How to Get More Buyer Interest in Your Startup With One Easy Fix 

Is there such a thing as the perfect buyer for your startup? We like to think so. Many people believe they’ve found their soulmate despite the low odds of ever meeting them – and maybe it’s the same with acquisitions. Your ideal match could be out there right now, just waiting to meet you.

But if true, how do you find them?

You already know how to market your business. You might even be courting buyers as I write. But no matter how big you think your buyer pool is, there’s one thing you can do right now to attract more buyers within 48 hours. Better yet, it doesn’t cost you anything and works for most.

Get prequalified for acquisition financing with Boopos and you instantly cast a wider net. How? Think of all the buyers precluded from bidding. Maybe they lack sufficient capital, can’t obtain traditional financing, or deployed their money elsewhere. You could fix all three.

Any one of those buyers left out of the process could be your perfect match. The person satisfying your buyer criteria, from access to ready funds (courtesy of Boopos) to the right skill set, culture, and plans to scale your business more than you ever could have done alone.

But hold on. Who or what is Boopos? How does prequalification work? And does it really help sell your business at the highest price and the best terms? Discover the answer to all these questions and more below. It could be the difference between a good and a great exit.

Yes, You Can Arrange Financing for Buyers

We partnered with Boopos to make it easier for buyers to acquire your business. Boopos offers streamlined, non-dilutive acquisition financing for small to medium businesses, and if getting pre-qualified means you find a better buyer, faster, you’ve nothing to lose in applying. 

Once approved, you’ll receive a term sheet, usually within 48 hours, that you can share with buyers. You also get the “prequalified for financing” badge on your listing. Knowing there’s ready capital for the acquisition is a BIG ice-breaker. Better yet, it costs you nothing to get prequalitied – buyers assume the financing contract when acquiring you.

Why Get Pre-Qualified for Acquisition Financing?

Sell Your Business Faster

Prequalification with Boopos increases your buyer pool, boosting your chances of finding the right buyer faster than without prequalification. You could wait weeks or months hoping the buyer with the funds and risk appetite comes along. But with Boopos, you remove probably one of the biggest acquisition obstacles – access to capital – bringing more buyers to the table.

Shoulder Less Risk

Most buyers negotiate for the highest amount of seller financing possible. They want you to shoulder at least as much risk as they do, maybe more, to maximize their returns, and that probably doesn’t feel very fair. But if you’re prequalified, the burden of financing falls on the business, not you. The result? More cash at closing. Why say no to that?

Guaranteed Cash at Closing

You can structure an acquisition in as many ways as there are flavors of ice cream. Some you’ll love, like an all-cash deal, while earnouts, holdbacks, and seller financing can leave you wanting. Most of these post-closing terms help mitigate risk for buyers. If you can unlock future revenues with Boopos financing, you know there’s cash at the end of the process – guaranteed.

Access Boopos Buyers

If it wasn’t enough to widen your buyer pool with ready financing, you also get access to an exclusive buyer pool from Boopos itself. These buyers come warm knowing they can get the financing they need to close – and are usually people in the know. Give them the means to acquire your business, and they’ll bring the expertise to take it to the next level.

Get an Independent Business Valuation

In some ways, building a business is a craft like writing a story or painting a picture. You invest time and energy into it, hoping others will recognize its value when you’re ready to sell. Unfortunately, the critic’s eye is cold and objective. Seldom will their opinion match yours. 

In acquisitions, this often leads to disappointment. Either you accept less than you expected or wait, perhaps years, until someone offers you what you believe your business is worth. Belief, however, shouldn’t come into it. Valuations are inexact, but they’re calculated on facts.

Getting an independent valuation from Boopos as part of prequalifying benefits you in many ways. First, it tells you whether your asking price is realistic. Second, it can help justify your asking price to buyers. And third, it could help moderate your expectations to avoid disappointment. The more realistic your valuation, the faster you’ll sell your business. 

Show Buyers You’re Serious

Put your buyer hat on for a second. What’s more appealing than a seller who goes out of their way to make financing your acquisition easy? You don’t need to go to a bank, where even if you convince them to lend you money, they’d likely impose personal guarantees (Boopos doesn’t). 

Not all buyers need financing, of course, but just giving them the option shows you’re thinking of their needs as well as yours. You’ve demonstrated forethought, preparedness, and a commitment to getting the deal done. Can you think of a better way to kick off negotiations?

Prepare Buyer Docs in Advance

Boopos asks for many of the same documents a buyer will. Apply to prequalify, and you’re also preparing for your acquisition, compiling data that every buyer will want to see. In that sense, prequalification is zero risk and zero effort. It’s information you’d need to gather anyway. 

Instead of transferring everything to your data room for sharing whenever buyers request it, consider sending it to Boopos as part of your prequalification application. You have nothing to lose and could make it super easy for buyers to obtain the capital to acquire your business. 

What Documents Does Boopos Need to Prequalify You?

During your application, you’ll upload a 24-month profit and loss (P&L) statement, and if you run a subscription-based business, a cohort analysis (to reveal customer behavior during their life cycle). And that’s it. Of course, if Boopos needs anything else, they’ll let you know. 

How to Get Your Startup Prequalified with Boopos

Getting your startup prequalified for acquisition financing couldn’t be easier. You have two routes to apply, from your listing or the Boopos website. Andrea from Boopos explains how to apply in this short video, or follow the instructions below.

1. Visit the Boopos Acquire.com portal.
2. Click Get started.
3. Create your account.
4. Click Portfolio from your dashboard.
5. Click Add business and follow the on-screen instructions.

Once you’ve uploaded all the details about your business, including a 24-month P&L and cohort analysis, Boopos will get back to you within 48 hours.

You get the “Prequalified for financing” tag on your listing once you’re approved, making you stand out in the marketplace and giving buyers confidence in their ability to acquire you. 

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The content on this site is not intended to provide legal, financial or M&A advice. It is for information purposes only, and any links provided are for your convenience. Please seek the services of an M&A professional before entering into any M&A transaction. It is not Acquire’s intention to solicit or interfere with any established relationship you may have with any M&A professional.