Marketing to Founders Who Aren’t Ready to Sell (Yet)

Practical marketing strategies, backed by insights from our proprietary database of over 80,000 business owners, to help you refine your message, target the right audience, and build a more successful advisory practice.

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In this issue:

• Why millennial owners are building fast—and why that longer runway works in your favor.

• How a generational shift in advice-seeking is changing who gets the first call.

• Where to focus your marketing to reach digital-first founders who are growing their companies.

Marketing to Founders Who Aren’t Ready to Sell (Yet)

As an advisor marketing your services to business owners, you know the goal isn’t just to attract more clients, it’s to attract the right ones. Owners who need your help, value your advice, and are in a position to benefit from what you offer.

Many advisors focus on older owners nearing a transition. But there’s another segment, often overlooked, that’s growing fast and quietly shaping the next decade of entrepreneurship: millennial business owners.

They may be younger. They may be earlier in the journey. But they’re building real companies with serious momentum, and they’re looking for guidance. As author and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman famously put it, “An entrepreneur is someone who jumps off a cliff and builds a plane on the way down.” That’s the kind of energy millennial founders bring.

And it’s why this month’s edition of Advisor Marketing News is dedicated to millennial business owners. They’re not waiting until their businesses are fully formed to seek help—they’re building as they go, and actively looking for advisors who can help them scale. If your services are geared toward value creation, this generation may be your most strategic long-term opportunity. The data in this newsletter comes from Value Builder Analytics, a deep dive into more than 80,000 business owners who have completed the Value Builder Score Report, giving us a proprietary window into how founders think about their business and the road to a successful exit. See how Value Builder can help support your advisory practice.

🖥️ Learn More at Our Insights Session

We’ve uncovered more than a dozen new insights into how millennial business owners think—how they approach growth, who they trust, and what they expect from an advisor. Join us on Thursday, June 19, at noon ET for an exclusive live insights session hosted by John Warrillow, best-selling author of Built to Sell, The Automatic Customer, and The Art of Selling Your Business.

John will connect the dots—showing how these insights translate into smarter marketing, stronger relationships, and better opportunities to win the next generation of high-potential clients.

👉 Save Your Spot

What the Data Tells Us

When we analyzed the data showing how millennial owners compared against other generations of business owners, we found a ton of fertile ground for you to market your services within. Here are three insights that stand out:

Millennials Have a Longer Runway

When asked how long they plan to keep operating their business, millennials said 12.5 years—more than double the timeline of Boomer owners, who expect to exit in just 5.3 years. Get in early, and you’re the advisor who helps them build through each stage of growth. Wait too long, and someone else will be in that seat when they’re ready to sell. If your focus is on building long-term value, this is your opportunity to align with a generation that’s ambitious, growth-minded, and in it for the long haul.

Who Gets the First Call Is Changing

Among millennial owners, 36% say they’d turn to a coach or consultant for advice on building company value, just one point behind accountants at 37%. But among Boomers, that gap is much wider—37% choose their accountant, while only 30% choose a coach. That 6-point spread tells us something important: What used to be the clear first choice in terms of advisor called, is a two-horse race when working with millennials. It’s a shift in behavior and potentially in budget. For advisors, it means coaching-style relationships aren’t just complementary; they’re often the entry point. If you offer coaching, lead with it. If you don’t, it’s smart to build referral ties with those who do—because often that’s where millennial owners are starting the conversation.

Focus Your Marketing Where Millennials Are – Online

Nearly 1 in 3 millennial business owners have built an opted-in audience of up to 10,000 people through email lists, social media, or other digital channels. Compare that to a quarter of Boomers who report having no audience at all. That may be expected given their age, but it still marks a meaningful shift. For millennials, an online presence isn’t a side project. It’s a central part of how they do business. It stands to reason that digital fluency also shapes how they engage with others. If they’ve built their presence online, they’ll very likely expect you to have one too. Reaching them means showing up where they already operate—on LinkedIn, in webinars, through newsletters, and in short-form content that positions you as a credible resource. Millennial owners will follow you before they ever talk to you, so make sure what they find builds confidence and invites connection.

The Bottom Line

Millennial business owners may not be ready to exit yet, but they’re already building toward it. They’re ambitious, digitally native, and open to advice. If you want to earn their trust, show up early, speak their language, and guide them through the climb.

🎯Want to see the full data and walk away with a game plan for reaching this next generation of business owners?

Join John Warrillow on Thursday, June 19, at noon ET for an exclusive live insights session that unpacks the data and shows you how to position your services for the millennial business owners who are building now—and will be the next generation of exited founders.

👉 Save Your Spot

Free Resources

📖 The 8 Key Drivers of Company Value

A practical guide to help your clients grow the value of their business. This eBook offers a clear framework, real-world examples, and actionable strategies you can use to guide more impactful conversations—and track progress along the way.

Get Your Copy

📘The Advisor’s Guide

Learn how Value Builder helps advisors start more strategic conversations with business owners. This overview highlights the platform’s tools to assess a company’s current value, pinpoint opportunities for improvement, and clearly communicate that value to owners.

Read Now

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This Issue's Contributors

Jason Reilly, Vice President of Marketing; Michael Sarkis, Director of Advisor Marketing; Deanne Kong Ting, Director of Customer Success; and Jen Chou, Senior Graphic Designer.