According to the International Business Brokers Association, more than 12,000 business brokers operate in the United States. Most buyers pick the first one they talk to. That is a mistake that costs them six figures on a single deal.
Finding the right broker is a process. It requires the same discipline you bring to evaluating a target company. The wrong intermediary does not just waste your time. It can mean a failed deal, a bad price, or a business that was never right for you in the first place.
Here is how to find a business broker who can actually close a deal at your size and in your market.
What a business broker actually does
A business broker is an intermediary who handles the purchase or sale of a business. Most brokers represent sellers. They list the business, screen buyers, manage confidentiality, and earn a commission at closing, typically 8 to 12 percent of the sale price, paid by the seller.
That fee structure matters. A broker representing the seller has an incentive to close a deal, any deal, at a price the seller will accept. They are not your advisor. They are the seller's agent. Understanding that distinction protects you in every conversation.
Some brokers will work on a buy-side basis, meaning they represent you as the buyer. In that model, you typically pay a retainer plus a success fee. Buy-side engagements cost more upfront but give you a broker who is working for your outcome, not the seller's.
Broker tiers: Main Street vs. lower middle market
Not all brokers work the same segment of the market. Before you start looking, know which tier fits your deal.
Main Street brokers work deals under $1 million in sale price. They list on BizBuySell, BizQuest, and similar platforms. They have local buyer networks and are comfortable with SBA-financed individual buyers. If you are looking at a small retail, restaurant, or local-service business, a Main Street broker is appropriate.
Lower middle market intermediaries work deals from roughly $1 million to $25 million in sale price. These are often M&A advisory boutiques or investment bankers working the smaller end of the market. They run more structured processes, work with PE-backed buyers and search funds, and charge differently. At this level, look for intermediaries affiliated with Axial or M&A Source rather than the retail listing platforms.
Investment banks work deals above $25 million in value. If you are in that range, you are not reading a how-to article. You are already in a relationship with an advisor.
PGC focuses on lower middle market acquisitions in the $2 to $10 million EBITDA range. At that size, the right intermediary is not the broker with the most BizBuySell listings. It is the advisor who knows the buyer pool for your specific industry and can run a disciplined process. You can learn more about how deal size affects valuation in our article on EBITDA multiples in the lower middle market.
Where to find brokers
Start with these four channels.
IBBA directory. The International Business Brokers Association maintains a searchable directory of member brokers by state and specialty. The Certified Business Intermediary designation indicates the broker passed an exam and carries professional liability. It is a floor, not a ceiling. Credentialed brokers are not automatically good brokers, but it narrows the field.
M&A Source directory. M&A Source is the professional association for lower middle market intermediaries. Their directory lists advisors who focus on deals above the Main Street threshold. If you are targeting businesses with more than $1 million in EBITDA, start here rather than IBBA.
Your professional network. Ask your attorney, CPA, and lender. They see deals close. They know which brokers run clean processes and which ones let deals die. A referral from a transaction attorney who has closed 20 deals in your target market is worth more than any certification or directory listing.
Deal listings. Search BizBuySell and Axial for businesses in your target industry. Note which brokers list deals that match your criteria. A broker who repeatedly lists businesses in your sector knows those buyers, those sellers, and those multiples. Contact them directly, even if the current listing is not right for you.
The seven questions that separate good brokers from bad ones
Interview at least five brokers before committing. Ask the same questions of each. Compare the answers.
1. What deals have you closed at my size in the last 24 months? Vague answers are a pass. You want deal count, EBITDA ranges, and industry. A broker who has closed four deals in manufacturing in the last two years understands that buyer pool. A broker who has not closed a deal above $500,000 in EBITDA is not your partner for a $3 million EBITDA acquisition.
2. Which specific buyers will you contact for this deal? The answer should name buyer types, not just categories. PE sponsors with add-on mandates in your industry. Search fund operators looking at your EBITDA range. Strategic acquirers in adjacent markets. If the broker says they will reach out to their "proprietary database," ask how many active buyers are in it and when they last transacted. A database of inactive contacts is not a buyer pool.
