In short
For very small businesses, a business broker with a listing model can work. For anything with meaningful profit, a listing is usually the wrong approach, because it makes the sale public and invites an auction of price-shoppers rather than a competition among qualified buyers. Selling entirely on your own is possible but leaves most owners negotiating alone against professional acquirers who do this full time.
The decision in front of you
A traditional business broker typically lists a business on marketplaces, works with a wide pool of unqualified enquirers, and charges a commission in the region of 8 to 10 percent on smaller transactions. An M&A advisor typically runs a confidential, targeted process: identifying and approaching specific qualified buyers, never listing the business, managing diligence, and negotiating terms as well as price. The distinction that matters is not the title, it is whether the business is publicly listed and whether buyers are qualified before they learn who you are.
When a business is listed, two things follow. First, confidentiality is compromised the moment the listing circulates — staff and competitors often recognize a business from its description. Second, listed businesses attract buyers who compare on price alone, and the seller's commission is understood by every buyer to be embedded in the asking price. A confidential process with a handful of genuinely qualified buyers usually produces both a better number and better terms, because the buyers competing are the ones who actually want that specific business rather than any business.
What’s your business worth?
Your free market range in 60 seconds — anonymous, no email needed.
If you already have a serious buyer — a competitor, a key employee, a family member — and the transaction is simple, you may not need a process. What you still need is an accurate valuation so you know whether the offer is fair, and a transaction lawyer for the documents. What most owners underestimate is the negotiation asymmetry: an acquirer who has bought twenty businesses is negotiating against someone selling for the first and only time. That gap is where value quietly disappears, usually in the terms rather than the headline price.
Business brokers commonly charge 8 to 10 percent on smaller transactions. M&A advisors typically work on a success fee that scales with the size and complexity of the deal, sometimes with a retainer. Legal fees are separate. The right question is not the fee percentage but the net outcome: a process that produces competition among qualified buyers routinely delivers more, after fees, than an uncontested sale.
A broker generally lists the business publicly and works with a broad pool of enquirers. An M&A advisor generally runs a confidential process, approaching specific qualified buyers who sign confidentiality agreements before learning the identity of the business, and negotiates terms as well as price. The practical difference is confidentiality and buyer quality.
Free · confidential · no obligation
Know your number before a buyer names it.
Get a free market range for your business in 60 seconds — anonymous, no email. Then open a free account and ask Vera, Sentinel’s AI, where you’d land in it and what would raise it.
Holding an offer already? Get a free offer read → · Prefer to talk? (888) 560-5852
General information only, researched and drafted with AI assistance — not legal, tax, financial or valuation advice. See our terms.