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Thinking of selling your Business?

If you're thinking of selling their business in the next few years please do not make the single biggest and most costly mistake that 95 % of business owners make...

i.e. leaving preparations until 6 months before they actually want to sell!!

Doing this means that you won't have enough time to do the financial engineering needed to get the best possible price, it also often means that the business is simply not 'packaged' well from a buyers perspective and of course means that they will not offer anywhere near the price that you want for the business.

The next mistake is (I'll wait for the flack now) is in putting it on sale via a broker who will often tell you (like an estate agent) 'what you want to hear' to get it on their books which is why so many businesses take so long to sell (sometimes years!)

Does this mean that you can't get a quick sale? No of course not, I've bought a number of businesses on the day of going to see a business owner once we've sat down and worked out what the business is really worth if they want a quick sale.

But and it is a big but, this is generally when the business owner has mentally left the business and it's been up for sale for a long time or when the business is in financial distress and they simply want to get out asap.

This is why I highly recommend that you begin the process of packaging your business for sale well in advance of when you actually want to sell it and bring in someone who has the experience and connections to give you the best possible outcome.

Like anything in business, selling up is a process that is best achieved by reverse engineering the outcome you want.

The good news is there are now some great people out there with specialist knowledge and experience to help you...

John Kettley

John F Kettley is the founder of the Sales Masters Guild

 

A serial entrepreneur from his teenage years, John and his companies have sold a vast range of products and services across just about every market sector and medium there is, both here in Europe and the USA.

 

Find out more about John on his Sales Masters Guild profile page

 

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