Profitable Niche Market Exit Plans

Selling an Ornamental Shrub and Tree Services Business

A good business is about more than dollars and sense. To make your ornamental shrub and tree services business what it is today, you've had to fully invest yourself in its success. But the hard work isn't done yet. Before you can make a graceful exit, you will have to invest yourself in your business sale.

The economy isn't the only thing that is uncertain these days. So are ornamental shrub and tree services business buyers, many of whom are waiting to pull the trigger on their next acquisition.

The economy hasn't squashed the market for ornamental shrub and tree services businesses. Like always, unprofitable and poorly positioned businesses struggle to find buyers while sellers who have invested time and effort to prepare their sale are being rewarded in the marketplace.

Leveraging Industry Connections

Today's ornamental shrub and tree services business buyers can be found in a variety of locations. To advertise your sale to the widest possible audience, consider a listing on BizBuySell.com or other top online business-for-sale listing sites. But industry connections can also be a valuable source of leads. When leveraging industry relationships for sales prospects, you'll need to be cognizant of the potential for competitors to use knowledge of your sale against you in the marketplace. Use good sense in restricting the flow of information within the industry and focusing your efforts toward trusted industry allies.

Average Preparation Time

There are no effective shortcuts for selling an ornamental shrub and tree services business. For starters, the financials need to demonstrate a track record of profitability and growth. You'll also need to create financial reports, operations manuals, and other documents to create the perception of a turnkey ornamental shrub and tree services business operation. At a minimum, plan on spending six months preparing your ornamental shrub and tree services business for the marketplace. A more likely scenario is that it will take more than a year to create the conditions necessary to receive the maximum sale price.

Negotiation Exit Strategy

Negotiations have a way of dragging on forever. There are countless details that need to be hammered out before a Letter of Intent can be prepared and the process can move on to the due diligence stage. As the seller, you'll be on the front lines of negotiation and will need to know when it's time to bring negotiations to an end. In an ornamental shrub and tree services business sale, a stalled negotiation can be an indication that the deal is dead. At this point in the process, an awareness of negotiation parameters really pays off. If the buyer is unwilling to accept your minimum demands, it's time to end negotiations and move on to the next prospect.

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