Niche Exit Planning Tactics
Selling a Word Processing Equipment Maintenance Business
The sale of your word processing equipment maintenance business is the culmination of this stage of your entrepreneurial journey. Although most business owners expect a storybook ending, it will take the careful application of sound selling principles to bring your sale to a successful conclusion.
Most business sellers are interested in disposing of their businesses as quickly as possible. But that's not how a word processing equipment maintenance business sale works.
Yet what many sellers don't appreciate is that a down economy can present the perfect opportunity to sell a word processing equipment maintenance business.
Workforce Concerns
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. On the one hand, confidentiality is critical for a successful word processing equipment maintenance business sale. However, the longer the selling process drags on, the more likely it is that rumors will begin to circulate throughout your workforce. When that happens, it's best to have a frank conversation with your team rather than allowing rumors to circulate through the organization. Maintain a positive tone in your conversations and answer your employees questions as completely as you can without jeopardizing the sale.
Sale Documents
We run into a lot of word processing equipment maintenance business sellers who intend to wait until the final contract to negotiate details. Big mistake. With few exceptions, sale structure is hammered out early, in the Letter of Intent . If you are seeking buyer concessions, the time to address them is before the Letter of Intent is drafted. For sellers, that makes a close review of the Letter of Intent more than a formality - it's a critical juncture on the path to closing.
Dealing with Your Emotions
There is no easy way to say goodbye to your business. You probably have good reasons for selling your word processing equipment maintenance business now, but that doesn't make the emotions you will experience any easier. It's important to allow yourself time to process your emotions during your exit. However, when it comes to negotiating a successful deal, there is no room for your personal emotions. To keep the sale on track, you'll need to seek the advice of a broker or another objective third-party counselor.
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