Sell a Business Tips

Selling a Self Help Group

Although a self help group may not be completely recession-proof, the best companies can survive nearly any storm. Now all you have to do is convince the right buyer that your business is built for long-term success.

Market timing is a perennial problem for business sellers.

Too often self help group owners fail to receive fair market value for their businesses. Smart sellers know the value of their companies are prepared to identify buyers who are willing to pay top dollar.

Advertising Your Sale

The best self help group sales begin with a carefully planned advertising and promotional strategies. However, confidentiality and other concerns can present challenges, even for sales professionals. The knowledge that your business is being sold almost always converts into negative PR with your customers and vendors. Business brokers are skilled at publicizing self help group sales while maintaining the confidentiality that is critical to your business.

Leveraging Industry Connections

Today's self help group buyers can be found in a variety of locations. Online business-for-sale databases have value, although they appeal to an exceptionally wide base of prospects. But industry connections can also be a valuable source of leads. Time and time again, successful self help group sales emerge from relationships within the industry. The challenge is to leverage industry connections while keeping knowledge of the sale hidden from your competitors. Use good sense in restricting the flow of information within the industry and focusing your efforts toward trusted industry allies.

Turning the Tables: Buyer Concessions

Most self help group sellers realize they will need to offer concessions to sell their businesses. But for every concession you grant, there may be an opportunity to obtain a concession from the buyer. Although this scenario frequently plays out around seller financed deals, it's possible to push for a higher sales price or other form of compensation if you agree to mentor the buyer for a specified period of time. Asset exclusions, retained ownership shares and long-term contracts with another of the seller's companies can also be leveraged to extract concessions from buyers.

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