Solo Search Isn’t Broken. But It Will Break You Without a Team.

Just got off another Google Meets call with a solo searcher. Smart, experienced, clearly committed. But like so many we've met this year, he's been in the game for over a year, submitted multiple LOIs, and still has not closed. Not because he's lazy, not because he's clueless, but because he's running solo. And in 2025, that is a brutally steep hill to climb. Solo search is not 20% harder, it's easily 5x to 10x harder to close when you are going it alone, especially in boomer-owned businesses. Let me emphasize that this post is NOT about him, it's about the structural chokeholds we continue to see that crush solo operators who were never told how the game actually works. Most solo searchers are still running some version of this: * Personal Gmail * No site or brand * No team * Heavy broker dependency * Generic outreach * LOI #7 with no close And they wonder: "Why does the seller keep picking someone else?" The truth is: 1. You do not look like a buyer 2. You look like a browser Our platform is focused on acquiring boomer-owned businesses. So, typically sellers in their 60s and 70s that are running $1M to $10M dollar cash-flowing companies. That means we're not just buying financials, but also identity and legacy; because Boomers don't want to be impressed, they want to feel safe. Truth be told, they've owned their businesses longer than we've been alive and when you show up solo with no brand, team or plan; you don't look like an opportunity, you look like a risk. A seller will almost always pick a slower-moving buyer if that person feels more real and more trustworthy. And while the exact signals might shift if you're buying from Gen X or Millennial owners, the need for structure and presence never goes away and if anything, younger sellers will call you out faster when you show up with no plan. Here’s Verdira’s (our) playbook; not because we had capital, but because we were sick of losing to fluff: 1. We show up with a real brand. Site, team bios, operating thesis. No guesswork. 2. We run multi-touch outbound with intent. Personalized, consistent and it hits. 3. We show sellers the operator so they know who is running the business on day 1. Not "TBD" 4. We move faster than traditional PE. We don’t have a $100M fund, but we close faster through AI, automation, and speed-layered diligence. 5. We’re not the biggest player, and probably never will be, but we play tight. Sellers feel the difference immediately. So if you’re solo right now, here’s what you need to hear before you stall out: 1. You cannot build trust by yourself. 2. If you're going to run solo, you better look like a team. And here's how: 1. Build a credible site—even a one-pager. 2. Put together a visible team. (CPA, lawyer, operator; even part-time) 3. Write your SOPs: due diligence, transition, seller comms etc. 4. Show your plan. 5. Stop pitching yourself. 6. Start pitching what happens after close. 7. And make damn sure they can see how you’ll protect their legacy. And if you can’t do that solo: 1. Find a team 2. Partner up 3. Plug into a platform 4. Create structure Ego kills more deals than bad sourcing. The solo searcher we spoke with has real potential, just like many of you reading this. But potential isn’t the problem, it’s presentation, process and trust. If your LOIs aren’t converting and sellers keep going another direction, it doesn’t mean you’re failing, it means you’re probably flying blind. So if you're serious about closing something this year or in the next 12 months, it's time to stop soloing. Start building your stack because it'll be the best decision you make in your entire ETA journey. Best, Marcus