Marketing Exit Planning to Business Owners After the Autumn Budget

Before building any campaign, get the facts straight, because inaccurate claims in this space damage credibility fast. Business owners talk to accountants, solicitors and corporate finance advisers, and any of them will spot an overstatement.

The confirmed position from the Autumn Budget is as follows:

• Business Asset Disposal Relief (BADR): the lifetime limit reduces from £1m to £500,000 for disposals from 6 April 2027. The rate on qualifying gains within the limit remains 18%.
• Founders' Relief: a new 10% capital gains tax rate on up to £10m of lifetime gains for qualifying founders and significant early investors in high-growth UK companies, from 6 April 2027. A technical consultation was published on 28 October 2026, so detailed qualifying conditions are still being worked through.
• Capital gains tax headline rates: unchanged. The higher rate remains 24%.
• EMI2: the Company Share Option Plan is renamed EMI2, with the option limit doubled to £120,000 from 6 April 2027. This is relevant for growth companies thinking about retaining and rewarding key staff ahead of a sale.
• Thresholds: income tax, National Insurance and inheritance tax thresholds remain frozen to April 2031.

Equally important is what was not confirmed. There were no announcements you should rely on regarding dividend taxation, Business Property Relief or Agricultural Property Relief, or stamp duty. Do not write content implying changes in those areas, and do not speculate about future Budgets in a way that could be read as a prediction. If a prospect asks, the honest answer is that nothing has been confirmed and they should take advice on their specific circumstances.

The BADR change matters most for owners whose expected qualifying gains sit between £500,000 and £1m or above, and who have not already used their lifetime limit. Founders' Relief is a different proposition aimed at a narrower group: founders and significant early investors in high-growth companies. Until the consultation concludes, treat eligibility as uncertain in your messaging. A phrase such as "the government has announced a new relief and is consulting on the detail" is accurate; "you could pay just 10% on your exit" is not, because most readers will not qualify and the conditions are not final.

This distinction shapes your segmentation. The BADR message suits the broad base of owner-managed trading businesses. Founders' Relief content suits a smaller, more specialist audience that is likely to already have corporate finance and legal advisers involved, which changes how you approach them.

Exit planning marketing fails when it treats business owners as one audience. The motivations, timelines and decision makers differ sharply between segments, and your creative, channels and offer should reflect that.

Owner-managers aged 50 and over. This is the core BADR audience. They typically run established trading companies: engineering firms, professional practices, distribution businesses, care providers, trades and services. Many have built the business over twenty or thirty years and see it as their pension. Their questions are practical: what is my business worth, when could I realistically sell, who would buy it, and what will I be left with after tax. They are often time-poor and sceptical of salespeople, and they tend to trust their accountant above anyone else. Your messaging should be calm, factual and focused on readiness rather than tax rates alone.

Founders of younger businesses. Some founders have built companies quickly and may be considering a sale, a secondary, or an investment round in the next few years. Some will potentially be interested in Founders' Relief, though eligibility is subject to the consultation. They are usually more digitally active, more comfortable with LinkedIn and podcasts, and more likely to be surrounded by investors and advisers already. For this group, your value is often in personal wealth structuring around a liquidity event rather than the transaction itself.

Shareholders in growth companies. Minority shareholders, early employees with options and significant early investors face their own exit questions. The EMI2 changes may increase the number of employees holding options, and when a company sells, a cluster of people receive meaningful sums at once. These individuals are often overlooked by advisers because they are not the decision makers on the sale, yet they can be excellent clients.

Across all three, think about the household rather than the individual. A spouse who co-owns shares, adult children involved in the business, and family members who may inherit shares all form part of the planning conversation. That matters for IHT, particularly with frozen thresholds (nil rate band £325,000, residence nil rate band £175,000) and pensions coming within IHT from 6 April 2027.

Use your existing book first. Many firms already advise business owners on their personal pensions or protection without ever discussing the business itself. A simple review of client records for company directors, shareholders and self-employed clients over 50 will usually surface a list of people who should hear about the BADR change from you before they hear about it from someone else.

Finally, size the opportunity honestly. Exit planning has long lead times. A prospect you engage in November 2026 may not sell for several years, so your marketing has to build relationships over time rather than chase immediate conversions.

