What is the main message of Built to Sell?

The main message of Built to Sell is how to turn your business into a valuable asset.

How long does it take to read Built to Sell?

Reading time for Built to Sell varies, but the Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.

Who is the author of Built to Sell?

The author of Built to Sell is John Warrillow.

Marketing & Sales

Built to Sell Book Summary - Built to Sell Book explained in key points

Built to Sell summary

Name: Built to Sell
Rating: 4.1 (56 reviews)
Author: John Warrillow

John Warrillow

Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You

4.1 (56 ratings)

15 mins

Brief summary

Built to Sell by John Warrillow is a business book that teaches how to turn a service-based business into a product-based business. It offers practical advice for creating systems that can run without the owner and increase the value of the company.

Topics

Entrepreneurship Strategy

Table of Contents

Built to Sell
Summary of 8 key ideas

Audio & text in the Blinkist app

Key idea 1 of 8

What’s in it for me? Learn how to build a company that’ll be attractive to potential buyers.

If you’re an entrepreneur with a small service business, you might dream of selling your company some day. So what can you do to structure your business to prepare it for a successful acquisition that gets you the best possible price? These blinks answer these questions through the story of Alex Stapleton, who wants to sell his marketing agency. Alex built up a small company with only a few employees, but wants to have more time with his family and is quite stressed by his work. Ted Gordon, an old friend and entrepreneur who has sold businesses successfully in the past, guides him through the process.

In addition, you’ll learn

why you should always have more than one salesperson;
what it takes to get your management team to stay with your company for a long time; and
how to find a broker that’ll get you the best possible deal on your company.

Business success lies in specialization in a single service.

Let’s say you’re an entrepreneur who’s just launched a service business, like a design agency. How can you make it successful? Should you concentrate on one service or take any business you can get – even offers requiring services that aren’t your speciality?

Some people would accept every offer. But that’s not the right strategy for long-term success.

Here’s why: A focus on one service allows clients to see the company’s core strengths. As a result, people will come to you with specific problems that you can solve better than anyone else.

When clients can’t go to other firms to receive the same quality of service, you’re positioned to negotiate higher prices.

Furthermore, when the results are good, clients will recommend you. Word of mouth will earn you new business.

Here’s an example: Alex’s business used to fulfill a broad range of requests – designing brochures, copywriting and search engine optimization. Taking a friend’s advice, Alex decided to concentrate on designing logos. He excelled at the work and his clients loved the product. As a result, Alex became a top logo designer.

There’s another benefit to specializing: It allows you to hire the best people for the job.

Why? Firms that provide multiple services have to hire experts for different fields. Smaller firms can’t afford to hire as many experts. Instead, they hire generalists to execute different tasks.

However, since the employees don’t concentrate on a single field, they can’t deliver the best possible product. The quality never matches what’s produced by other firms, which can employ experts.

Luckily, there’s a solution for smaller companies: by specializing, they can hire a few experts in a single area.

Specializing helps your company produce excellent work, which puts you in a better position to negotiate with clients.

And, perhaps more importantly, your company will run smoothly without too much oversight from you, because everyone will be responsible for discrete tasks.

For long-term success, build a business that can run without you.

When you start a business, it’s natural to feel ownership. And when a company’s young, the founder is often involved in almost every aspect of the operation. But in order for the business to grow, customers shouldn’t associate the company entirely with its founder.

What happens when you as a founder “become the business” in this way? When starting a company, you bear all the risks, so it’s understandable that you’ll want to handle many aspects of the operation on your own. Maybe you think that’s the best way to ensure that your employees don’t make mistakes.

Hire at least two salespeople who know how to sell your specific service.

It all comes down to the bottom line, as the saying goes. Thus, a solid sales team is crucial to your business. Because having employees dedicated to sales not only generates money, it also frees the founder to actually lead the business.

It’s vital to build a sales team comprising people who understand your service because they represent the firm to outsiders.

Overreliance on one big client puts your business at risk and makes it unattractive to potential buyers.

Most entrepreneurs dream of one day selling their companies. But to pull off a sale and get the best deal, it’s essential to show potential buyers that you have a growing business with growing profits.

One way to grow quickly is by finding big clients, but be careful about relying on them excessively.

Offering a standardized service will save you time, lead to better cash flow and make your company attractive to buyers.

In business, the customer is always right – but there are limits. Although every client might want a customized service, your small business will be better off if you offer standardized services.

That’s because customized services are costly. From the first meeting to product delivery, the whole process can take months. And during that time, you’re not paid.

Create incentives for managers to stay in the company even after it’s sold.

Up for a challenge? As an owner, it’s up to you to ensure that managers will want to stay with the company for a long time – even after it’s sold.

Why is this so important? The purchasers will want to know that the firm will continue to succeed after its acquisition. And the management team plays a crucial role in that.

The right broker will help you sell the company for the best price by arranging negotiations with different potential buyers.

Ready to sell your company? Make sure you don’t overlook a crucial factor: the broker.

The broker is the bridge between you and buyers. If he recommends you to the wrong companies, you won’t get a great price.

Think big and write a carefully worded plan to present your company favorably to potential buyers.

It’s a big decision to make, but when you’re ready to sell your business, you need to start by writing a plan detailing your business model and expected cash flow. Bigger companies will use this to decide whether to acquire you, so it should present your firm in the best light.

How should you do that? First: Think big!

Want to see all full key ideas from Built to Sell?

Key ideas in Built to Sell

More knowledge in less time

Read or listen

Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.

Find your next read

Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.

Shortcasts ^New

We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

What is Built to Sell about?

Built to Sell details key strategies for growing a small service company and preparing the business for a future sale. These blinks illustrate these insights by telling the story of Alex Stapleton, owner of a marketing agency, and his advice-giving friend Ted Gordon, who is a successful entrepreneur.

