The case for going off-market

Work with me one-on-one to acquire your first business

I help you source the deal, vet it, a few, finance it, and close it.

For the first time ever, I’m taking on a small group of students and working with them one-on-one to close their first acquisition.

There are only 25 spots (hard limit), and it’s a serious investment.

But if you’re committed to acquiring your first business and want to work with me one-on-one to make it happen…

Click here to apply.

Hey, it’s Ben!

Yesterday I covered on-market deals, the organized, broker-facilitated listings most buyers start with.

Today we’re going to get into the other channel: off-market sourcing.

And more importantly, why the most effective search process uses both at the same time.

Adam bought a $1.85M stucco company while keeping his full-time W2 job…

And he’s on track to make over $300K in cash flow this year while working just 5-10 hours per week.

He structured the deal with 80% SBA, 10% seller note on full 10-year standby, and brought just $250K to close.

The previous owner had done zero marketing for 20 years and ran everything on paper.

Adam brought on a business development manager, implemented new systems, and is already lining up enough work to double last year’s revenue, all while keeping his day job.

👉 Want to buy a business without needing to quit your W2? Book a call with our team here.

What off-market actually means

Off-market sourcing means identifying business owners who haven’t listed their company for sale, and reaching out directly to start a conversation.

This could be cold outreach via email or LinkedIn, direct mail to business owners in your target industry, or relationship-building with local operators who might be thinking about an exit at some point in the next few years.

Why it’s worth pursuing

When there’s no broker involved, there’s no commission baked into the price, which means more room in the deal structure for you and the seller.

With no competing buyers, you control the pace and terms of the negotiation in a way that’s just not possible in a listed deal.

Some of the most creative financing structures and most favorable terms come out of off-market conversations precisely because there’s no standard process being managed by a third party.

(Inside Acquisition Ace, members learn how to build an off-market outreach strategy that generates real conversations. To see how our community can help you acquire your first business, book a call with our team here.)

The real tradeoffs

Off-market is slower and more labor-intensive.

You’re identifying leads yourself, doing outreach to people who haven’t raised their hand, and working harder to get a conversation started.

Financials may be less organized than a broker-packaged deal.

And without a facilitator, you’re responsible for keeping momentum going on both sides.

It’s a longer runway to a deal… but often a better one when it lands.

The best approach is to do both

On-market listings give you organized, immediately evaluable opportunities, and keep your deal flow active while your skills are still developing.

Off-market outreach builds a slower pipeline of opportunities with less competition and more flexibility.

Together, they create a search process that’s both active and compounding.

Finding a great business is ultimately a numbers game.

The more deal flow you’re generating across both channels, the better your chances of landing in front of the right one at the right time.

Building that kind of pipeline takes consistency, and it’s a lot easier when someone who’s done it is helping you stay focused on what actually moves the needle.

If you want me working alongside you to build that, going through the entire process together to close on your first business; I’m opening up a few one-on-one coaching spots for the first time ever.

This opportunity is capped to just 25 spots, and it’s a meaningful financial commitment.

But if that sounds like something you want in on…

👉 Apply to work with me one-on-one here.

This is the tool I use to find deals: SMBMarket.com