When you decide to sell your business, you’re entering a high-stakes arena where the person across the table buys companies for a living. To them, you are prey to be out-negotiated; to you, this is the most important financial event of your life. This episode pulls back the curtain on the tactics sophisticated buyers use to lure sellers into lopsided deals, from discouraging the use of advisors to intentionally dragging out due diligence to induce deal fatigue.
The buyer of your business, if you’re an entrepreneur, is a full-time predator, and you’re a part-time prey, and you’ve got to get the right transaction advisor to armor up.
Kirk Michie
What You’ll Learn
Spot “Proprietary Deal” Traps: You will learn why buyers want to talk to you without an advisor and how this “direct” approach usually results in a significantly lower valuation for your company.
Master the Art of Structuring: Understand the difference between a high sticker price and high-quality terms so you don’t get stuck with risky earn-outs or vague future payments.
Shield Your Business from Deal Fatigue: Learn how predatory buyers intentionally drag out the closing timeline to wear you down until you agree to unfair price cuts just to finish.
Professionalize Your Valuation: Discover how an independent Quality of Earnings report provides the “armor” you need to defend your EBITDA and stop buyers from chipping away at your price.
Leverage the “Designated Villain” Strategy: Learn how hiring a middleman to handle aggressive negotiations allows you to preserve your personal reputation with the buyer for the post-sale transition.
Topics Covered
Ranking of Buyer Types [01:52]
Predatory Tactics of Buyers [03:29]
Unique Challenges in the Lower Middle Market [04:57]
Managing Partner at Candor Advisors | Carlsbad, CA
Kirk Michie is the founder of Candor Advisors. For more than 30 years, Kirk has worked with entrepreneurs, closely held business owners, and high-net-worth families to achieve their strategic planning, liquidity, investment, and legacy objective
You’ve invested your blood, sweat, and tears into an enterprise that has provided for you, your family and your employees. The moment has finally come for you to start a new chapter in your life. Explore your options now.
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