Marketing to HNW Clients
Business Exits

Business Owners Selling a Company Marketing Playbook

A field-tested strategy for attracting owners 12–36 months pre-transaction. Lead with assessments, exit-planning positioning, and a curated deal ecosystem that makes owners feel fully covered.

Sources

  • Exit Planning Institute (CEPA + Value Acceleration)
  • Value Builder System (Value Builder Score, PREScore, Freedom Score)
  • Kitces – CEO Peer Groups (trust-first acquisition)
  • Bowen/Kitces – Virtual Family Office positioning
  • CEG – Owner advisor switch window research
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Section A

Ideal Client Profile: Exit-Adjacent Owners with Real Stakes

The best-fit prospects are not “any business owner.” Focus on owners with a defined transaction window and meaningful liquidity outcomes.

1

Owners 12–36 months pre-transaction

This window allows time to improve value, tax outcomes, and deal readiness without the chaos of a signed LOI.
2

Owners in LOI / post-LOI (urgent but stressed)

Higher stress, faster decisions. Win by offering clarity on taxes, diligence prep, and post-sale allocation.
3

Already $1M+ liquid, but about to experience ‘life-changing liquidity’

These owners value coordination and outcome planning over generic investment pitch decks.
Timing wins. Build your pipeline around the 12–36 month pre-exit window where trust is still up for grabs.
Section B

Positioning & Credibility: Be the Exit-Planning Quarterback

4

Adopt exit-planning language + credentialing

Position as an exit-planning advisor (CEPA / Value Acceleration) rather than a generic wealth manager.
5

Use the advisor switch-window data

Research shows ~38–40% of owners are open to switching advisors in the next two years if the value promise is strong.
6

Repackage as a “virtual family office”

Highlight coordination across tax, legal, and M&A—owners want a unified team, not siloed advisors.
Credibility is earned fast when your positioning screams “exit specialist,” not “generalist.”
Section C

Assessment-Led Entry Offers: Lead with a Scorecard

7

Lead with the Value Builder Score + PREScore

Owners love benchmarks. Use assessments as the first meeting hook and an easy follow-up asset.
8

Offer an Exit Readiness Stress Test

Run a cross-functional review of tax, legal, and deal readiness to create urgency without pressure.
9

Adopt the “differentiate + educate + assess” sequence

Exit Planning Institute’s marketing guidance works because it educates before it sells.
Section D

Deal Ecosystem Strategy: Build the Trusted Team First

10

Stop chasing referrals. Build a deal ecosystem

Curate an owner’s full deal team: M&A attorney, transaction CPA, QoE provider, banker, estate attorney, and insurance.
11

Host quarterly Owner Liquidity Roundtables

Each COI invites 2–3 owners. You teach a framework and offer 1:1 assessments afterward.
12

Create or sponsor a CEO peer group

Ten to twelve owners, monthly meetings, high trust. You become the strategic partner, not a vendor.
Owners already have advisors. Your edge is becoming the organizer who makes their team work together.
Section E

Content & Events That Convert: Local, Practical, Story-Driven

13

Make exit-readiness content hyper-local

“How founders in [Your Market] prepare for diligence + taxes + diversification” wins because it’s concrete.
14

Publish 3 anonymized exit case studies per year

Owners think in stories. Case studies become discovery accelerants and COI handouts.
15

Teach inside paid owner networks

Partner with EO, YPO, and Vistage chapters. Don’t sponsor and hope—teach and follow up.
16

Use EPI media as your curriculum

Turn Exit Planning Institute webinars and podcasts into a quarterly education series for owners.
Section F

Podcasts & Videos to Mine (with Links)

Use these sources to script webinars, pull quotes, and build a consistent exit-planning content engine.

Want the exit-readiness toolkit?

Get the assessment stack, roundtable agenda, and exit case-study templates.

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