4 Topics to Consider While Preparing to Sell your Company

As a founder, it is tough to quantify the value of the effort you have invested over the years to grow your firm. And if you are preparing to sell, you should anticipate a substantial return. But, without the proper conditions, you may struggle to obtain even a reasonable price for your sale.

‍

Preparing for a transaction requires much planning beforehand. You will need to assemble an M&A team because locating the ideal buyer is laborious. Even after finding a buyer who is a good fit for your firm and signing a letter of intent (LOI), the process is not complete.

‍

Throughout the course of due diligence, your buyer will thoroughly assess your company's assets, liabilities, and growth potential, many acquisitions fail. You may believe that your affairs are in order, but M&A is notoriously a chaotic business. Normal roadblocks are to be expected, but studies indicate that more than 70% of business acquisitions fail to deliver value. When considering an acquisition, business owners must develop a complete exit strategy to mitigate the risks of failure. Remember that preparation is the key to a successful acquisition before you invest significant time and money in selling your firm. Whether you're seeking an investment or an exit, take the time to be on top of the following factors to ensure a lucrative transaction.

‍

1. Prepare the Financials and  be clear on your Business Value

Many founders or CEOs are unaware of the exact value of their firm. Before initiating a transaction, it is prudent to have a professional financial evaluation. In order to make your firm more appealing to a buyer, an early evaluation will reveal areas that need to be modified and tightened.

‍

Prior to entering the market, it is essential to have a solid understanding of your company's financial condition. Your financial records will be one of the first items a potential buyer examines throughout the due diligence process, and it is essential that all income and expenses be accounted for. The majority of purchasers are interested in financial performance, including as profit ratios, return on equity, and financial projections.

‍

Invest in a competent team that can clean up your accounts and generate financial projections for the future of your company. Several valuation methods exist. The right specialists will assist you in determining the value of your business and understanding the range of multiples at which it may potentially be sold.

‍

While you may have a reasonable notion of the value of your firm, a professional external appraisal can provide objective insight into its strengths, weaknesses, and financial status. This affords you the opportunity to determine whether you are prepared to sell or whether you need to address issues or enhance your business's performance prior to selling.

‍

2. Provide a Captivating Growth Narrative

In addition to your company's present financial performance, potential acquirers will examine your growth strategy and company history in depth. They will be interested in your opinions regarding the future expansion of your business. They are interested in the origin and development of your firm over time. You will need to discuss the quality of your workforce, your current relationships with clients and suppliers, and your outlook on the market's future. All of the information must be presented in a manner that makes your firm a highly desirable purchase. And they have to be efficiently structured in the right data room too.

‍

Numerous business owners struggle to develop an effective sales pitch. To avoid this, you will need to create a narrative about your firm. You must integrate the market's development potential with your organization's strengths. You must go beyond utilitarian aspects, make it emotionally engaging, and demonstrate why the sale of your firm makes sense for your purchasers. It is your responsibility as business owner to properly communicate a compelling growth narrative to your prospective buyers.

‍

Your business's growth story should include its inception and the processes, actions, and strategies that took it to its current state. Frequently, entrepreneurs establish profitable businesses but fail to develop a development strategy that will ensure their long-term viability. When selling your business, you must demonstrate that the organization is scalable and poised for expansion. Even if it is now profitable, your organization must be able to adapt to the ever-changing industry landscape.

‍

It is your obligation to convey to your customers that your business will not only survive but also thrive in the future. To do this, you must carefully develop a growth strategy that takes into account your sector and market, and then design actionable and attainable actions that will keep your organization profitable.

‍

Consider empirical data and statistics pertinent to your industry and target markets. Ensure you have backup plans and a mechanism to maintain your audience's relevance over time. Identify all of your growth opportunities and maximize them. Explain how you will reach your financial projections and identify actionable measures to do so. This is the story you will tell prospective purchasers to persuade them that your business is an excellent investment.

‍

If you had one minute to explain why your company is a worthwhile investment, what features of the business would you highlight? It is crucial to determine your company's competitive advantage. This can ultimately persuade investors to invest in your firm rather than a competing business that is also for sale. Your competitive advantage consists of elements that enable your company to produce goods or services more efficiently or at a lower cost than its rivals. Explain how you bring value to your target market and how your company is distinct from others in similar niches. Your value proposition might be comprised of everything from your products and services to your reputation and location. Identifying the strengths of your business demonstrates how your firm compares to its competitors and demonstrates to potential purchasers what makes your business a smart investment.

‍

3. Determine the Obstacles to Productivity 

During your initial assessment, you are likely to identify several limits or bottlenecks that slow down the production of your organization. This could be a result of a lack of expertise, poor technology, inadequate preparation, or delayed decision-making. In many circumstances, it may be due to an overwhelming reliance on you, the business owner, to make decisions. That could be due to your business's inconsistent procedures and practices. It may also be due to budgetary restrictions preventing you from expanding your firm or modernizing your existing technology infrastructure.

‍

Over the course of their due diligence, the majority of purchasers wish to be aware of any current bottlenecks. Before engaging with prospective purchasers, you as a business owner will need to overcome as many of these limitations as feasible. By resolving these obstacles in advance, you may even be able to raise your company's valuation.

‍

Every business operates under certain limits. By addressing these restrictions during negotiations with a prospective buyer, you demonstrate openness and instill a degree of confidence in the deal.

‍

4. Focus on operational autonomy

It is important to assess how well your firm can function without your involvement. Whenever the business is sold, you will either assume a new function with limited responsibilities or leave the organization.

‍

Frequently, a business's success depends greatly on its owner. Buyers tend to be apprehensive of this aspect because success after the owner's departure is not assured. A corporation that operates efficiently with minimal dependence on its owner is viewed as an appealing asset by potential buyers.

‍

If your company's performance is highly dependent on you, you should appoint new leaders or implement procedures that will allow it to continue operating when you leave. Create a core staff that you can entrust with all business operations. Make an attempt to document and record all business practices, policies, and guidelines in a team-accessible database. This assures that the business will continue to operate based on the foundations you established. Align all of your goals and ambitions for the company's future, and ensure that every member of your team is working toward the same objectives.

‍

If you were to continue with the firm, it is likely that the previous autonomy in decision-making will not be maintained under the new management. Most likely, the new management would lessen overdependence on you and make appropriate arrangements.

‍

You should begin limiting the amount of time you spend running your business and examine whether the day-to-day activities continue to operate effectively. Prior to announcing a sale, business owners must prove that their company can operate independently, as buyers favor enterprises with this capability. All the preparation needs to start prior to the sell. Selling a company is a highly time-consuming process and you need to ensure that operations will keep running smoothly when you manage your sell. 

‍

Conclusion

You have invested years of blood, sweat, and tears into building your business. You have worked tirelessly to bring your business to its current state. You have spent countless hours feeling both joy and anxiety while developing your business. It is possible that the world will never learn about these realities. Furthermore, the majority may not even care.

‍

There are numerous issues that can impede the execution of an acquisition. Preparation is vital to the success of any business transaction. Before entering the market, ensure that no external or internal components that could effect your selling price or negotiating position have been compromised. Ensure that your books are in order, streamline your operations, and identify what provides your company a competitive advantage. With appropriate preparation and prioritization of the aforementioned factors, your chances of making a sale will increase dramatically.

‍

There is no amount of money that could ever replace the time and effort you invest into expanding your business. A successful transaction is the least you deserve for your firm.

‍