How I Prepared to Buy a Business – Starting My ETA Journey

I believe preparation and planning are key to success in any endeavor. My journey into Entrepreneurship Through Acquisition (ETA) was no exception. Before reaching out to brokers and business owners, I followed a three-step approach that helped me feel more prepared.

In this post, I share each step, along with the time and financial investment it took. Hope this helps someone in their journey.

Step 1: Connect & Learn

The first thing I did was reconnect with the person who first introduced me to ETA. She had been buying a business while I was having a baby. Back then, my mind was elsewhere, and I only listened in awe, never imagining I could do something like that myself.

I got her on the phone and asked:

• What should I learn to prepare for buying a business?

• Who else should I talk to?

She introduced me to Walker Deibel’s book, Buy Then Build and connected me with a female entrepreneur who had acquired an e-commerce business.

I bought the book immediately and started reading it every night after putting my kids to bed. At the same time, I set up a meeting with the entrepreneur and scoured the internet to learn more about ETA.

My goal was twofold:

1. Separate the hype from reality. Did ETA truly offer freedom and flexibility, or was it just another marketing gimmick?

2. Determine if ETA was right for me.

   
   

In my first conversation, I asked the entrepreneur about her journey, her challenges, and what motivated her. I ended the call by asking who else I should talk to. This led to new connections, and in the end, I met four amazing entrepreneurs whose intelligence and grit inspired me. They also helped me join the Women Searchers Community WhatsApp group and learn about New Majority Capital and its bETA accelerator, two pivotal discoveries that I will talk about in a future post. But most importantly, I learned the reality of business ownership. The stress is real. The fires actually burn. If something goes wrong, you can be on the hook for more than just your house. Some entrepreneurs said they struggled to sleep at night, knowing how much responsibility they had. At the same time, they spoke about the control they now had over their careers and time—something their corporate jobs never allowed.

Hearing their stories gave me newfound energy. I had felt stuck in my job with limited growth opportunities, and as a mother of two under three, I longed for flexibility and more time with my babies.

Walker Deibel’s book showed me the financial potential of ETA and provided a clear roadmap. Seeing the process laid out made this feel possible. If I followed the steps, maybe this crazy idea would actually work?

Cost & Time Investment

Note: I didn’t assign a dollar value to my time investment, but since time has opportunity costs, you could easily calculate its monetary value based on your own hourly rate.

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
Book (Kindle version)	6.99
Meetings		3
Reading the book		15

Step 2: Testing the Waters

Theory and practice are never the same. I saw this in my job, but I lived it when I had my kids. No book, prenatal class, or parenting course could have truly prepared me. Having a child was much harder than I expected, and the lack of sleep turned me into a useless, crying zombie. But I digress.

Buying a business felt similar. I could study all I wanted, but until I tried it myself, I wouldn't fully understand what it took.

So I ran a test. I developed an investment thesis (or Target Statement as Walker Deibel calls it) and followed Walker Deibel’s advice to connect with a brokerage firm. Through them, I found a service business for sale:

• Revenue: ~$500K

• Seller Discretionary Earnings (SDE): ~$200K

• Asking Price: ~$375K

  
  

I reached out to the broker, scheduled a call, met with the seller, and ultimately submitted a Letter of Intent (LOI). The deal didn’t go through, but here’s what I learned:

Key Takeaways from My First Deal Attempt

• Brokers need to see you're serious. They act as gatekeepers for sellers and filter out non-serious buyers. You need to demonstrate credibility.

• Come prepared for seller meetings. You might not get a second chance to ask questions before submitting your LOI, so use the time wisely. Have a structured list of questions to help you decide whether to move forward.

• Understand the true Seller Discretionary Earnings (SDE). The seller’s SDE is different from yours. Their skills, network, and operational style affect the business's performance, so you need to assess what SDE would look like for you.

• Have your team ready. Having a lawyer, CPA, and lender onboard gives you credibility and ensures you can move fast when an LOI is accepted.

  
  

Cost & Time Investment

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
CIM Review	n/a	1
Broker Call	n/a	0.5
Seller Call	n/a	1.5
Financial Analysis	n/a	2
LOI Drafting & Review*	~500	3

*To get access to legal counsel I had to make a $5K deposit that served as a retainer, so you need that cash to engage your lawyer.

Step 3: Setting Up to Be Taken Seriously

Submitting my first LOI was a thrill. Although it wasn’t accepted, the experience was invaluable. I reflected on what I still needed to increase my chances of success. Here’s what I did next:

1. Build a Website

A professional online presence makes things feel more “official.” I created a simple Wix website with four pages:

• About – My background and experience

• Acquisition Criteria – My investment thesis

• Contact – How to reach me

• Resources – Key documents (resume, recommendation letters, personal balance sheet, etc.)

Cost & Time Investment

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
Domain (3 year)	43.99
Website Hosting & Building	192.27	3

2. Set Up a Professional Email

A business email looks more credible than "kitty99@gmail.com" (yes, I had a similar email when I was young—don’t judge me). If you purchased a domain for your website, you can use it to create a professional business email (something like name@mydomain.com). To do this, you’ll need to subscribe to Google Workspace or Microsoft Business Basic, both of which offer domain-based email hosting. Some website builders also provide business email services as an add-on. I chose Microsoft Business Basic to gain access to the full Microsoft 365 suite.

Cost & Time Investment

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
Business Email	6/month	0.3

3. Get Pre-Approved for a Loan

I connected with a loan broker and submitted:

• Resume

• Tax returns & W-2

• Personal Financial Statement

• Free credit report

This resulted in a pre-approval letter, proving I was a financially viable buyer.

Cost & Time Investment

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
Pre-approval letter	n/a	2

4. Build My Team

To get from a listing to closing a deal, I needed a lawyer, CPA, and lender. I used Searchfunder, LinkedIn, and referrals from other searchers to find the right team. I interviewed:

• 5 lawyers

• 4 CPAs

• 5 banks & a loan broker

Once I found the people I wanted to work with I felt supported and ready to move forward.

Cost & Time Investment

	💰Cost in USD	⏳Time Spent in Hours
Interviewing Partners	n/a	8

Final Thoughts

In total, I invested $749.25 and 39.3 hours preparing for this journey. With knowledge, a real-world test, and the right setup, I finally felt ready to start searching for a business to buy.

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