Owner dependency: the discount nobody mentions
If the business cannot run for a month without you, a buyer will price that risk in.
Ask yourself a simple question: what would happen if you took four weeks off with no phone?
Why it matters to a buyer
When the owner is the main relationship holder, salesperson and decision-maker, a buyer is not really buying a business. They are buying a job that the seller is about to leave.
Practical first steps
- Write down the decisions only you make, and hand one over each quarter.
- Introduce a second contact to every major customer.
- Put key processes in writing so they survive staff changes.