Briggs AnalyticsHow to value business data: the four factors buyers actually use
In this article
The four factorsThe math, step by stepHow industry adjusts itWhat does not move the numberRun it on your own companyThe four factors
Years of history. Ten years of tickets shows how a business changes; two years is a snapshot. Most enterprise buyers want three or more, and their headline figures start at ten. People. More people means more work recorded. The enterprise buyers start around 20 to 30 employees; other buyers take smaller companies. Connected systems. A ticket that links to a code change that links to an invoice is worth more than any one of them alone; this is where the number moves most. Clean rights. If your customer contracts allow it and your contractors signed their work over, the deal moves in weeks instead of months, and nothing is priced at zero.
The math, step by step
Start with people multiplied by a years value (three years counts about 2, five about 5, ten about 10, fifteen or more about 13). Multiply by the industry factor, by one plus a weight for each system that recorded the work (roughly 0.08 to 0.15 each), by a rights factor (1.0 clean, lower if contracts need a look), and by the situation (a shut-down is priced on its own band). Then multiply by what the buyers publish per unit: about $250 on the low side and $600 on the high side. Floor $10,000, ceiling $1.5 million, because that is where the published ranges stop.
A 40-person consulting firm, ten years, four systems, clean rights: 40 x 10 = 400, x 1.1 industry = 440, x 1.42 systems = 625, x $250 to $600 = roughly $155,000 to $375,000. The consulting page shows the same range.
See what your company's records could get.
Ten questions, under five minutes, built from the buyers' own published ranges.
Get my estimate →How industry adjusts it
Expensive, licensed people making documented decisions with a visible outcome is what buyers pay most for. A mortgage file ends funded or declined. A cleaning job ends. That is why mortgage and lending sit at the top of the published bands and hospitality near the bottom, with roughly 30% between them. Every industry, priced.
What does not move the number
Revenue, much. Brand. Customer count on its own. The customer list, which never goes in. A business run from spreadsheets and email threads has very little to license however large it is, because nothing linked anything to anything.
Run it on your own company
The estimator asks ten questions and does the arithmetic above with the current published figures. It is a range, not an offer; a real offer comes after a buyer reviews what is in your systems. Two minutes.
In short
- Four factors: years of history, people, connected systems, clean rights. Industry adjusts by about 30%.
- Roughly $250 to $600 per unit of people-times-years, floor $10,000, ceiling $1.5 million, from the published ranges.
- Connected systems move the number most. Revenue and brand barely move it.
- The estimator runs this math with the current published figures.
Questions owners ask.
Why a range and not a number?
Because the buyers publish ranges and quote after review. The low end assumes thin links between systems; the high end assumes a connected record.
Does an exclusive license change the math?
Yes. Exclusive licenses pay four to five times more per one licensing platform's published research, and end your ability to license the same records again.
Can I get a valuation in writing?
The estimator result can be sent to you by email. A written offer comes from the buyer after review.
