No matter how you come upon the topic of scheduling a business valuation, it is important to have a relationship with an experienced business broker who can guide you through the process and help you to get the valuation that will help set you up for success in selling your business.
It can be uncertain to approach this process on your own and it can also set you up for challenges and potential issues in the business valuation and selling process. This becomes especially problematic when other people have a business interest in the company.
There are three major approaches to determining the value of a business interest; the market approach, the income approach and the asset approach. While the asset approach looks at a value that remains relatively simple at assets minus liabilities, leaving the total value, this means that assets include both intangible and tangible assets. It can eb rather difficult to use this approach because it can be challenging to put a value on business assets.
While some items that a company owns could eb relatively easy to value, others might be more challenging. This becomes especially problematic when valuing inventory. The market approach, on the other hand, calculates the value of a business by comparing it with other similar businesses that have recently been sold.
This is similar to how a real estate appraiser will look at comparable houses in a neighborhood when determining the overall value of a house being appraised. If there are no similar businesses that have recently been sold, however, this means that it can be difficult or impossible to get an accurate comp. The final method of valuing a business interest is known as the income approach which uses historical information and formulas to predict anticipated cash flow and profits when looking at the value of a business.
These formulas consider future benefits in addition to the rate of return or risk, and in fact, when it comes to determining the value of a business interest this is the most commonly used method. If a business interest is small and there is no dispute as to what it’s worth, then both parties can easily step up and name its worth and use that value when determining whether that person will be bought out for the purposes of selling the company.
Attorneys can also be used to put a value on the business if the interest is relatively simple and small. However, the attorney who advocates for the person owning the interest in the business will no doubt argue that the business is worth less than the person who does not currently have an ownership interest. More often than not, business valuations require an expert to look into the liabilities, assets, finances, history and other aspects of a business to determine the overall value. All parties involved are strongly recommended to hire outside experts to get a clear perspective on what the company is worth. Schedule a consultation today with an experienced business broker like those working at Website Closers. We can assist you with the whole end to end process.
If you have an eye in the future on the possibility of selling your business for profit, you probably have a lot of different factors to consider in the back of your mind about what makes the most sense for selling it. If you already have established search engine traffic and a solid game in social media, don’t forget about the possibilities available to you with video. Video has become an increasingly popular way to retain and attract new customers to your brand. Whether it’s for educational or marketing purposes, adding video into your business can be very beneficial to your overall strategy. One of the most important things you can do for your prospective customers is to answer a question or fulfill a need. In every industry there are probably ten common questions that clients come to you with. Create videos that answer those ten popular questions and then upload them effectively.
This approach works really well because you are targeting questions that customers are already looking for, which means that they are probably typing them into search engine traffic as well. If you are stumped on how to get started on a video and are little bit nervous about doing it on your own, you can interview educators and creators who are in your direct pipeline as vendors. The customers come out being more educated and you have additional content that you can repurpose in different ways for marketing purposes. Videos can be excellent for externally facing marketing goals.
However, when used internally they can also help to develop relationships with your staff who might be working remotely. Videos can help new staff members get onboarded as soon as possible and create monthly engaging and inclusive team meetings that enhance the ability to create strong working relationships even if you are not physically in the same place. If you regularly accomplish things within the business that you are proud to share, video is an excellent medium through which to publish this.
We live in the age of video content and a good piece of video will be able to sell your idea much better than text in some cases. This gives customers the opportunity to get to know you better by using both non-verbal and verbal signs. By connecting live with your audience, you are creating content that is directly relevant to their most urgent needs but also helps to position you as a knowledgeable leader in your industry.
If you are confident that this could be your newest marketing channel in 2020, this could also be your opportunity to think about listing your business for sale in a couple of years. Having multiple different marketing channels established with the systems and processes to support them makes it easier for you to show an outside business purchaser the potential benefits for them.
