Selling a Business and Making a Profit

Whether your business is not performing the way you would like it to, selling for a nice profit, interested in pursuing another business venture, looking for a change or even retirement, there are many reasons why you might consider selling a business.

When selling a business you have 2 options to choose from. The first and more convenient method is to use a business broker.

The second method is to sell your business privately. A business owner will usually opt to sell a business privately for the financial benefits. Selling a business privately and not availing the services of a broker will save you up to 10% of the sale price, which are standard commissions and broker fees. Don’t get me wrong, selling a business privately will incur advertising fees, but these fees will be much less then broker commissions. This will allow you to set a more attractive price for the business in question. This difference in price may be just enough to get more quality leads and result in a quicker sale.

When selling a business privately it will allow you, the business owner to deal direct with potential customers, and who better to talk to than the business owner. You will know exactly what to say to interested buyers and you will have all of the answers to their questions. Sure, Brokers are very professional and experienced in selling businesses, but let’s face it, there is no one better than the business owner who should be selling the business. When selling your own business, you are more motivated to sell it than a broker would be. Your have much more to gain and as a result, will put in a much bigger and better effort to try to sell the business ASAP.

Usually small business owner will try to sell their businesses privately. While major corporate companies will almost certainly use a business broker to sell their business. This is because any owner of a major corporate company usually does not have the time. Also because there is only a small percent of the business for sale market who would have the funds to purchase such a company, and business brokers would have ready and qualified buyers waiting in line.

When you are deciding whether to use a business broker to sell your business, or whether you are going to sell privately, make sure you take your time and research any business brokerage company before making a commitment. Make sure they have been established for more than 4 years and have a good reputation in the local community.