Privacy policy

Selling or buying a business means sharing information you would not share with just anyone. This Privacy Policy explains, in plain English, what information I collect through this website and in the course of working with you, how I use and protect it, when it may be shared, and the choices you have.

1. Who we are

This website, www.jonasmartin.com (including the seller pages at /sell/ and the articles at /insights/), is operated by Jonas Martin. Jonas is a business broker sales associate affiliated with American Business Brokers (“ABB”), 8191 College Pkwy, Ste 306, Fort Myers, FL 33919. Business brokerage services are provided through ABB.

In this policy, “I,” “we,” “us” and “our” mean Jonas Martin and, where the context involves brokerage services, ABB as the brokerage through which those services are provided. “You” means anyone who visits this website or contacts us, including business owners, prospective buyers and their representatives. Because I work through ABB, information you give me in connection with a sale, purchase or valuation may also be held by ABB as part of its brokerage records. ABB may maintain its own privacy practices for information it holds directly.

2. Scope of this policy

This policy applies to personal information collected through this website and through related email, phone and text communications with me. It does not apply to other websites, including abbrokers.com, even when this site links to them. Specific engagement documents you sign, such as a listing agreement or a confidentiality or non-disclosure agreement (“NDA”), may contain additional terms. If one of those documents conflicts with this policy, the signed document controls for the information it covers.

3. Information we collect

Information you give us

You decide what to share with us. Depending on how you contact us, this may include:

• Valuation and contact forms (on the Contact page and the seller Contact page): your name, email address, phone number, type of business, county, approximate annual revenue range, when you might sell, any message you write, and, for buyer inquiries, the listing number you ask about.
• Exit-readiness checklist download: your email address, and optionally your first name, type of business, and whether you would like to receive follow-up emails.
• Article email sign-up (on the Insights pages and the home pages): your email address and, if you choose to provide it, your first name, together with your confirmation that you would like to receive new-article emails.
• Phone calls, texts and emails: whatever you choose to tell us, such as your goals, timing, and questions about a business.
• Confidential business information: if we work together on a valuation or sale, owners typically share financial statements, tax returns, payroll and customer information, leases, contracts, equipment lists and similar records. Prospective buyers typically share proof of funds, financial background, acquisition experience and, for E-2 Treaty Investor visa buyers, information such as nationality and investment plans.

Please do not send Social Security numbers, bank or card account numbers, passport scans or similar sensitive identifiers through the website forms. If a transaction requires that kind of information, we will arrange a more appropriate way to provide it.

Information collected automatically

Like most websites, this site is delivered by a hosting provider (currently Netlify) whose servers automatically receive standard technical information when you visit, such as your IP address, browser type and version, device and operating system, the pages you request, the referring page, and the date and time of your visit. This information is used to deliver the site, keep it secure and prevent abuse, and may be kept in server logs by the hosting provider.

The seller forms and the article email sign-up form also include a hidden field that records which page or tool you came from (for example, the readiness quiz or a particular article), so we know how to follow up. If you take the sale-readiness quiz, your answers are scored in your own browser and are not sent to us. If you then choose to follow the link to the contact form, your overall score is carried along and is submitted only if you send the form.

4. Cookies, analytics and third-party resources

Cookies are small text files that a website stores in your browser. This website does not currently set its own cookies and does not currently use analytics, advertising, tracking pixels or social-media tracking tools. Our hosting provider may use technologies that are strictly necessary to deliver the site securely.

The site loads its typefaces from Google Fonts. When a page loads, your browser connects to Google’s servers, which receive your IP address and basic browser information in order to deliver the fonts. Google states that the Google Fonts service does not set cookies; its handling of this data is governed by Google’s own privacy policy. The office address links to Google Maps as an ordinary link; no map is embedded on this site, and Google receives information only if you click the link.

If we add analytics or other cookies in the future (for example, to understand which pages are useful), we will update this policy before doing so to describe what is used and how you can control it. You can always block or delete cookies through your browser settings.

