You started your agency for freedom, profit, and work you love. Somewhere along the way, it stopped feeling like that. I help you get back to why you started, grow without losing what matters, and build a business that fuels your life and that you can sell someday if you want to.
John Doherty is an agency coach based in Denver, Colorado — he's built and sold two agencies, worked with 450+ agency owners, and helps digital agency founders grow revenue, fix margins, and build something worth selling.
I've built agencies to $250k, $550k, and $433k a year — and made almost every mistake along the way. I tried to hire and lost all my freedom and profit. My agencies almost went under multiple times. I learned the lessons the hard way so you don't have to.
My background spans working for agencies (Distilled in New York City), in-house at Zillow (HotPads and Trulia Rentals), building multiple agencies of my own, selling one to private equity in 2022 and one to our largest competitor in 2025, selling over $5M of digital services personally, and working with 450+ agencies over my career.
I know the grind of low profit, high overhead, working on stuff I hated, juggling messy delivery, and feeling like growth was capped. More importantly, I know how to fix it, because I've done it for myself and alongside dozens of agency owners as their coach.
One client told me a few weeks in: "I feel much more focused. Ideas had been bouncing around in my head, but I hadn't brought them out." That's the real value of coaching. I pull the clarity out of you that's already there, and I help you act on it.
Outside of business, I'm a husband, dad of two, skier, hiker, and bourbon fan living in Colorado with my family.
Where you are in the journey determines which track makes sense. Both are hands-on, both get results — the difference is where you’re headed.
You have a real agency and real clients, but growth has stalled. You’re underpricing, overworked, and can’t figure out what to fix first. Agency Breakthrough is a 4–6 month program that gives you the 1:1 attention, group momentum, and frameworks to double your income.
You have revenue and a team, but the business still depends on you too much. Margins could be cleaner. Systems are patchwork. You’re thinking about what an exit could look like in the next 1–3 years — and you want someone who’s actually done it to help you get there.
Whether you need intensive 1:1 support, focused skill-building, or a structured program — there's a track built for your situation.
My private group coaching program for agency owners who are done being stuck and ready to double their income in the next 4–6 months.
Deep, 1:1 advisory for agency owners at $1M+ who want to scale their business and build toward a premium exit in the next 1–3 years.
Focused skill-building sessions for agency owners on the specific things holding back their growth.
My coaching works best for a specific kind of agency owner. Read these carefully before reaching out.
Since 2010, I've worked for two agencies, ran marketing and growth for two of Zillow's rentals brands (HotPads and Trulia Rentals), and consulted on SEO with some of the world's largest brands — Vevo, The New York Times, Dribbble, Creative Market, Homelight, Hipcamp, and many more.
My first agency generated leads for marketing agencies. I worked with 300+ agencies over 7 years and coached some of them to significant growth. I've applied the same principles to my own businesses, with great success. I'm an entrepreneur at heart, and there's nothing I love more than helping agency owners grow.
I work with a small, intentional number of agency owners at a time. Here's how to get on the list.
Grab a time on my calendar. Takes about 30 seconds. No forms, no gatekeeping — just pick a slot that works.
A focused 30-minute conversation about what's capping your growth and whether I can help. No pitch — if it's not a fit, I'll tell you and point you somewhere useful.
If it's a fit for both of us, I'll invite you to work with me. Simple as that.
