Practical, honest writing about what it actually takes to sell a founder-led business at the right price.
July 28, 2026
Amy Mattinat sold her Vermont auto shop for full price, no broker. The five-year, buyer-minded plan that made it work.
Read the case study →September 18, 2026
If you can’t find time to do this work, you’ve found the problem rather than avoided it.
Read article →September 15, 2026
Most owners prepare for the negotiation. By then, most of the negotiating is already done.
Read article →September 11, 2026
Most sellers have never been through it. Here’s the whole sequence, so none of it is a surprise.
Read article →September 8, 2026
Everyone is covering what got harder. Two provisions got easier, and they change who can afford your business.
Read article →September 4, 2026
Volume fell 10% last quarter. Multiples went up. What that means if you’re planning to sell.
Read article →September 1, 2026
The diagnosis is easy. Here’s the actual sequence, in order, for making your business run without you before you sell.
Read article →August 28, 2026
Their playbook runs 18 to 36 months. So should yours — here’s what that cold outreach really means, and how to use the same clock.
Read article →August 25, 2026
New SOP 50 10 8.1 changes how your buyer’s loan gets underwritten — higher coverage requirements, mandatory valuations, and no more relying on projections.
Read article →August 21, 2026
The conversation most owners dread — and the one that costs the most when it goes badly. When to tell your team, and how to prep without tipping anyone off.
Read article →August 18, 2026
You don’t have three years. What’s still fixable in a compressed timeline — and what you’ll manage around instead.
Read article →August 14, 2026
The problem is rarely the problem — it’s what the buyer decides about you when they find it. How trust quietly kills deals.
Read article →August 10, 2026
The buyer accepts your price… then chips it down in due diligence. What retrading is, who does it, and how to shut it down.
Read article →August 7, 2026
They don’t die at the negotiating table — they die in due diligence. The ten recurring deal-killers, and how to fix each one first.
Read article →August 3, 2026
A personal brand isn’t a dealbreaker. What buyers actually price when your name is the business — and the work to do first.
Read article →July 31, 2026
Most sellers start too late. Here’s the real 24–36 month timeline — what to fix in each window, and the one thing you can’t rush.
Read article →July 24, 2026
It doesn’t show up on your P&L — but it shows up in your sale price. The four ways founder dependency quietly costs you at the exit.
Read article →July 21, 2026
Readiness has two parts — and most owners only think about one. The two-week test, the tax-return test, and the honest questions buyers will eventually force.
Read article →July 17, 2026
Tax minimization and sale-price maximization are opposite strategies — and the returns your CPA optimized can block the SBA loan your buyer needs.
Read article →July 14, 2026
The owners who close at full price don’t start when they’re ready to sell — they start long before. What buyers actually evaluate, and what to fix first.
Read article →July 7, 2026
Buyers aren’t guessing — they have specific methods for measuring owner dependency, and they start before you know they’re looking.
Read article →June 30, 2026
Before due diligence starts, buyers form a judgment in the first few interactions — here’s what they’re seeing.
Read article →June 23, 2026
The symptoms show up long before a buyer does. Here’s how owner dependency actually shows up in a business that’s otherwise healthy — and how to recognize it before a buyer does.
Read article →June 16, 2026
Five areas buyers examine before they sign anything — financials, operations, contracts, people, and online reputation. Here’s how to know where you stand before they do.
Read article →June 2026 · IBA Business Sales Blog
Featured Guest PostA guest post for the IBA Business Sales Blog on why owner dependency quietly kills more deals than sellers realize — and the concrete steps to fix it before you go to market.
Read on IBA →June 9, 2026
Before a buyer signs an NDA, they Google you. Unresolved negative reviews and a thin profile add to their risk column — and risk lowers the multiple they’re willing to pay.
Read article →June 2, 2026
A missing or poorly written assignment clause can quietly kill a deal or give a buyer leverage they shouldn’t have. Here’s what to know — and why timing is everything.
Read article →May 26, 2026
You need documentation before a sale. But telling your team why creates anxiety and attrition. Here’s how to get the same result without the risk.
Read article →May 19, 2026
The owners who sell well aren’t the ones who found the best broker. They’re the ones who spent time before the broker making their business actually sellable.
Read article →May 12, 2026
Two businesses, same profit, very different outcomes at closing. The gap isn’t about revenue — it’s about how a buyer sees your risk.
Read article →May 5, 2026
Long before an LOI, buyers have already formed a view of how dependent your business is on you — from your website, reviews, footprint, and financials.
Read article →April 14, 2026
If you’re the hub of every decision, relationship, and process in your business, a buyer isn’t buying a business — they’re buying a job. Here’s how to change that before you go to market.
Read article →April 7, 2026
I’ve been on the buyer’s side of the table. Here’s what actually gets examined during due diligence — and why most sellers are surprised by what kills their deal.
Read article →March 31, 2026
45% of deals die because buyers can’t trust the numbers. What “clean financials” actually means, why it matters so much, and how to get there before you list.
Read article →March 24, 2026
Hint: it’s not when you decide you’re ready to sell. The businesses that close at the right price started preparing 12–24 months before listing.
Read article →March 17, 2026
Standard operating procedures aren’t about bureaucracy. They’re about proving your business can run without you. Here’s how to think about documentation when you’re preparing to sell.
Read article →May 2026
What due diligence revealed on a $1.9M service business — key-person risk, worker misclassification, and adjusted earnings that were negative. A real-world look at what buyers actually find.
Read case study →March 10, 2026
Not all business brokers are the same. Here’s what to look for, what questions to ask, and why the broker relationship matters more than most sellers realize.
Read article →