Seller's Handbook · Start here
Selling your business — the honest walk-through
Most owners overshoot the asking price by 30-50% on day one and spend a year wondering why nothing closes. This handbook is the opposite: a no-spin, step-by-step path to figure out what your business is actually worth, what's costing you a multiple, and how to fix it before you list.
Why we built this
Most of what's online about selling a small business is either marketing fluff from a broker trying to win you, or finance-bro theory that doesn't survive contact with a real SBA underwriter. This handbook is the version we wish every seller had read before they walked into their first meeting.
It's free. No login. The valuation calculator and the legacy diagnostic produce real outputs you can keep. When you're ready, talk to a specialist broker — or don't. Either way, walk in informed.
The 4-step walk-through
Work through these in order. Each step has a tool or reading that takes about 5-15 minutes. Your progress bar at the top of this page tracks where you are.
- 1
Run the valuation calculator
5 minFive questions. Indicative SDE/EBITDA range with industry-specific multiples — not a Zillow-style guess. You'll see a realistic range for what a buyer will pay and why.
Free, no login. Keep the printout.
- 2
Run the legacy business diagnostic
10 minStratford Analytics looked at 4,712 closed deals and found working-owner businesses sell at a 47% discount. Most of that gap is fixable in 6-12 months of prep.
This diagnostic surfaces your specific gaps before a buyer (or their SBA lender) finds them.
- 3
Read the prep guides
15 min eachThree short reads that cover what buyers pay for, how multiples really work, and what SBA underwriters look at when they review your deal.
Skim or read deeply — both work. The progress bar at the top of each page shows where you are in the journey.
- 4
Talk to a specialist broker
30-45 min callThe right broker has closed deals in your industry and your state. Filter by both and pick one you actually want to work with.
Every broker in our directory has signed a non-compete and committed to pulling from the same valuation playbook you just read.
If you only do one thing today
Run the valuation calculator. Even if you're a year from selling, knowing your baseline range now lets you set real goals for the next 12 months. Most owners who prep for 12 months pick up 20-40% on the sale price.
The #1 mistake sellers make
Calling a broker first and anchoring on whatever the broker says the business is worth. Brokers who want to win your listing are incentivized to quote high — you list high, it doesn't sell, you lower the price six months later. Meanwhile the broker has a listing.
Run the valuation yourself first. Thencall the broker and see if their number matches. If it's 40% higher with no data to back it up, you know why.
What a buyer actually cares about
Buyers don't care about your story or your effort. They care about three things:
- Can I replace you for less than you pay yourself? (That's SDE math.)
- Does this cashflow survive my SBA loan payment? (That's the 1.25x DSCR rule.)
- What breaks the day you leave? (That's the 47% legacy discount.)
Every step in this handbook ladders back to one of those three questions. If your answers are solid, you sell. If they're shaky, you either fix them or accept a lower multiple.