When to Engage a Business Broker
Most business brokers prefer to work with you at least several months in advance for when you intend to sell the company. This is because there are multiple processes involved and these can all require you to gather different materials and to answer difficult questions for what you might need to gather information. These three key phases of selling your business are preparation, process and post-close.
During the preparation phase, knowledgeable professionals, such as a business broker, will help you answer questions over the course of weeks or even months. There are many different terms and clauses that a company’s seller needs to consider regarding post-close expectations, legal impacts, tax planning, equity, and work force expectations or even renaming the company too.
A trade-up has to considered with every unique decision, which puts you in the driver seat to have a lot of responsibility in the coming months for answering these issues. The result of these tough questions will fall to how a seller wants to find a successful transaction. Any answers to these kinds of questions will impact the valuation of the business and often sellers are caught off-guard by the terms named. What is expected for many sellers are the answers to the questions related to business, strategy and operations.
Whether it’s the history of the company to the current work force and the future prospects or finances at the firm, business brokers want to comprehend your investment opportunity so that they can align it with strategic potential buyers and have a good grip on understanding your business as well. Knowledgeable business brokers will push to have this information as soon as possible in the preparation phase of you selling your company.
As a seller, you will need to work closely with your business broker to be as comprehensive as possible with these materials. Not only will answering these questions would put you in a good position to list the company for sale sooner rather than later, but it will make future aspects of the company going up for sale, such as due diligence, that much easier. Overall, this can increase your chances of selling your company to a qualified buyer as soon as possible and allowing you to move on to the next chapter of your life.
Deciding to purchase or sell a franchise business can be an exciting opportunity. There are many different benefits afforded to an owner who decides to purchase an established franchise business.
One of the biggest of these is that it is easier to begin the process of owning the business sooner rather than later. This is because much of the leg work in the establishment of the national brand has already occurred by the time the person steps into the business to manage it.
However, it is important to be mindful of some of the potential pitfalls when selling a franchise business. Overlooking some of these obstacles and pitfalls can be problematic, especially if you are not working with an experienced business broker.
Some of the biggest benefits of purchasing a franchise business include a system for operating the business is already in place, clear training and support, and favorable name recognition for the brand.
Both buyer and seller, however, should be aware of some of the potential issues associated with selling a franchise business long before the closing paperwork is signed. There are two critical documents that emerge in a franchise situation. The first of these is one that the seller previously signed, which is known as the franchise agreement.
This indicates what the franchise fees are for the business, when that existing agreement expires, and any transfer fees for selling the franchise.
The buyer should be aware of the terms that he or she will get when the business is sold. The other key document that emerges when selling a franchise is the franchise disclosure document. This document is mandated by law and contains a great deal of information about the bigger business franchise.
Certain states require franchises to register directly with the state and to make these FDDs available online. Some of the most common issues that emerge when selling a franchise business include:
- These buyers typically do not pay cash for a business.
- Unqualified buyers since the franchisor must both approve the buyer and the buyer must complete comprehensive training at the location named by the franchisor.
- Using a franchiser to sell the business can be the conflict of interest.
- Unqualified advisors, such as failing to bring in the right people to advise you professionally.
- Transfer fees, which can go as high as 10% of the sale price.
The seller should be familiar with the process of deciding at the outset of the sale, who will pay what and market the business for sale with this information. Plenty of issues can also hold up a sale even after the buyer and seller have been able to overcome some of these key challenges. These can include problems with negotiations and many more. At any time that a problem emerges with regard to the ongoing business for sale, an experienced and dedicated business broker can be very helpful for navigating these roadblocks. Website Closers can help you through the process with ease and with a personal touch.
When setting up as a seller on Amazon, if this is your goal to launch in 2020 or to expand your existing business, the first decision is deciding whether or not you will set up your account as fulfilled by merchant or fulfilled by Amazon.
The importance of this selection has far reaching implications for your business, because it dictates how future orders will be filled, either through your own resources or using the heavy lifting power of Amazon. This decision is not just important for logistics purposes, but it can also have a serious impact on your bottom line.
