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Second Look Audit

Independent scores for small online businesses already for sale. We read the fine print so you can decide with a clear head.

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Library

A short shelf for the person doing the buying.

Books we would hand someone before a first acquisition or a first month as owner. The notes are ours. The links go to Amazon.

AllAcquisitionsOperatorsResearch
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  • Cover of $100M Offers

    Operators

    $100M Offers

    About the offer itself: who it is for, and why the price is believable. Useful when a listing's profit depends on one promotion that may not repeat.

    View on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

  • Cover of Buy Back Your Time

    Operators

    Buy Back Your Time

    About getting the owner out of the day-to-day tasks that eat the week. Relevant if the business you are looking at depends on one person doing everything, which our score flags as a risk.

    View on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

  • Cover of Clockwork

    Operators

    Clockwork

    A short book on building a business that runs without constant owner attention, through clear roles and processes. A useful lens for the first months after a purchase.

    View on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

  • Cover of Company of One

    Operators

    Company of One

    For buyers who do not want to hire a team just because the listing says the business can scale. It is a check on growth plans that assume headcount.

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  • Cover of Profit First

    Operators

    Profit First

    A cash habit, not a valuation method. Helpful after you buy, when marketplace payouts and ad bills arrive on different days. It does not replace the multiple on our score.

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  • Cover of The E-Myth Revisited

    Operators

    The E-Myth Revisited

    Old, and still the cleanest warning that a business can be a job with a logo. Pair it with the track-record and hours figures on a listing.

    View on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

  • Cover of The Personal MBA

    Operators

    The Personal MBA

    A survey of the words sellers use: margin, lifetime value, working capital. Handy if this is your first acquisition and the data room is full of jargon.

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  • Cover of Traction

    Operators

    Traction

    An operating system for a company that has outgrown a single inbox. Relevant once a listing shows a team, a set of contractors, or a process that only the founder remembers.

    View on Amazon (opens in a new tab)

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