10 Ways to Improve Your Top Line Revenue
Business Lunch
Could you use some freakishly effective marketing hacks that are easy to use and have been proven to work? We thought so. On today’s episode, host Roland Frasier shares 10 simple ways you can make more money on the products and services you’re selling just by making a few small tweaks. Want a sneak peek? Hack #2: friendly forms. “Friendly forms boost conversion,” Roland says. “Don’t ask for too much information. At the very beginning, keep your forms lean and simple, and watch your conversions go up.” And Hack #6: use UGC (user-generated content) photos to bump...
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Dealing with Business Breakups and Failed Partnerships
Business Lunch
You can’t always avoid a business breakup, but if you set things up right at the beginning, you can part on good terms. On today’s episode—“The Business Breakup Special”—co-hosts Roland Frasier and Ryan Deiss have a candid conversation about partnerships gone bad. They share two real-life examples that happened recently—one where they got broken up with and one where they did the breaking up. You can’t let the fear of failure keep you from partnering with other people, Roland says. “Things aren’t always going to work out, and that's okay. If you’re not trying...
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10 Ways You Can Pivot Your Business
Business Lunch
How could you leverage a pivot in your business to make more money, get yourself out of a challenge, or move toward a better opportunity? On today’s episode, host Roland Frasier shares 10 major pivots you might want to consider for your business in the near future. What are some different directions you could take your business that could be more profitable or achieve some other objective? Maybe you want to be more environmentally conscious or build a better culture. Maybe you want more sales, at the expense of profits, because you want to grow your business now and worry about...
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4 Steps to Acquiring Businesses with Zero Cash Out of Pocket
Business Lunch
No cash out of pocket deals aren’t the same thing as no money down, and they can be win-win deals for both the buyer and seller. On today’s episode, host Roland Frasier talks about how to think like an investor. Some people think there’s always a loser when you do a deal, but Roland doesn’t agree. He has a philosophy of collaboration and what he calls a fairness zone. He believes it’s possible for both parties to walk away with a situation and a deal they’re happy with. In a no money down deal, the seller leaves the closing with nothing to show for it. With no cash...
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Dealing with Negative Criticism and Haters
Business Lunch
When you put yourself out there online, the haters are going to find you. How do you keep them from getting under your skin? In today’s episode, host Roland Frasier shares honestly about some recent critical feedback he’s received on his paid ads online. If this were constructive criticism, that would be one thing. But some of it has been hateful and hurtful comments—about his intelligence, his motives, and even his facial features. There’s never success without criticism. Roland encourages you to understand that this hate has nothing to do with you and everything to do with the...
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Marcus Lemonis on Capitalism, Community, and Camping
Business Lunch
Get up close and deeply personal with one of the most brilliant entrepreneurs on the planet in this no-holds-barred interview. Today’s episode is a conversation Roland Frasier had with Marcus Lemonis, CEO of and host of the hit TV show, , at in November 2021. Marcus is known for looking at the 3 Ps—people, product, and process—when he’s evaluating a business to invest in. Of those 3 Ps, he says people are by far the most important. In this chat, Marcus gets real and vulnerable, opening up about his social anxiety, his childhood wounds, his biggest regrets in life, and how...
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Why You Need to Stop Trading Time for Money
Business Lunch
You can’t build true wealth until you get out of the trap of giving away your time for money—no matter how much money it is. On today’s episode, Ed O’Keefe interviews Roland Frasier about one of Roland’s favorite topics—consulting for equity. He has even started a new business to help experts and consultants get out of that dollars-for-hours trap. As Roland sees it, there are a lot of ways you can be compensated for something. He explains those ways in five levels that build on each other. Based on years of experience, he knows that one of the absolute best ways to create...
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The Different Ways to Value Your Company | Mergers and Acquisitions Advice
Business Lunch
“What is my company worth?” That’s a big question with a lot of answers. In today’s episode, host Roland Frasier walks us through a few different ways to value your company. Last time he checked, there were 432 different ways to do this. Don’t worry. He’s only going to share a handful—and he’ll tell you which one he thinks is easiest (and he uses most often). It can be overwhelming when you consider book value, market value, intangible assets, goodwill, and acronyms like IRR, SDE, EBITDA, and ROI. Thankfully, Roland is really great at breaking down difficult...
