As a business owner, you’re focused on running, growing, and expanding your business. But have you started considering what it means to sell your business in the future? Your sale date may be 2 or 20 years away, but this is information you need to know now.
Start Early
Preparing to sell your small business takes time, and if you want to be fully prepared, a lot of it! After all, selling your small business is no easy feat, and can even be daunting at times. I mean, you’ve probably never sold a business before, right? You might ask yourself “Where do I even begin?”
Luckily with some preparation and a little help from Transworld Business Advisors of Indiana, you’ll have a clear next step! Up next on the list, hiring trusted advisors.
Hire Trusted Advisors
When selling a business, it is helpful to have a full team of trusted advisors on your side to help you navigate the selling process. This might be the only time you ever sell a business, and no one expects you to be an expert. When gathering your list of trusted business advisors, make sure to include a business broker (that’s us!), an accountant, an attorney, a financial advisor, and your favorite CPA. These experts can help you choose the best financial path to take while you are preparing or planning to sell. (aka, these are the people that make sure you get paid and can happily retire!)
Set Long-Term Goals
Speaking of retiring, that’s something you’re going to want to do eventually. When you sell your business, you need to make sure your plan of sale can support your lifestyle. Whether you plan to actually retire, or invest in a new business venture, you need enough funds to make it happen. When you use a Transworld Business Broker, you get the price you deserve for the businesses you worked so hard to build.
Find Your Businesses Value
Like we said earlier, a business broker can help you get the price you want when selling your business. We know that one of the most important parts of selling your business is knowing and understanding the numbers. It’s important to know that your business won’t sell if your finances aren’t in order. (This is where the account and CPA we mentioned come in handy)
Before and during the sale of your business, you will need to produce statements from the last few years, financial projections for the future, outline any liabilities, divulge your customer info, and more. When you find all of these documents, you need to find out what your business is actually worth and what a buyer would pay. We cover business valuation in depth here.
Remember, preparing to sell your business doesn’t mean it has to happen today, tomorrow, or even next year. Selling a business is a big deal and it takes a lot of time to prepare! When you start thinking about selling your business, call Transworld Business Advisors of Indiana at 317-564-4777!
