Listed my business 10 days ago and I've got 43 inquiries. 43! My broker is thrilled, I'm drowning. Half of them want to "just chat" and the other half are asking for 2021 financials before they'll even tell me their name. How are you all filtering this? I have a business to run and I'm losing hours a day to tire kickers.
Buyer Inquiries
How do you handle a massive flood of buyer inquiries?
43 is peanuts. Try listing a restaurant. I had 90 in a week, and 85 of them thought the fryer came with the building. My advice: answer nothing until they sign an NDA. Cuts the noise down by 90%.
NDA first isn't crazy. But honestly what worked for me was a one-page FAQ + a 3-minute Loom video walking through the basics. Killed about half the questions. Still get the "just want to chaat" crowd though.
You have 43 inquiries? That's a great problem to have. My listing got 3 in a month and one was my cousin. Are you on BizBuySell or a direct broker?
Both. Broker put it on their own site and I did a couple of the big marketplaces. Didn't expect this volume honestly.
OP, do yourself a favor and set up a Calendly with a 15-min qualification call in the evenings. Block 2 hours twice a week. Everyone else can email. Your broker should be doing this btw, what are you paying them for?
This. My broker literally set up a shared inbox and triaged for me. Sounds like they're just forwarding you everything.
All the 'send me your financials before I tell you my name' people are the worst. I just reply with a pre-written template: 'Thanks for your interest. Please review the CIM attached and sign the NDA to proceed.' No NDA, no numbers. Cold but effective.
Also, watch out for the 'I'm a serial entrepreneur exploring opportunities' crowd. Usually means they want free consulting. lol
I might be in the minority but I don't mind the chats. Some of my best leads came from conversations that started totally vague. You just gotta cap it. If they're not serious they'll self-select out when you ask for proof of funds.
Proof of funds is the magic word. Sends like 60% of them running for the hills.
Lots of good stuff here. The FAQ + video idea is smart, I'll try that this weekend. And yeah my broker is... fine. Might be time to have a chat with them about who's actually handling this.
Good luck. Genuinely. And hey, if you want a laugh, ask one of the 'just chatting' guys what they think your niche is. Their answers are usually gold.
Or they ask if you can 'hold the business' for them while they get financing lmao