Clearly Acquired Blog

Expert insights, funding strategies, and practical guidance for securing capital, financing growth, and navigating business acquisitions. Whether you're raising capital for expansion, restructuring debt, or exploring your first acquisition, our blog provides the knowledge and resources to help you succeed.

Growth
September 1, 2025

Loan Covenant Risks for Business Buyers

Loan covenants can make or break an acquisition: miss a financial or operational condition and you risk penalties, waivers, or even loan acceleration. Manual tracking (spreadsheets, periodic reviews) offers control but is slow and error-prone; tech-enabled platforms automate ratio checks, trigger real-time alerts, and streamline lender reporting. Many buyers win with a hybrid—use software for continuous monitoring and keep human oversight for negotiation, edge cases, and judgment calls.

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Growth
September 1, 2025

Checklist for SBA Loan Closing Documents

Closing an SBA loan comes down to airtight documentation and tight coordination. For 504s, core forms like SBA Form 2286 and 2303 anchor the package, while lenders verify compliance and borrowers supply current financials, insurance, collateral details, and respond fast to requests—plus any conditional items (environmental, construction budgets, franchise docs, etc.). Track submissions, prep for final review/escrow, and store everything securely; tools like Clearly Acquired’s dynamic checklists and encrypted data rooms make the process faster and harder to derail.

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Growth
August 31, 2025

SBA Announces 7(a) & 504 Loan Fee Changes for Manufacturers FY 2026

The SBA has announced significant updates to its 7(a) and 504 loan programs for Fiscal Year 2026, including full fee waivers for manufacturers under NAICS sectors 31-33. Qualifying manufacturers can now secure 7(a) loans up to $950,000 and 504 loans, including refinancing options, with 0% upfront and annual fees. Additionally, the SBA clarified its 90-day rule for multiple 7(a) loans, streamlining how guaranty percentages and fee relief are calculated when combining Working Capital and Export Working Capital loans.

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Growth
August 31, 2025

Research: Workflow Integration in SMB Acquisitions

Effective SMB acquisitions hinge on early, well-planned workflow integration—aligning systems, processes, and teams to reduce inefficiencies, cut costs, and improve decision-making. Use AI and automation to streamline data handoffs and reduce errors, and track progress with metrics like processing time, error rates, and customer satisfaction. Involve stakeholders from the start and choose scalable tools to keep teams aligned and transitions smooth.

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Growth
August 31, 2025

Ultimate Guide to Revenue Growth Metrics in M&A

The Ultimate Guide to Revenue Growth Metrics in M&A explains how tracking key metrics drives better decision-making across the entire mergers and acquisitions process. It covers essential indicators like YoY growth, CAGR, MRR, CLV, CAC, gross margin, and retention rates, showing how they help assess a company’s financial health and growth potential. By leveraging AI-powered platforms and benchmarking against industry standards, acquirers can evaluate opportunities, optimize post-acquisition strategies, and maximize long-term value creation.

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Growth
August 29, 2025

What Is a MidStreet Business? The Complete Guide for Owners, Buyers & Investors

MidStreet businesses — companies generating $2M to $50M in annual revenue — occupy a unique and competitive space in the M&A market. Too large for typical “Main Street” buyers but not quite in the middle-market tier, they attract a mix of individual buyers, search funds, private equity firms, and strategic acquirers. Understanding how these businesses are valued, financed, and sold is key to maximizing deal success.

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Growth
August 28, 2025

Checklist for Cross-Border Entity Formation

Cross-border entity formation allows businesses to expand internationally but comes with significant regulatory, financial, and operational challenges. Buyers must plan carefully by selecting the right jurisdiction, understanding tax implications, and complying with foreign ownership rules and local regulations. A solid strategy covering legal setup, banking, funding, compliance, and operational planning ensures smooth entry into new markets while minimizing risks and maximizing long-term growth potential.

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Growth
August 28, 2025

Supply Chain Due Diligence: What Buyers Must Know

Supply chain due diligence is a critical step when buying a business because hidden weaknesses can lead to costly disruptions, regulatory issues, and reduced valuation. Buyers should analyze supplier concentration, delivery reliability, inventory efficiency, and financial stability while ensuring compliance with laws like the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act. Leveraging AI-driven tools and detailed metrics helps uncover risks early, protect your investment, and streamline post-acquisition integration.

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Growth
August 27, 2025

How Deal Flow Dashboards Improve M&A Efficiency

Deal flow dashboards streamline M&A transactions by centralizing data, automating repetitive tasks, and improving collaboration among buyers, sellers, brokers, and lenders. These platforms replace disjointed spreadsheets and email threads with real-time analytics, secure document sharing, and automated notifications, enabling faster decision-making and fewer delays. Tools like Clearly Acquired go further by integrating AI-powered valuations, SBA loan support, and financing options, making small business acquisitions more efficient and transparent.

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Growth
August 26, 2025

First Pass Yield: Complete Guide For Operators

First Pass Yield (FPY) measures the percentage of products or services that meet quality standards on the first attempt without requiring rework. A high FPY improves cost efficiency, operational performance, and customer satisfaction, while a low FPY signals process inefficiencies and potential quality issues. By tracking FPY, operators gain valuable insights into bottlenecks, equipment reliability, and training needs, enabling better decisions to improve overall productivity and profitability.

