BuySellSMB @BuySellSMB Twitter profile

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Buying a business is hard, and yes, we're all one big dysfunctional family. #SMBtwit > everything.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

If you’re buying a business doing less than $2,000,000 in revenue and it’s your first acquisition, please read this…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

There's a guy rolling up HVAC contractors in Texas. He focuses on 2 things when looking at a target: 1) How many techs? 2) How many inbound calls does the biz get each day? Most everything else comes down to his ops playbook. He's bought 6 in last 18mos. All < $1M Ev.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I run a $40M SMB acquisition marketplace. Over the past 2 months, the market has seen a ~30% drop in sellers listing their businesses for sale. Here’s some details, with my personal thoughts, and how it affects buyers.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Yesterday I consulted a searcher who had a small $1,100,000 HVAC deal blow up. He was transacting with the seller, all was well, but late in the transaction the seller’s son who didn’t work in the business had a sudden urge to inherit the company.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Silly thought experiment for searchers out there: Imagine you owned a car. Like a 10yo car. It's a cool car, but it's used and not in the best shape. But it's yours! You like it. You have no plans to sell it. Now imagine all these random people called, texted, emailed about

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Just spoke with an ex-corporate guy. Had a bad experience with pool cleaners. Started his own. $0 to $1M in rev w/in first 10 months. Set to hit $2.5M rev this year (his second). Already has offers from 2 PE firms. He's not selling.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

The $70 trillion dollar Silver Tsunami isn’t going to play out the way everyone thinks (it will be way better)… Here’s my prediction for the next 20 years of Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@BrentBeshore The ice bath is where it’s at. You go numb after 30 seconds. Cold shower is indefinite pain.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

First time SMB buyers: The first 30 days in your acquisition is critical. We help our buyers design 30 day transition plans. Here’s a deep look at one example:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Dear Santa, I know it’s a bit last second… But all I want for Christmas is a $1M+ SDE, recession resistant, recurring revenue, low customer concentration, passively owned SMB. Merry Christmas, Your favorite MBA p.s. 3x multiple or less please! p.p.s And close to a top metro!

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

You’d be much better off focusing on qualitative factors before quantitative. The framework I’ve started to talk to searchers about is based on Gino’s from traction. 1. Do you Get it? 2. Do you Want it? 3. Can you Do it?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Why are the people who cost $1,080/hr the only people who respond to me at night?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Buyers typically fail because their ops skills were the opposite of what the business needed, or the buyer failed to take on the seller’s role, or the transition was a sh*t show and all the employees quit. Most of this “go to zero” risk can be mitigated by good buyer-biz fit.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

1. Do you get it? - How does the business “work”? - Who are the customers you’ll sell to? - Who are the employees you’ll manage? - How does cash move through the biz? - Do you understand the role of the owner? (which you’ll step into) - Have you done ride-alongs with the owner?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@realEstateTrent The traveling nurse of car dents.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

2. Do you want the business? - Do you actually want to do this every day? - Do the cool parts of the job outweigh the shitty parts? - Do you want to be working with those employees/customers day in day out? - Does the business complement your lifestyle in the long term?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

A belated 2023 prediction: the rise of the SearchBuilder. The SearchBuilder is a new type of SMB operator who decides to build after originally getting into SMB with the goal of buying. I’ve been encountering more and more over the past few weeks. Here are some thoughts 👇

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Good search, bad searcher. Here are some musings on the differences. Good searcher: Focuses on building a really strong relationship with the owner. Bad searcher: Spends all their time talking with other searchers on Twitter. 1/37

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

In 2019 there were a total of 6.1M SMBs with employees in the US. Of those 6.1M… 61% had less than 5 employees. And, 77% had less than 9 employees. For some perspective, a janitorial company with 5 FT employees is doing ~$400k in revenue and a plumbing company is doing

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Contrarian take: retiring business owners care least about "legacy." They either need to max price for retirement or max speed because of burn out.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

For those of you who have successfully switched from being night owls to morning people, how did you do it? Apart from kids, of course. Helluva forcing function.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

New trend I’m noticing in SMB acquisitions: Searchers are starting to become the most hated buyers to work with. A few reasons why…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Twitter fam! The time has come to drop the shtick. I’m Will. Or as one of our investors calls me, “Will Fry the SMB guy”. I guess he was a big Bill Nye fan?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I’ve spoken with ~20 first-time SMB buyers in the last month and I’m noticing a common error a lot of them are making (especially the ex-PE folks). They’re over-weighting financial due diligence, and completely discounting vetting deals on a more fundamental level.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I wish the 🇺🇸 small business lobby was stronger. SMB owners deserve the right to roll proceeds from a business sale into a retirement product pre-tax. For millions of boomers, their business is their retirement!

