In recent years, the task of deal origination within investment banking has posed a far greater challenge than it did in previous decades. What once was heavily reliant on golf course networking and wining-and-dining has evolved into an entirely different strategy play. Now, with more competition in the marketplace than ever before, it's crucial to utilize multiple possible methods for origination in order to ensure success.
One aspect of deal origination that many fail to properly prepare for is tradeshow attendance. Due to an overreliance on antiquated strategies, countless investment bankers approach these significant opportunities for deal origination with insufficient company information. This lack of insight forces them to operate blindly, firing from the hip as opposed to making strategic, informed decisions. Below, we'll discuss better approaches you can take in order to maximize your effectiveness at tradeshows and increase deal flow, from effective preparation strategies to utilizing an M&A platform.
Tradeshows are a prime opportunity for origination. There, dozens upon dozens of potential deals await discovery, but it takes a trained eye and a smart methodology to approach these from the right angle. In order to do so, it's vital that you have the proper growth and firmographic data on a company so you are equipped with the details necessary to decide whether that company is the right target.
At its essence, deal sourcing involves three fundamental components:
Typically, there are four operations necessary for successful deal sourcing at any given tradeshow:
On the surface, finding the information needed to properly prepare may not seem like a difficult feat when it comes to public companies, since most of the information is unrestricted. However, for privately held companies whose information can be incredibly difficult to track down, many bankers or analysts are left grasping at straws or stuck using obsolete research strategies such as:
Conducting such research is inefficient and often can cost thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours of labor for just one tradeshow. Further, there's no guarantee that the information that's uncovered will be of any use. Simply put, an archaic manual search might render you overbudget and underprepared. Now, with Sourcescrub, there's a better way.
Sourcescrub is an online deal origination tool that aggregates information into one platform so investment bankers can pinpoint everything they need to know about a company. In just a few minutes, you can easily find valuable private company information within the M&A deal management software such as:
The data scrubbing tools allow you to identify worthy conferences, award lists, or interesting prospects in any given industry and feel confident that you are operating on up-to-date information. It also gives you a comprehensive outlook on the market landscape and pivotal players in the industry. Finally, this powerful platform provides you with a robust and accurate database of founder-owned businesses, permitting you to:
It's time to stop relying on inefficient research strategies. Instead, opt for a bold new way of optimizing your public and private deal origination at tradeshows with effective deal flow software. With Sourcescrub in your arsenal, you'll be better prepared for each crucial step of the process.
1. Dyson, E. Trade Shows News Network. Trade Shows: The Secret Weapon for Maximizing Business-to-Business Marketing ROI.
2. Wall Street Mojo. Deal Origination.
3. Kang, J. The Wall Street Journal. Private Equity Turns to Big Data to Find Deals. (2018).
