5 things that will happen when you sell your business

In 2016, I started building a podcast platform to help solve a problem I had as a podcaster: finding new and interesting guests for my show.

Over the course of six years, I built the platform up to over 40,000 free users and over 1,000 paid users. I began exploring the idea of selling the business and closed on a transaction in December last year.

For many entrepreneurs and Indie Hackers, selling a business is a dream come true. It is a great feeling, but you should be prepared for what goes into it. Here are five things that will happen as you go through the process of selling your business.

You’ll spend a lot of time

Many entrepreneurs want to sell their business to free up time. Before freeing up that time, though, you’ll need to double down. Selling your business takes a lot of effort.

First, you need to package your business into something that’s presentable. This might mean:

Creating manuals and standard procedures for how to run the business
Separating business accounts from work accounts
Creating financial statements or adjusting them so they are relevant to the buyer
Building a sales presentation or pitch document

Then, once you begin marketing your business for sale, you’ll spend a lot of time talking to potential buyers. And you’ll have to train the buyer once you close a deal.

I used a broker to sell my business, and it made these steps easier. But it still took a lot of time.

You’ll have to disclose a lot of information

Some Indie Hackers build in public, but most of us like to keep our financial results private. When you sell your business, you must disclose a lot of data you might not feel comfortable with. This might even mean sharing it with competitors!

Beyond revealing your financials, potential buyers will want to dig into how you obtain customers. What kind of ad campaigns are you running? What is your sales process?

You’ll need to disclose churn numbers, chargeback rates, significant customers, and more.

This can be uncomfortable. You might ask yourself if the buyer is legitimate or -- especially in the case of a competitor -- if they’re just trying to get competitive information out of you.

You’ll think of many ways to grow your business

Buyers want to acquire businesses with growth potential, and you’ll need to share some ideas with prospective buyers about how they can grow your business.

Then, as you speak with potential buyers, you’ll think of new ways to grow your business. While I was selling my business, many buyers asked, “Have you thought about doing this?”

Some of these ideas were very good.

So at some point, while you’re entertaining offers for your business, you’ll probably ask yourself why you don’t just take it to the next level yourself by implementing some of these ideas.

You’ll deal with lots of emotions

When you sell your business, you’re doing more than just turning over the keys to a house. You’re selling your blood, sweat, and tears. Your years of work.

This means you can get emotional when selling.

You’re likely to be offended by lowball offers.

And when you get a good offer or strong interest, you might get too excited.

You’ll start envisioning yourself sitting on the beach sipping a margarita after closing the deal. Then, the buyer might back out or ask for concessions at the last minute, ripping that dream away or leaving a bad taste in your mouth.

Selling a business has ups and downs; you should be ready for an emotional roller coaster.

You’ll have seller’s remorse

The deal is done! You just got a big wire transfer in your bank account and it’s time to celebrate!

Indeed, it is a time to celebrate. But be ready for mixed feelings.

Many entrepreneurs report that they get depressed after selling their business. In most cases, this business was all the person was doing. The business wasn’t a side project or one of many, so they have nothing to do. They’re bored and feel like they’ve lost purpose.

Many Indie Hackers don’t go through this because they have other projects to work on. But you can still have seller’s remorse.

Even though you got a huge payday upon sale, it’s common to miss the monthly income you were making before.

And you might wonder if you sold too soon or too cheap. You want the buyer to do well with the business, but you might have regrets if they double its income in the first year.

Be prepared when selling your business

Selling a business is one of the most exciting milestones in an entrepreneur’s journey.

But it doesn’t come without challenges. The best thing you can do before starting this process is to be prepared. Understand the time commitment. Understand the emotions you will experience. Be prepared for seller’s remorse.

And then, be ready to enjoy your big payday.