Business owners are reachable, but not through the same channels that work for mass-market retirement or mortgage leads. Three channels deserve most of your attention.

LinkedIn. For owner-managers and founders, LinkedIn is the most targetable paid channel available. You can target by job title (managing director, owner, founder, director), company size, industry and seniority, and layer in geography if you serve a region. Expect higher costs: LinkedIn CPL for adviser campaigns typically sits around £100 to £180, but the value of a single business owner client usually justifies that. Thought leadership from a named adviser often outperforms company page content, and document ads carrying a checklist work well as a lead magnet. Our guide to LinkedIn for wealth, corporate pensions and HNW clients covers targeting, creative formats and budgets in detail.

Accountant and corporate finance introducers. This is the highest-converting channel for exit planning, because owners trust their accountant. Accountants are also busy with the same Budget changes and may welcome a partner who can handle the personal wealth side of a sale. Approach introducers with something useful rather than a request for referrals: a joint client briefing on the BADR change, a shared checklist, or a co-hosted breakfast seminar. Corporate finance boutiques and business brokers see sales coming months or years ahead, and a reliable wealth partner who looks after their clients well after completion is valuable to them. Keep introducer arrangements documented and transparent, and make sure any payments or reciprocal arrangements are disclosed appropriately.

Google search. Search captures owners who are already thinking about the question. Relevant terms include "selling my business tax", "business asset disposal relief", "BADR changes 2027", "exit planning adviser", "what to do with money after selling business" and "business sale financial planning". Volumes are modest compared with pension or mortgage terms, and high-intent clicks can cost £8 to £25, but intent is strong. Use a keyword research tool to test term volumes in your region, and keep tightly themed ad groups so ad copy matches the query.

Secondary channels are worth considering once the core is working. Local business networks, chambers of commerce and industry associations still produce strong relationships for regional firms. Microsoft Ads can reach an older, desktop-heavy business audience at lower cost per click. Retargeting visitors to your exit planning content keeps you visible during the long consideration period.

Whatever the mix, track the source of every enquiry through to first meeting and engagement. Exit planning leads are low in volume, so a single misattributed client can distort your view of which channel works.

The best lead magnet for business owners is not a tax guide. It is something that helps them answer the question they are actually wrestling with: am I ready to sell, and what would I need to do first? An exit readiness checklist does this, positions your firm as a practical partner, and sidesteps the risk of giving tax advice in a promotion.

A strong checklist covers both the business and the owner. On the business side:

• Are the last three years of accounts clean, consistent and understood by a buyer?
• How dependent is the business on you personally, for customers, supplier relationships and key decisions?
• Is there a management team capable of running the business without you?
• Are customer contracts, leases and employment terms documented and transferable?
• Is the shareholding structure clear, and do all shareholders agree on the direction?

On the personal side:

• Do you know what income you need after a sale, and for how long?
• How much of your retirement depends on the value of the business?
• Have you reviewed your pension position, including how pensions will be treated for IHT from 6 April 2027?
• Have you thought about how sale proceeds would be held, invested and passed on?
• Do you know whether your gains might qualify for any relief, and have you taken professional advice on it?

The final question is deliberate. It prompts the owner to seek advice without the checklist claiming to determine eligibility.

Build supporting content around the checklist: a short article explaining the BADR limit change in plain English, a piece on the questions to ask before you sell, and a page explaining what happens to the money after a sale. Video works well here too. A five-minute explainer from an adviser, recorded simply, gives owners a sense of who they would be dealing with.

Deliver the checklist on a focused landing page with a short form: name, email, phone, business type and an approximate timeframe for exit. The timeframe field is useful for lead scoring, because someone planning to sell within two years needs a different follow-up from someone thinking about it in ten. Landing page conversion of 2% to 6% is typical for adviser campaigns, and well-targeted LinkedIn traffic to a valuable checklist can sit at the upper end. Our guide to landing pages that convert in financial services covers layout, forms and trust signals.

Follow up with a sequence rather than a single call. A meeting offer, a second piece of content, an invitation to a seminar and a periodic newsletter suit a long consideration cycle far better than repeated phone calls.

An illustrative example is often the most compelling way to explain why the BADR change matters. It is also where compliance risk is highest, so the assumptions must be stated clearly and the example must not read as a promise or a recommendation.

