Welcome to built to sell.
I'm Sam Penny coach for the brave.
And today we're going to fix one of the most common reasons great businesses fail to sell.
And no, it's not your profit margin, or your systems or your growth story.
It's the process.
Because
Buyers don't buy your business, they buy the experience of stepping into it.
And if the sale process feels messy, slow, reactive, or even confusing, I'll tell you
what, that sends a loud signal.
This business might be just as chaotic underneath.
So even if your numbers are strong, even if your marketing is polished, even if you've
done the work, the process itself can either build confidence or quietly kill the deal.
That's why today is critical.
We're going to walk through the exact process smart sellers use to attract better buyers,
reduce friction, and close clean.
So if you want to position your business in a way that makes buyers say, yes, I'm in,
you're in the right place.
So let's dive
in.
So before we get started and before we get into the strategy, let me give you a quick look
at why I'm running this series and why I care so much about helping you get this right.
You see, I've been in your seat.
I've built businesses, I've scaled them, I've sold them and some for seven figures, but
that sale didn't happen by luck.
It wasn't because I found the perfect buyer or had the perfect timing.
It's because I built a sale process.
that made the decision easy for the buyer.
Since then, I've coached dozens of founders through their own exits.
And I tell you what I can tell you, most of the pain points, they're all predictable and
also preventable.
I now work side by side with business owners, brokers, buyers, and investors, helping
founders go from, well, maybe I should sell to, we just closed and I got what I wanted.
This series was born out of that real world experience.
It's not theory, it's not corporate textbooks, but conversations behind the scenes, in
deal rooms, over spreadsheets, and across the table from serious buyers.
And the purpose of this series is simple, to make sure that when the right buyer shows up,
you don't just hope they say, yes, you've built the business, now let's build the outcome.
Now, if this is your first webinar with me, welcome.
And if you've joined a few before, you already know that I like to keep things real.
They're practical, built for founders who actually do the work.
This series doesn't exist in a vacuum.
It's part of a bigger mission to help business owners like you make better decisions,
build better businesses and exit on your terms.
If you're enjoying this content,
I'd love for you to check out the podcast built to sell built to buy.
Each week I talk to brokers, buyers, sellers, operators, and we break down exactly what
actually happens inside the deal.
The insights are tactical.
The stories are raw and the takeaways are designed for people who don't have time to
waste.
And if something I shared today hits home, if you realize you want to clear a path to exit
or want to help
pressure testing your business from a buyer's lens, then let's talk.
You can just simply book a strategy call with me at sanpenny.com forward slash chat.
It's not a sales pitch.
It's a chance to dig in on your business, where you're at and whether you're ready or if
there's still work to do.
Right.
Let's get clear on where we're headed in this session.
Today is about building a sales process that makes buyers say yes, not because they're
convinced by your pitch.
But because they're confident in the process itself, we're going to break down the silent
killers that derail deals, the ones no one warns you about.
Not the numbers, not the valuation, but the friction buyers feel when the process is
unstructured, when it's slow, or even when it's reactive.
So here's what we're going to cover today.
Why even great businesses fail to sell.
the five stages of a sales process that actually leads to a signed contract.
What buyers are really looking for, even if they don't say it out loud, how to remove
friction and decision fatigue from the buyer journey.
And finally, what you need to have prepped and ready before you go to market.
So buyers don't just feel interested, they move fast.
You're going to walk away from this session with a practical lens on how your current
sales process stacks up.
And what you can do right now to raise buyer confidence.
So if you've ever thought, my business is great.
So why didn't they buy this session?
We'll show you the answer and how to fix it.
So let's start with a reality check.
Most deals don't fall apart because of bad business.
They fall apart because of bad processes.
It's not always the numbers.
It's not.
always your positioning or your brand.
It's how the process feels to the buyer.
So think about this from their side.
They're about to write a six or a seven figure check.
They're navigating risk uncertainty and a stack of competing priorities.
And when the process is vague, disorganized or slow, it doesn't matter how good your
EBITDA, your profit is.
They lose confidence because how you run the sales process becomes a proxy.
for how you've run the business.
When the buyer feels like they're chasing answers or they're waiting on docs or they're
constantly hitting ambiguity, that sends a loud signal.
