Selling a business is not a simple process. It requires careful planning, execution and teamwork to ensure the business seller (owner) maximizes the opportunity and can successfully exit the business. Entrepreneur.com has an excellent Top 10 List, full of solid advice to business owners thinking about a sale. If you are considering the sale of your business, carefully consider these recommendations.
Below is a Summarized list of “10 Mistakes to Avoid When Selling Your Business”:
Not all buyers are created equal. We could debate about the types of business buyers out there but, excluding individuals, lets distill buyers into three categories - financial buyers, strategic or synergistic buyers, and buyers with some DNA of both previously mentioned (or hybrid buyers). In the merger and acquisition (M&A) world we frequently refer to a private equity group (PEG) as a financial buyer. Why? Well, PEGs are formed to pool resources from investors that may have an interest in “sector” investing. Look at a private equity group website like Huron Capital and you’ll see terms that resemble investor terms - minimum EBITDA, Sectors Invested, etc. A PEG may also be a synergistic investor depending upon what types of investments are in its portfolio. A synergistic buyer, by contrast, may consider acquiring a company because it adds synergy to its existing business. Consider Google’s acquisition of DoubleClick for $3.1B. In order for the buyer to justify the acquisition there must be synergy. Is a financial buyer better than a synergistic buyer or is a synergistic buyer better than a financial buyer?
M&A in 2009 was soft at best. The continuing tepid lending environment combined with a general malaise and caution led to record levels of deals falling out during the year. Deals did get done, and I was pleased that through some hard work some of my own got done, but the industry overall was quiet. There is pent up demand for M&A, at the lower end of the middle market and within the middle market , to resume to more normalized levels in 2010 and beyond.This Media Post article gives one view of the industry returning to a more normalized state.To learn more about how your business is prepared for 2010, feel free to contact us for a free consultation on your business valuation, exit planning and/or mid-market diverstiture needs.
If you’ve given any thought to selling your business it is important to understand the distinctive roles your advisor(s) must play. Besides a CPA and Attorney, or sometimes a Financial Planner, the two key roles in the divestiture process are those of the Valuation Analyst and the Business Sales Intermediary (sometimes referred to as an M&A Investment Banker). Early in the process of understanding if or even when you may choose to sell your business determining value is an analytical process. The analyst looks at key and measurable drivers of value and applies that data to a variety of different models. Certain assumptions are made during the process, like “a market exists” or “neither buyer nor prospective seller are under duress”. Discount rate assumptions are made, and other mathematical assumptions, based on very specific methodology are made as well. Moreover, the financials are recast for non-recurring and key discretionary items to present the business in a “normalized” state. The analyst typically derives either a “Conclusion of Value” or a “Calculation of Value”.
As a business owner, you obviously want to be cognizant of decisions and factors within your business that will positively or negatively influence its value. Below is a breakdown of some key areas you can focus on today to ensure that your company’s value is protected should you ever need to conduct a business valuation and if you ever plan to sell:
The SBA’s Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) was recently updated and released. It is more streamlined and condensed, allowing for easier reference to and understanding of guidelines.
One specific area we want to highlight is the requirement of an independent, third party business valuation for SBA loans exceeding $350,000. Here is the exert:
(i) Business Valuation
Most Americans continue to read, hear and see troubling news about the U.S. economic outlook. Business owners need some reassurance that the sky is not falling, particularly for business owners considering the future sale of their business. Today is a seller’s market! But, cyclical indicators point that this window will not stay open forever.
CNN Money put out a great Q&A article a couple of weeks ago: How to sell a million dollar business. If you are planning or hoping to sell your 1-2 million dollar small business in the next 2-3 years, save this to your favorites. Highlighted topics include:
The NY Times tackles a very important topic for today’s business owner: what to do when partners want to split. A buy-sell agreement protects all owners in a business for events when a minority, majority or equal owner decides or is forced to leave a business. In most cases, a buy-sell agreement will include a provision for determining “fair market value” via a credible third-party business valuation.
If you own a business and are thinking about selling, it is important you recognize the value of a defined plan & strategy and the value of professional advisors. An article featured on Financial Post summarizes a recent study of business owners who sold their business within the past 5 years (more than 100 business owners were surveyed about selling and what they would recommend to other business owners following their own personal experiences):
