I've been trying to sell my small manufacturing business and decided to look online since local buyers are scarce. I've had three 'buyers' contact me, and each one wanted me to pay for a 'due diligence report' from their preferred vendor before they'd proceed. One even sent a fake DocuSign link. I'm not naive, but this is exhausting. Has anyone actually found a legitimate buyer through online listings, or is this all just a cesspool? I'm not looking for a broker pitch, I already talked to two and their fees are insane.
scams
Trying to find an online buyer without getting scammed
Legit buyers exist online but they're rare. The due diligence report scam is so common it's almost a meme now. Anytime someone insists on a specific vendor, walk away.
I sold a landscaping company two years ago through a listing site. The buyer turned out to be real, but it took like 7 months of weeding out the weirdos. What worked for me was asking for proof of funds before sharing any financials. That filtered out 90% of the time wasters.
Have you tried reaching out to your industry's trade association? They sometimes have member-only deal boards. Not exactly online in the Craigslist sense, but way fewer scammers.
Seven months? yikes. What was the listing site? I'm in the same baot as the OP.
It was BusinessBroker.net. I'm not endorsing them—they just happened to be where my listing got traction. The 'proof of funds' thing is key though. A screenshot of a bank balance is trash, ask for a letter from their bank or a CPA.
Not to be thoat guy, but 'prof of funds' letters can be faked too. I had a guy send a letter that looked official and it turned out he'd photoshopped it from another deal. Now I just ask for a video call with them and their banker. If they balk, bye.
That's a bit much for a first conversation though, isn't it? I'd be put off if a seller demanded a three-way call with my bank before we'd even talked numbers.
Fair, but I'm not talking first conversation. This is after they've expressed real interest and asked for financials. I just tell them it's a quick verification step. The real buyers get it—they know the drill.
Honestly, if you're at the point of considering online buyers, just bite the bullet and use a broker. Yeah the fees sting, but they filter the trash and you keep your sanity. I tried the DIY route for a year and got nothing but tire kickers and one guy who wanted me to 'invest' in his crypto startup as part of the deal.
The crypto thing is a new one. I hadn't thought about the trade association angle—I'll check that next week. And the video call with the the bank, that's a decent filter. I'm not paying for another 'due diligence' report though, that's for sure. I'll update if anything pans out.