Hey Biz-Buyers,

Welcome to this week’s Boring Business Brief, where we share some of the best insights, tips, and stories from our private biz-buying community.

Today we’ve got a PLETHORA of buyer tips on getting brokers to actually respond, boring biz listings to check out, useful links from the week, and more.

But first… Mark your calendars

On January 25th, Codie’s hosting a live masterclass on 10 steps to buying profitable, small businesses.

It’s hard to think of a better way to kick off 2024 than by taking action to learn this skillset now — and get a taste of what our community is learning.

Oh yeah, and it’s COMPLETELY FREE, but seats are limited so if this sounds interesting, learn more and sign up here today.

Now let’s get down to business…

Today, in 5 minutes or less:

✔️ Buyer tips: How to get brokers to ACTUALLY respond

✔️ 3 boring biz listings to check out

✔️ 3 links from the week in biz-buying

✔️ Who’s looking to buy a biz?

Buyer tips: How to get brokers to ACTUALLY respond

Ah yes, the globally-recognized list of “People who seem to never get back to you.” Starting off…

1. That friend who borrows stuff
   
   
2. That person who always says, “Let’s keep in touch!” at reunions
   
   
3. The disappearing ex who can go undercover for months, only to resurface with a “Hey, how’s it going?” when you least expect it
   
   
4. Small business brokers

Just kiddin’, we love brokers. The truth is, brokers get A TON of inbound interest. To remain sane and at the top of their game, they have to pick favorites, make quick decisions, and spend their time focused on buyers they can confirm show deep interest and relevance in a specific deal.

As a result, it’s a common concern throughout the biz-buying world that brokers aren’t always as responsive as folks may like them to be…

The question above was posed in the community recently.

The thread that followed was a chef’s kiss moment when it comes to biz-buyer tips.

Tip #1

Right off the bat, Emily Carrion came in with advice to behold — tactical, practical, and actionable all the way around.

That alone is great advice, but it wasn’t the “to behold” part we were talking about...

Emily also tossed in an amazing, brief template for buyer outreach (that should be tailored to you):

“Please send NDA. Highly motivated buyer with access to cash + SBA loan. We have a track record of growing businesses, a strong Marketing background, and experience with taking care of customers and people management. Excited to learn more about this business, the seller, and opportunity.”

Emily added, “Over the phone, I tell them I’m a seasoned businesswoman who’s been at 9 startups who specializes in growing businesses from $1M —> $10M+. I have access to capital and can close quickly. The business stood out to me for XYZ reasons and I’m eager to learn if it’s a good fit.”

The bottom line: “Sell yourself and be persistent,” Emily says.

Tip #2

Up next was Sage Price, with advice many of you might find especially practical.

“If you aren’t as seasoned as Emily, you have to be able to translate your prior experience into tangible business management skills and/or industry skills,” Sage explained.

“Do so in a short statement. If you include ‘WHY’ you are interested in that business, it will beat them to the question, they almost always ask it.”

Tip #3

On the note of persistence, Mag Rocha had lots to add.

“A lot of times it’s about relationship-building with brokers. You need to keep pushing and follow up with them. It’s the same thing in real estate. The buyers who have done deals before with the agent or brokers get preference.”

Mag added, “Make sure you set yourself apart by being persistent and follow up every time. The money is in the follow-up!”

Drill that into your head, folks…

Tip #4

The last up was Dustin Cotcamp.

”I was definitely a newbie buyer (still am quite frankly),” Dustin said. “But what set me apart, I believe, even at the start, was sharing with them a clear deal box.”

According to Dustin, he’d say things like, “Hey Broker, I am really interested in home service businesses with an asking price between $750k-$1.25M, and an SDE of $300k-$500k, so this checks all the boxes. Could you please share the NDA so I can take a look at the CIM?”

Importantly, says Dustin, “take it a step further like Emily and share why you would be a great fit for that opportunity. You’ll look like a seasoned buyer and they’ll wonder why they haven’t met you yet.”

Cue the Michael Bublé.

🤯 A biz-buying “aha moment” for Emily

On Saturday, Emily did her “weekly reach out to businesses.”

“I got a VM and a text from a broker this morning saying, ‘The business you reached out for has multiple LOIs, but your message caught my attention so I’m reaching out in case you can move quickly.’”

“I spoke with him this morning,” Emily said, “and I now understand why you build relationships with great brokers.”

Here are the deets...

