Buyer Outreach Tracker: A Free Excel Tool for LMM Sell-Side Auctions

What's in the tracker

The Excel file contains five tabs:

1. Buyer Universe (60 rows) Track every firm in your buyer universe with columns for firm name, buyer type (PE Platform, Strategic, Family Office, Search Fund, Independent Sponsor), primary contact, email, phone, teaser sent date, NDA signed date, CIM sent date, IOI received date, and current status. Pre-populated with 5 sample rows showing each major buyer type.

2. IOI Comparison Side-by-side comparison of received IOIs with auto-calculated:

• Price midpoint
• % cash at close
• Implied multiple (low and high) from your reference EBITDA
• Summary statistics (count, max, min, average, range) across all IOIs

3. LOI Comparison Weighted scoring of LOIs with:

• Adjustable weights across five dimensions (price, certainty of close, deal structure, cultural fit, speed)
• 1-10 scoring inputs for each bidder
• Auto-calculated weighted total and rank
• Notes on how to score each dimension

4. Process Calendar Standard 26-week LMM process timeline with 28 milestones across five phases:

• Phase 1: Prep (weeks 1-4)
• Phase 2: Marketing (weeks 5-10)
• Phase 3: LOI (weeks 11-14)
• Phase 4: Diligence (weeks 15-22)
• Phase 5: Close (weeks 23-26)

Color-coded by phase. Track status and target dates for each milestone.

5. Notes & Sources Tab usage guide, companion content links, methodology notes.

How to use the tracker

Step 1: Download the Excel file. Five tabs are pre-organized.

Step 2: Start with the Buyer Universe tab. Replace sample rows with your actual buyer list. Track outreach progress in the date columns as you advance through the process.

Step 3: As IOIs arrive, populate the IOI Comparison tab. Enter your reference EBITDA in cell B5; multiples and statistics auto-calculate.

Step 4: After IOI evaluation, move shortlisted bidders to the LOI Comparison tab. Set scoring weights based on seller priorities (default 20% each; adjust as needed). Enter bidder LOIs and 1-10 scores; weighted total and rank auto-calculate.

Step 5: Use the Process Calendar tab to set target dates for each milestone. Mark status as activities complete.

Step 6: Refer to the Notes & Sources tab for methodology guidance and links to companion content.

Why use this tracker

Three operational benefits for sell-side bankers:

1. Standardization across deals. Each new deal doesn't require building a tracker from scratch. The standard structure means the next deal starts faster, and lessons from prior deals carry over.

2. Side-by-side comparison forces clarity. Bidders who present bids in different formats often look harder to evaluate than they actually are. Forcing each into the same template makes the real differences obvious.

3. Weighted scoring removes bias. Without explicit scoring, bankers tend to favor the highest-price bid even when other dimensions matter more. The weighted scoring framework forces explicit trade-offs.

Who should use the tracker

Sell-side bankers running LMM auctions, especially solo bankers and smaller boutique shops without proprietary deal management software.

M&A advisors at smaller firms managing multiple processes simultaneously.

Founders with a banker who want to see the same data their banker is tracking.

Sell-side counsel coordinating with the banker on process management.

Back to all LockRoom resources