How to sell your business – step by step

1. Decide, and set a timetable. Why do you want to sell, what do you want from it, and will you stay on for a transition period? See are you ready to sell?
2. Get the business ready. Tidy up the accounts, contracts and ownership of domains, accounts and equipment, and make the business less dependent on you. See prepare the business.
3. Find a realistic price level. Normalise the earnings and understand which multiples are used in your sector. See valuation and use the key figures sheet.
4. Choose the structure. Are you selling the assets or the company? It affects tax, VAT and liability. See asset or share sale.
5. Prepare the sales material and find the buyer. An anonymous listing, a thorough sales presentation and a plan for who you want to reach. See the sales material and find the right buyer.
6. Protect the information and negotiate. NDA before details, letter of intent before due diligence. See confidentiality and NDAs and negotiation and the letter of intent.
7. Be ready for due diligence. Gather the documents in a data room before the buyer asks for them. See due diligence from the seller’s side.
8. Sign and hand over. The purchase agreement sets out warranties, liability and the non-compete clause, and the handover decides whether the buyer gets off to a good start. See the purchase agreement and the handover and the time after.

If you are selling a shop, restaurant, trade or service business, also read the chapter on physical businesses. The lease, employees under the Danish Transfer of Undertakings Act (virksomhedsoverdragelsesloven), licences and stock add points that an online business does not have.

Tax and price go hand in hand. See also our in-depth guides to tax on selling a business, goodwill, earn-outs, financing and vendor loans and business succession — with the rates and rules that apply in 2026.

It varies a great deal, and it is rarely a matter of weeks. Preparation can take anything from a few weeks to a year if the accounts, contracts and owner dependence need sorting out. Then the right buyer has to be found, and negotiation, due diligence and the purchase agreement usually take several months. A small domain or content site often goes faster than a business with employees, a lease and bank financing.

• A price without reasons. Buyers negotiate from normalised figures. An asking price you cannot explain puts serious buyers off.
• Owner dependence. If every customer, supplier and password goes through you, the risk for the buyer is high and the price falls.
• Confidential information too early. Do not share customer lists, contracts or access before an NDA, and preferably not before a letter of intent.
• Messy paperwork. Missing contracts, unclear ownership of domains or equipment, and accounts that do not match the listing lead to price reductions in due diligence.
• Warranties that are too broad. In the purchase agreement, the seller’s warranties and liability should be limited in time and amount. Have a lawyer review the agreement.

Many smaller businesses can be sold by the owner with good templates, an accountant and a lawyer for the purchase agreement. A broker or M&A adviser adds most value when the deal is large, when there are many potential buyers to manage, or when you do not have time alongside running the business. You can find an adviser or broker on Sitavo and still use the guide as a checklist.

Creating a listing is free, and there is no success fee. You decide how much is visible and can require an NDA before the buyer sees the exact figures and the data room. Offers and agreements are handled in the deal process. The purchase price itself is paid directly between the parties; Sitavo does not handle the money. With an active listing, you can use the whole document library, from the sales presentation to the purchase agreement.

The guide can be read online for free, chapter by chapter. With a free account, you can download the whole guide as a single PDF with a table of contents, for example to share with your accountant.