M&A Talk: #1 Podcast on Selling a Business

Is valuing your business simply a numbers game? If not, how do subjective factors impact the value of your business? Jacob Orosz and Joe Bergin discuss the complexities of business valuation, which extends beyond simple EBITDA multiples. They discuss the impact of subjective factors, such as clean financials, a solid leadership team, and diversified customer base on the value of your company. They...

Luke Smith, CEO and founder of Croud, a digital marketing agency with five global offices, discusses the unique nature of M&A deals. He shares Croud's M&A journey, detailing five acquisitions ranging from small data businesses to larger digital marketing firms. Luke highlights the importance of flexible deal structures and maintaining trust with founders. He advises sellers to value their business...

Should I sell my business to a competitor? How do I know if they're sincere, or trying to steal my information? Jonathan Baker, an M&A advisor specializing in marketing firms, discusses the nuances of selling your business to a competitor. Jonathan highlights the risks of sharing sensitive information with competitors and how to tell if their interest is sincere.  View the complete show notes for...

What's your role in the transition process when selling your business? Expert Joan Helmer discusses the transition period from the seller's perspective – how to prepare, expectations, what can go wrong, and its phases, from the LOI to the closing. He emphasizes that the pre-closing phase involves aligning strategic elements, departmental roles, and operational gaps, while the post-closing phase fo...

Why can selling a business be such an emotional process, and what can you do to make it less stressful? Nate Pratt, a financial services wealth advisor, discusses the emotional journey of selling a business. He highlights the importance of cultural alignment, focusing on retaining the top talent in a company, and the long-term impact of an acquisition on the business's teams and clients. Nate note...

Mina Haque, CEO of Tony Roma's, spent almost nine months on legal due diligence, learning the ins and outs of the corporation, and building strong relationships with franchise owners. This led to her being named CEO of the company, focused on continuing the stabilization and growth of this global brand. She highlights the challenges of maintaining brand consistency and shares her insights through...

VC investor Sandeep Patil discusses the nuances of selling a company to a VC-backed business. VC acquisitions often prioritize growth potential and talent quality over immediate returns. Sandeep emphasizes the importance of understanding the acquirer's objectives, the integration strategy, and the long-term growth prospects. He notes that VC-backed companies typically prefer equity swaps due to li...

Blake Hutchinson, CEO of Flippa.com, discusses the evolution and challenges of the online business marketplace. The Flippa platform facilitates the sale of online businesses in five core business models: online publishing, e-commerce, SaaS, iOS/Android apps, and YouTube channels, with 425,000 AI matches weekly. Blake highlights the importance of supply acquisition, the growing interest from instit...

SBA loan expert Tom Lyons talks about everything related to SBA loans. He discusses recent changes to SBA guidelines, such as allowing partial ownership changes and zero down payment options. Tom shares advice and insights into the process of acquiring a business, qualification and compliance challenges, guidelines for an owner to remain involved in the business, contingent seller notes, how landl...

Marc Adams, a private investor with a background in private equity, discusses the challenges business owners face when selling their companies and ways to look at how to sell a business and minimize or eliminate the amount of taxes owed. He highlights the impact of taxes and fees, which can reduce the selling price by 30-45%. Marc emphasizes the importance of planning ahead, increasing prices, imp...

Geoff Coltman, Senior VP at Catena Solutions, discusses M&A integration in the food and beverage sector. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the human element and the "why" behind decisions. Geoff highlights the challenges of maintaining regular communication and the need for open communication and partnership with organizations to ensure successful change management. He also discusses t...

Derek Johnson, author of "The Strategic Sales Leader," discusses the importance of optimizing sales and marketing as you prepare your company for sale. Many companies leave money on the table due to ineffective sales and marketing strategies. Derek discusses leveraging competitive intelligence, understanding the buying journey and the psychology of change and persuasion, and stresses the importanc...

