Selling Your Business
Considerations
Some issues of great importance are:
Is this the best time to sell your business?
Valuing your Company
Preparing your business for sale
Marketing Plan
Protecting the Confidentiality of the sale of your business
Meeting and prequalifying potential buyers
Generating offers and drafting purchase agreements
Working with key advisors such as attorneys, accountants, and bankers
Assigning the lease (if applicable)
Closing the sale
Business Selling Rules
Follow these 10 rules to avoid wrecking your sale!
1. Place a reasonable price on your business. An inflated figure either turns off or slows down potential buyers, rely on your business broker to help you arrive at the best "win-win" price.
2. Carry on business as usual. Don't become so obsessed with the transaction that your attention wavers from day-to-day demands, affecting sales, costs, and profits. Since the selling process could take some time, the buyer needs to keep seeing a healthy business.
3. Engage experts to insure confidentiality. A breach of confidentiality surrounding the sale of a business can change the course of the transaction. Expert intermediaries can channel the process and the parties involved to keep the sale within safely silent bounds.
4. Prepare for the sale well in advance. Be sure your records are complete for at least several years back and do all pertinent legal or accounting housecleaning as well as a literal sprucing-up of the plant or store.
5. Anticipate information the buyer may request. Have an equipment list, background information on your Company, current financials, copy of your lease or current appraisal on your real estate (as applicable).
6. Achieve leverage through buyer competition. This can be tricky; you are wise to let your business broker, as a third party, create a competitive situation with buyers to position you better in the sale.
7. Be flexible. Don't be the kind of seller who wants all-cash at the closing, or who wont accept any contingent payments or an asset transaction. Depend on the advice of your business broker their knowledge of financing and tax implications to keep the deal sweet instead of sour.
8. Negotiate, don't dominate. You're used to being your own boss, but be prepared to learn that the buyer may be used to having his way, too. With your business broker's help, decide ahead of time when to hold and when to fold,
9. Keep time from dragging down the deal. To keep the momentum up, work with your business broker to be sure that potential buyers stay on a time schedule and that offers move in a timely fashion.
10. Be willing to stay involved. Even if you are feeling burnt-out, realize that the buyer may want you to stay within arms reach for awhile. Consult with business brokers to determine how you can best effect a smooth transition.
What makes Select Business Group different?
- Goal oriented: if the transaction is right it will get closed.
- Confidentiality for all parties.
- Some businesses owners have sold several businesses through Select Business Group.
- Several clients have used Select Business Group to buy and then sell their successful businesses.
- Over 30 years of real world experience by principal, Fred M. Mehring. He knows all the steps in selling businesses and helping buyers find the right businesses and getting the transaction closed.