5. How we use information

We use information to:

• respond to your inquiry, prepare a valuation, and provide the brokerage services you request;
• deliver the exit-readiness checklist and, if you asked for them, follow-up emails;
• if you signed up for article emails, notify you when a new article is posted (we use your sign-up details only for this purpose);
• market a business for sale with the owner’s permission, and match prospective buyers with suitable opportunities;
• screen and qualify buyers, and coordinate due diligence, financing and closing;
• send occasional information you have asked for or that relates to our ongoing conversation;
• operate, secure and improve this website and prevent spam and fraud;
• keep business records and meet legal, regulatory and brokerage-licensing obligations; and
• protect our rights and the rights and safety of others.

6. Confidentiality of business information

Confidentiality is central to selling a business. A premature leak can unsettle employees, customers, suppliers and competitors, so I handle sale-related information with care:

• Information that identifies a business for sale, or its detailed financial and operating information, is shared with prospective buyers only with the seller’s permission, and typically only after the buyer signs a confidentiality agreement or NDA.
• Public listings are written “blind”: they describe the type of business and general area, not the name or address.
• Information is shared on a need-to-know basis and only to the extent reasonably necessary for the transaction.
• Buyer information, such as proof of funds, is shared with a seller or other parties only as needed to move a transaction forward and, where appropriate, with the buyer’s permission.

Simply contacting us or requesting a valuation does not create an obligation for you to sell or buy anything.

7. How we share information

We share personal information only as described here:

• American Business Brokers. As the brokerage through which services are provided, ABB and its personnel may receive and keep information about inquiries, listings and transactions for supervision, record-keeping and service delivery.
• Service providers. We use trusted providers that process information on our behalf, such as our website host and form-processing service (currently Netlify, which receives form submissions and may use automated spam filtering), our email and communications providers, and document storage tools. They may use information only to provide services to us.
• Transaction professionals, with your consent. With your permission, we may share information with the other professionals involved in a transaction, such as attorneys, CPAs and tax advisers, lenders (including SBA lenders), escrow and closing agents, landlords, franchisors, and, for E-2 buyers, U.S. immigration attorneys.
• The other side of a deal. As described in Section 6, sellers’ information goes to prospective buyers only with the seller’s permission, typically under an NDA.
• Legal requirements and protection. We may disclose information if we believe in good faith that it is required by law, regulation, subpoena or court order, or by a licensing or regulatory authority, or is necessary to protect the rights, property or safety of us, our customers or others, or to investigate fraud.
• Business transfers. If my practice, or the relevant part of ABB’s business, is transferred, merged or reorganized, information may be transferred to the successor, subject to this policy’s commitments.

8. We do not sell or rent personal information

We do not sell, rent or trade your personal information to anyone, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing purposes. We do not use it for targeted (cross-context behavioral) advertising.

9. Email communications

If you contact us, we will email you about your inquiry. If you download the exit-readiness checklist and tick the follow-up box, you will receive a few short follow-up emails with tips on preparing a business for sale. We may also occasionally send related updates to people we are working with.

Article emails. If you sign up for article emails and tick the consent box, we will use your email address, and your first name if you provide it, only to send you a short notice when a new article is posted on this site. Sign-up is voluntary and based on your consent, which you can withdraw at any time: every article email includes a way to unsubscribe, and you can also unsubscribe by sending a message through the contact form. Your sign-up details are never sold or rented.

Every marketing email will identify who it is from, include our physical office address, and include a clear way to unsubscribe, consistent with the federal CAN-SPAM Act. You can unsubscribe at any time by using the link or instructions in the email, by replying “unsubscribe,” or by sending a message through the contact form or calling 941-315-5019. We will process opt-out requests promptly, and within 10 business days. Even if you unsubscribe from marketing emails, we may still send messages directly related to an inquiry or transaction you are involved in.