This business might be harder to take over than it looks.
And even if they don't walk away immediately, their offer will reflect that fear.
So here's the hard truth.
The process either builds buyer momentum
or it breaks it.
Your job is to make sure your process signals the business is stable.
It's systemized, it's well managed, and it's ready for transition, not just emotionally,
but operationally.
So what does a strong sales process actually look like in every successful deal I've seen,
whether it's say 500,000 bucks or a $5 million sale, the process follows these five
stages.
So stage one is the pre-market readiness.
This is your foundation.
This is clear financials, current documentation, and a clear understanding of your
business model, the margins, the value drivers.
If you skip this stage, everything else is going to wobble.
Now stage two is the go-to-market positioning.
This is where your broker builds the teaser, the IM and gets buyer interest flowing.
But positioning is more the marketing.
It's about control.
You want to lead the conversation, not to react to it.
Now stage three in the stages of a strong sales process is the buyer qualification and
filtering.
Because let's face it, not all buyers are equal.
And this is where you sort serious from curious.
It saves you time and avoiding wasted emotional bandwidth or dreamers or even those bottom
feeders.
Now stage four, this is the due diligence and the deep dive.
This is where trust is either confirmed or destroyed.
If your documents are scattered, your answers are slow or surprises pop up, confidence
drops.
Fast speed and transparency is what wins here.
Uh, now stage five in the creating a strong sales process is the negotiation and the
transition.
This isn't just about the price.
It's about removing emotion, managing expectations and keeping momentum.
If a deal sits too long in this stage, it starts to rot.
So if you master these five stages and you don't just list a business,
you're actually going to sell it.
now that you've seen what a strong process looks like, we're going to now flip the lens.
Let's talk about what breaks the deal because no matter how good your business is, these
six things will kill the trust and the momentum fast.
So number one is disorganized documentation.
You can't find key financials agreements or reports quickly.
Buyers assume that the business runs the same way.
Number two is a poor response time.
Because I tell you what, delays kill deals every single time.
Every unanswered question adds doubt.
And when you're to respond, buyers wonder what else has been hidden or even how the
handover is going to go.
Number three in what breaks a deal is surprise skeletons mid due diligence.
You see, buyers don't
expect perfection, but they do expect honesty.
If they find something or something material that wasn't disclosed upfront, it's often a
deal breaker.
And number four, there's no clarity on the owner transition.
If the buyer doesn't know who's staying, who's leaving, or what your role will be
post-sale, they feel exposed.
Number five, and what breaks a deal?
Decision fatigue.
This one's subtle, but I'll tell you what, it's deadly.
When the process drags out with too many choices or too many unknowns, buyers burn out.
They really disengage.
And number six, back channel feedback.
Whether it's from staff, suppliers, customers, any little whispers that contradict your
story will undermine the deal even if it's unofficial.
These aren't just annoyances.
These are the deal killers.
All right.
Here's a powerful mindset shift I want you to take into every interaction with a buyer.
Your sales process is your business in action.
The buyer can't see every detail of how your company runs, but they can observe how you
run the deal.
And they'll use that as a proxy for everything else.
So if your documentation is clean, your communication is fast, your responses are
thoughtful and prepared,
They assume the business operates the same way.
And if things are slow, if they're messy, if they're reactive, if answers change, or
there's confusion around the key metrics, they start to wonder what else they don't know.
It's not just about delivering information.
It's about how you deliver it.
Every touch point is a signal.
Is this business reliable under pressure?
Is it systemized beyond the owner?
Is there clarity in how decisions get made?
Even if the tone you use, the structure of your emails and the pace of your replies, tell
a story.
They all tell a story because at the end of the day, buyers don't just want numbers.
They want confidence.
They want to feel that if they step in, the wheels won't fall off.
And that's what your process proves or even fails to prove.
So one of the biggest mistakes sellers make is going to market without a clear timeline.
They've got no roadmap or checkpoints or even a deadline.
And what that creates for the buyer is uncertainty and uncertainty breeds hesitation.
Hesitation kills momentum and momentum is everything in a deal.
That's why one of your secret weapons as a seller is a structured, pre-prepared
Timeline.
So let's go through and see what that looks like.
The first step is a broker mandate.
