The Vault
A complete toolkit for selling your business — 25 tools and templates organized around the five phases of a sale. Built from real transaction experience.
One-time payment · Instant access · 30-day money-back guarantee
Already purchased? Resend my access link
Download every tool. Watch every walkthrough. Run the Net Proceeds Calculator against your actual numbers. If in 30 days you don't think The Vault paid for itself ten times over, email info@bluefrogstrategy.com and we'll refund you in full — no forms, no hoops, no hurt feelings.
If Any of This Sounds Familiar — The Vault Is For You
Most owners don't know what they don't know until they're already at the table. The Vault fixes that before you ever sit down.
You're ready for The Vault if…
- You're 6 months to 3 years away from selling and want to be the most prepared person in the room
- You've been approached by a buyer — or a broker — and you're not sure what you just signed or what to sign next
- You'd rather lead the process than react to it
- You want to walk into conversations with your CPA and attorney already knowing the right questions
- You're not willing to leave six figures on the table because you didn't know what to ask for
This probably isn't for you if…
- You want someone to sell your business for you — that's what a broker does, and you should hire one after Phase 2
- You expect a turnkey valuation with no effort on your side — these tools are hands-on, a few hours of real work each
- You're looking for legal or tax advice — The Vault prepares you to work with advisors, but doesn't replace them
Everything That's Inside
The 25 tools below are exactly what you get the moment you unlock The Vault — organized into five phases that walk you from valuation through the day after closing.
Preview the full table of contents below. Downloads unlock instantly after purchase.
Know Your Number
Understand what your business is worth — and what you will actually keep after every deduction
4 downloadsStart here regardless of where you are in the process. Most sellers don't know their real number until they run these tools — and the gap between what they expected and what they'll actually net is often significant.
Value Gap Analysis + Self-Scoring Rubric
Score your business across 7 value drivers. Total auto-calculates. Identifies your highest-priority fixes before buyers find them.
Deal Structure Tax Impact Worksheet
Side-by-side comparison of asset sale vs. stock sale vs. membership interest. Asset allocation table. CPA questions to ask before you negotiate.
SDE Add Backs Calculator
Complete this before moving on to the Net Proceeds Calculator. Use the number calculated in the green Annual Earnings field and enter it in the Annual Owner Earnings section of the Net Proceeds Calculator.
Net Proceeds Calculator
Live calculator: enter your SDE/EBITDA, multiple, costs, debt, depreciation recapture, and capital gains rate. Shows what actually lands in your account — not just your asking price.
Get Your House in Order
Address every vulnerability before a buyer uses it against you — 12 to 24 months before you list
6 downloadsThis is where real value is built or lost. Buyers are professional at finding problems — your job is to find them first and fix them. These tools cover financials, operations, legal compliance, and documentation.
Financial Cleanup Checklist
Reconciliation, categorization, tax alignment, and add-back documentation. Turns messy books into defensible financials.
Operational Process Documentation Guide
Owner dependence audit, SOP format, org chart requirements. Proves your business runs without you — which is exactly what buyers are paying for.
Tax Compliance Checklist
Payroll, sales tax, licenses, permits, regulatory. Find and fix compliance issues before buyers find them first — and use them as leverage against you.
Equipment & Real Estate
How equipment is valued in a business sale, depreciation recapture explained, real estate options (include / lease-back / sell separately), and pre-market asset checklist.
Personal Asset Protection Checklist
Personal guarantee inventory, questions for your attorney and wealth advisor. Protect personal assets before the deal starts — not after problems surface.
Data Room Sandbox Setup Guide
All 11 due diligence categories with seller action notes. File naming guide. Pre-launch readiness check. Build your data room before a buyer ever asks for anything.
Go to Market Ready
Your positioning, your documents, and your advisors — all in place before a buyer sees anything
4 downloadsHow you enter the market determines the quality of buyers you attract and the leverage you carry into negotiations. These tools help you build your blind profile, protect your information, and choose the right advisors before you're visible.
Buyer Overview Template
Fully structured blind profile (teaser) template. What to include, what to withhold, and how to frame the opportunity without identifying the business.
NDA Review Checklist
Definition, use restrictions, non-solicitation, remedies, and staged information release guidance. The first document you sign controls everything that follows — don't overlook it.
Advisor Interview Questions
M&A attorney, broker, and wealth advisor questions in one document. How to evaluate before you hire and how to get more out of the relationship once you do.
Due Diligence Buyer Q&A Prep Guide
50 questions buyers ask — with what they're really looking for and seller prep notes for each. 5-tab workbook including Phase 1–3 document trackers and certifications tracker.
Work the Deal
LOI through final contract — every phase has tools to protect your position
8 downloadsThis is where sellers lose the most value — through inexperience at the table, not reading what they sign, or letting buyer tactics erode a deal they worked years to build. These tools put you on equal footing.
LOI Review Checklist
Term-by-term breakdown: price, structure, exclusivity, reps, transition. Attorney questions. CPA questions. Red flags to push back on before you sign.
Buyer Conversation Prep Guide
Preparation checklist, answer framework by question type, leverage-killing phrases to avoid, and post-conversation debrief template.
Employee Communication Guide
Phase-by-phase confidentiality strategy, retention bonus framework, and announcement planning. Timing and approach determine whether your deal survives.
