The final quarter of 2021 was a whirlwind of activity for us here at Empire Flippers.
We saw a culmination of all the hard work we put in throughout the year resulting in some truly remarkable achievements.
As always we want to be transparent about our journey sharing both the triumphs and challenges we faced and hopefully this report will give you some valuable insights to apply to your own business endeavors.
Q4 2021: A Year of Growth and Evolution
The last quarter of 2021 was a particularly busy period for us as sellers tend to finalize their exit plans and buyers are eager to secure deals before the year’s end.
It’s a time of increased activity and strategic maneuvering as everyone wants to capitalize on the year-end bump and leverage the potential for increased sales.
Marketplace Financials: A Look at the Numbers
We closed out 2021 with a total of $38676275.42 in brokered business sales slightly up from the previous quarter.
The average deal size also saw a slight increase reaching $499722.71. While these numbers might seem impressive at first glance it’s important to consider the broader context of the market environment.
The supply chain crisis and the resurgence of the Covid-19 pandemic with the Omicron variant had a significant impact on online businesses creating a more challenging environment for sellers.
Despite these challenges we saw a surge in businesses looking to exit before enduring further hardships which contributed to the higher volume of sales in Q4.
This trend was also reflected in the increase in eight-figure deals.
We successfully brokered two FBA businesses for $12 million and $11.8 million in Q4. This marked a significant milestone for us demonstrating our ability to handle larger deals and solidifying our position as a leader in the online business brokerage space.
Earnings: A Glimpse into Our Success
Our total earnings in Q4 reached $3556540.17 a testament to the hard work of our team the strength of buyer demand and the increasing quality of the businesses we sell.
We also continued to see positive results from our earn-out reporting with $205582.58 earned in Q4 keeping pace with our previous performance.
This success wouldn’t be possible without the trust and confidence of our clients.
We pride ourselves on helping our sellers achieve life-changing exits and we were thrilled to have minted 69 new millionaires on our marketplace in 2021. It’s a privilege to be a part of their journey and we’re grateful for the opportunity to make a positive impact on their lives.
Navigating the Marketing Landscape: From SEO to Newsletters and Beyond
We are committed to providing valuable content to our audience and in Q4 we continued to explore new avenues for engagement.
Building Our Blog and Website Presence
Our blog and website have remained a cornerstone of our traffic and revenue generation.
We saw a similar volume of users compared to Q3 but with an increase in session duration indicating greater engagement with our content.
We attribute this to our focus on niche-specific content and our experimentation with new formats such as short-form news-driven articles.
This approach allowed us to capitalize on our research for our newly launched “This Week in M&A” newsletter providing insightful commentary on current industry trends.
YouTube: Our Next Frontier
We’re bullish on the potential of YouTube and we’re continuing to invest in building our secondary channel.
We saw a slight decrease in views compared to Q3 which we attribute to our decision to hold off on ad spend for the channel.
Despite this we’re confident in our YouTube strategy and are excited about the opportunities it offers for building community and connecting with audiences in a more personal way.
We’re also dedicated to producing high-quality video content and the addition of a dedicated producer and editor will allow us to scale our content creation efforts significantly.
Podcasting: A Thriving Medium for Knowledge Sharing
Our flagship podcast “Empire Flippers” continues to be a popular resource for our audience generating 8372 downloads in Q4. We also leveraged our podcast feed to cross-promote interviews from our “The Opportunity” podcast which reached a broader audience and resulted in higher engagement.
Real Money Real Business (RMRB): Interviews That Offer Valuable Insights
The “Real Money Real Business” podcast which features interviews with sellers on our marketplace remains one of our most popular podcasts with 27377 downloads in Q4. The podcast provides valuable insights for both sellers and buyers and its consistent frequency helps to drive engagement.
The Opportunity: A New Podcast on the Rise
Our newest podcast “The Opportunity” celebrated its first anniversary in Q4. The podcast has quickly become a valuable resource for those interested in online business featuring insightful interviews with experts from various fields including SEOs affiliate marketers and leading aggregators.
We’re excited about its continued growth and the opportunities it offers to connect with a wider audience.
Newsletters: A Powerful Tool for Building Community
We launched our “This Week in M&A” newsletter in Q4 focusing on providing timely insightful commentary on the latest developments in the online business M&A space.
We received positive feedback from our readers and we’re committed to continuously improving the newsletter based on their feedback.
Email Marketing: Nurturing Our Audience
Our email marketing efforts continue to be a vital part of our strategy allowing us to nurture our audience and guide them through their journey with us.
We saw steady growth in our subscriber list driven by consistent content creation and our focus on organic traffic.
We are committed to providing targeted and relevant content ensuring that our emails are engaging and valuable to our audience.
Behind the Scenes: Updates from Our Teams
Our success is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our entire team who are constantly striving to improve our services and deliver an exceptional experience for our clients.
Engineering: Building a Seamless Marketplace Experience
Our engineering team is responsible for the seamless operation of our marketplace and they continue to make significant improvements to ensure that our clients have a positive and efficient experience.
They’ve completed a UX audit and partnered with a design and CRO agency to update our online user experience which will have a positive ripple effect on our customer service and sales teams.
Migrations: Facilitating a Smooth Transition of Ownership
Our migration team plays a crucial role in our deal process ensuring that businesses are transferred smoothly and efficiently between sellers and buyers.
They completed a total of 72 migrations in Q4 with an average of 34 days per migration demonstrating their commitment to delivering a high-quality and timely service.
Customer Service: Providing Support and Guidance
Our customer service team is the first point of contact for our clients and they are committed to providing exceptional support and guidance.
They fielded 3216 support tickets and facilitated 1105 chats with customers in Q4 ensuring that everyone receives the help they need.
They also played a key role in onboarding new users verifying proof of funds documents and facilitating ID verification processes.
Empire Flippers Capital: Fueling Growth
Empire Flippers Capital continued to gain momentum in Q4 as we celebrated the one-year anniversary of the Round 1 launch.
We raised $13 million for eight operators and Round 1 businesses saw significant growth providing investors with excellent cash on cash returns.
We also completed Round 2 funding providing $6 million to four operators.
Vetting: Ensuring Quality Businesses for our Marketplace
Our vetting team plays a crucial role in maintaining the high quality of businesses listed on our marketplace.
In Q4 they vetted 183 businesses totaling $115495584 in value demonstrating their commitment to identifying and listing only the most promising opportunities for our clients.
Sales: Connecting Buyers and Sellers
The sales team is focused on building relationships with both sellers and buyers providing expert guidance and support throughout the deal process.
They expanded their outbound team to cater to the growing number of seven-figure sellers on our marketplace and developed strong partnerships with funding partners to provide more funding options for buyers.
Finance: Ensuring Operational Efficiency
The finance team played a crucial role in optimizing our financial processes streamlining the payout process for sellers and buyers to ensure efficient and timely payment processing.
This is essential for maintaining operational efficiency as we scale our business.
Looking Ahead: A Bright Future for Empire Flippers
We’re excited about the opportunities that lie ahead in 2022 and beyond.
We’re committed to continuing to innovate and improve our services providing exceptional value for our clients and solidifying our position as a leading online business brokerage platform.
We’ll be back soon with another detailed report sharing more insights and data about our journey.
In the meantime if you’re considering making an exit or buying a profitable business we encourage you to connect with us.
We’re here to help you achieve your online business goals.