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I help people buy and sell SMBs, and chat with dozens of sellers per month. Most sellers don’t care about legacy nearly as much as everyone thinks they do.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

How to negotiate without looking like an asshole:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

3. Can you do it? - What is the seller amazing at that you can’t do? - Is it possible to cover these knowledge gaps? - Does thinking about sitting in the owner’s seat make you visualize success? - Do you have skills that will complement the business?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Instead, I see a lot of searchers stitching together several SMBTwit due diligence checklists and jumping deep into financial metrics that don’t really matter. “What’s AOV?” “What’s CAC?” “What’s churn?” “Any Seasonality?” “Average capex inv?”

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Here’s a short list of questions I love asking sellers:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Why don’t SMB sellers just hire GMs?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Reading Rockefeller biography, this guy is insane. Literally worked half days and walked around his lawn. Shows how dumb hustle porn is. Like sure, work hard and smart but logging office hours ain’t the only way!

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

One of your most important jobs as a searcher is mitigating “go to zero” risk. In smaller transactions, this is done with buyer-business fit. If a buyer can accurately determine if they are a great fit for the business and industry, their likelihood of success skyrockets.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Reminder folks... a countersigned LOI is where the fun begins 🤠

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I’ve seen a lot of SMB deals that end up looking like hostage negotiations. Normally, it’s the buyer’s fault. Here are some thoughts on negotiating SMB transactions productively:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Hey SMBTwit, Seems like Twitter is still up and running, so while we’re all here, let me share some cool data points I’ve gathered while running an SMB marketplace…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

In reality, granular numbers like this aren’t really going to matter. 1. It’s likely ownership has never looked at these metrics. 2. They are probably not representative of an optimized business. 3. They are going to change under your leadership in a matter of months anyways.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Tai Lopez has entered the SMB chat. And this, uh, doesn’t inspire a lot of confidence?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

The difference between those who talk and those who do is normally pain tolerance. That's why athletes, veterans, etc make insane operators. They're professionally trained to tolerate pain.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Hey SMB Twit, we’re working on a deal right now and it’s about to blow up. - $1.4 revenue - $400K purchase price - 20 days on market (HVAC) Here’s a quick lesson for SMB buyers on working with seller’s counsel:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I’ll finish this thread with a thought on why businesses fail. I rarely hear about SMBs that fail because the buyer overpaid by 15%, or that they had higher than expected CapEx.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Someone needs to narrate the hot-crazy matrix for SMB acquisitions. I nominate @ClintFiore or @SMB_Attorney

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Friendly reminder: do not underestimate how much cold outreach the average SMB owner gets. They're already getting hit up by other searchers, brokers, financial planners, deal flow providers, etc. Worth being honest about what you're doing to stand out.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

There may be more searchers of $1M+ EBITDA businesses than there are businesses for sale...

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I think a good way to describe this is the RACI framework. RACI helps you understand who has different levels of influence in any decision making process. There are 4 levels of influence in RACI, Who is Responsible? Who has Approval? Who is Consulted? Who is Informed?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Real Estate fix-and-flip bros are starting to get into the SMB game. We’ve seen a bunch of them inquiring about our listings recently and honestly they are great buyers. I think we’re going to see a lot more of them over the next couple years.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

11 months

Reminder: You can buy a business without a roll-up strategy.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Seeing more businesses bought by pairs of buyers. Normally an operator from an industry teaming up with a family member providing capital. Lots of cousins and uncles. Some husbands and wives.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

SMB buyers: If you’re worried about a seller going from helpful to hurtful post close, one of the best things you can do is align incentives before the acquisition. Here’s an example from a recent deal,

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Unfortunately, deals like this blow up all the time because of 3rd party actions. - Seller’s son randomly wants in - Lawyer’s bickering over immaterial details - Key manager gets spooked and quits - Accountant tells the seller that they are getting ripped off.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

