What do buyers look at first?
Revenue concentration and owner dependence, usually within the first hour and usually before the profit figure. Both answer whether the business survives the transaction.
Revenue by customer, and who owns those relationships. Usually within the first hour, and usually before they look closely at the profit figure. Both questions are really the same question: does this business survive the transaction?
The order in practice
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Hour one | Revenue by customer, sorted. Then: who owns each relationship. |
| Hour two | The earnings figure, rebuilt from the accounts rather than taken from your summary. |
| Day two | Three-year trend. Direction beats level. |
| Week two | Contracts, staff, IP, tax. Where deals die quietly. |
What they are really asking
"Tell me about your customers" means how much revenue leaves if one relationship ends. "What does a typical week look like for you?" means what breaks when you go. "Why are you selling?" means is there something coming that I cannot see.
Answering the literal question rather than the real one is the most common way owners lose credibility without noticing it happen.
The single thing that ends processes
Not a bad number — an inconsistent one. A summary claiming €640,000 of EBITDA against accounts producing €580,000 does not cost you €60,000. It costs the presumption of good faith, and from that point every other claim must be independently verified.
What buyers look for covers each buyer type's priorities; preparing your business for sale covers answering all of this before it is asked.