Business Exit Planning

Selling a Marine Professionals and Services Business

Business sellers have diverse personal and professional goals for the sale of their companies. But no matter what you expect from the sale of your marine professionals and services business, it's in your best interest to maximize the sales price through the application of proven sales techniques.

Dire economic forecasts have forced many marine professionals and services business sellers into hibernation. Instead of listing their companies now, they're hanging back until they see signs of an economic recovery.

But sooner or later, all good things must come to an end. As a consequence, you have a substantial stake in knowing how to receive maximum price for your marine professionals and services business.

Average Timeframes

Hoping for a quick marine professionals and services business sale? You may be disappointed. Although asking price and other factors contribute to sale time, it's difficult to predict how long your business will be on the market before you locate the right buyer. Before you can list your marine professionals and services business, you'll need to invest as much as a year in preparing it for prospective buyers. Even though it's conceivable that an attractive opportunity could sell in weeks, an immediate flood of offers could indicate that the business is underpriced.

Leveraging Industry Connections

Today's marine professionals and 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. For more targeted lead generation, consider tapping into your network of industry contacts. 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. 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.

How to Skillfully Address Buyer Concerns

Business sellers sometimes struggle to maintain a positive attitude when dealing with buyers. Due diligence preparation can mitigate the irritation factor, but you should still expect to field numerous buyer concerns before closing. To protect yourself, don't offer an answer until you are sure the information you are providing is 100% accurate. If due diligence drags on too long, your broker may need to intervene.

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