Here is a simplified illustration you could adapt:

Assumptions (simplified for illustration only): a single owner sells their entire shareholding in a trading company, realising a gain of £1m. The whole gain is assumed to qualify for BADR. The owner has not used any of their BADR lifetime limit previously. The owner is assumed to be a higher-rate taxpayer, so gains outside the relief are taxed at the higher capital gains tax rate of 24%. The annual exempt amount, other income, other gains, losses, deferred consideration and any other reliefs are ignored.

Disposal before 6 April 2027 (lifetime limit £1m):

• £1m at 18% = £180,000 capital gains tax

Disposal from 6 April 2027 (lifetime limit £500,000):

• First £500,000 at 18% = £90,000
• Remaining £500,000 at 24% = £120,000
• Total = £210,000 capital gains tax

Illustrative difference: £30,000 more tax on the same gain, purely because of the date of disposal.

Present this with care. State plainly that the example is illustrative, uses simplified assumptions, and does not reflect any individual's circumstances. Note that capital gains tax headline rates are unchanged and that the difference arises from the lower lifetime limit. Make clear that whether a gain qualifies for BADR depends on detailed conditions, and that readers should take professional tax advice before making decisions.

Add the balancing point that matters most: the timing of a business sale should be driven by the whole picture, not the tax alone. A buyer's timetable, the price achievable, the readiness of the business, deal structure and the owner's personal plans can all outweigh a £30,000 tax difference. A rushed sale at a lower price, or one with unfavourable terms, could cost far more than the relief saves. Saying this openly makes your content more credible and more aligned with Consumer Duty, because it supports good decisions rather than pressuring people.

Avoid extending the example to Founders' Relief with specific figures until the consultation concludes. You can explain that a 10% rate on up to £10m of lifetime gains has been announced for qualifying founders and significant early investors in high-growth companies from 6 April 2027, but eligibility is still being consulted on and most owner-managed businesses should not assume it applies.

Run any version of this example through your compliance review, and consider using the FCA compliance pre-check as a first pass on the surrounding copy before formal sign-off.

Exit planning marketing sits at the intersection of financial promotions rules and tax commentary, and the two need careful separation. Your promotions can inform, educate and invite a conversation. They should not tell an individual what to do with their business or their tax position.

Key guardrails to build into every campaign:

• No tax advice in promotions. Explaining that the BADR lifetime limit is reducing is factual information. Telling readers to sell before April 2027, or implying they will save a specific sum, crosses into personalised recommendation territory. Phrase calls to action around reviewing options with a professional.
• Recommend professional advice. Every piece of content should make clear that tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and that readers should take advice from a qualified tax adviser or accountant, as well as financial advice on what happens to proceeds.
• Be clear about your role. Many financial planning firms do not provide tax advice on the transaction itself. If your firm focuses on personal financial planning around a sale, say so, and explain how you work alongside accountants and solicitors. Overstating your role is misleading.
• Avoid false urgency. The April 2027 date is real, but deals take time and may not be achievable before then. Countdown timers, "last chance" messaging and pressure language are inappropriate. Consumer Duty expects firms to avoid exploiting behavioural biases, and urgency framing is one of the most common ways promotions do exactly that.
• Balance and prominence. Where you mention a potential benefit, give the limitations equal prominence. If your example shows a tax difference, the assumptions and the need for advice must be just as visible, not buried in small print.
• Founders' Relief caution. Do not imply eligibility or certainty while the consultation is ongoing.

Consider your target market too. Business owners are generally financially experienced, but some will be in vulnerable circumstances: a health event forcing a sale, a bereavement, a business in financial difficulty or a relationship breakdown. Your follow-up processes should identify these situations and adapt, in line with your vulnerable customer policy.

Keep records of approvals, the version of each promotion that ran, and the date ranges. If the consultation on Founders' Relief changes the detail, or HMRC guidance clarifies anything about BADR, you will need to update content quickly and show that you did.

For creative that works within these limits, our guide to compliance-aware creative for financial services explains how to write strong headlines and hooks without overstating outcomes. Good compliance does not mean bland marketing; it means specific, honest and useful marketing that experienced business owners will take seriously.

