There are many reasons for selling your business, from retiring and buying a boat, to spending a year meditating in Bali or simply taking a rest and exploring other business opportunities. Finding the right buyer, however, can sometimes be difficult; because not everyone has the right skills to run every type of business and therefore may struggle to value in your business as a suitable investment.
For example, if you are selling an online company, you will need a buyer who understands e-commerce and has at least some knowledge of website development, or if you are selling food and hospitality business you need a buyer who has a passion for food and dealing with people face to face. As you can appreciate, the sale value of some businesses will be greater to those who have the right skillset to run your business, as opposed to someone who has not.
Therefore, the issue is not necessarily in finding a buyer, but in finding the right buyer.
Industry Outlook and Business Performance
When you are selling your business, the best way to maximise its sale value is to present potential buyers with an overall performance analysis of your business, along with an industry outlook for the next 12 months. These analyses also help you to find the right type of buyer, who will be able to appreciate your business’ past and current performance, as well as its predicted performance. Your opening strategy should be to use a SWOT Analysis. This analysis identifies your business’s Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, and is an excellent way to get your point across.
Qualifying the Right Buyers for Your Business
When you are selling your business, you can quite often be surprised at the diverse range of people who express an interest in buying your company. These can include past and current employees, competitors, suppliers, customers, investor groups, and even people who have no experience whatsoever in running a business!
In general, there are three different categories of buyers: strategic, financial and owner operators. Understanding these buyer types can help you to find the right buyer for your business.
Strategic buyers: These are generally the buyers who offer you top dollar for your business, based on its performance and ability to enhance their own company’s profitability. Given the industry outlook over the next 12 months, selling your business to a strategic buyer helps them to optimise their profits. This is because they gain your assets and resources, which can boost their own business and gain them a greater share of the market space. Strategic buyers include suppliers, customers, and competitors.
Equity buyers: These are generally buyers who might have no experience in your specific industry, but tend to buy profitable businesses to add to their portfolio. They can also be businesses that buy, improve and resell other businesses or companies to make an even greater profit. This type of buyer can include wealthier individuals, trusts as well as private companies.
Owner operators: These include entrepreneurs who want to buy their own business, either to improve their own lifestyle or to secure their financial future. Some of the biggest owner operators are actually employees who want to move from being an employee to a business owner. However, one of the problems with this type of buyer is that they don’t always have the funds available up front, but they can turn out to be the right buyers for your business, given a little help.
Thinking of selling your business? At Verified Businesses, we are the leading Business Broker on the Sunshine Coast and we have an enviable reputation within the local business community.
Want to know more about how to sell? Contact our friendly team at Verified Businesses for your own information pack or to book a consultation today. At Verified Businesses, success in business is Verified.