sales-skills/sales-acquire

Acquire.com Platform Help

Helps the user with Acquire.com marketplace questions — from deciding whether to list and which plan to use through preparing a data room, managing the NDA/LOI workflow, and closing via Escrow.com.

Step 1 — Gather context

If references/learnings.md exists, read it first for accumulated knowledge.

Ask the user:

1. What do you need help with?

   • A) Listing my SaaS for sale — eligibility, pricing, listing copy
   • B) Buyer plan selection — Basic / Premium / Platinum
   • C) Understanding fees — monthly listing fees, closing commission
   • D) Due diligence — data room, metrics, what buyers ask for
   • E) Deal process — NDA, LOI, APA, escrow, timeline
   • F) Comparing Acquire.com to Flippa, Empire Flippers, or FE International
   • G) Something else

2. If seller — what's your business?

   • A) Pre-revenue / MVP
   • B) <$5K MRR (~$60K ARR)
   • C) $5K–$20K MRR ($60K–$240K ARR)
   • D) $20K–$100K MRR ($240K–$1.2M ARR)
   • E) $100K+ MRR

3. Where are you in the process?

   • A) Researching whether to sell
   • B) Ready to list, haven't started
   • C) Listed, haven't reached NDA
   • D) Under NDA with buyer(s), no LOI
   • E) Have LOI, in due diligence
   • F) In APA negotiation / closing

If the user's prompt already provides enough context, skip directly to the relevant step. Lead with your best-effort answer using reasonable assumptions (stated explicitly), then ask only the most critical 1-2 clarifying questions.

Step 2 — Route or answer directly

If the request maps to another skill, route with an explicit command:

| User's problem | Route to | |---|---| | Choosing which marketplace to list on | /sales-side-project-valuation {user's question} | | Valuing the business (revenue multiples, pricing strategy) | /sales-side-project-valuation {user's question} | | Selling a content site or ecommerce store (not SaaS) | /sales-side-project-valuation {user's question} — it covers Flippa/Empire Flippers | | Showcasing or finding a co-founder for a side project | /sales-sideprojectors {user's question} |

Otherwise, answer from platform knowledge below.

Step 3 — Acquire.com platform reference

Read references/platform-guide.md for the full platform reference — buyer tiers, seller fees, deal stages (listing → NDA → LOI → DD → APA → escrow), Customer Success team, M&A broker partnership, and timeline data.

Answer the user's question using only the relevant section — don't dump the whole reference.

Step 4 — Actionable guidance

Provide guidance based on the user's stage:

• Pre-listing: Verify TTM MRR eligibility against the current cutoffs, check data readiness (Stripe/Google Analytics/P&L), set an asking price grounded in Acquire.com's realized multiples.
• Listing: Pick the seller tier that matches the asking price (monthly fee scales with price band). Write for Acquire.com's audience — bootstrapped operators, not VCs.
• NDA/LOI stage: Expect a high NDA-to-LOI drop-off. Pre-qualify buyers by plan tier (Premium/Platinum implies serious intent). Don't share the data room before NDA.
• DD/APA: Use Acquire.com's free APA templates and Customer Success Manager. Budget 60-90 days from LOI to close; longer for asset-over-$250K or share deals.

If you discover a gotcha, workaround, or tip not covered in references/learnings.md, append it there.

Gotchas

Best-effort from research — review these, especially items about plan-gated features and current pricing.

• Seller fees changed April 17, 2024. Pre-April 2024 listings were free; Acquire.com now charges a monthly listing fee ($25/$50/$100 by asking price tier) plus a closing commission (8%/7%/6% sliding based on asking price band). Anything written before April 2024 about "free to list" is outdated.
• Platform is SaaS-focused by curation, not contract. Non-SaaS listings (agencies, content sites, ecommerce) sometimes get in but are the exception. If it's not SaaS, Flippa or Empire Flippers is usually a better fit.
• Low LOI conversion is normal. NDA signatures are cheap; most NDAs do not lead to an LOI. Don't interpret NDA volume as acquisition momentum.
• Ghosting during due diligence is extremely common. Bootstrapped buyers underestimate the work. Keep marketing the listing until APA is signed.
• Asset purchase vs. share purchase is a tax issue for the seller, not a checkbox. Default APA is assets-only; if the buyer wants shares, get an accountant before the LOI.
• Escrow.com is integrated and free for both parties on any deal closed through Acquire.com. Using outside escrow is allowed but forfeits Customer Success support.
• Verified funds ≠ verified decision to buy. $2B+ in aggregate verified funds is pool size, not an indicator that your specific listing will get offers.
• Customer Success Managers are free but not unlimited attention. They scale with deal size; sub-$50K deals get less hand-holding.
• Self-improving: If you discover something not covered here, append it to references/learnings.md with today's date.

