One of the big reasons that your emails go to spam our junk is that filtering has become more rigorous. Email providers are simply cracking down on spam/junk. However, the filters aren’t 100% accurate, so sometimes legit emails go to spam too. To avoid this, we recommend whitelisting our email addresses (aka marking our emails safe).
Not sure how to do this? We have a great page right here to guide you!
2.
What is the difference between your subscription and full serve models?
2.
Our subscription solution is aimed to satisfy sellers who do not want to pay a commission to us or to brokers. For a subscription fee of $99 CAD (plus applicable tax) per month, subscription-based sellers can create unlimited listings and receive unlimited leads. They can also cancel at any time with no penalty. This subscription payment is facilitated and secured by a trusted third-party vendor, Stripe, Inc. If you'd like, you can learn more about them here.
Our full serve solution is a digitized and automated buy-and-sell experience. To learn more about the solution we’ve put together a product page here. To learn more about the cost of this solution, please click here.
3.
Why do some listings say “Initiate Contact” and others say “Make an Offer”?
3.
The listings that say “Initiate Contact” are sellers who are looking for a buyer connection (our subscription model). BuyAndSellABusiness.com facilitates an email introduction and everything else happens offline and outside our platform.
The listings that say “Make an Offer” are sellers who are using fully automated buy-and-sell experience (our full serve model). We will guide both parties through the offer, intent, due diligence and closing.
4.
How do I know if I need to use a broker?
4.
Brokers are great for big, complicated deals that are challenging to value, or deals that need confidentiality and deep negotiations; usually deals that exceed $5m in EV. Our full serve model offers sufficient support for most smaller deals and our subscription model works well for high volume or experienced sellers with their own experts on hand.
5.
How do you verify the identity and credentials of buyer and sellers?
5.
All our members go through a verification process. Once verified, members are open to sell, send offers and purchase. Once offers are accepted, we provide the environment and resources in order to guide our members so they are in control of the deal from start to finish. Your due diligence process is critical to verifying the identities and credentials of buyers and sellers.
6.
What is the difference between a Letter of Intent (LOI) and a Purchase and Sale Agreement?
6.
A letter of intent, also known as an “offer”, outlines a series of agreements between two parties before the agreements are finalized. The concept is similar to a term sheet or memorandum of understanding. An offer is not a legally binding document. It provides context, confidentiality and a framework to engage in due diligence.
The final, complete, and legally binding document is the purchase and sale agreement (PSA).
7.
Is it common for a buyer to sign an LOI without having financial information on a business?
7.
Yes. A non-binding LOI just shows the intent to buy pending due diligence. Requiring a non-binding LOI reduces tire kickers and aligns the buyer and seller with the terms and fundamentals of a deal. During due diligence is when the buyer will request information and ask questions in order to make an informed decision. A buyer and seller do not have to move forward with the deal until an official purchase and sale agreement is signed, which occurs in the closing phase.
8.
What kind of due diligence does BuyAndSellABusiness.com do to validate the terms of a deal in full serve?
8.
Terms of a deal go through various rounds of automated checks and balances between the buyer and seller. Any inconsistencies are flagged and escalated for manual review from our support team in order to ensure the deal is completed in a timely and mutually beneficial way.
9.
Can I add other people to my Full Serve deal?
9.
Once a non-binding offer is eSigned by both parties, you can add a recipient to a deal. A recipient can be a partner, lawyer, accountant, banker, whoever you want. The recipient will not have the ability to take action on the deal, only the deal owner will have that ability. However, the recipients will be BCC'd on all deal communication and next steps. The goal of this feature is to ensure both parties have the most important people part of all communication in order to collaborate, align and keep everything transparent.
10.
The other party has backed out of our deal. Is that normal?
10.
Yes. Since the LOI is non-binding, both buyer and seller can pull out of the deal until a final purchase agreement is signed. Sometimes the buyer or seller will get cold feet, uncover issues during due diligence or run into financing issues.
To keep our members safe. The biggest benefit of having us hold the funds is to protect both the buyer and seller during the transaction. Funds will be held in escrow until the deal is 100% complete. This ensures the buyer is serious and the seller is committed. Never send funds directly to someone you are communicating with on our platform. Anyone insisting that funds be sent to them directly are attempting to circumvent the safeguards put in place to protect you and should be reported to our support team.
12.
What should I do if I need to ask an accountant, banker, or lawyer a question?
12.