Negotiation Strategy Field Guide
Leverage, silence, saying no, timeline control, red flags vs. red lines, and a walk-away conditions worksheet to complete before any serious conversation.
Due Diligence Response Tracker
Keep track of every communication you provide to the buyer — including documents provided, Q&A Log, and Confidentiality Log.
Buyer Tactics Decoder
9 tactics experienced buyers use — deal fatigue, last-minute demands, holdback manipulation, post-LOI repricing, and more. Each with a specific counter-strategy.
Transition Agreement Guide
What your transition terms must say before you sign the purchase agreement. Scope limits, duration, compensation, and how to protect your exit contractually.
Final Contract Red Flag Checklist
Definitions to scrutinize, survival periods, baskets and caps, indemnification triggers, non-compete scope, earnout mechanics, and dispute resolution terms.
Walk Away Clean
Protect your proceeds, your time, and your next chapter
3 downloadsClosing isn't the finish line — it's the start of a new set of responsibilities and decisions. These tools help you protect what you've built, avoid the regret that catches sellers off guard, and set yourself up for what comes next.
Post-Sale Financial Planning Questions
Pre-close questions for your CPA and wealth advisor. Post-close planning questions. Earnout and seller note monitoring tracker.
Post-Sale Regret Prevention Checklist
The three-layer readiness check — financial, deal/process, and identity. The questions to answer before you sign. What sellers who avoided regret did differently.
Post-Sale Document Retention & Proof Checklist
What to keep after closing — and why. Retention periods for every category. Storage guidance. Protects you against claims that arise years after close.
Built by Someone Who's Actually Sold Businesses
Kristina Picciotti is a Controller, CFO, and CEO who grew an electronics recycling company to 150 employees with Fortune 100 and U.S. military contracts — then bought the company herself in 2020 and successfully exited to private equity in 2024.
She's been on both sides of the table. She's signed the LOIs, fought the repricing attempts, and walked away clean.
Beyond her own exit, Kristina has helped other business owners negotiate deals and manage due diligence from the advisor seat.
Every tool in The Vault comes from a real transaction — not theory. If it's not in there, it's because it didn't matter.
Get Exit Ready Before You Ever Say “Yes”
You don't need to decide to sell today. But when the opportunity comes, you should be prepared.
The Vault gives you the roadmap to navigate the business sale process with clarity, leverage, and confidence.
One-time payment · Instant access · 30-day money-back guarantee
Already purchased? Resend my access link.
Download every tool. Watch every walkthrough. Run the Net Proceeds Calculator against your actual numbers. If in 30 days you don't think The Vault paid for itself ten times over, email info@bluefrogstrategy.com and we'll refund you in full — no forms, no hoops, no hurt feelings.
Questions Before You Buy
Everything we hear most often — about how The Vault actually works.
Access & Format
How do I get access after I buy?
The moment Stripe confirms your payment, you'll get an email with a one-click magic-link. Click it on any device and The Vault unlocks — no passwords, no accounts to manage.
What devices and software do I need?
The Word documents (.docx) open in Word, Google Docs, Pages, LibreOffice, or any modern word processor. The Excel spreadsheets (.xlsx) work in Excel, Google Sheets, or Numbers — though Excel is recommended for the calculators since they use formulas. The video walkthroughs play in any browser on Mac, PC, iPad, or phone.
How long do I have access?
Lifetime. Download everything the first day if you want. Your magic-link email will continue to work even years later — if you ever lose it, visit /vault/recover and we'll send a fresh one.
Can I share it with my CPA, attorney, or spouse?
Yes. Once you've downloaded a tool, it's yours. Use it with any advisor on your deal team. What we ask is that you don't publish or redistribute the files outside your own business — people who need the system should buy their own access.
Timing
What if I'm 2–3 years away from selling?
That's actually the best time to start. Phase 1 and Phase 2 are where real value is built. Every quarter you spend working through them adds to your sale number. Owners who buy The Vault two years out consistently net more than owners who buy it six weeks before closing.
What if I already have an LOI on the table?
Start at Phase 4 and work backwards. The LOI Review Checklist, Buyer Tactics Decoder, and Final Contract Red Flag Checklist are the highest-leverage tools you can put in front of yourself right now. Most sellers lose the most money between LOI and close — The Vault is designed to stop that.
The Work Itself
How much time does it take to work through The Vault?
The calculators (Value Gap Analysis, Net Proceeds, SDE Add-Backs) are each 30–60 minutes once you have your numbers. The review checklists (LOI, Final Contract, NDA) are meant to be pulled out at the right moment and used line-by-line. You don't sit and “complete The Vault” — you use each tool when its moment arrives.
Do the tools get updated?
Yes. Updates are free for the life of your access. When tax rules or market practice shifts, the affected tools are revised and you can re-download the current version anytime.
Money & Decisions
What if it's not right for me?
The 30-day money-back guarantee is no-questions. If you decide it's not for you, email info@bluefrogstrategy.com and we'll refund you in full. You keep nothing, we keep nothing — simple.
Do I still need a broker, CPA, and attorney?
Yes. The Vault doesn't replace them. It makes every hour you pay for more productive — so they work on your deal instead of educating you on the basics at $450/hour.
Need Personalized Guidance?
For business owners who want hands-on strategic support, our private coaching program provides direct access to expert guidance through every step of your exit.