A lot of people jump into looking at businesses for sale before thinking about the best business for *them*. One way to tackle buyer-business fit is to think about your superpower. MBAs probably call this your “competitive advantage”.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Future prediction for SMB investing: Over the next 5 years, we are going to see a lot of money start flowing into SMB deals as this market starts maturing into a mainstream asset class. More thoughts…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I present to you, a very novel career path: 1. Grow up in suburbia 2. Spend up to $240K for fancy undergrad degree 3. Slave away at fancy finance firm for 5 yrs 4. Scoff at small minded plebs 5. Go back to suburbia and buy boring business* * but call it a HoldCo, so it's okay

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

It’s official. @Codie_Sanchez and Buy Then Build are the SMB M&A gateway drugs. Thank you for your service, Codie and Walker 🙏🏻.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Businesses with a great buyer-business fit can usually come out on top despite major setbacks related to suboptimal economics.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

SMB irony: many people get into SMB ownership for the freedom. Only to find that the responsibilities of an owner are the least "freeing" of them all.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@lawyer4SMBs "The whole secret of investment is to find places where it’s safe and wise to non-diversify. It’s just that simple. Diversification is for the know-nothing investor; it’s not for the professional." - Munger

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

If anyone is mapping out internal processes or diagrams ahead for '23 planning, I cannot say enough good things about @MiroHQ . I haven't fell in love with a tool like this in a while. The systems nerd in me is going wild. Here's our WIP sketch for SMB financing options:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

The temptation to become a meme account is too strong.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

3 years

Me: "Before we walk through the valuation, do you have any expectations around price?" Owner: "Yes, I'm thinking about $2M." Me: "And, where'd you come up with that number?"

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

SMB deals die all the time. There's 5 main reasons I see that are super common deal killers, but they don't have to be. Here's how to reverse-engineer them and make sure you make it through the finish line🏁 Tweet 1/32…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

So yeah, let's shoot for a December 30 close? It'll be perfect. We'll close right at the end of the fiscal year!

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Random thread for business nerds: I came across a new business model the other day… pretty much the exact opposite of insurance. But, it prints money! Business is called Gothams, here’s how they work:

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Are these “smart” things to ask? Sure. Even if they are, what are you actually going to do with this information? Is high CAC going to make you retrade the deal? Is high churn going to make you step away altogether? Is knowing AOV going to help you in the 90 day transition?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

EBITDA does not equal cashflow!! Seeing a fair number of SMBs where high depreciation makes the deal pencil, but searchers are forgetting to account for ongoing capex needs. Unless you're planning on never buying another truck/rig/machine, include capex in your model!

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Is anyone doing a roll-up of trade associations? Could be interesting for a few reasons: 1) So many struggle to provide value to members and are operating a Web1.0 website, 1 conf and “meh” benefits 2) There are a TON of them 3) Use the members to buy/build other businesses

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Easy to forget how cool Earth is

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Here’s a quick chart of ownership responsibilities. By no means perfect, but is my gut reaction to plotting a few industries based on requirements of the owner.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

This balloon thing is hilarious. Like, we didn't care THAT much about the balloon. But it was annoying. And we don't like China. So, what do we do? Drop $10M+ on F-22s, tankers, no fly zones to shoot down a balloon AFTER it left the U.S. Maybe the most 'Merica thing ever.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

I'm all about buying over building, but always prefer action over tire kicking. Better to spend a year building aggressively than a year kicking tires and spending your savings, esp if there are limited opportunities in your geo.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Sure, if you plan to buy a distressed asset, come in on day 1, flip the business on its head, add a ton of upsells and immediately increase AOV, then you might want to look for those opportunities pre-acquisition. But for a first time searcher, that’s not reality.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

- Have you consulted an attorney yet? - What type of law do they practice? - How does your GM feel about selling? - Do they want to meet the new owner? - Will your accountant be available through due diligence? - Do your kids know about the sale? - Do they want to be involved?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

TIL the federal minimum wage is still $7.25. $7.25!!! I'm pro business but my god that seems low?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Take #1 : “Holidays are for grinding and getting ahead!” Take #2 : “C’mon, holidays are for family and recharging.” One is said by people in their 20s and 30s on their first rodeo. The other by the same people after being around the block and tasting burn out once or twice.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Friend is looking to buy out a partner in his small business. What are his best financing options? Assuming SBA? Or are there specialty lenders for partner buy outs?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@thesamparr A big piece of me loves the morality. He's not asking for the top 10 best investments to make, he's asking the highest leveraged way he can give back to society given his experience and unfortunate recent inheritance. Thanks for sharing Sam.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Want an unfair advantage in buying an SMB? Meet owners and brokers where they are. Pick up the phone and dial!!! Stop hiding behind email and scheduled zooms.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

11 months

Many self-funded searchers come from top MBA schools, know finance better than the brokers, are pulling out all the stops to source deals and ripping LOIs. But struggle to get one under contract!! Why? IMO a lot of it comes down to perceived "execution risk".