So we want to lock in a sales agent and define the scope, the pricing guidance and the
expectations right from the start.
The second step is the marketing timeline.
When will the teaser go out?
When does the IM drop?
What channels are you going to use to market the sale of your business?
Now step three,
are buyer submission dates.
We want to set clear deadlines for expressions of interest because this creates urgency
and it also weeds out the tire kickers.
Step four is a diligence window.
So block out a set timeframe.
So make it say two weeks or five weeks where buyers have access to your data room and also
that you are fully available to respond fast.
The fifth step is contract and the handover schedule.
So here is where you need to define the key milestones that happen.
It's the term sheets, the contract review, deposit transition.
This does two things.
The first thing it does is it reassures serious buyers that you've done this before or are
being advised really well.
And second, it creates clarity.
And remember, clarity equals confidence because when you control the clock and you reduce
fear, you also increase the offers.
All right, let's get a little bit tactical because a confident process isn't just about
how you communicate.
It's also about what you have ready before the buyer even asks.
When a buyer
sees you've prepared these tools upfront that we're going to go through.
It signals that this isn't your first rodeo and that you're serious about a clean and
professional exit.
here's what needs to be done in your sale toolkit.
Firstly, you need to create clean P &Ls for at least three years.
We don't want messy line items.
We don't want weird classifications or just
strange abnormalities, we want clear, reconciled reports that show your story in numbers.
Second, we want a detailed IM, an information memorandum.
And think of this as your businesses highlight reel, the offer on paper, it should be
clearly explained what the business does, how it makes money, who runs it, what's the
growth opportunities, what are they?
And why is this a good acquisition?
The third tool that we need to have is a list of normalized add backs.
You need to show the buyer what discretionary expenses can be added back to get true
profit.
You know, things like travel, one-off costs, personal expenses, all of those things, you
need to disclose them properly and back them up.
the next tool that you have to have is an organizational chart and also show the key
roles.
Buyers want to know who does what and whether the team stays if you go because visual
clarity right here certainly goes a long way.
The next tool that you need to have in preparing your business for sale is a transition
and a training plan because this answers the buyer's unspoken question.
Am I going to be left in the lurch?
The next part is a systems walkthrough or your SOPs.
So you want to show
the buyer that the business runs on systems, not just on the founder instinct, even
something as simple as a loom video, a Dropbox folder of all your SOPs, it really builds
confidence fast.
And these tools don't just support the deal, they close it.
Now, let's talk about your broker and really what their real role should be because too
many sellers treat the broker like a listing agent.
someone to find leads, flick out a few emails and hope something sticks.
But if that's all your broker is doing, you're leaving serious money and leverage on the
table.
A great business broker, they're not just a middleman.
They're strategist, they're your shield and your deal captain.
First, they should vet buyers hard.
We don't want time wastes, we don't want casual browsers.
You want buyers who are qualified
financially, strategically, and emotionally.
Second, they should manage all the communications and the NDAs with precision.
Buyers need to feel like they're in a professional process, one that protects
confidentiality, it keeps momentum, and it shows you mean business as a seller.
the third role of the broker is that they should
coach you through the emotional roller coaster.
Because I tell you what, deals get intense.
Emotions rise, doubt creeps in, and a good broker keeps you focused on the outcome, not
just the drama.
And finally, when you hit sticking points, your broker should keep the deal moving.
Deals don't fall apart because of problems.
They fall apart because no one manages them through the process.
So ask yourself this, is your broker just
passing messages, or are they actively managing the process, the pressure and the path to
close?
And I'll tell you what, that distinction matters more than most people realize.
All right.
Now, here's something that most sellers overlook.
Deals don't close on logic alone.
I know it sounds weird, but I'll tell you what, buyers crunch the numbers to justify the
deal.
They say yes, because it feels right.
That's why you can't rely on spreadsheets alone.
You have to create an emotional runway for the buyer, one that builds belief as they go
deeper into the process.
You see, every touch point should move them closer to this feeling of, can see myself
owning this business.
And that means sharing stories of transformation, how the business has grown, who it's
helped, and what's possible next.
offering a behind the scenes look like team introductions or even site visits where they
can get a feel for the people in the culture, showing them what it would feel like to step
in and take the reins, not just what the business does on paper.
