Deal flow
Deal flow is the ongoing stream of acquisition opportunities available to a buyer — businesses for sale that reach them through brokers, listing marketplaces, referrals or their own direct outreach. Its value depends less on volume than on how well the sourcing channel matches the buyer’s actual criteria.
Two buyers with identical budgets can have completely different experiences depending on their deal flow. One waits for brokers to send listings and sees only what is already being marketed; the other builds outreach and referral channels and sees opportunities before they are broadly shopped.
Inbound versus outbound deal flow
- Inbound: listings from marketplaces and brokers, arriving because the business is already for sale and being marketed
- Outbound: opportunities a buyer generates by directly contacting owners in a target sector, most of whom are not actively selling yet
- Referral: introductions from accountants, lawyers, other buyers or industry contacts, often the highest-quality source because someone has already vouched for the fit
Why quality matters more than quantity
A buyer reviewing fifty mismatched listings a month is not better positioned than one seeing five well-targeted ones. A tight buy box, communicated clearly to a small number of brokers and contacts, usually improves deal flow quality faster than casting a wider net.
Sources
This definition is checked against primary sources. Links were last confirmed on the dates shown.
- 01Treadstone LawLegal commentaryBuying & Selling a Business
- 02Treadstone LawLegal commentaryHow to Prepare a Business for Sale in Ontario
- 03Business Development Bank of CanadaIndustryHow to sell your business
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