If you think that buying your business was hard, just wait till you try to sell it. The process has many pitfalls, not the least of which can arise when you try to do it yourself. History is fraught with examples of people who settled for less than their companies were worth or who let their profits die a slow death while waiting for the right offer.
You are a business owner, not a business broker. Your expertise lies in running your company, and while you may be tops in your field, selling a business is a different ball of wax. It is vital to obtain expert advice when embarking on what could amount to the most important step in your business career.
Don’t Lose Your Focus
Selling a business in Las Vegas is no simple matter. It’s all too easy to concentrate on the sale alone and forget that it is still up to you to keep your establishment running. It can take six months or more to complete the sales process. I’ll keep your business in the spotlight until a buyer is found. Once a buyer for your business is found, I’ll take care of the sales process allowing you to maintain your business until the business sale is final.
Get Your Affairs in Order
Is your business rightfully marketable? No sentient person wants to purchase your financial troubles. If you’ve failed to establish consistent and reliable accounting and legal practices, you’re going to have a hard time convincing prospective buyers that your business is fit for sale. You’ll need to exhibit:
- Transparent accounts.
- Current contracts.
- Well-documented client transactions.
- Comprehensive tax plans.
- Resolution of founder or shareholder disputes.
It’s all part of your due diligence, and taking the time to do it right could give you some sleepless nights. From my experience, I know exactly what pertinent business documents you’ll need, which will prevent you from scrambling to find them when the business sale is on the line.
Never Be Less Than Forthcoming With Your Business Value
There are certain things that any buyer will want to know. Don’t overstate your profit margin, and never attempt to conceal your operating costs or any gray areas that failed to make it into the books. Such attempts can make the buyer wonder what else you’re trying to hide.
Above all, you must take care not to artificially inflate your company’s value. The prospective buyer has a legal right to a realistic understanding of past and future financial figures; current and future market prospects; and the value of comparable businesses. Your company may not be worth as much as you think, and my honest valuation can forestall problems and give you a firm base on which to negotiate.
We’re Ready to Answer Questions
As you negotiate any sales process, the buyers will want answers to numerous business queries that could well be outside your realm of expertise. We’re here to take all of that out of your hands.
Many business owners think that once they’ve put up the “For Sale” sign, buyers will magically materialize in droves. This may or may not be true. The seller who hopes to complete a successful and financially viable sales process may have to do a bit of legwork to locate and motivate potential buyers across a wide section of business modalities. Sometimes the eventual buyer turns out to have been the least-obvious banana in the bunch.
My specific purpose is to assist commercial company owners like yourself who want to dispose of their businesses with the least amount of difficulty and disruption. My expertise will provide you with the reassurance you need to sail through the process with the smallest degree of risk and greatest-possible maximization of value.
If you care to learn more about my sales approach, please contact me today, and I will be happy to walk you through the process. I have assisted numerous businesses in the Las Vegas area with their business sale needs, so whether you are looking to buy, sell or simply expand, I am ready and able to help.
Some Tips on Selling Your Business
Today is a buyer’s market. In order for you to sell your business quickly in Las Vegas market and get the most favorable terms for the sale of your business, you must be very prompt and thorough with your communication otherwise buyers lose interest, turn around and look elsewhere for business opportunities. When a buyer walks away, it’s nearly impossible to bring them back to you. Here are a few tips to help you effectively manage serious buyers:
- Assure strict confidentiality. From the outset, you must make sure your prospective buyers keep all information confidential up to an including that you are selling your business in the first place.
- Properly screen and per-qualify your prospective buyers. As it will take hundreds ofhours of your time to work with buyers, you must have a rock solid method for properly screening buyers who express interest in buying your business.
- Have a detailed and written business profile of your business to give to prospective buyers. This will greatly speed up the process of selecting which buyers you want to work with.
- Schedule tours of your business with your pre-screened buyers during the best time for you which will usually be before or after your normal business operating hours.
- Maintain an accurate log of all communication you have with each prospective buyer. During the sale of your business, you’ll be juggling a lot of activities, not to mention the running of your business, so do not leave your communication log up to memory.