The Lead King: From a $10 million lawsuit to a two-time HighLevel Gold Award
Russ Ward rebuilt his agency around a single non-negotiable: every client and student has to run HighLevel. That rule, and one stage appearance, took his monthly revenue from a loss to the best month of his three-year case study window.
Summary
Russ Ward spent eight years in the Navy, a decade selling bootleg DVDs and years fighting an NFL lawsuit and an IRS lien before he found HighLevel in 2018. He built a marketing business that swung between a loss of -$122 and highs above $20,000 a month, until one panel-speaking invitation and one rule (every client and student must run a HighLevel account) turned roughly 120 new sign-ups into $12,000 in monthly recurring revenue almost overnight, and eventually into two consecutive HighLevel SaaSPRENEUR Gold Awards.
HighLevel Products used
HighLevel CRM and pipeline management (client fulfillment)
Sub-account SaaS reselling, with every client and student required to purchase a HighLevel account through Russ
Snapshots, built once and deployed to near-complete readiness for each new client
AI and workflow automation for SMS lead reactivation, AI voice qualification and live call transfers to human sales reps
Bundled platform tools
Active paying customers across retainer, SaaS and student relationships.
HighLevel SaaSPRENEUR Gold Award winner, 2024 and 2025.
Full-time team member running fulfillment across the entire customer base.
The Challenge
A business that kept losing the one thing Russ never had growing up.
Russ grew up on government assistance, and his father left when he was seven. He spent eight years in the Navy, then walked away from a guaranteed career to be with his dying grandfather.
He came out of it broke, built a business selling bootleg DVDs, got sued by the NFL for $10 million, and lived for a stretch on a SNAP card he still keeps. At his lowest point, he considered ending his life before deciding to try again.
That instability followed him into his own agency. Revenue later swung from -$122 to $22,115 in a year.
Undercharging out of fear
Even after a mentor recommended a minimum price point, Russ couldn't bring himself to charge it, which created pricing confusion and attracted the wrong clients.
One-off sales with no floor
"I knew I needed to be charging retainers for consistent revenue, but I wasn't able to close that way," Russ said, describing years of hunting for a new dollar every single month.
Personal life bleeding into the business
A divorce in December 2023 pulled his focus from growth to survival, and revenue dropped again, this time for reasons that had nothing to do with strategy.
"I knew I needed to be charging retainers for consistent revenue, but I wasn't able to close that way." — Russ Ward
The Solution
Make HighLevel the price of admission, not an add-on
After a panel-speaking slot at Perry Belcher's AI Bot Summit, Russ launched a $97/month community and required every member to buy a HighLevel account through him to join.
The offer structure:
$500 "rental" of his Qualified Live Transfers system, using a client's own old leads
$5,000 flat fee plus $197/month to own the system outright
$497 upfront plus $197/month for AI receptionists
$97/month access, the primary channel for new HighLevel sub-accounts
"Every client and student MUST use HighLevel for me to work with them. That's non-negotiable, and that's how I've sustained a level of success with HighLevel." — Russ Ward
The Results
A negative month. One year later? The best month in 3 years.
Twelve months after posting -$122 in August 2023, Russ's business posted $22,115 in August 2024, the highest single month across the entire three-year window. The mechanism was direct: roughly 120 new community members, each buying a HighLevel account, took his monthly recurring revenue from $0 to about $12,000 in a matter of weeks.
The full swing in monthly revenue across twelve months.
Current car dealership marketing partnership revenue, structured with defined roles instead of commission-based risk.
Accounts overnight
New HighLevel sub-accounts sold following a single AI Bot Summit panel appearance.
"Focus on recurring revenue, because once I did that it took me out of scarcity mode." — Russ Ward
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Disclaimer: The results shared in this case study reflect the experience of one HighLevel user and are not typical or representative of what other users may achieve. The Lead King's growth and revenue outcomes are specific to their unique business model, market and execution. Revenue figures represent gross revenue during the stated period and do not reflect expenses or net profit. HighLevel makes no representations, warranties or guarantees regarding potential earnings, client growth or business success. This content is for illustrative and informational purposes only and does not constitute a business opportunity, franchise offering or earnings guarantee. Past performance does not predict future results and individual results will vary significantly.
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