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Sorry, but who told searchers that they all need a personal website? I don’t know of a single business owner who was impressed (or even asked if a buyer had one!).

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@bizsalesguy I'd say one of the "simplest" but not the easiest. Takes a helluva lot of blood, sweat and tears.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Being good at "finance" is not a competitive advantage for an SMB buyer. Most Main Street businesses do not have hard capital allocation problems.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

The earlier you can build relationships with people who have a stake in the sale, the earlier you can address all the problems I’ve talked about in this thread.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

11 months

SCHEDULE YOUR LIFE INSURANCE PHYSICALS EARLY. Every time this holds up a deal, part of me dies inside.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Tips for buying in a new industry 1. Ask owners for coffee, become friends 2. Join industry FB groups 3. Read open job descriptions/glassdoor 4. Go to a local conference Reading IBIS reports is not on here!!! But, what am I missing?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Definitely a bit late to the game... but standing desks are amazing. I'm addicted. Better posture, more focused, and more productive.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

TIL: for over 200 years, NYC had this thing called Moving Day. Each year on May 1 at 9am, all leases expired. At its height, over 1M people changed residences on the same day in the same city. ...as if moving wasn't already stressful enough.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@Go_AZ_Wildcats I think operational excellence. Which is the annoying answer. He's aggressive, numbers driven, and really good at hiring.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

If you enjoyed this thread, I’d really appreciate it if you gave me a follow @BuySellSMB , thank you for reading.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Here’s an example of one of our 30 day plans, feel free to steal it and implement it in your own deal! If you enjoyed this thread, please feel free to follow me for more SMB stuff.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Q2 reminder to SMB buyers: $400K of profit in the first half of the year rarely means $800K of profit by year’s end. Many books kept in cash basis. Lot of businesses rack up expenses at year’s end: pre-pay insurance, equipment, pay 401(k), etc. Not all of this is added back.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

If you've been struggling to find a deal while working a W-2, this is for you.

Clint Fiore 🦬 DM for Biz Deals

@ClintFiore

1 year

Announcing the Search-For-You Program from Bison Business 🦬🎉 Solving the biggest problem in SMB Acquisitions: FINDING THE RIGHT DEAL We've been testing and refining this program for many months and are finally ready to roll out this offering we think will be a complete game

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

@ClintFiore I founded an SMB M&A marketplace, we recently crossed $40M in listings. I try to help people buy small companies and I'm looking to talk with SMB acquirers large and small.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

The bottom line is to answer these 3 questions about every archetype who could be involved in the deal. 1. Do they know about the sale? 2. How much do they care about it? 3. Can I talk to these people early?

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Your seller is going to lie to you at some point. Sometimes it’s an outright lie, an omission, or they honestly just mis-remembered something. I’ve heard this personally over hundreds of calls with sellers, and there’s a few things I’ve learned that can help buyers out here…

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

1 year

Tai: Yo boomer dm me "sell my business" Boomer: What is a DM? Tai: Yeah like, on the 'gram. DM some details and I will give you, uh uh, a guesstimate. Boomer: Um, no. Tai: I have a rented lambo though **Boomer leaves the chat**

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Listened to an old Charlie Munger talk where he dropped a quote from Benjamin Franklin: “If you would persuade, you must appeal to interest and not to reason.” No truer words for working with business owners on Main Street.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

In other words, the % of “motivated” sellers is going to be on the rise. Those that don’t *have* to sell will ride out the economy. Those that *need* to sell, will work with buyers to get a deal done.

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

10 months

This is disgusting. Ashamed to be remotely associated with this nonsense.

Jason D. Greenblatt

@GreenblattJD

11 months

The self-righteous, arrogant smile on Liz Magill of @Penn says it all. Shocking testimony from this so-called educator. What is going to happen to our incredible country with someone like this shaping the hearts & minds of our students? All those involved with @Penn MUST SPEAK

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BuySellSMB

@BuySellSMB

2 years

Love it or hate it, social proof is incredibly powerful. So powerful that Sylvan Goldman, the inventor of the grocery cart, had to HIRE SHOPPERS to wheel his carts around stores before the invention took off.

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