiate important sale conditions.
For Wolf IQ, Exit Advisory Group managed a targeted and confidential buyer campaign, assessed buyer interest and kept Heath informed throughout the process. Brent coordinated discussions as the sale progressed and helped the parties work through and negotiate key conditions, supporting an agreement that considered Heath's plans after the sale.
You're great at running your business, but most of us haven't sold a business before. Get a plan in place. And stick to it, and it becomes your guiding compass.
Heath Maguire
Founder, Wolf IQ
A final word
Business sale transactions can be extremely complicated, and deals fall over for plenty of reasons, some of them quite innocuous. In my experience, getting a deal done takes a willing buyer and a willing seller who can build a lot of trust in a short period of time. That's exactly what we had with Heath and Andy: smart, reasonable people who took the time to understand each other's perspectives and found the middle ground they needed.
Simon Bedard
Founder and Managing Director, Exit Advisory Group
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Whether you are planning ahead or ready to explore a sale, an informed discussion can help clarify what buyers are likely to assess and how a process could be structured around your objectives. Prefer to read first? Exit Like an Expert sets out how buyers judge value and what makes a business transferable.
Last updated . Case studies are reviewed at least quarterly; figures are taken from the original engagement and have not been embellished.