🧐What I Learned Last Week
Week ending Friday December 16, 2022
What I Learned Last Week curates the most interesting content relating to business acquisitions, operations, entrepreneurship, finance, and more. WILLW is a publication of The Business Inquirer.
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Hello Friends!
This issue of What I Learned Last Week is brought to you by DueDilio.
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📰 Articles
Coefficient Capital published its latest consumer trends report. This 88-page PDF explores how and why people spend their time and money. It’s a great read if you want to understand the consumer. There are too many interesting charts for me to post here.
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Indie Hackers has a good discussion on the right time to sell a business.
Not enjoying the project anymore: Per above. You've really gotta love what you do to keep going as an indie hacker.
Need cash in a hurry: Per above. Sometimes, you just need the cash, whether it's for a bill or an investment. But use it wisely — maybe put a plan/budget into place for how the funds will be allocated.
Opportunity cost is too great: When a great opportunity presents itself, do a cost-benefit analysis. I'm also a believer in going with your gut.
Imminent threat in the market: Maybe a large or innovative competitor enters your niche. I've closed a project because of this (I wasn't at a place where I could sell it yet). But be careful with this! Your buyer will know about the threat too, and they'll pay you accordingly. You could just accept the challenge and be more nimble than the threat. This is what indie hackers do best.
KPIs in rough shape: If your business is already in trouble, as signaled by an extended decrease in KPIs, you might sell. But as I said above, be careful. You'll get a reduced price for something that could just bounce back in a few months.
Growth has plateaued: If you're plateaued, and you have been for a while, and the revenue isn't high enough to make it worthwhile, then that might be a good reason too.
You've reached the limit of your expertise/abilities: You've topped out. Some folks are great at building, but early growth is hard for them. Others are great at early growth, but they don't have the experience to bring it to the next level. No shame in it, we all have our strengths. You can use this hurdle as a learning opportunity, or you can move on.
Mental health: This is a big one. Maybe you love the product, but you just don't have the capacity for it. I've seen this a fair amount. Entrepreneurship is hard, and it may not be worth prolonged stress, anxiety, etc.
Physical health: I've talked to a number of indie hackers who have had huge medical emergencies (e.g. heart attacks, puking blood, etc.) due to the stress. And of course, a health problem doesn't need to be caused by stress for it to be a good idea to take a step back.
Serial builders: Shiny object syndrome doesn't have to be a bad thing. Maybe you just love to build and move on. Lots of indie hackers do that.
Change in life circumstances: Maybe you've got more responsibilities (kiddo on the way, etc.) and you've suddenly become more risk-averse.
An offer you can't refuse: Sometimes folks just come out of the woodwork with a really good offer. Though, before accepting this, I'd do a little digging into why they're willing to pay so much. Is there a new opportunity you haven't seen?
The right time to sell your business (and how)
🧵 Twitter
Good framework for quickly evaluating acquisition opportunities…
When a public company CEO looks like a member of ZZ Top, you must stop and listen…
Some real gems in here…
A helpful collection of M&A resources…
This is a pretty accurate breakdown…
SBA loans are a bit more restrictive…
Things not to do…
🤔 Thoughts, Events, Other
🛠 Tools & Resources
I want to share some tools & resources that I have found helpful. Please note that some of these may contain affiliate links. This means that I may receive compensation if you sign-up and use them.
Cerebro Capital - Cerebro has a network of 1,500+ lenders who can provide debt financing for your acquisition, refi, etc. $500k minimum.
X5 Deals - Proprietary deal sourcing. They do the outreach and send you relevant, actionable deals directly into your inbox.
Curators - Proprietary deal sourcing. You need targets that fit your investment criteria, and Curators delivers week after week - we even update your personalized database on a daily basis with new information on best-fit targets.
BizNexus - Proprietary deal flow, deal aggregator, and exit prep. Local Boston company and I consider the founder (Adam Ray) a friend.
PrivSource - Deal aggregator for lower and middle-market listings.
The Website Flip - a newsletter that sends content sites for sale to your email inbox. They send deals each Wednesday and Friday.
Kumo - Find every deal in one complete platform. Spend less time sourcing deals and more time closing them. Kumo aggregates 180K+ business listings into one easy-to-use platform.
ProjectionHub - Access to 50+ CPA-developed financial projection templates. 25% discount using code “duedilio” at checkout.
Logology - Best automated logo & brand identity tool I’ve come across.
OpenPhone - The best VoIP phone solution that I have found. I use this for DueDilio. You get a $20 credit if you sign-up.
Eloquens - Knowledge marketplace. I’ve purchased a few templates from them.
Deal Flow Scout - Peer-to-peer deal flow exchange. Free, open, transparent.
Deal Sourcing Guide - A directory I put together of online marketplaces, brokers, DFY deal flow, and more.
That’s all for this issue of What I Learned Last Week!
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Important Disclaimer: This newsletter is provided for informational & educational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. This newsletter may link to other websites and certain information contained herein has been obtained from third-party sources. While taken from sources believed to be reliable, it has not been independently verified. The Business Inquirer makes no representations about the enduring accuracy of the information or its appropriateness for a given situation. References to any companies, securities, listings, investments, or digital assets are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. Charts and graphs provided within are for informational purposes solely and should not be relied upon when making any business, tax, or investment decisions. Content in this newsletter speaks only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others.