Stage 4 of 9

Going to market

Going to market is the first moment the decision becomes visible to anyone outside the kitchen table, and it is the stage owners worry about most.

Two routes, usually combined

A listing on a marketplace reaches buyers who are already searching. A direct approach reaches companies that were not looking but for which this business would fit. Most processes use both, in that order, because the listing produces enquiries while the direct approach is still being prepared.

Listings of European online companies are published at (https://www.businessforsale.eu/online-business-for-sale).

Anonymous first

A public listing describes the sector, the size band and the structure without naming the company. Enough for a serious candidate to recognise a fit; not enough for a supplier to work out who it is.

Some businesses are recognisable regardless of how the text is written. Where that is the case, a direct approach to a short list is the safer route.

How many candidates

More is not better. Every additional party increases the chance of the news travelling and absorbs time that the owner still has to spend running the company. A handful of candidates who can actually finish produces more competitive tension than a long list of browsers.

Running a company while selling it

The most common damage during a sale is done to the business itself. Attention moves to the process, results dip, and the dip appears in exactly the months a buyer is examining. Whatever else changes, the operating rhythm should not.

The business has to keep performing during the process, because the process is watching it.