Leverage Isn’t Luck, It’s a Strategy

How the Best Sellers Create Bidding Wars

Most business owners think leverage comes from size, profitability, or some magical market timing.

In reality?

Leverage is built. Intentionally.

The most successful exits aren’t won by the biggest companies.

They’re won by the best-prepared sellers. Those who know how to control the deal process and engineer buyer competition.

Let’s break down the four core elements of M&A leverage, and how you can use them to get a better outcome when it’s time to sell.

If one buyer wants your company, great.

If five buyers want it, now you have options.

Every additional bidder increases the tension, and with it, the price.

It’s not theory. It’s auction dynamics. And it works.

Rule #1: Leverage comes from choice.

Imagine this scenario:

“Please submit your bid by Friday at 5PM, or you’ll be excluded from the process.”

This is what investment bankers do all the time. They set deadlines that apply to buyers, but not to sellers.

It creates urgency on one side of the table, while giving you flexibility on the other.

Rule #2: Control the timeline, control the tone.

In every deal, both sides want to know:

A skilled seller knows how to:

Rule #3: What you don’t say is just as powerful as what you do.

Want buyers to believe you have other options?

You need credibility.

That means:

When you’re credible, buyers believe your threats, your deadlines, and your walkaway points.

Rule #4: Bluffing only works if they believe you mean it.

You don’t need to be a $50M company to build leverage.

You just need the right playbook.

Start by running a structured process.

Create buyer optionality.

Control the flow of information.

Use deadlines to your advantage.

And always, always, keep your credibility intact.

Because in M&A, the best negotiator wins, not the biggest company.

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