Business Brokers - Sell Business - Business Sales and Acquisitions - SunbeltNE

Many people who put up their company for sale try to do it on their own. They want to avoid paying commissions to a business broker and increase the profit margins from the sale. However, this is a serious mistake which can hamper the sale of a company. Granted, a lot of brokers charge hefty commissions on closing a business deal. But they also offer security and experience in closing a successful deal. You may avoid paying the business broker commission by doing the deal alone. But you also face the risk of coming across a phony buyer who will waste your time and keep you from closing the deal quickly. Putting up your company for sale without the advise of an experienced business broker is a huge risk which you should avoid if you want to hand over your business to a genuine business owner who can develop and grow your business further. If saving commission is the topmost thing on your mind, consider some advantages of using a business broker while setting up your company for sale:

The most important reason you need a business broker is his/her experience in closing a deal. When you go to a professional, you are ensuring that the process you need to follow to put up your company for sale is defined. Having the business broker guide you in all the steps of selling your business will ensure that you avoid common mistakes and get the best deal in your favor.

As the business broker will have years of experience in buying and selling businesses, he/she will also have an established network through which you can promote your company for sale. This means that as soon as you hire their services, your company will immediately reach interested buyers. Such promotion not only relieves you of the task of looking for appropriate buyers, it might also increase the possibility of closing the deal quickly.

A majority of business buying or selling deals break down at the negotiations stage. With the experience that business brokers have in buying and selling business, they will be an asset when it comes to negotiating effectively. All you need to do is set a realistic price range you want to get for your company for sale and the business broker will handle the rest.

With a business broker into the picture, you can hand over all the intricate details related to your company for sale and focus on developing your business. Doing so will ensure that you don't ignore your business activities while promoting it for sale and add to the value of your business.

If you promote your company for sale yourself, it draws attention of your employees, clients as well as a lot of competitors. This may have negative repercussions for your business. But when you hire a business broker, you generally sign a confidentiality agreement with him/her, in which they agree to keep the sale of your business confidential until it changes hands. You can hence maintain complete confidentiality related to your company for sale.

There are qualified buyers looking for a profitable business to buy. As a company for sale owner, it is your job to make your business as attractive as possible to these buyers, so that you can close the deal fast. However, you need to get into the mindset of the buyers and know what they are thinking in order to get the best price for your company for sale. By paying attention to exactly what the buyers want, you can customize your business for sell and make it a more attractive deal for them. A good business broker may also know what the buyers expect and hence may be able to help you sell your business. The following are some questions which may be going on in the buyer’s mind when he looks at your company for sale:

The buyer will invariably be looking for a company for sale which has a reasonable price. The price range should also match the budget he/she has for buying a business. If your business for sell is attractive for them, the buyer may seek alternative ways to finance the deal. He/she may also have questions about seller financing for your company for sale, which you need to be prepared for.

If the buyer is looking to run your business after buying it, he/she will be thinking about how strong your existing customer base is. Having a good customer base will make your business for sell an attractive deal for the buyer. Knowing your clientele properly, including who is your top customer, how much revenue is generated, percentage of profits from customers are some of the things you need to be aware of in order to answer questions related to your company for sale.

The buyer is obviously going to look for a profitable business for sell. You should hence have all your financial documents ready for the buyer to examine, so that the true profitability of your business is apparent. Have details of your company for sale like inventory, P&L statements, vendor lists etc. ready when you meet the potential buyer. Your business broker might be able to help you out in getting your financial papers in order.

Knowing what your potential buyers are thinking will not only help you prepare your company for sale, it will also give you ideas as to how to improve the business until it is sold. The mindset of the buyer will also help you determine how much price to ask for your business for sell and how to augment that price to the maximum.

The decision to put up your business for sell is a serious one, with the potential for you to achieve your retirement goals or help you move on to another profession comfortably. Preparing your business for sell is complicated and you should take appropriate steps to see that your business sells quickly and you get the best possible price for it. The following are some steps to ensure that you prepare your company for sale quickly.

• Maintenance of equipment

If your business for sell uses any machinery or equipment, you need to ensure that it is serviced and functions properly before the buyer comes in for inspection. The buyer will expect all the equipment to be in perfect running condition when he considers your company for sale. Any operating problems in your equipment will raise a red flag, which will hamper the chances of selling your business quickly.

• Information related to your clients

One of the main queries for a qualified buyer will be related to your clients. Do you know the client base for your business for sell properly? Can you answer questions related to them comfortably? It is important for you to know details related to top clients, percentages of sales associated with them, how much revenue is brought in with those clients etc. When you put up your company for sale, you should have all this relevant information at hand to answer the buyer's questions.

• Find a business broker

You cannot go the whole way alone if you want to sell your business. So when preparing for a business for sell, look around for a reputed business broker. A business broker will help not only in the negotiations, but also in the steps to be taken to close a successful business for sell deal. With a business broker by your side, you are sure to get the best price for your company for sale. Besides a broker, you may also require the services of a lawyer and an accountant to sell your business.

• Have all the financial information ready

Don't wait till the last moment to get all the financial papers ready for your business for sell. If the buyer is seriously interested in your business, he/she will examine all the financials of your company for sale in detail along with their experts. There is a lot of paperwork associated with the financials which you need to get together before you put up your business for sell. You will require P&L statements, income tax returns, bank statements, asset listings, employment tax filings revenue reports and much more when you put your company on the market. So take the time and help of your business broker to get these papers together.

The preparation for a business for sell takes a lot of time and effort. So make sure that you start well in advance if you want to sell your business quickly and get the right price for it.

As a business for sell owner, you may wish to accomplish your life’s goals when you put it up in the market. In addition to seeing your business for sell going in the right hands, you also want to get the right price for a company you have built right from scratch. However, closing a successful deal is a complicated procedure, during which you need to avoid some deal breaking mistakes. The following are some of them.

Many business for sell owners try to save on the commission by avoiding the services of a business broker. This is a crucial error, which may spell the difference between a successful and an unsuccessful deal. As a business for sell owner, you might not be able to juggle your business responsibilities and sell your business successfully. Hiring a business broker will enable you to focus on your company for sale while the broker will concentrate on getting a qualified buyer for you. Moreover, a professional and experienced business broker will also be able to guide you through the selling process, right from finding a buyer to the negotiations stage. The cost of a broker will be worth it when you close a successful business for sell deal.

A major deal breaker is the pricing of a business for sell. Sellers usually end up either under-pricing or over-pricing their business. A business buyer will evaluate your company for sale by evaluating its financial condition, turnover, profitability etc. If the price of the business is more than its worth, the buyer will be put off. Some sellers even under-price their business for sell with the hope of attracting more buyers. In such a case, the buyer might doubt the profitability of the company for sale. Your business broker can guide you regarding the correct valuation of your business for sell.

Financial information about your company for sale is the most important aspect of the deal. It is the basis on which the buyer judges the feasibility of the business and makes his decision. Lack of such details will put the buyer off, in which case he/she will reject your business for sell. All financial details like turnover, profits, statements etc. should be ready for the buyer's consideration well in advance, so that he/she can make the decision faster.

Contrary to what many business sellers believe, you should put up your business for selling when it is performing its best. Many sellers think of exiting their business only when it incurs losses, when in fact, the business should be sold when profits are at its peak. This timing of putting your business for sell is a determining factor for closing a successful deal. So contact a business broker only when your business is at its peak.

Avoiding these common mistakes will help you in closing your business for sell deal faster as well as attracting the right buyers for it.