--- title: Buy the right business with our Business Buying Funnel [infographic] description: Use the JPAbusiness Busing Buying Funnel to help you sift out businesses that do not meet your requirements, and identify ones that do. image: https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.png --- 11 June 2024 # Buy the right business with our Business Buying Funnel [infographic] WRITTEN BYJames Price | JPAbusiness [**![Business buying funnel 2022](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hs-fs/hubfs/Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.png?width=800&height=600&name=Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.png)**](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/3.%20Infographics%20and%20cheat%20sheets/Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.pdf)  When assessing different business acquisition opportunities, I tell business buying clients to imagine the process as a funnel. **At the top, the funnel is wide **and it has a screen** ‘sifting against your requirements’**. This is where you look broadly at businesses that might suit you, based on your specific requirements such as: - geography - size and turnover - earnings - price - product or service - customer base, etc. It’s important not to let your business purchasing plans fail at the first hurdle, because your aspirations are larger than your capability. That’s where our Business Buying Funnel can help. It is drawn from several decades’ experience and learnings, and is designed to help you make an objective assessment of whether a potential acquisition is a solid match with your requirements. You can [click here](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/3.%20Infographics%20and%20cheat%20sheets/Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.pdf) or on the image above for a pdf version of the Business Buying Funnel. ## Basic information gathering While you’re at the top of the funnel, secure some initial information on the business that helps you and your advisor assess the performance and core attributes of the business. In particular, find out: 1. Does this business have a **positive earnings performance**? 2. Are **earnings on an upward trend **or a **downward trend**? 3. Is there a **point of difference** in the business that goes to achieving [business maintainable earnings (BME)](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/what-determines-your-business-maintainable-earnings-infographic)? 4. Does this business fit your most important requirements (investment level, return, industry sector and risk profile, future potential etc.)?   ## Taking the next step – a non-binding offer The next step is to ask the threshold question: ‘Based on the information I have, **do I feel confident to put in a non-binding offer on this business**, or are there gaps in the information I have received which makes it difficult to assess the real value of the business?’ **If you feel confident, then put in a non-binding offer** – this will test the expectations of the vendor. If you put this in writing it will emphasise your credibility and serious intent to the business owner. **If you’re not confident, you may need to seek additional advice**, such as an [independent valuation](https://www.jpabusiness.com.au/business-valuations) or market appraisal on the business. But remember you’re still at the top of the funnel – **don’t get lost in the detail**** at this stage.**   ## Moving down the funnel So, you’ve got to **your first offer and acceptance stage**. You’ve put forward a non-binding offer, the vendor has come back and said ‘I would accept that but only on the basis of X and Y’ or ‘I wouldn’t accept that, but I’d accept this’. Then there’s **a period of negotiation – still in a non-binding sense** – about a price and key terms. If you can get agreement at that stage, you can **proceed to a period of investigation and **[**due diligence**](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buying-a-business-use-the-due-diligence-checklist)** where you can utilise your advisors** to assist you investigate the core due diligence requirements.   ## Negotiations The final stages of the funnel relate to contract documentation, [binding negotiations](https://www.jpabusiness.com.au/business-transactions/buying-a-business/purchase-negotiations), contract exchange and business transfer. It’s very important at this stage of the funnel to make sure you have a team you trust – ideally your broker, solicitor and accountant – to help you ‘seal the deal’. If you would like support to assess a business purchase opportunity, [contact the team](https://www.jpabusiness.com.au/contactus) at JPAbusiness for a confidential, obligation-free discussion. ![How to assess business value cover 2022](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/1.%20Images/Updated%20document%20cover%20images%202022/How%20to%20assess%20business%20value%20cover%202022.png) Free ebook How to assess business value in small to mid-sized businesses How do you determine what a business is really worth? In this ebook we consider 3 questions to ask when assessing business value. [Learn more ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/buyer/how-to-assess-business-value-in-small-to-mid-sized-businesses) Share this Article Share this blog post on Twitter [mailto:?subject=Share%20this%20blog%20post&body=https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buy-the-right-business-with-our-business-buying-funnel-infographic](mailto:?subject=Share%20this%20blog%20post&body=https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buy-the-right-business-with-our-business-buying-funnel-infographic) Copied to clipboard Topics - [buying a business ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/topic/buying-a-business) - [infographic ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/topic/infographic) - [business buying funnel ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/topic/business-buying-funnel) About James Price | JPAbusiness James Price has over 30 years’ experience in providing strategic, commercial and valuation advice to Australian and international business clients. James’ blogs provide business advice for aspiring and current small to mid-sized business owners, operators and managers. #### Related Blog Posts ### [Buying a business? Use the Due Diligence Checklist](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buying-a-business-use-the-due-diligence-checklist) A successful business purchase is about doing your homework up front and making sure you are well... [Read more ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buying-a-business-use-the-due-diligence-checklist) ### [What determines your Business Maintainable Earnings? [infographic]](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/what-determines-your-business-maintainable-earnings-infographic) When determining what a small to mid-sized business is worth, Business Maintainable Earnings (BME)... [Read more ](https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/what-determines-your-business-maintainable-earnings-infographic) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "James Price | JPAbusiness", "url" : "https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/author/james-price-jpabusiness" }, "dateModified" : "2026-05-12T00:42:25.789Z", "datePublished" : "2024-06-11T16:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "Buy the right business with our Business Buying Funnel [infographic]", "image" : [ "https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/Business%20buying%20funnel%202022.png" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/blog/buy-the-right-business-with-our-business-buying-funnel-infographic", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://blog.jpabusiness.com.au/hubfs/JPAbusiness-logo.svg" }, "name" : "JPAbusiness Pty Ltd" } } ```