The WETYR Exit Score. 20 questions. 4 minutes. A confidential, ranked diagnostic on the eight value drivers that determine whether your business will sell at a premium, at the market, or at a discount. Same framework operator-buyers and PE platforms use during diligence — just delivered to you first.
What The Exit Score Measures
The Exit Score isn't a vanity metric. It's the same eight-driver framework operator-buyers and PE diligence teams use to underwrite acquisitions. Each driver is independently weighted because each one independently affects what a buyer will pay. A business with strong recurring revenue but heavy owner dependency will price differently than a business with the inverse — and the score reflects that.
Recurring Revenue
Contracted vs repeat revenue, average customer relationship length, MRR/ARR if applicable. Single biggest multiple driver in service businesses.
Customer Concentration
Top customer % and top-5 % of revenue. Buyers heavily discount businesses where one customer loss could blow up the model.
Owner Dependency
What happens if you take 60 days off, % of revenue running through personal relationships, SOP coverage.
Financial Hygiene
CPA review depth, time to produce clean TTM EBITDA, personal-expense commingling. Signals diligence-readiness.
Growth Trajectory
Revenue and margin trend over trailing 12 months. Growing businesses trade at premium; declining ones at discount.
Team Strength
Leadership retention risk and second-in-command depth. Determines what stays after you leave.
Market Position
Competitive position and pricing power. Premium-pricing businesses signal moat.
Systems & Risk
Operating tech stack, cybersecurity posture, contract hygiene, regulatory exposure. The "diligence surprise" risk.
How The Score Compares To Built To Sell / Value Builder
If you have taken the Value Builder Score, the WETYR Exit Score will look familiar — both build on similar value-driver frameworks. The differences are scope and follow-through. Value Builder routes you to a certified advisor. WETYR is the operating partner across both the preparation work AND the eventual transaction — sell-side advisory or direct operator-buyer acquisition. Same diagnostic. One operating partner from score to close.
After The Score
Premium scorers (90+) get a strategic conversation about timing and process options. Above-market scorers (75-89) get a 6-12 month optimization plan focused on the two-to-three highest-leverage drivers. Market and below-market scorers (under 75) get a 12-36 month preparation engagement scoped to lift the multiple meaningfully before going to market. Every scorer can also book a 30-minute review call to walk through their result with a WETYR advisor.
Authoritative Sources & Further Reading
WETYR works alongside primary sources, regulators, and industry data providers when advising owners and operators. The references below are the same sources our advisory team uses when modeling deals, benchmarking multiples, and stress-testing assumptions. We encourage every owner, buyer, and operator to verify any data point that materially affects their decision against the underlying primary source.
Primary Federal Sources
- U.S. SBA — 7(a) Loan Program for acquisition financing eligibility, terms, and lender list.
- SEC EDGAR for public-company comparables, 10-K disclosures, and recent strategic acquirer filings.
- IRS — Sale of a Business on Section 1060 asset-allocation reporting and tax treatment of asset vs stock sales.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Industries at a Glance for wage, employment, and growth data by NAICS code.
- U.S. Census Economic Census for industry size, firm counts, and revenue distributions.
- Federal Reserve Economic Data for prevailing rate environment underwriting.
Standards & Reference Bodies
- AICPA for Quality of Earnings methodology and CPA standards governing transaction-related financial work.
- FINRA Rules and Guidance for understanding when a transaction crosses into broker-dealer territory.
- NACVA business valuation credentialing body and standards (CVA designation).
- USPAP — Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice for valuation engagement standards.
- Investopedia — EBITDA reference page for definitional alignment with our glossary.
- Harvard Business Review — Mergers and Acquisitions archive on integration and post-close value creation.
For deeper transaction-specific data, the GF Data and PitchBook private-company transaction databases publish quarterly multiple ranges by industry size band that we cross-reference against our own pipeline benchmarks. Owners considering a sale should also review the Pepperdine Private Capital Markets Report (free, annual) for current cost-of-capital and lender appetite data across the lower middle market. Buyers underwriting search-fund or holdco theses commonly pair Stanford GSB's Search Fund Study with the IBBA Market Pulse report, which tracks multiples for sub-$50M transactions quarterly. None of these sources replace deal-specific advisory, but they give owners and operators the same reference points professional acquirers are using on the other side of the table.
Related WETYR Resources
Every WETYR resource ladders into a structured engagement framework. Whether you are diagnosing readiness, modeling a number, or preparing for a specific transaction phase, the resources below cover the most common owner and operator workflows. All tools are free; all guides are operator-written; all engagements start with a confidential conversation.
Engagement Pillars
Decision Tools
Operator-Written
Glossary & FAQ
Checklists & Templates
Niche Coverage
If you are not sure where to start, the Exit Readiness Score takes about four minutes and produces a one-page diagnostic on the value drivers most likely to compress your multiple. From there the natural next step is either a long-form guide covering your specific situation, a focused glossary term lookup, or a confidential introductory call with our team to discuss whether WETYR's advisory or operator-buyer engagement is a fit. Our team responds to every inbound inquiry within one business day.