360 - Persistence Pays: A First Deal Closed with 100% Seller Financing

0:00Today, I want to share a story that perfectly illustrates what persistence, patience, and precision look like in business acquisitions. One of our group coaching members who joined in December 2023 just closed his first deal, but it was not an easy road. It took walking away from 13 deals before getting this one across the finish line. So lesson number one, failures are stepping stones. He had 13 indications of interest or term sheets fall apart. Now, most people would have given up long before then, But here's the key. Every failed attempt gave him another lesson about deal structure, about seller psychology, about patience.

0:46And when you stack those lessons, you get better each time. Think about that. 13 failures became the tuition for his first win. Lesson number two, the deal that worked. So what happened when the right deal came along? So here's a snapshot of that deal. Valuation, 5.5 times EBITDA. Purchase price,$1.9 million. Financing, it's pretty sweet. 100 % seller financing on a 15, yes, 15-year promissory note. And a down payment of only$5 ,000. The seller's role, seller's staying in the business five years full-time and two years part-time. That structure didn't happen by accident. It came from persistence and building trust with the seller.

1:39This is why I emphasize learning to position yourself professionally and to keep asking for seller financing. It works. But it works when you know the goals of the seller and can match your offer to it. Lesson number three, why this matters to you. Probably the most important lesson. You want to know why does this matter to you. So what does this mean for you? three things. One, persistence is the separator. Most quit too early. He didn't. Two, seller psychology is real. This seller was comfortable enough to stay in for seven years post-sale. That speaks to trust and continuity. And three, you don't need millions up front.

2:26This mentee closed a$1.9 million deal with just$5 ,000 down because the seller was convinced it was the right fit. This is proof that when you do the work, keep learning from each attempt, and stick to the process, the numbers can line up in your favor. So if you've been discouraged by the deals that didn't work, remember. Those failures are not wasted. They're stepping stones. Just like this mentee, you can turn persistence into success. Onward, as he said to me in his email. So I'd encourage you to remember that. You're going to fail your way to success. I've said that more than once. Important that you know the steps.

3:11He also commented that there were times that he had to go back, relearn the steps, and make sure that he was doing that. And ultimately, he focused on the needs of the seller and matched his offer to it. And he kept in touch with them enough that eventually they built trust and this deal came to pass. So I hope that when I go through these case studies that you see this is possible. I cannot guarantee your success. I don't know you. But I can tell you that this was two years in the making. Good for him. he stuck with it and got it done obviously.