Hello, my name is Pamela Flowers. I am very glad you have found my website focused on HR. I have always felt that HR departments get a bad reputation. There are some HR departments that make life difficult for the workforce, but this doesn't have to be the case. I have stayed abreast on the changing world of HR and it is really amazing how some HR departments are training employees and the creative ways that they recognize the achievements of these employees. So in defense of HR, I have decided to create a blog that covers all the great work they often do.
If you're like many successful small business owners, you sometimes mentally flirt with the idea of putting your business up for sale. After all, you've spent years working hard to build it up and make it what it is today, and retirement may looking more tempting every day. However, selling a small business isn't something that should be done lightly or on impulse. Before you make the final decision to put your small business on the market, there are certain preparations that can optimize the success of your sale. If you've been waiting until the economy improves to explore the possibility of selling your business, you're in luck—the economy is thriving at this point, and people have money to spend on following their dreams of owning their own business. Nonetheless, experts advise that preparing a business for sale takes an entire year on average. Fortunately, strategies exist to help make your small business as attractive as possible for those wishing to purchase an existing enterprise.
Following are three strategies that can help facilitate a seamless, profitable sale of your small business.
Get Your Financial House in Order
One of the first things you should do before putting your small business up for sale is to streamline your financial records so that prospective buyers can get a clear picture of authentic profits and losses. If you've been performing the basic bookkeeping tasks yourself with the help of accounting software such as Quickbooks, now is the time to take your records to a qualified CPA who specializes in small business finances. This person can get your books ready to be put under a microscope.
Cultivate Curb Appeal
Curb appeal is generally associated with single-family residential properties, but it's also important when the sale of a small business is the objective. Both the exterior and the interior of your place of business should present a clear, crisp visual picture that suggests efficiency and prosperity. Keep in mind that even though the bottom line is one of the main drivers for those seeking to purchase existing businesses, there's nonetheless an emotional element involved, and you can appeal to this by creating a physical business space with attractive aesthetics.
Work With a Professional Business Broker
The vast majority of small business sales go through a professional business broker. It is generally agreed that good business brokers more than earn the fees they charge by providing expert navigation through the sales process from start to finish. Business broker services can also help ensure that your business continues to run efficiently while it's on the market or going through the process of changing hands—after all, if you try to handle all aspects of the sale yourself, it stands to reason that the general functionality of your business may suffer as a result your being preoccupied and short on time.
One of the best reasons for going through a qualified business broker, however, is confidentiality. The broker can contact prospective purchasers through a blind profile, which is a document that provides a description of your company without revealing your identity. This is an invaluable service for many small business owners because it preserves their privacy—customers, suppliers, and employees may experience decreased levels of loyalty and confidence if they know the business is up for sale.
The business broker can present your business in the best possible light, reach a large base of potential buyers, and weed out those who aren't serious.
Please feel free to reach out to your local business broker for more information on how to get your small business ready to attract serious, qualified buyers.
Share22 January 2018
