How to Sell Your Company Quickly With Business Brokers
You likely have an exit plan to leave behind the business you built from the ground up. But life can throw curveballs, and you may find yourself in a situation where you need to sell your company fast. What can you do?
There are several strategies you can deploy to shed the business quickly. However, no matter which strategy you choose, the sale is likely to go faster and smoother if you hire business brokers.
Business brokers can get you a higher price for your business while smoothing the process. Take a closer look at how you can sell your company more quickly with the help of a skilled business broker.
Why Might a Business Need to Sell Quickly?
Many life changes can trigger your need to sell and leave your company. Business brokers have grouped some of the triggers by the fourth letter of the alphabet: divorce, declining sales, disaster, disinterest, and debt.
No matter your reason, the key to moving your company from for sale to sold is your financial records, and there are ways for you to get prepared and stay ready if you need to exit your business fast.
Gather Records and Get a Business Valuation
Whatever might drive your need to sell your company with speed, potential buyers will be attracted by earnings, and having the documents to demonstrate the value of your business will be a lynchpin to making the deal go.
Whether you have to sell now or you have plenty of time, get all your financial records and any business-related documents together, organize them, and create a worksheet listing every record and who has it.
As you prepare to sell, consider what factors are important to convey to buyers, including:
Your business’s market value
What drives your business’s value
Any risks associated with your business
You can get the process started by using the business valuation calculator from Sunbelt Business Brokers to get a preliminary estimate of your company’s value. Once you have gathered all of your documentation, you can work with your business brokers for a complete evaluation.
To help the sale of your company move quickly, you might list it slightly below its market value. Keep in mind that this could create two issues: you may attract buyers who aren’t serious, which could slow down the sales process, or serious buyers might wonder what is wrong with your business. Finding the right value to list your business at is vital.
Engage Business Brokers Before You Need to Sell
The Exit Planning Institute estimates up to 50% of company exits are involuntary, and as high as 70% of businesses fail to find a buyer or have a plan to exit successfully. This means that the best time to hire a business broker is years before you think you will need to sell your business. A business broker can help you find value in your business, which you won’t have time to do at the last minute. Operating your business as if you’re going to sell now can help you keep your financial and business records organized and position you to get the most value from your business if you ever need to exit quickly.