BizSale Small Business Blog. Small businesses for sale.

A buyer is likely to offer more for your business if they are confident that the business is well set up and likely to be easy to take over. Do you have a well-defined strategy in your business plan?

The buyer wants to see a strong management team in place. If the running of the business is too dependent on you, the owner, this could seriously affect its chances of selling. It is, therefore, a good idea to encourage strong, reliable members of staff to stay with the company by having appropriate incentives to offer.

Take care that you are not overly dependent on a few customers and suppliers. The buyer will expect to see an expanding customer base and good relationships with a selection of suppliers.

Informal deals that you may have with your customers and/or suppliers should be formalised.

Other legal and financial issues that should be checked over include the following:

• Make sure your business complies with legislation such as health and safety etc.
• Ensure that you have ownership of any intellectual property.
• Check property contracts if applicable.
• Check that your finances are in good order.

Taking care of these issues could take time in some cases so plan in advance.

It is beneficial for you, as a business owner, to include an exit strategy in your initial business plan. This will prevent any hasty decisions to leave, which could render a business more difficult to sell.

Show that you are willing to help the buyer settle in to the business, this will be likely to help the sale. If it is appropriate for you both, you can agree to work with the business for a set period of time after the handover.

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Before selling a business you may have plans to expand it, here are some tips for getting support from business investors.

1. Your presentation doesn’t have to be perfect, just make sure it is captivating enough to keep the investors attention. Be clear on what you want to say, it will be a stronger story.

2. Once you have finished explaining your business and have answered any questions, remain alert until you have said your goodbyes. Try not to ease into relaxed talk, they may ask a question when you have let your guard down to which you could easily regret giving the answer afterwards.

3. Remember that the investors will most likely be seeing other business owners who are looking to attract investors as well. Just focus on giving a strong presentation, and you will provide good competition yourself.

4. It doesn’t matter to the investors how many times you have answered the same questions about your business, to them it is the first. Remember to be consistently enthusiastic in your presentation.

5. You may be asked difficult, even personal questions, do not be tempted to skim over the truth, the investor most likely has invested in other businesses before and are well aware of the likely pitfalls. Be honest.

6. The investor sitting before you has listened to many pitches about wonderful businesses that will guarantee they strike it rich! Make yours stand out with its individuality and with your own enthusiasm. Be sincere and this is what the investor will recall from your meeting when they come to decide which business to commit to investing in.

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