And it's even the small things like the tone of your communications, the branding of your
IM or how you answer questions, either build excitement or they really drain that
excitement away.
Because here's the truth.
Most buyers are nervous.
They constantly asking themselves, can I do this?
Will this business work without the owner or even will I regret this?
Your process should reduce that anxiety and replace it with confidence and excitement
because this is where logic meets emotion.
And it's that combination that gets deals done.
All right.
Let's decode some of the questions that
You're guaranteed to hear from buyers and more importantly, what they're asking
underneath, because most of the time this is really just the surface layer.
The real concern is emotional.
It's about risk, trust, belief.
Why are you selling?
And they're not just making small talk.
What they're actually asking is, is there something wrong with this business?
Is it in decline?
Are you running away from something that I can't see?
Now you need a clear, honest answer that feels strategic, not evasive.
Saying something like, I'm just tired, isn't enough.
Frame it as a new chapter, not a red flag.
another common question is, who runs this thing when you're away?
What they're really asking is, is this business owner dependent?
If everything stops when you're not around, that's a massive risk for them.
They want proof that the team can execute without you and that the systems actually work.
Next question they often ask is, how long will you stay on after the sale?
And by this question, they're gauging how smooth the handover will be.
This is about their fear of being thrown into the deep end with no support.
They want to have a clear transition plan and it's one of the most underrated deal
sweeteners.
Another question is, can I speak to the team?
They're not just being polite.
They want to sense loyalty, stability, cultural fit.
What your team says and how they say it can either reinforce trust or quietly kill the
deal.
If you're prepared for these questions and you answer real concerns underneath, you keep
moving the deal forward.
All right, let's bring this all together.
You've now seen that selling a business isn't just about having a valuable asset.
It's about creating a process that builds trust.
It removes friction and makes buyers feel safe when they say yes.
So here's what to do next.
Firstly, you need to build your deal room.
So don't wait until the buyer is asking for documents.
Get your P &Ls, your legal contracts, your leases, your SOPs, your team org charts.
Get them all organized, get them centralized and accessible because remember, speed builds
trust.
And when diligence starts, you're going to be ready.
The second thing is to map out your sales timeline.
So even if you're not listing tomorrow,
Sketch out your go-to-market plan.
When would you list?
What needs to be prepared?
Who do you need on your team?
The clearer the timeline, the faster you'll move when the opportunity comes.
And the third part is score your business for sale readiness.
You need to put yourself in the buyer's shoes Would you buy this business today?
What would make you hesitate?
Where are the blind spots or the bottlenecks?
And on my website, sampenny.com forward slash readiness, you can get a business sale
readiness report.
It's free, just get it done.
And finally, if you want to walk through this with me, or you want some help building the
roadmap from where you are to a clean exit, let's talk.
All you have to do is head to sampenny.com forward slash chat, and we'll just book in that
chat.
We'll look at your...
business, your goals and your options and with honesty and without any sugarcoating
because I tell you what, I'm straight, I'm blunt, I'm right to the point because the best
exits don't start with the buyer, they start with a plan.
All right.
Let's wrap this up with one final thought.
You don't build a great sale at the negotiation table.
You build it long before that.
It's through the preparation.
It's through the positioning and through the process.
You control it from day one.
The businesses that sell fast, that are clean and at strong multiples.
They don't just have good numbers.
They have a clear, confident path to purchase.
One that makes the buyer say yes and makes it easy for them.
And if you're willing to invest just a little bit of time in getting this right now,
You're going to save yourself months of frustration, lost deals, and also second guessing
later.
Now let's look ahead.
Our next session, it's called exit ready or just tired, knowing when you're truly prepared
to sell.
In that session, we're going to dive into the psychology and the strategy of timing your
exit, not based on burnout or boredom, but based on real readiness because
The cost of going to market too early or for the wrong reasons can be huge.
It can cost you hundreds, if not millions of dollars and the clarity that comes from
knowing that you're truly ready.
Well, that changes everything.
So thanks for showing up today.
If this gave you something to act on, I'd love to hear from you.
Remember book in a chat with me, sampenny.com forward slash chat.
It's where we can dig in further until next time.
Build brave, build ready and build to sell.