Business Exits By Industry

Selling a Credit Insurance Business

Planning and execution can dramatically influence the price you receive for your credit insurance business.

Business sellers are notorious for second-guessing themselves about the right time to put their companies up for sale.

Yet what many sellers don't appreciate is that a down economy can present the perfect opportunity to sell a credit insurance business.

Preparing for What's Next

The decision to sell your credit insurance business can't be made without adequate consideration of what will happen after the sale. many sellers find themselves ill-equipped to handle life after their business and fail to understand that their future plans can influence the sale process. For example, seller financing can be an extremely valuable concession, especially in the current economy. But if you need all of the proceeds of the sale upfront, seller financing is off the table and you'll need to find a different way to make your credit insurance business attractive to buyers.

Preparing Your Employees

As a business owner, you want to keep you employees informed about your plans; as a seller it's in your best interest to keep your employees in the dark for as long as possible. The more people who know that the business is on the market, the riskier the sale becomes. But sooner or later, employees will begin to suspect that something is up, especially when you start parading prospective buyers through the business. So at some point you will have to resign yourself to the idea of telling some or all of your employees that you have listed the credit insurance business on the market. Maintain a positive tone in your conversations and answer your employees questions as completely as you can without jeopardizing the sale.

Tapping Into Business Networks

There are a lot of different places to look for credit insurance business buyers. To advertise your sale to the widest possible audience, consider a listing on BizBuySell.com or other top online business-for-sale listing sites. For more targeted lead generation, consider tapping into your network of industry contacts. Time and time again, successful credit insurance business sales emerge from relationships within the industry. The challenge is to leverage industry connections while keeping knowledge of the sale hidden from your competitors. Even though you can expand your prospect base by shouting it from the rooftops, it's probably wise to limit the release of information to the people you trust in the industry.

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