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Growth
August 25, 2025

Buy, Scale, Exit: Using SBA Loans + Marketing to 2X Your Revenue

Buying an existing small business with an SBA loan is one of the fastest ways to skip the risky startup phase and step into immediate cash flow. But the real growth hack begins after the acquisition—by leveraging smart, targeted marketing strategies to scale revenue quickly. Combining SBA financing with a focused marketing blitz gives new owners the ultimate cheat code for accelerating business growth.

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Growth
August 25, 2025

Key KPIs for Evaluating SMB Operational Health

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are essential for evaluating the operational health of small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), offering insights beyond traditional financial statements. Metrics like revenue per employee, gross margin percentage, inventory turnover, customer acquisition cost, and staff turnover rate reveal productivity, profitability, efficiency, and growth potential. Tracking and analyzing these KPIs helps buyers assess risks, uncover opportunities, and make informed decisions during acquisitions while enabling owners to improve performance and drive long-term success.

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Acquire Quality. Fund Growth. Close with Confidence.

As an AI-driven Business Acquisition Marketplace and Financing Platform, we are on a mission to simplify and accelerate the MainStreet to MidStreet lending and acquisition ecosystem.

We specialize in technology that supports price discovery, identity verification and financial qualification, and buy-side tools to help searchers source and manage deal flow, make offers, secure lending/financing solutions, and close with confidence.

illustration of team with digital platform

Frequently Asked Questions

Here are some frequently asked questions by users that are looking to buy businesses on Clearly Acquired:

How can I show business owners I'm a legitimate buyer and that I'm interested?

With a Clearly Verified account, you can instill confidence in other users, brokers and sellers that you are, who you say you are, when you "verify" your identify.  This is the key to instilling confidence in the users on the platform,  gaining traction and getting instant access to financials, supporting data and insight to quickly move to making an offer or moving on.   This will save you months of wasted time and expedite the closing of a sale.

How are my finances verified?

Using financial technology the Clearly Acquired Platform safely and securely verifies your finances, to help sellers understand your closing capability and help lenders expedite your financing. Additionally, the buy-side deal room will help you get your documentation in order, to prepare you for the debt and equity financing you will need to close your acquisition.

Can I get in touch with advisors to help support me in this process?

The Clearly Acquired team is here to support you on your business acquisition or business sale journey. That said, the platform is designed to connect you with a community of users, who are identify verified, which include: investors, lenders, advisors, brokers, consultants, and other buyers who are looking for partners.  

What is a Deal Hub?

The Deal Hub is the central repository for all transaction-related activities on our business acquisition platform. It serves as a secure and organized space where buyers and sellers can access critical information and manage the entire acquisition process efficiently. The Deal Hub is divided into two main components: the Data Room and the Deal Rooms.

Data Room: The Data Room is a secure, virtual storage space where sellers can upload and share essential documents related to their business. This includes financial statements, legal contracts, operational reports, and other due diligence materials. Buyers can access these documents to conduct thorough evaluations and make informed decisions. The Data Room ensures that all sensitive information is protected and only accessible to authorized parties.

Deal Rooms: The Deal Rooms are dedicated spaces for each business listing where buyers and sellers can collaborate and negotiate terms. Each Deal Room is equipped with tools for real-time communication, document sharing, and tracking the progress of the deal. This streamlined environment facilitates transparent and efficient interactions, helping to expedite the acquisition process and ensuring that both parties are aligned at every stage.

The Deal Hub's comprehensive and secure infrastructure simplifies the complexities of business acquisitions, providing a seamless experience for all users involved.

What is Plaid?

Plaid is a financial technology company that provides a secure and seamless way to connect and interact with financial institutions. It enables applications to access users' financial data with their consent, facilitating a wide range of services such as identity verification, account authentication, and transaction history retrieval. Plaid's robust API infrastructure ensures high security, reliability, and compliance with regulatory standards.

By integrating Plaid, Clearly Acquired can offer a secure, efficient, and reliable method for identity verification, building trust among users and ensuring the integrity of the acquisition process.

I am new to the idea of business acquisition, where can I get more information on how to get started?

Make sure to check out our Educational Course on Business Acquisition that is offered in our paid plans for buyers: From Purchase to Profit: Mastering the Art of Business Acquisition.

This Membership Course for buyers is designed to empower individuals with the knowledge, skills, and confidence to navigate the business acquisition process successfully. Whether you're a first-time buyer or an experienced entrepreneur, our course equips you with the tools and insights needed to make informed decisions and achieve your acquisition goals. Join us and embark on your journey to buying a business with Clearly Acquired.

Easy as 1, 2, 3

Create Your Account. Get Verified. Start Searching.

1

Create an account

Every day, lenders, investors, brokers, and sellers come to Clearly Acquired looking for qualified operators like you. Creating an account and getting verified helps you stand out and build trust.

2

Build your profile

Build your profile to get matched with capital and opportunities. Showcase your expertise and resume, to connect with the right capital and acquisition partners—making every opportunity count.

3

Search & Connect

Browse Verified listings, source off-market deals, & manage deal flow with powerful tools to underwrite opportunities, and connect with capital to streamline the entire acquisition and funding process

Join the Clearly Acquired Search Community

Create Your Profile & Get Verified for Free