3. How is your fee structured? Understand the success fee percentage, any retainer, the tail period after the engagement ends, and what happens if you bring the buyer yourself. Fee surprises after signing are avoidable. Every number should be in the engagement letter before you sign.
4. What is your exclusivity period and what are the exit conditions? Most brokers ask for 12 months of exclusivity. Negotiate. Experienced sellers often push for six months with a 90-day notice clause. If a broker will not negotiate the exclusivity period, that tells you something about how they handle the rest of the process.
5. What is your typical timeline to first offer? A good advisor can give you a specific range based on market conditions and deal complexity. A vague answer means they are not running a structured process.
6. How do you handle confidentiality? Leaking that a business is for sale can destroy it. Ask about their CIM distribution process, how they screen buyers before releasing financial information, and what happens if a buyer breaks confidentiality. Brokers who send CIMs to anyone who asks are a liability.
7. Who actually works on my deal? At larger shops, senior partners bring in the client and hand off the execution to junior staff. Know who is showing up to your deal reviews and attending diligence calls. The person who signs the engagement letter should not be the last time you see the managing principal.
Red flags
Walk away from brokers who do any of the following.
Push you to sign quickly. A broker who needs you to sign this week is optimizing for their pipeline, not your outcome. Take the time to run the full interview process.
Refuse to negotiate the engagement letter. Every engagement letter is negotiable. The success fee, exclusivity period, tail clause, and expense reimbursement are all points of discussion. A broker who presents their terms as fixed is a broker who is not a partner.
Cannot articulate a specific thesis for your deal. If a broker cannot tell you in 10 minutes who the natural buyer pool is and why, they do not have the market knowledge to run your process effectively.
Have had multiple deals collapse in diligence. Ask directly. One deal collapse is bad luck. Three is a pattern. Deals collapse for two reasons: the broker priced the business incorrectly, or they failed to manage the buyer's expectations. Both are the broker's job.
The passive search option
If you are not ready to commit to an exclusive buy-side engagement, most brokers will add you to their buyer database at no cost. This is called a passive search. You provide your acquisition criteria, industry preferences, geography, and financial capacity. When a deal enters their pipeline that matches, they contact you.
Register with five to ten brokers in your target market. Be specific about your criteria. A buyer with clear parameters gets matched to relevant deals. A buyer with vague criteria gets flooded with irrelevant listings.
Passive registration costs you nothing and keeps deal flow coming while you run your own active sourcing. It is a floor, not a strategy. Serious operators who are working a specific thesis run an active search in parallel.
A note on off-market deals
The best acquisitions are often not listed anywhere. They come through direct outreach to business owners in your target vertical, referrals from your network, and relationships with advisors who hear about pending exits before a formal process begins.
A broker relationship helps, but it is one channel in a broader deal sourcing strategy. We cover proprietary deal flow in detail in the article on how search fund operators source off-market deals.
The operators who close the best deals are not waiting for listings. They are building relationships with business owners 18 months before a transaction. A broker can run the process. Only you can build the network that gets you to the table first.
Frequently Asked Questions
What percentage does a business broker typically charge as a commission?
Most business brokers charge 8 to 12 percent of the sale price, paid by the seller at closing. For lower middle market deals above $5 million in value, the percentage often decreases on a sliding scale. Buy-side brokers who work exclusively for the buyer typically charge a retainer plus a success fee paid by the buyer.
Is it worth using a business broker when buying a small business?
For businesses under $1 million in sale price with an unknown buyer pool, a Main Street broker often has the listing access and local network that justifies the process. For larger businesses in industries with defined buyer types, a buy-side partner or M&A advisor who already knows the buyer pool can close faster and at better terms. The broker is worth it when they bring access or expertise you cannot replicate on your own.
What is the difference between a business broker and an M&A advisor?
A business broker typically works Main Street deals under $5 million in sale price, operates on a commission-only basis, and lists businesses on retail platforms. An M&A advisor works larger lower middle market transactions, runs a structured sale process with a marketing memorandum and qualified buyer outreach, and may charge a retainer in addition to a success fee. The distinction matters when sizing your deal team to your target acquisition.
