By Contributor,Lien De Pau

Copyright forbes

If you’ve ever wondered “What actually matters to business buyers?”, you’re not alone.

You’ve poured years into building your business, but when it comes time to selling your business, one thing becomes clear fast: nothing about the process is as simple as it looks from the outside.

Business owners often go in with high hopes. Only to be blindsided by business valuations that don’t match their expectations, questions they never saw coming, and buyers who look at their business through a completely different lens.

If you’ve ever wondered, “Why is this valuation lower than I expected?” or “What actually matters to a buyer?”, you’re not alone. These are the kinds of questions I hear from nearly every small business owner I work with. The good news? Each question has a clear, strategic answer.

In this article, we’ll break down the 7 most common questions business owners ask before selling, and the straightforward, practical steps you can take to address them.

Question 1. Why is my business worth less than I expected?

Most owners think their business is worth more than the market says. It’s natural. Your business represents years of sweat, risk, and sacrifice. But buyers don’t measure it by your journey; they measure it by risk and return.

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That’s why online business valuation calculators and free tools often mislead. Many of them inflate valuations to keep you optimistic (and on their email list). Business buyers, however, care less about what some tool tells you and more about whether your business produces steady profits with manageable risk.

If a business feels risky, its value drops. If the profits aren’t dependable, worth shrinks.

Action Step: Use independent valuation tools as a sense-check, but don’t rely on them as the truth. A professional and independent valuation (done by someone with no financial stake in your deal) will give you a grounded, market-aligned picture. That realistic expectation is your starting point.

Question 2. Is revenue or profit more important?

Here’s the truth: revenue might get attention, but for smaller businesses profit wins deals. Buyers want to see that your business doesn’t just generate sales, but keeps enough of that money to sustain operations, pay a fair market salary for your role, and grow. A business with high revenue but razor-thin margins is less attractive than a smaller one with strong profits.

When buyers evaluate, they often adjust profit to what’s called EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization). This metric strips out non-operational costs and adjusts for a fair owner salary. It helps them see the true, transferable earning power of your business.

Action Step: Review your accounts with fresh eyes. If your profit doesn’t already account for a fair salary for your role, make that adjustment. Buyers will do it anyway, better that you’re ready.

Question 3. Do I need to pay myself a fair salary for the valuation to be accurate?

Yes, absolutely. Or at least on paper, for a correct valuation. If you’ve been underpaying yourself because you prefer to reinvest in the business, or overpaying yourself because you want to extract profits, the valuation a business buyer sees won’t reflect reality. They’ll adjust.

Why? Because from their perspective, someone will need to replace you. If you’re paying yourself far below market, they’ll factor in the higher cost of hiring someone to take your place. If you’re paying yourself far above market, they’ll assume profit is higher than your books show (which is a good thing).

Action Step: Adjust your valuation to reflect market-rate pay for your role. It ensures your valuation reflects the true, sustainable economics of your business, not just your personal financial choices.

Question 4. What if my business isn’t profitable yet?

Not every business is built to be profitable from day one. SaaS companies, startups, and capital-intensive businesses often operate at a loss for years before scaling into profitability.

That doesn’t mean that business is worthless. But it does mean quick valuation calculators (especially ones designed for traditional small businesses) won’t give you an accurate picture.

Buyers for pre-profit businesses look at different metrics: user growth, retention rates, recurring revenue, intellectual property, or the scalability of your model. They’re essentially betting on future earnings, not current ones.

Action Step: If your business is still in the growth stage and not yet profitable, skip the quick tools and seek a professional valuation tailored to the phase your business is in. This will help you identify which factors matter most to potential buyers and which you can strengthen now.

Question 5. Why does the sector and region influence the value of my business?

Because markets aren’t created equal. Two businesses with nearly identical revenues and profits can fetch very different valuations depending on their sector and location. Why? Because buyers assess risk and opportunity differently across industries and regions.

An agency in a fast-growing sector like AI or healthcare may attract a premium multiple, while an agency in a crowded or declining sector might face downward pressure. Similarly, businesses in stable, developed economies often sell at higher multiples than those in volatile regions, even if the fundamentals are the same.

Action Step: Benchmark your business against peers in both your sector and your region. If the going multiple for your space is lower than you hoped, that’s not a death sentence. It just means your value growth plan needs to focus on differentiation and risk reduction.

Question 6. Why does it matter if I can take a holiday?

It sounds like a trick question “Can you take a three-week vacation?”, but it’s one of the simplest ways to test owner dependence.

If your business can’t run without you, a buyer sees risk. It means you’re not just the owner. You’re the operator, the salesperson, the client relationship manager. And if you leave, so might the stability of the business.

On the flip side, if your business can operate smoothly while you take an extended holiday, that signals strong systems, delegation, and processes. It tells buyers the business is transferable.

Action Step: If the idea of stepping away for three weeks feels impossible, that’s your sign. Start building systems, delegating responsibilities, and testing by actually taking time off. It’s one of the most powerful moves you can make to increase your business’s value.

Question 7. What happens if I don’t like the value of my business?

Here’s the empowering truth: a business valuation is a snapshot. It is not a verdict.

If the number you see isn’t what you hoped for, don’t think of it as the end of the road. Think of it as your baseline. Most business owners can increase their valuation by 20 to 30 percent in as little as one to three years by making focused changes in a few key areas.

Those areas? Profitability, systems, and reducing dependence on the founder. When you boost margins, implement repeatable systems, and make the business less reliant on you, buyers see less risk and more return. That’s when your business valuation climbs.

Action Step: Treat your business valuation as a diagnostic, not a destiny. Create a value growth plan that targets the areas where your business scores lowest. Then give yourself time (months or years, not weeks) to make those improvements stick.

Bringing It All Together When Selling Your Business

Selling your business isn’t about getting lucky with the right buyer. It’s about preparing so well that buyers see less risk, more opportunity, and a business they’re eager to own.

Every one of the questions above comes back to the same principle: buyers want to know how transferable, sustainable, and profitable your business really is.

When you understand their perspective, you stop taking a business valuation personally and start using it strategically. That’s when the process shifts from discouraging to empowering. Because your business’s value isn’t fixed. It’s something you can shape. With clarity, planning, and the right moves, you can turn today’s valuation into tomorrow’s big exit when selling your business.

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