Patrick Stroth returns to M&A Talk to discuss the ins and outs of directors and officers insurance – also known as D&O insurance – and why it is a standard component of a transaction for buyers of middle-market businesses. Patrick highlights how the D&O tail can work along with reps and warranties insurance and tips on how to make it fairly painless for a seller to get D&O insurance even if they h...

Kevin Moyer returns to M&A Talk to discuss EBITDA multiples, emphasizing their importance in valuing companies in the middle market. EBITDA multiples measure a company's enterprise value against its current EBITDA or run rate, either as reported or adjusted, and can vary widely by industry. The discussion covers the role of CapEx, the importance of accurate EBITDA adjustments, the need to ensure t...

How much do M&A advisors and investment bankers charge? Bill Snow returns to M&A Talk to explain why there is not a straightforward answer to this common question. He shares insights into the difference between finding a buyer and closing the deal, the positive aspects of monthly retainer fees and how they are a sign of shared risk, how success fees are calculated in various transactions, the impo...

Guest Mark Tarchetti rates the importance of preparing a company for sale at 10 out of 10, saying that inadequate preparation can lead to rapid buyer loss and diminished competition, potentially reducing a business's value by 20-30%. Mark highlights the power of a clear, compelling business story and shares his experiences from doing $40 billion in M&A deals, stressing the importance of strategic...

Get the inside scoop on how to maximize the sale of your business and help the process run smoothly through the help of an M&A advisor during the critical preparation stage. Simon Leroux, a serial entrepreneur and founder of Optionality. AI, discusses the importance of early collaboration with M&A advisors. He highlights the inefficiencies in the M&A process, particularly for lower mid-market busi...

Josh Springer, head of M&A for Hawke Media, discusses the acquisition and integration strategies he has used in closing 18 deals over the past 4 years, offering sellers a perpetual revenue share instead of a lump-sum payment. He shares insights into how this approach works, the benefits for sellers, lessons learned for the acquirers, how creative deal-making can beat market multiples, and how this...

Show Summary: What is a fractional CFO? How can they help grow a business? Can they help sell a business? Get all the details on this growing position in the middle market with fractional CFO John Hannum. He offers a wide-ranging discussion with insights into how a fractional CFO can fit into a company's growth plans, the role of different financial team members, how they play a role in preparing...

Show Summary: Rich Kottmeyer, investment banker and food and agriculture turnaround specialist shares his extensive knowledge of M&A activity and growth potential in the food and agriculture industry. This complex industry is experiencing fundamental changes driven by consumer preferences, technological advancements, and global conflicts. This is leading to new avenues for investments, and multipl...

Show Summary: Katrina Nacci, a cross-border accounting advisor, discusses the complexities of converting accounting standards in international M&A transactions. Katrina offers a high-level look at the differences between U.S. and international accounting standards. She highlights when it might be necessary to convert from local GAAP to U.S. GAAP or IFRS, and the importance of having detailed docum...

Show Summary: Exit options – what are your options? Understanding your own goals and the goals of potential buyers is key to achieving a successful sale of your middle market company. Buyer Jude David offers insights into the most common exit options, the differences between financial and strategic buyers, questions to consider in a self-inventory before preparing for the sale, and considerations...

Show Summary: In this episode of M&A Talk, Marc Beginin shares his rollercoaster entrepreneurial journey. In early 2020, he was poised to sell his company for $80 million, but the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly halted the deal. Undeterred, Marc navigated through a series of challenges, including a merger, an acquisition, and a costly oversight on the other party's side. He reveals how these experience...

Show Summary: Matt Sharrers joins us to discuss the challenges of replacing a CEO or founder of a company, with a focus on the need for a well-thought-out plan to ensure a smooth transition and maximize value. He emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and ego management for founders, as well as the need for a clear value creation plan and metrics to measure success. View the complete show not...

Show summary:  Historically, reps and warranties insurance was only available to very large M&A transactions. In this episode, Patrick Stroth discusses how this product is now available to small and middle-market businesses. He explains that the objective is to provide sellers and buyers with a solution that is reliable and actionable and avoids conflict between the parties. The significant benefi...