Ignite PE: Joe Zanca’s Playbook for Deal Flow and Turning Conversations into Closings | Ep202

Ignite: Conversations on Startups, Venture Capital, Tech, Future, and Society

Joe Zanca is the Managing Partner of Deal Gen Partners, where he helps private equity funds, independent sponsors, and PE-backed operators source proprietary deals.

Previously, he built and exited On Demand Storage, launched a top-rated business podcast, and most recently joined Bullpen Technology Partners. With founder-operator chops, a banker’s Rolodex, and a nose for off-market opportunities, he offers insights into buy-side sourcing, valuation in lower-middle-market software and services, and the real terms that make (or break) a deal. In this episode, he discusses why founder empathy beats spreadsheets, how multi-channel outreach actually lands sellers, and the tradeoffs between clean cash at close, earn-outs, equity rolls, and seller financing.

In Today’s Episode We Discuss:

00:01 Introduction

00:41 Origin Story

04:12 Operator Lessons That Shape Sourcing

08:31 Why Start Deal Gen Partners

11:46 Launching the “Behind the Deal” Podcast

14:08 Defining the Podcast Focus

15:18 Content to Relationships (Credibility Flywheel)

20:07 Sourcing Toolkit & Channels

22:26 Fee Model (Retainer + Success)

25:26 Process & CRM Hygiene

27:38 Where They Hunt (LMM Software & Services)

29:56 Valuing Software Today

30:47 What Expands or Compresses Multiples

34:04 Three $10M ARR Exit Scenarios

39:42 How Much Equity Should Founders Roll?

40:12 Offer Structures: Cash, Earn-Outs, Notes

44:36 Negotiating Aggressive Earn-Outs

45:03 Blending Terms to “Meet in the Middle”

50:35 Other Critical Terms (WC, Escrows)

55:34 Working Capital Deep Dive

56:33 Bullpen Technology Partners Overview

59:03 Closing Takeaways

01:00:50 Final CTA & Where to Reach Joe

Subscribe on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6Ga6v0YUsHotLhjap67uu5

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ignite-conversations-on-startups-venture-capital-tech/id1709248824

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