Business Exit Planning
Selling a Manufacturing Engineers Business
Your manufacturing engineers business is a tangible reminder of the passion and dedication you've invested in your entrepreneurial career. 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.
You won't find any magic formulas for selling a manufacturing engineers business, especially while the market is struggling to overcome the perceptions created by a down economy.
At Gaebler, we're seeing manufacturing engineers business sellers succeed by applying sound sales principles combined with a refusal to be intimidated by a down economy.
Dealing with Tire Kickers
Many prospective buyers will have a strong desire to acquire your manufacturing engineers business. The bad news is that they will lack the financial capacity to close the deal. Selling a business is hard enough. You can't afford to waste time on prospects that have no chance of turning their interest into an actual purchase. Your business broker can offer insights about how to quickly spot tire kickers. It's likely that non-serious buyers will want to know everything about your manufacturing engineers business during their initial inquires. Avoid releasing details about your manufacturing engineers business until you have established that they have the financial capacity to make a legitimate offer.
Signs You're in Over Your Head
The manufacturing engineers business-for-sale marketplace is a mixed bag of brokered sales and solo efforts. Although there are exceptions, solo sales typically take longer and are less productive than brokered sales. As a rule, no business should sit on the market for more than six months without attracting the interest of at least a handful of qualified buyers. Lack of buyer enthusiasm or persistence indicates that something is wrong. The remedy is professional brokerage or a consultation with more experienced sellers.
Timing the Market
Now may be the best time to sell a manufacturing engineers business. A depressed economy means lower interest rates; lower interest rates increase the number of investors willing to take a chance on manufacturing engineers businesses. As the interest rates rise, it will be more difficult for buyers to make the numbers work in their favor. So we see market timing as a concern that can be easily mitigated by applying fundamental sales strategies and adequately preparing your company for buyers.
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