Selling a business is a project, not a listing. Plan for 60 to 120 days and prepare before you go to market.
Decide why and when you are selling
Buyers always ask why you are selling. A clear, credible reason (a new venture, time, focus) and a realistic timeline build trust. Selling in a declining month or right after a traffic drop costs you money.
Normalize your earnings
Buyers value small online businesses on SDE: net profit plus one owner’s pay and genuine one-off costs. Only add back what a new owner would not pay. Our SDE calculator shows which add-backs hold up.
Make the business transferable
- Written processes for everything you do each week
- Contractors who will stay after the sale
- Accounts that can transfer: domain, hosting, payment processor, ad and affiliate accounts
- Contracts that can be assigned to a new owner
Qualify buyers before sharing details
Ask for an NDA, a budget, how the purchase will be funded and a timeline. Share the full data room only with funded buyers.
Understand deal structure
Not every offer is all cash. Seller financing and earn-outs can bridge a valuation gap, but a $1M offer with $400k contingent is not the same as $1M at closing.
Due diligence and transfer
Expect the buyer to verify revenue, traffic, expenses and ownership. Then the assets move through escrow with a transfer checklist, and you provide the agreed transition support.