The Seven Things You Should Prepare Right Now to Ensure Your Business is a Compelling Asset

Selling your business isn’t easy, but there are several things you can tackle as a business owner to help set yourself up for success. In this blog post, Sunbelt Business Advisors runs down seven things you should tackle right now to ensure your business is ready for a seamless handoff to your buyer.

• Get your team in place. You will need to assemble an ad hoc board of advisors to help guide the sale of your business. This roundtable of experts should include a business broker, an attorney, a CPA, and a financial advisor. Each of these advisors can help you work through the legal and financial implications of a sale, including how to financially support yourself in your retirement and consider key tax strategies.

• Determine the value of your business. A business broker can help you assess the true value of your business, including your assets and what a fair price would be on the open market. Tackling this legwork ahead of time will ensure there are no surprises and that the value of your business is fair and what you deserve. Sunbelt can also help you consider ways to enhance the value of your business to maximize what you’ll take upon closing.

• Get your financial house in order. Any savvy prospective buyer is going to want an honest look at the profits and losses attached to your operation. Now is the time to collect your financial statements, and any other documentation that paints a picture of your assets and expenses. Make sure you have an itemized list of expenses including payroll, any real estate expenses, and leased equipment like vehicles or photocopiers. You’ll also want to capture historical revenue figures and projections of what the future holds.

• Boost your sales. Speaking of finances, now is the time to make a run at boosting your sales numbers. Quarter-over-quarter growth is appealing to prospective buyers, and your revenue is perhaps the best way to prove to a prospective buyer that your business is in a good place to deliver consistent profits.

• Pre-qualify your prospects. You and your advisors should definitely make some effort to pre-qualify the people who express interest in buying your business. A pre-qualification sheet could include characteristics like income, business sector, location, size, investment capabilities and other details that help you determine whether a prospect is viable. Taking this step will ensure there are no surprises as you advance through the sale process.

• Get commitments from your management team. Your prospective buyer will be laser focused on the team that they will inherit when they acquire your business. You can help them feel confident about the future and business operations by securing commitments from the leaders who know your business inside and out. Ensure that your essential leadership roles transfer to the new owner and their management team. It’s also important to make sure your leadership is focused on day-to-day business operations (and the success of your business) and not the sale in progress.

• Firm up your business contracts. The success of your business involves critical outside relationships, too. From any ongoing contractual relationships with your customers to any agreements for inventory or services performed by critical vendors, you will want to shore up any business contracts to ensure your buyer can count on seamless sales, supplies, and service.

There are a countless number of details that any business owner needs to consider ahead of selling to a buyer. It can seem overwhelming, but with some thoughtful planning, diligent documentation, and thorough review of your operations, you can help set up the next owner for success. And Sunbelt can help make it easy. Contact us and let’s get started.

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