Related skills

• /sales-side-project-valuation — Side project valuation strategy — pricing, revenue multiples, deal structuring, and comparing Acquire.com against Flippa, Empire Flippers, FE International, SideProjectors, 1Kprojects, Microns, Little Exits
• /sales-flippa — Flippa platform help (open marketplace for SaaS + content + ecom + domains, tiered listing packages $29-$699, 3-10% success fees)
• /sales-trustmrr — TrustMRR platform help (verified-revenue marketplace with live payment-provider API verification, APA-only lump-sum deals, $29-$499 boost tiers)
• /sales-sideprojectors — SideProjectors platform help (free listing, no commission, co-founder matching, DR69 backlink)
• /sales-do — Not sure which skill to use? The router matches any sales objective to the right skill. Install: npx skills add sales-skills/sales --skill sales-do

Examples

Example 1: Decide whether to list on Acquire.com vs Flippa

User says: "I have a $8K MRR B2B SaaS. Should I list on Acquire.com or Flippa?" Skill does:

1. Notes $8K MRR ($96K ARR) sits in the core Acquire.com zone (most buyers are $100K–$500K deal size)
2. Acquire.com pros: SaaS-specialized, verified buyers, free Escrow.com, free CSM, templates
3. Flippa pros: broader audience, auction mechanic for competitive bidding, faster initial discovery
4. Recommends Acquire.com for a B2B SaaS at that MRR; suggests cross-listing only if Acquire is cold after 60 days
5. Warns about current fee structure — $50/mo listing + 7% closing at the $100K–$500K band Result: Recommendation with rationale and a 60-day decision point

Example 2: Prepare for due diligence

User says: "I signed an LOI yesterday. What does the buyer want for DD?" Skill does:

1. Walks through the standard Acquire.com data room: P&L for 24 months, Stripe/payment processor export, Google Analytics read access, churn cohorts, top-10 customer concentration, code repo access plan, hosting/domain registrar list
2. Warns: DD often slips 2-4 weeks beyond LOI timeline
3. Notes what Acquire.com's Customer Success can help with (templates) vs. what it can't (tax structure, jurisdiction-specific contract terms)
4. Suggests preparing a one-page "why this business" summary for the buyer to get their team on board Result: Data room checklist and timeline expectations

Example 3: Understand new seller fees

User says: "Someone told me Acquire.com is free for sellers. Is that right?" Skill does:

1. Corrects — since April 17, 2024, Acquire.com charges sellers (it was free before)
2. Breaks down current fees: monthly listing fee ($25/$50/$100) plus closing commission (8%/7%/6%) sliding by asking price band
3. Compares against Flippa (tiered success fee 3-10% plus $29-$699 upfront listing fee) and Empire Flippers (tiered 2-15%)
4. Notes that Escrow.com and Customer Success are still included at no extra cost Result: Correct fee understanding with a like-for-like comparison

Troubleshooting

Listing gets NDAs but no LOIs

Symptom: 10+ NDAs signed, zero written offers Cause: NDA signatures are cheap — many buyers sign to browse financials, not to buy. Listings priced above realized multiples for similar MRR also filter out serious buyers. Solution: Check your asking price against Acquire.com's public "Recent Deals" or comparable closed listings. If priced above 4x ARR for a <$50K MRR SaaS, expect low LOI conversion. Consider a price drop after 45-60 days or open the listing to offers below asking. The Customer Success team can provide a valuation sanity-check.

Buyer goes quiet mid due diligence

Symptom: LOI signed, data room shared, buyer hasn't replied in 10+ days Cause: Bootstrapped buyers often underestimate DD workload or lose financing/nerve. Ghosting at this stage is one of the most-reported complaints on Acquire.com. Solution: Send one direct message asking for a status update and a DD checklist. If no reply within 5 days, keep the listing marketed — LOIs are non-binding on Acquire.com. Ask Customer Success to escalate if the buyer is Premium/Platinum (higher commitment signal).

Can't decide between asset sale and share sale

Symptom: Buyer wants a share sale; you only know asset sales exist Cause: Acquire.com's default APA is an asset purchase. Share purchase has different tax and liability implications for both parties. Solution: Do NOT sign the LOI before talking to an accountant in your jurisdiction. Asset sales usually reset depreciation and avoid seller-held liabilities; share sales can be more tax-efficient for the seller but transfer all liabilities to the buyer. Acquire.com's Customer Success team cannot give tax advice — get a CPA or solicitor for this decision.