10. Phone calls and text messages

If you give us your phone number, we may call or text you about your inquiry or an active transaction. We do not send autodialed or prerecorded marketing calls or marketing text messages without your prior express written consent, as required by the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act and Florida’s Telephone Solicitation Act, and consent to such messages is never a condition of any service. You can reply STOP to any text message to opt out, or tell us at any time that you do not want calls or texts. Message and data rates may apply. We do not share your phone number with third parties for their marketing purposes.

11. How long we keep information

We keep personal information for as long as reasonably needed for the purposes described in this policy, including responding to you, completing and documenting any engagement or transaction, and meeting legal, tax, regulatory and brokerage record-keeping requirements, which can require transaction records to be kept for several years. Inquiries that do not lead to an engagement are kept only as long as useful for follow-up you have agreed to, or as otherwise reasonably needed. When information is no longer needed, we delete it or keep it in a form that no longer identifies you.

12. Security

We use reasonable administrative, technical and physical measures designed to protect personal and business information, including encrypted (HTTPS) connections to this website, access limited to people who need the information, and confidentiality agreements where appropriate. No website, email or storage system is completely secure, however, and we cannot guarantee the security of information you send us. Please use care when sending sensitive documents by email, and ask us about a more secure way to share them. If a security breach affects your personal information, we will notify you where required by applicable law, including the Florida Information Protection Act.

13. International visitors

This website is operated from the United States and is intended for people interested in businesses in Florida, including international buyers exploring the E-2 Treaty Investor route. If you visit or contact us from outside the United States, your information will be transferred to, stored and processed in the United States, where data protection laws may differ from those in your country. By using the site or contacting us, you understand that your information will be handled in the United States as described in this policy.

14. Children’s privacy

This website is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13, consistent with the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The site and our services are intended for adults 18 and older. If you believe a child has given us personal information, please contact us and we will delete it.

15. Third-party websites and links

This site links to other websites, such as American Business Brokers’ listings at abbrokers.com, and Google Maps for directions. Those sites are operated by others, and their own privacy policies and terms apply. We are not responsible for their content or privacy practices, and we encourage you to review their policies.

16. Do Not Track signals

Some browsers send a “Do Not Track” signal. Because there is no common industry standard for responding to these signals, the site does not change its behavior in response to them. As described in Section 4, the site does not currently use analytics or advertising tracking.

17. Your choices and rights

You may contact us at any time to:

• ask what personal information we hold about you and get a copy of it;
• correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete;
• ask us to delete your information;
• withdraw consent you have given, such as for follow-up emails or text messages; and
• unsubscribe from marketing emails or opt out of texts, as described above.

We will respond to reasonable requests within a reasonable time, normally within 30 days. We may need to verify your identity first, and we may keep certain information where we are required or permitted by law to do so, for example to complete a transaction, meet record-keeping obligations under Florida law or brokerage regulations, or resolve disputes.

Some state privacy laws, such as the Florida Digital Bill of Rights or the California Consumer Privacy Act, give residents specific rights but apply only to businesses that meet certain size or activity thresholds. Depending on where you live and whether a particular law applies to us, you may have additional rights. Whether or not a specific law applies, we aim to honor the requests above. We will not discriminate against you for making a privacy request.

18. This website is informational

The content and tools on this site, including the readiness quiz and checklist, are general and educational. Using them does not create a brokerage relationship. Any engagement is made only through a written agreement.

19. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time, for example if we add new website features or tools or if the law changes. When we do, we will post the updated policy on this page and change the effective date at the top. If we make material changes to how we use personal information already collected, we will give additional notice or ask for your consent where required by law.

20. How to contact us

For privacy questions or requests (access, correction, deletion or opting out), you can:

• send a message through the contact form, writing “Privacy request” at the start of your message so we can respond promptly;
• call 941-315-5019; or
• write to us by mail at:

Jonas Martin, Business Broker (Associate)
American Business Brokers
8191 College Pkwy, Ste 306
Fort Myers, FL 33919