The strategic prize in exit planning is not the pre-sale conversation itself. It is the client who emerges after completion with a substantial, liquid sum and a long list of decisions to make. Your marketing should be designed around that journey, which can run for years.

Think of the pipeline in four stages:

1. Awareness (years before sale). The owner reads your BADR content, downloads the checklist or attends a seminar. They are not ready to act, but they now know who you are. Nurture through a quarterly newsletter for business owners, occasional webinars and updates when the rules develop.

2. Preparation (one to three years before sale). The owner begins serious planning. They may be working with an accountant and corporate finance adviser. Your role is personal financial planning: cash flow modelling for life after the business, pension contributions while the company can still make them, protection, wills and lasting powers of attorney, and early IHT planning. This stage often generates fee income and builds the relationship before any proceeds arrive.

3. Transaction (the sale itself). You coordinate with the professional team, help the owner understand what proceeds will look like after tax, and plan for deferred consideration or earn-outs. The owner is under pressure and appreciates an adviser who keeps the personal side under control.

4. Post-sale (completion onwards). The owner now has capital to invest, often for the first time in liquid form. Questions include how much to keep in cash, how to generate income, how to use ISA allowances (the full £20,000 remains), how to plan for IHT with frozen thresholds, and how to support family. This is where long-term wealth management begins.

The economics are attractive. A single successful exit client can be worth more than dozens of standard retirement planning clients, which is why an acquisition cost well above the typical adviser CPA range of £400 to £1,200 can still make sense. Model it honestly with the funnel economics guide, and remember the long payback period when setting expectations with partners or shareholders.

Do not forget the wider network around each sale. Co-shareholders, key employees with EMI2 options, and family members receiving gifted proceeds may all need advice. A firm that serves the owner well is well placed to be introduced to these people.

Track pipeline stage in your CRM, not just lead status. A contact may stay in preparation for two years. Without stage tracking, those relationships disappear into a "cold lead" list and get forgotten just as the sale approaches. Our thinking on wealth management client acquisition and positioning sets out how to present your proposition to these clients once they are liquid.

The window between now and 6 April 2027 is when interest in the BADR change will peak. Here is a practical sequence to get a compliant exit planning campaign running.

Weeks 1 to 2: foundations.

• Confirm your proposition. Decide exactly what your firm offers business owners before, during and after a sale, and what you do not do. Write it down in plain English.
• Review your existing book for company directors, shareholders and self-employed clients aged 50 and over. These are your first audience.
• Draft a factual summary of the Budget changes, limited to what was confirmed: the BADR limit reducing to £500,000 at 18%, the Founders' Relief announcement and consultation, unchanged CGT headline rates, and EMI2.

Weeks 3 to 4: content and compliance.

• Build the exit readiness checklist and a dedicated landing page.
• Prepare the illustrative before and after example with clearly stated simplified assumptions, a plain statement that it is not advice, and a recommendation to seek professional tax advice.
• Put everything through compliance sign-off and keep the records.

Weeks 5 to 8: introducers and existing clients.

• Send a short, factual briefing to existing business owner clients and offer a review meeting.
• Approach three to five accountancy practices and corporate finance firms with a joint briefing or seminar idea, not a referral request.
• Run a small breakfast or webinar session for owners and invite introducers to co-present.

Weeks 6 to 12: paid media.

• Launch a LinkedIn campaign targeting owners and directors by company size and region, promoting the checklist. Start with a modest test budget and expect CPL above your usual retirement campaigns.
• Run a tightly themed Google search campaign around BADR, selling a business and post-sale planning terms.
• Set up retargeting for visitors to your exit planning content.

Ongoing: nurture and measure.

• Add every enquiry to a business owner nurture track with pipeline stages, not just lead status.
• Respond quickly to new enquiries; business owners are busy and expect professional service. Speed to contact matters here as much as anywhere.
• Review results monthly, measuring cost per meeting and pipeline value rather than CPL alone.
• Update content promptly as the Founders' Relief consultation progresses or further guidance emerges.

Exit planning rewards firms that start early, stay factual and stay in touch. The April 2027 change gives you a reason to open the conversation; the quality of your advice and follow-up determines whether that owner becomes a long-term wealth client. If you want help building a compliant business owner campaign, talk to our team.