Key matters to consider
Creating a sale-ready business takes time. Time to implement the improvements you’ve identified to present your business at its best and time to complete the tasks which are additional to your day-to-day operating commitments. With limited hours in your day, you’ll also need to assign a support team to help.
There’s a lot to do and you’ve still got a business to run. You’ll need a plan.
You’ll also need a budget. To cover improvements, the extra hours you’ll pay to staff and fees for external advisors.
If your financial management needs attention, fixing it will be among your first priorities. This may include committing to upgrading existing or implementing new accounting systems.
Whether or not you’re getting ready to sell, accurate and up to date financial data is essential. It enables you to know where you are now, where you want to be and how you are progressing in between.
Well organised financial data makes it possible to forecast your sale-ready position, when that will likely be and the financial goals and operational methods required for increasing revenue and reducing costs.
You’ll also need to manage relationships.
It’s important to recognise that team members recruited into your sale-ready process will find it difficult to continue meeting their day-to-day commitments and achieve additional expectations.
Further, if your key advisors don’t already know one another, it’s time to get them all in the same room.
Typically, your professional advice team will include your accountant, solicitor and financial advisor (for investment advice for sale proceeds in terms of your personal wealth).
Advisors experienced in sales and acquisitions will be able to anticipate concerns you may have, but more importantly, any objections likely to be raised by a prospective purchaser. Advice on the actions to take now to counter issues that could stall your sale later is invaluable.
It’s worth noting that the best business sale outcomes usually result when your support team as well as your professional advisors work collaboratively.
Setting a realistic timeline with clear goals and milestones is the key.
Meeting regularly with your team and professional advisors to check progress, reset goals and keep the lines of communication open is highly recommended.
Sale-ready businesses that demonstrate value to prospective purchasers are more likely to achieve the best possible price at sale time, whether this is at a predetermined date or if you receive an unexpected offer.
Here at Core, we’re well-versed in sales and acquisition processes along with the practical necessities for getting businesses ready for sale. Creating a sale-ready business is time consuming and at times challenging, you’ll need advice and support. We’re here to help.
We’ll work with you to:
– Identify specific tasks – what needs to be done and establish an order of priority
– Implement appropriate financial reporting, analyse the financial position now, forecast sale-ready scenarios, review financial progress, determine sale-ready business value and a realistic sale price
– Establish a sale-ready budget
– Work closely with you to coordinate your business sale-ready process including assembling appropriately experienced professionals
– Providing clarity and support for your sale-ready decision making
Your next step…
To discuss what’s involved in making your business sale-ready, please contact your Core business accountant on 07 5438 8088 or email mail@corebusiness.com.au
Further Reading
#1 Is your Business Sale-Ready?
#2 Selling your Business? Put your feet in your buyer’s shoes
#3 Achieving a Sale-Ready Business
#4 From Sale-Ready to FOR SALE
At Core we specialise in business advice and SMSF strategies for growing and mature family-owned businesses and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).