Free planning tool
Build My Valuation Preparation Plan
Answer a short set of questions about your business and we will build a preparation plan: the financial information to gather, the value risks worth fixing first, the questions an adviser will ask, and a 90 day action list.
In short
This tool prepares you for a valuation. It does not produce one. It uses bands rather than exact figures, shows your complete plan on screen before asking for any contact details, and points you only to our own calculators, guides and methodology.
Step 1 of 4
No exact figures needed
Your business
Bands only. We never ask for exact figures, names or documents.
Your answers stay on this page. We only store them if you ask us to email or save a copy of your plan.
What your plan contains
- Your valuation context, written back to you in plain terms.
- The valuation approach an adviser is likely to consider for your situation, and why.
- The financial information to assemble before any valuation conversation.
- Potential EBITDA adjustments worth reviewing in your own numbers.
- The value risks most likely to affect your outcome, with an action for each.
- The evidence a buyer or valuer will expect to see.
- The questions an adviser or buyer is likely to ask you.
- A 30, 60 and 90 day preparation plan.
- Recommended calculators and reading from this site.
- Where professional advice is genuinely required.
A worked example
Take a fictional Midlands engineering company with turnover of £3.2m, adjusted profit around £420,000, two shareholders, one customer at roughly 35% of revenue and an owner still handling most technical quoting. A plan for that business would not give a figure. It would flag customer concentration and owner dependency as the two risks most likely to hold the multiple down, ask for three years of finalised accounts plus monthly management information, list the quoting handover and contract renewal evidence a buyer will want, and set a 90 day sequence that starts with documenting the quoting process rather than with negotiation.
What this tool will not do
It will not give you a valuation, a value range or a sector multiple. It will not tell you what your shares are worth for tax, probate or a dispute, and it is not a substitute for a formal valuation report. It does not read your accounts, your contracts or your filings. Where a figure matters, use our valuation calculators for indicative arithmetic, and read how we produce our figures before relying on any number.
Privacy and sensitive information
Please do not include customer names, employee information, bank details or commercially sensitive information anywhere in the form. Your answers stay in your browser unless you ask for a copy of your plan; the plan and any copy you request are private, and links we email expire after seven days. Our privacy policy explains how we handle plan requests and how to ask us to delete yours.
Who prepared this
The questions, the internal guidance and the safeguards behind this tool were prepared by Tony Vaughan, founder and lead adviser at BusinessValuation.co.uk, and follow the same discipline as our published methodology. Last reviewed September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is this a business valuation?
No. It does not produce a valuation, a value range or a multiple, and it is not formal advice. It is a preparation plan: it tells you which information a valuer or buyer will expect, which parts of your business are most likely to affect the figure, and the order in which to deal with them. When you want a number, our calculators produce indicative figures and a consultation produces a supported view.
What information do I need to answer the questions?
Nothing beyond what you already know. Every question uses bands and short options, so you choose a turnover band rather than typing a figure. You do not need your accounts open, and you should not upload documents. The optional description at the end is for context only and is capped at 750 characters.
Do I have to give my email address to see my plan?
No. The complete plan appears on screen as soon as it is built. Your email address is only needed if you want us to email you a branded PDF copy, send a copy to your adviser, or discuss the plan with you.
What happens to my answers?
If you simply read your plan on screen, we do not store your answers or the plan. We only save them when you ask us to email or download a copy, and then we keep them so we can send the copy and follow up if you asked us to. Ordinary website analytics record that a plan was built, never your financial answers or your description.
Is the plan produced automatically?
The plan is assembled automatically from your answers against our own published methodology, calculators and guides. It does not search the open internet and it does not invent sources: every calculator and article it points you to is one of ours. Our team wrote the underlying methodology, and the plan tells you where professional advice is genuinely required.
Can I send the plan to my accountant?
Yes. Once you have asked for your own copy, you can send one copy to a named adviser. They receive their own secure link that works for seven days. Their details are used only to send the plan and are never added to a marketing list.
When was this tool last reviewed?
The questions, the internal guidance behind the plan and the safeguards on what it may say were last reviewed in September 2026. We review them at least annually, and sooner when UK tax rules or observed SME deal behaviour change materially.
Ready to understand what your business is really worth?
Book a no-obligation call with Tony Vaughan. UK-wide, plain-English advice.