Acquisition Questions


45 Votes
11 Answers
11.5K Views
Acquisition interest in my part-time startup

I work as a software engineer at Big Software Company X, and have been hacking away on the side at my own mobile app for the past 2 years, which is publicly available. It does decently well,...

asked Feb 7 '11 at 13:22
Blank
Anon
228 points

2 Votes
2 Answers
3.05K Views
Buying a website on Flippa using someone else's capital?

I'm looking to buy a website on Flippa that is likely going to sell for $200K+.I don't have the resources to buy this website with my own money. What other ways can I "fund" buying this website?Is...

asked Aug 4 '14 at 20:41
Blank
Noah Bruggeman
14 points

2 Votes
3 Answers
3.07K Views
Buying sites on Flippa: what key metrics should I know?

When buying websites on Flippa, what is the key information I should do due diligence on?Also, isn't it possible to fake Google Analytics traffic fairly easily? Not just by modifying a screenshot,...

asked Apr 13 '14 at 13:11
Blank
Kelly Harden
11 points

2 Votes
1 Answers
2.83K Views
Closing the sale of a small business without a lawyer?

I have a small ecommerce store which generates a profit ($200K to $300K a year) that someone would like to purchase. The value of the deal isn't huge, it's just 1.5x the yearly multiple. As such,...

asked May 29 '14 at 16:30
Blank
Zachary Masten
12 points

1 Votes
1 Answers
2.94K Views
How do VCs get their troubled startups "acqui-hired"?

A good chunk of startups funded by top-tier VCs get "acqui-hired" rather than closed if it's clear they won't succeed.How do VCs get these "acqui-hires" done and avoid a complete loss? Is having...

asked Mar 27 '14 at 19:26
Blank
Richard Albury
7 points

1 Votes
1 Answers
3.29K Views
Company interested in acquiring our startup. How do we calculate a valuation?

We are a bootstrapped company of three. Our primary competitor is interested in acquiring us (acqui-hire). How do we place a value on our startup? Since we don't have any revenues or a huge user...

asked May 15 '14 at 10:40
Blank
Angela Williams
7 points

3 Votes
2 Answers
3.08K Views
Ways to reduce customer acquisition costs?

What are some strategies and tips to reduce customer acquisition costs? Lets assume you have found that SEO, PPC, display ads, and lead generation are the four channels that work best for you. How...

asked May 13 '14 at 14:41
Blank
Heather Thomas
19 points

8 Votes
6 Answers
4.95K Views
Got an offer for my app. Should I sell?

I have a free trivia app that I launched about three years ago, which generates about $90K in revenue each year. My costs are very little and most of it is profit. The only real cost is my time to...

asked Mar 29 '14 at 01:10
Blank
User32788
74 points

0 Votes
2 Answers
2.91K Views
Selling business: is it legal for competitors to pose as potential buyers to gain insight?

I'm looking to sell a website and wondering if it's legal for a competitor to pose as a buyer to get detailed insight of how my business operates?i.e. If they have no intention of buying the...

asked Mar 11 '14 at 10:10
Blank
Richard Clark
110 points

2 Votes
1 Answers
2.24K Views
Valuing a SaaS startup which has a large number of free members (and no paid plan yet for monetization)?

I'm going to helping a friend try and sell a service of his which is completely free to users. It's a social media tool similar to ManageFlitter.He has a large number of active users. The service...

asked Mar 5 '14 at 17:27
Blank
Violet Phillips
155 points

1 Votes
1 Answers
4.01K Views
Company getting acquired: would they keep salaries the same? Or re-evaluate everyone?

The startup I'm working for is likely to get acquired shortly. We get paid above market rates and it has been one of the reasons for low attrition here.Would an acquirer lower everyone's salary to...

asked Mar 3 '14 at 23:53
Blank
Clarine Nordberg
40 points

3 Votes
1 Answers
1.93K Views
What to do if your startup is being screwed by the acquirer?

I sold a popular site on Flippa and the new owner has completely screwed the site up by splattering it with ads everywhere.I used to be proud of saying I founded that site and now I'm ashamed to...

asked Mar 4 '14 at 12:05
Blank
Oscar Bennett
35 points

0 Votes
1 Answers
2.27K Views
What is due diligence when you are selling your business?

I am looking to sell a property of mine on Flippa and all potential buyers mention they would need to do due diligence.What things does someone acquiring your company check? Is there a list of...

asked Feb 28 '14 at 10:56
Blank
Brandee Dickson
10 points

0 Votes
2 Answers
2.4K Views
If a buyer wants part of the sale price to vest, is that normal?

Lets presume I'm going to sell my company for $1 million. Would it be normal for the acquirer to want to only pay $500K in cash and the other $500K after 1-3 years of being employed by them? In...

asked Feb 14 '14 at 02:46
Blank
User30124
1 point

0 Votes
3 Answers
2.56K Views
When a company is acquired how are employees compensated?

Let's say you join a small (< 50) hot startup. A month or two after you start, they end up getting acquired for $1 billion. As an employee that just started would you receive any of that money?...

asked Nov 15 '13 at 06:13
Blank
Wwwuser
125 points

1 Votes
1 Answers
2.35K Views
Converting a paid service to a free service

Are there any examples where converting a paid service to a free service caused issues for subscribers? Imagine a startup with a paid service, that is acquired by a large corp who lacks a...

asked Aug 21 '13 at 22:49
Blank
New Alexandria
221 points

5 Votes
3 Answers
2.79K Views
Planning for an Acquisition Strategy

I am a software developer half-way through the design and prototyping of what I believe will be a very successful new software product. Soon I will begin development, and am currently planning on...

asked May 6 '13 at 12:02
Blank
Ticket Monster
126 points

5 Votes
2 Answers
2.41K Views
VC Option Shenanigans

My company is being acquired by a public company (both US based). When we were all hired, our employment contracts stated we'd be granted x number of stock options. I'll say 250,000. That was 3...

asked Jan 15 '13 at 03:53
Blank
User23535
28 points

1 Votes
1 Answers
2.25K Views
When should you consider a potential acquisition in tech decisions?

In the early stages, the consensus in advice seems to be: Building an MVP: Use whatever is quickest. After you've got product market fit: Use whatever the team knows best/is best for the medium...

asked Sep 18 '12 at 23:40
Blank
User19712
6 points

0 Votes
2 Answers
2.29K Views
Employees working for other companies?

Our company is a small, Eastern European outsourcing firm, focusing on PHP, .NET, and mobile development projects). As our company is trying to get off the ground, and since we don't have much...

asked May 27 '12 at 18:51
Blank
Davey Boy
55 points