Ep 529 The Personal Brand Trap and how to slash a 3-Year Earn-Out to 9 Months Without Giving Up Value

2026-01-16

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The fastest way to make a service company unsellable is building it around a personal brand. When clients hire you—because of your reputation, your name, and your specific expertise—you haven't built a business; you've built a high-paying job. And as Gavin Bell realized, you can't sell a reputation. Gavin was known as the "Facebook Ads Guy" in the UK. He was making good money, but he knew that to build a sellable asset, he had to fire himself as the face of the company.

The fastest way to make a service company unsellable is building it around a personal brand.

When clients hire you—because of your reputation, your name, and your specific expertise—you haven't built a business; you've built a high-paying job.

And as Gavin Bell realized, you can't sell a reputation.

Gavin was known as the "Facebook Ads Guy" in the UK. He was making good money, but he knew that to build a sellable asset, he had to fire himself as the face of the company.

He rebranded his firm from "Gavin Bell" to "Yatter," productized his service, and systematically removed himself from sales and delivery.

The result? He sold Yatter to a larger agency, Velstar, in a deal that closed just one minute before a major tax deadline.

In this episode of Built to Sell Radio, Gavin breaks down exactly how he made the switch.

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