Simply check out our resources page here. Furthermore, when you join our platform, you’ll have access to a Grow section for tools, tips, perks and resources that can provide you with the advice and guidance you need.
13.
What is the deposit percentage?
13.
The deposit is earnest money paid to a seller that represents a buyer’s good faith. A deposit is typically 5% of the purchase price, although the amount is negotiable. This earnest money is applied toward the purchase price at closing. A higher earnest money deposit carries more weight and often gives the buyer more leverage in negotiations.
14.
What is the due diligence period?
14.
Due diligence is the investigation or exercise of care that a reasonable business or person is normally expected to take before entering into an agreement or contract with another party. The due diligence process, when purchasing a business, should take no longer than 60 days. When buying or selling a business, you want to close a deal as soon as possible. You should not submit or agree to a letter of intent (LOI) with a longer time frame. In reality, however, the due diligence phase can take longer than 60 days.
15.
What does the closing date refer to?
15.
The closing date refers to the date when a company purchase and sale transaction is signed off and completed, including the transfer of all funds and ownership.
16.
What does “transition period” mean?
16.
Is an agreed-upon period of time following closing during which the previous business owners agrees to provide support as new owner acclimates to their newly acquired assets, infrastructure and systems.
17.
Are there any best practices for using the marketplace?
17.
As a BUYER:
- Logging in regularly to check out new businesses listed in the community that suit your search criteria.
- Ensuring you select criteria in your search that suits your lifestyle; if no results, create BizAlerts so you are notified of new opportunities that do fit your search criteria.
- Be honest about your purchasing budget.
- Make time to meet, discuss, and perform proper due diligence of the business for sale.
As a SELLER:
- Logging in regularly to keep track of your listing.
- If you are engaged in full serve, ensure you’re responding to prospective buyers in your connection area. Make time to meet, discuss and negotiate with a potential purchaser.
- Ensure your profile is created with honesty and integrity.
- Manage and keep your listing status updated (available in the Edit/Manage tab).
For all MEMBERS:
- When in doubt contact us!
- Ensure your browser is up to date
18.
How do I know how much my business is worth?
18.
Try our our Free Business Valuator Calculator here or contact a chartered business valuator via our Grow section on your login dashboard.
19.
Where can I find information about policy updates or general interruptions of service?
Do I have to be a member to view business and franchise listings?
20.
No, but if you would like to contact the seller, you must sign up for an account. We take the privacy and confidentiality of our listings seriously as for some of our sellers publicly advertising their business or franchise can be harmful. Nevertheless, our sellers have the option to select if they would like to keep their listing completely private within the walls of our marketplace or if they do not mind letting the public know.
21.
How do I close my account?
21.
We'll be sad to see you go! But if you really do have to leave us, this is how:
Simply click on your profile picture in the top right corner while logged in and choose 'Profile'. Scroll to the bottom of the Profile page and click on 'Close my Account' on the left.
When submitting the form on this page, you will receive an email with a link to reset your password.
If you don't receive the reset email, please check your spam folder.
23.
Your website isn’t appearing properly on my device?
23.
Our marketplace is used on a wide range of devices. We unfortunately cannot test every device out there (there's a lot of them!) but generally if you are using a modern, updated browser you shouldn't experience any compatibility problems.
The above browsers have been given passing grades by our team of dedicated functional testers.
To find out what browser you're using and upgrade to the latest version or download a new one, go to https://www.whatsmybrowser.org/.
24.
Can I manage my email preferences from you?
24.
We do our best to ensure that we only send essential communications such as buyer/seller introductions, alerts, perks and relevant updates. In addition, we deliver some other notifications that are optional. These optional notifications can be managed via your profile.
25.
What is the Listing Managers feature?
25.
Members who have our "Unlimited Seller Subscription" can add and remove listing managers from their account.
Listing managers have the ability to edit and analyze listings that have been assigned to them, as well as receive any buyer introductions. They may also create as many new listings as they want on behalf of the subscription holder.
You can assign and unassigns listing managers in real time. Each additional listing manager on your account increases your monthly subscription by $10 CAD. Read this blog here for more information.
At BuyAndSellABusiness.com we know that our customers rely on us as an important part of their business processes and record keeping. We take our responsibilities to our customers seriously, and the security and reliability of the software, systems and data that make up the BuyAndSellABusiness.com platform are our top priority. For more information, check out our Privacy and Security Policy here.
28.
I still need help, where can I get support?
28.
Head over to our Contact Us page and get in touch. Someone will get back to you shortly. Click here.