“He mentioned that 80% of his firm’s listings don’t make it to BizBuy. And that a lot of brokers use BizBuy for lead gen when a business isn’t even really available. He has a list of 150+ investors, a list of family offices, etc and they get first dibs.”

Emily says she shared a bit about her and her husband, why they’re interested in buying a business, their deal box, and their vision.

“He really resonated with what [my husband] does for a living — helping first-gen college students of color get their break into tech…”

On top of that, “This broker said my message stood out because ‘you’d be surprised how many people can’t write or communicate.’ In my message, it was clear I read the listing and was thoughtful about why we’d be a good fit. He knew nothing of our finances.”

So what was the message?

“Please send NDA. Highly motivated buyer. My husband and I have experience managing teams of this size, and appreciate your focus on reputation, quality of work, and integrity - we would be looking to continue that legacy. We have a track record of growing businesses, a strong Marketing background, and passion for taking care of customers. Excited to learn more about this business and opportunity.”

Everything in bold, Emily says, was directly referencing the listing.

(And now, a round of applause for Emily and all the others in the Contrarian Community working INSANELY HARD to become biz-buyers, and putting themselves out there asking questions, offering advice, and supporting each other through and through.)

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏

3 boring biz listings to check out

Listings sourced from BizBuySell. No affiliation, just seemed interesting!

1. 🛠️ Masonry and fencing biz

Bio: Located in Arizona, est. in 1960

Financials: $1.65M asking price, $1.05M cash flow

Deets: $6.56M gross revenue, $1.45M real estate not included

Let’s think: The owner’s family has been in the masonry business for three generations, working across anything from bricklaying, to stone masonry, to wrought iron fencing. According to the posting, the biz is thriving under the leadership of a “seasoned management team” and a “well-established reputation.” The biz appears to have both recurring and new customers. Interestingly, the seller is a licensed real estate agent and says they’re not looking for a broker. For a newbie, time is probably not on your side, with the owner offering just “2 weeks of training and assistance with contracting licensure for the right buyer.”

2. 🌳 Landscaping biz

Bio: Located in FL, est. in 2008

Financials: $1.395M asking price, $341k cash flow

Deets: $1.584M gross revenue

Let’s think: This is a family-owned and operated biz with well over a decade of history and some cool features. That includes a dense route of ~350 “high-end” accounts across residential (90%) and commercial (10%), $130k/month in recurring revenue, 22 full-time employees (and a supervisor), and well-maintained equipment. Per the listing, which calls for $250k down, this is a “fantastic opportunity for a full-time owner/operator, as an investment, or as a bolt-on to an existing business.”

3. 📄 Document shredding biz

Bio: Located in FL

Financials: $2.9M asking price, $700k gross revenue

Let’s think: Retirement’s the reason for this sale. The listing claims this shredding and secure document storage company is well-respected in Florida’s tri-county areas, and has a customer base made up of small and large companies, individuals, and government groups. With the business comes 2 shredding trucks, 1 box truck, 1 bailer, 1 forklift, consoles and carts, a website, and a phone number. The listing notes competition has dwindled, so it’d be important to inquire why — and whether there’s long-term market viability here. The current owner is also offering up to 6 months of as-needed training and support.

3 links from the week:

🫧 Important learnings about a troubled steam cleaning biz this owner bought ~1 year ago…

🤯 Fiore’s takes: CT facilitator Clint Fiore rapid-fire reviewed a whole bunch of small business listings on X, live for everyone to see. Check it out.

😥 An unfortunate, but important podcast about one acquisition shutting down after a 4-year struggle.

Oh, and 1 more…

🤝 We’re hiring a Head of Marketing — please send the best marketers in the galaxy our way.

Who’s looking to buy a biz?

A partial list of REAL people who began their Contrarian Community journey in recent weeks, and why…

• A senior director of strategic initiatives at a tech giant: “My experiences, superpowers, and hard work could be creating wealth for me and my family..."
  
  
• A sustainability advisor for a gold producer: “I want more time to spend with my kids, travel (not only for business), kite surf, sail… I am looking for the knowledge, the tools, and the network to help me take the right actions to build my financial future.”
  
  
• A CFO of a company that makes tech for bars and restaurants: “Freedom.”
  
  
• A research scientist specializing in coatings and adhesives: “Too many needless layoffs…let’s stabilize and grow our communities instead of killing them. I am looking to diversify income until independent enough to use my time to build influence and impact for the greater good.”

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