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The Ultimate Marketing Engine with John Jantsch
Business Lunch
The Ultimate Marketing Engine with John Jantsch Tactics and strategies are not the same thing, and only one of them is an effective long-term plan for getting your customer to where they want to go. In this episode, host Roland Frasier sits down with John Jantsch, Founder of and the author of the book by the same name. Duct Tape Marketing is one of those books Roland believes everybody should read. It’s in his all-time Top 5 and “fantastic.” John recently released a new book called The Ultimate Marketing Engine, and it’s filled with actual strategies (not tactics)...
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Consulting for Equity: How to Double Your Consulting Fee
Business Lunch
Would you like to get paid your normal rates but also an additional amount in equity? Today’s episode is a little bit different, because it’s taken from a coaching call Roland Frasier did with a Consulting for Equity Mastermind. The Mastermind is a group he started to help consultants get equity in the companies they’re working with while also getting paid their normal rate. Listen in as he walks someone through how they can get their normal consulting fee of $75k but also get an additional $125k in equity. Getting What You’re Worth He’s talking to...
info_outlineThe final steps to acquiring a company are very important. Do them well, and you’ll be the proud new owner of a business.
This is the third and final episode of an invaluable series where Roland Frasier has been walking us through some important questions to ask when buying a business. All three episodes are important, but this one in particular will help you finish strong.
Listen in, take notes, then go connect with Roland on social media (Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn). He’d love to hear what you took away from these episodes and what you’d like to hear next on the podcast.
Target Questions to Get the Data You Need
In the previous episode, you were finding common touchpoints and building rapport with the owner of the business you want to acquire. You showed interest, asked questions, got them talking, so you could take notes to help you craft an offer.
Once you’ve had that conversation, the next set of questions is more specific. Roland has a target data information sheet he fills out. You don’t need a financial statement to get these questions answered. Here are some of them:
- What is the top level sales?
- What is the profitability of the company?
- What are the assets and liabilities of the company?
- What kind of cash is in the company?
- What are the accounts receivable/payable?
- What is the long-term debt of the company?
- Does it own any real estate?
- What other assets does it have?
- Does it have inventory?
- How many employees do they have?
- What is the owner’s reason for selling?
- What will they do going forward?
The reason you ask that last question is because you want them to get excited about life after business. Then you’ve built a common goal.
How Do You Start the Research and Outreach Process?
A lot of people believe businesses to acquire can be found through online and offline brokers of businesses. The truth is, those are really the worst deals. Here’s why. Think about when you list a house. You’re emotionally invested in it, so you typically think it’s worth more than it really is. When someone goes to a broker to sell their house or business, the broker will say, “What do you want for it?” They’ll either say, “I don’t know” or “I want x.” The broker has to think of how to keep the seller’s expectations reasonable and get the deal. There’s a compulsion to let someone list something for sale at a higher price than they can actually get for it. You’re fighting against a seller’s expectation. Plus they need to get enough to pay the broker. If you have someone who has received multiple offers they’ve turned down, that will be helpful for you, but you’re still going to pay the highest price the broker can get.
Wouldn’t it be better if you could get off-market deals that aren’t listed? Or deals that were listed but the listing expired? They’ve gone through the “expectation curve” process and are much more reasonable in what they’ll accept. Keep in mind that 80% of businesses listed do not sell.
Roland recommends finding businesses organically. You’re probably not going to find businesses by running an ad. Most of this happens through word of mouth and networking. The more you meet people and tell them what you’re doing and what you’re looking for, the more likely it is that you’ll meet someone who knows someone who can refer you to someone who has that business you’re looking for.
Some places to ask about businesses for sale:
- Friends and family
- Email signatures
- Social media contacts
- Networking groups
- Meetup groups
- Angel groups
- Contractors, employees, consultants
- Join masterminds
- Investment bankers, accountants, attorneys
- Trade shows/trade associations.
The more you plug yourself into the industry you want to acquire a business in, the more likely that you’ll get referrals. Referrals are the best, because you’re getting introduced to the person with someone’s arm wrapped around you saying, “This is a good person to do business with.” Letting your whole world know is the best way to start.
If you’re doing cold outreach, there are several things you can do. The easiest in the U.S. is to go to secstates.com. This site lists all 50 Secretaries of State where filings of business entities are done and registered.
You can also find businesses on hoovers.com or zoominfo.com. Names, phone numbers, and addresses are often available. Call the company, ask who the owner is, and say you have to send them some information. Or go to the website and look at the About Us page or Team or Contact Us. You can also Google information about business licenses. Then send them information like Roland talked about in the previous episodes.
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