Buying & Selling a Business In Tucson Blog

A Business Broker Should Educate You Before Selling Your Business

Have you listed a business for sale in the past?  Do you have a business listed for sale now? Or are you considering listing a business for sale in Tucson sometime in the near future?  Have you worked with a business broker during this process?

If so, ask yourself this important question: did your business broker take the time to educate you about the process of buying and selling a business in Tucson?  Or did they just ask you the price you wanted to put on your business, give you a copy of the listing, and disappear without setting expectations and ground rules for managing the process of selling to your best advantage?

Do you know what kind of listing you have?  What are the price, and terms?  The commission structure?  Even if you think you have experience in all this, the fact is that most sellers can make simple mistakes that end up being costly during the sale process.  And when they do, it's actually their broker's fault for not spending enough time with them to fully prepare them for every contingency.

Here are a couple of examples of situations that can cause you problems if you're the seller:

1. Handling Buyers: 

• Do you know what your listing agreement says about how to handle buyers that walk in the door unexpectedly?  Most sellers assume that these buyer prospects are theirs without having read the agreement. But they could well belong to the broker.
• Many buyers will return to the business and try to find the seller after being shown the business. They may ask the seller to quote a price, or to show them books and records. 
  
• This could put you in a difficult spot in front of others, and severely compromise your negotiating position. 
  
• Did your broker coach you on how to handle such situations?

2. Keeping Your Business For Sale Listing Quiet:

• If you really want to keep secret from your employees, customers, suppliers and competitors the fact that your business is for sale, have you considered how hard that is going to be if you're the one dealing with buyers?   
• One of the most important roles of a broker is to shield you from these conversations, and handle them for you.
• Is your broker playing this role for you?
  

If you're considering selling your Tucson business, make sure that you know as much as possible about every step in the process of selling a business before you start.  That way, you can avoid being caught off guard by events and surprises along the way.  Click here to take a moment to walk through the steps of selling a business.

And remember, if there is something, anything, about the process of selling your business that you are not completely clear about, and you're already working with a business broker, then you have the right and should ask that person for a detailed explanation.

 

If you'd like more information on this subject, please contact us at 520-327-4454 or visit us at www.allenandyoung.com