And it can be hard for new sellers to decide whether FBM or FBA is best. This individual decision comes down to the specifics about your business, such as its existing resources, its goals, products and size.
Understanding What Amazon Fulfillment Services Are Through FBA
Amazon Fulfillment Centers will receive your products in bulk, shipped by you through FBA. This means that the workers at Amazon select, pack and ship your products as those orders come in. This means that fulfillment is completely taken off of your plate, and also removes the hassle that can come with customer service and returns. There are several different advantages of choosing to work with FBA. These include:
- A buy box boost. FBA merchants are more likely than other merchants to appear in the buy box, even in the event that the FBA merchant has a higher selling price than others.
- Sellers using FBA get access to Prime, which means that free one-day Prime shipping is immediately connected to their products. More than 100 million consumers use Prime, which means that your products could potentially be in front of a bigger audience.
- Higher ratings. Amazon’s efficient, expensive and fast customer service network is yet another benefit of using FBA. There are some downsides of choosing fulfillment by Amazon, however, including:
- Extra shipping costs when you send your products into Amazon’s fulfillment centers.
- No control over service fees.
- Off-brand packaging since no marketing materials can be included, and Amazon has strict packaging guidelines.
Amazon fulfillment fees are a leading reason why you might consider to do the work on your own, but it’s critical to compare the potential costs as well as the benefits associated with choosing fulfillment by Amazon.
You might find out that the additional exposure offered through fulfillment by Amazon gives you a much better chance of being put in front of your ideal audience and selling more overall. You need to run your numbers and understand the data specifically to make the decision that’s best for you. If you decide to set up your company as Amazon FBA or have another online or offline business you’re thinking of selling, the experienced team at Website Closers can help to accomplish your goals of finding ideal buyers and moving through the sales process quickly and efficiently.
We’re closing in on the holidays and that might leave you thinking about whether you want to head into and complete another year as the primary owner and operator of your business.
We’re closing in on the holidays and that might leave you thinking about whether you want to head into and complete another year as the primary owner and operator of your business.
It’s not just about the time of year you’re in now- selling a business takes months to pull together. That’s assuming you already have the organized financials and a relationship set up with a talented business broker.
It can take anywhere from 8-12 months to bring a company’s sale all the way to the closing documents and it could be longer if you hit snags in the negotiation process.
The truth is that you must be looking far ahead in order to determine the business sale time that’s most appropriate for you. It’s not as easy as feeling like you want out immediately due to the amount of work that goes into preparing your company for sale. You’ll want to forecast out the ideal time you’d like to step out of the business in full and then work backwards from there.
The major phases of selling your business include the preparation, the marketing of the company for sale, selection and qualification of the right buyer, and the closing process. Depending on a few factors, each of these stages can take up to three months.
If you’ve got a business broker working with you at the outset, this process might go more quickly, especially if you’ve already done some of the legwork to prepare the company for sale.
A great time to begin marketing the business is in the fall, when people are back to work from summer and before they get busy in the holiday rush. During the summer is a difficult time to try to start the closing phase since some people involved in the deal might be out on vacation, slowing down the process and leading to obstacles with communication.
For these reasons, the most common time to consider selling your business and dipping your toe into those waters is the early summer. This sets you up to navigate around busy summers and winter holidays without too much of a slowdown in the process.
Where many deals fall apart is in negotiations. Qualification of the right buyer is key for feeling confident about the sale going through. The more you can be ready on your end with the financials and paperwork organized behind the scenes, the easier it will be for your business broker to market the company for sale to the proper network of qualified buyers.
Once your broker is involved, you can continue to keep in contact as the sale opportunities evolve. Your broker can help you navigate tricky questions and problems during the negotiation phase and will know what it takes to keep the sale process on the right timeline.
You can see how choosing a business broker can make a big difference in how quickly your company is sold to the right buyer. An experienced broker can make this process easier for you and help you sell your company no matter the time of year.