Built to Sell Review

Built to Sell (2011) by John Warrillow provides a valuable blueprint for entrepreneurs looking to transform their businesses into valuable assets. Here's why this book is worth reading:

With a clear framework and practical advice, the book guides business owners on how to create a company that can thrive without their constant presence.
By sharing real-life case studies and insights from successful entrepreneurs, Warrillow offers valuable examples and inspiration.
The book's engaging storytelling keeps readers hooked, ensuring that the topic of building a sellable business is definitely not boring.

Best quote from Built to Sell

Clients will never know youre serious about specialization until you say no to other work.

—John Warrillow

Who should read Built to Sell?

Anyone who’s interested in entrepreneurship
Business owners thinking about selling their company in the future

About the Author

John Warrilow has launched and sold four companies on his own. He also devised The Sellability Score, a tool which evaluates how attractive companies are to potential buyers. Fortune and Inc. magazines rated Built to Sell one of the best business titles of 2011.

Categories with Built to Sell

Marketing & Sales Management & Leadership

Book summaries like Built to Sell

Adaptive Markets

Andrew W. Lo

Financial Evolution at the Speed of Thought

20 min

4.1

The Upside of Your Dark Side

Todd Kashdan and Robert Biswas-Diener

Why Being Your Whole Self – Not Just Your “Good” Self – Drives Success and Fulfillment

An Essential Guide to Life

21 min

4.2

Millennial Money Makeover

Conor Richardson

Escape Debt, Save for Your Future, and Live the Rich Life Now

Why English Won’t – and Can’t – Sit Still (Like, Literally)

The Architecture of Belief

The Comprehensive Guide to Delay, Don't Deny® Intermittent Fasting

17 min

4.5

Buddhism – Plain and Simple

Steve Hagen

The Practice of Being Aware, Right Now, Every Day

The Rise and Fall of Long-Term Capital Management

19 min

4.2

Workstyle

Lizzie Penny and Alex Hirst

A revolution for wellbeing, productivity and society

Testing Business Ideas

David J. Bland and Alexander Osterwalder

A Field Guide for Rapid Experimentation

The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment

17 min

4.5

Walmart

Natalie Berg and Bryan Roberts

Key Insights and Practical Lessons from the World's Largest Retailer

17 min

4.5

The Self-Made Billionaire Effect

John Sviokla and Mitch Cohen

How Extreme Producers Create Massive Value

14 min

4.1

Creativity, Inc.

Ed Catmull with Amy Wallace

Overcoming the Unseen Forces That Stand in the Way of True Inspiration

19 min

4.3

Mastering Leadership

Robert J. Anderson and William A. Adams

An Integrated Framework for Breakthrough Performance and Extraordinary Business Results

Obsession, Fury and the Scandal Behind the World's Favorite Board Game

The Remarkable Truth of How a Small Change Can Help You Stress Less and Enjoy Life More

Marketing That Can't Be Ignored!

Austrian Investing in a Distorted World

18 min

4.3

Bedtime Biography: Vindication

Lyndall Gordon

A Life of Mary Wollstonecraft

30 min

4.7

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big

Scott Adams

Kind of the Story of My Life

How to Bridge the Distance Between Business Strategy and Design

15 min

4.4

Only the Paranoid Survive

Andrew S. Grove

Transform apocalypse into opportunity

The “How To” book that gives YOU a “Check Up” from the “Neck Up” to eliminate “Stinkin Thinkin” and AVOID “Hardening of the Attitudes”

A History from Socrates to Social Media

Vengeance and Justice in Mycenae

Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character

How to free yourself from philosophical dogmas and assert your own values

25 min

4.7

The First Rule of Mastery

Michael Gervais

Stop Worrying about What People Think of You

The Life of Gordon Moore, Silicon Valley’s Quiet Revolutionary

The Creative’s Guide to Building a Business with Impact

The 15 Most Powerful Principles for Wealth, Health, and Happiness

How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life

23 min

4.4

The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership

Jim Dethmer

A New Paradigm for Sustainable Success

The Story of Ideas That Fly

How the Psychology of Sports Can Enhance your Performance in Management and Work

19 min

4.1

Yoga Nidra Made Easy

Uma Dinsmore-Tuli & Nirlipta Tuli

Deep Relaxation Practices to Improve Sleep, Relieve Stress and Boost Energy and Creativity

A Very Short Introduction

25 min

4.2

Why Zebras Don't Get Ulcers

Robert M. Sapolsky

The Acclaimed Guide to Stress, Stress-Related Diseases, and Coping

25 min

4.4

Understanding and Responding to Self-Harm

Allan House

The One-Stop Guide: Practical Advice for Anybody Affected by Self-Harm

18 min

4.2

Brave Together

Chris Deaver & Ian Clawson

Lead by Design, Spark Creativity, and Shape the Future with the Power of Co-Creation

20 min

3.9

Go Beyond Talk: Connect Powerfully

The Blinkist Team

How learning to listen and be assertive can help your communication

17 min

4.6

The Science of Intelligent Achievement

Isaiah Hankel

How Smart People Focus, Create and Grow Their Way to Success

23 min

4.4

Start, Stay, or Leave

Trey Gowdy

The Art of Decision Making

How Millennials Became the Burnout Generation

19 min

4.3

How I Invest My Money

Edited by Joshua Brown and Brian Portnoy

Finance Experts Reveal How They Save, Spend, and Invest

20 min

4.0

What I Learned Losing a Million Dollars

Jim Paul

The story of a man who lost it all

17 min

4.3

People ❤️ Blinkist

Sven O.

It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

Thi Viet Quynh N.

Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

Jonathan A.

Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

Renee D.

Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.