Benchmark Business Group

Built to Sell is Built to Own

October 24, 2017

If you've followed along this month you know that we've focused on knowing how to increase the value of your business while you own it and when you're ready to sell.  We often encounter business owners that are uneasy talking about their eventual exit plan.  Some owners think it's too far away and they don't need to worry about it now.  Others want, but seldom have, a clear plan to transition the business to their children or employees.  And some plan to work up until the end (this one is just scary).

At Benchmark Business Group, we've discovered a few flaws in these ways of thinking.
  1. You won't sell your business until it's prime time to sell.  We know this isn't pleasant to think about, but quite frankly we've seen too many business owners put their business up for sale for reasons beyond their control, such as personal illness or family emergencies.  We've also encountered small business owners who were approached with great opportunities through mergers and acquisitions.  The harsh truth is that you might not be able to pick the best time to sell your business.  Outside factors will play into the timing decision to transition out of your business.  What you can absolutely control is the design of your business and it's sell-ability when you need to sell it.  Will your business be ready to sell for premium price if the unexpected happens?
     
  2. It's too early to think about selling.  We hear this one a lot, but there's two fatal assumptions made here.  First, as we mentioned earlier, you may need to sell earlier than planned.  There's also the fact that the decisions you are making TODAY will determine if your business is sellable in the future.  We've seen the devastation when someone spends 20+ years building a business, expecting it to be their retirement plan, only to discover it isn't desirable to buyers. The market value of your business is too important to your future to leave to chance.  Discover and learn what makes a business valuable.  It allows you to intentionally design value in your business instead of leaving it to chance.
We've also discovered one secret that we want to leave you with.  A business that is built to be sellable, a business of value, is a business that is built to own.  What you'll discover when you start to understand how to increase business value is that the work you'll do "ON" the business will help you achieve "Value Realized" on a daily basis.  It is the secret to unlocking more time, more profit, more satisfaction, and more freedom.  Except, it's not really a secret, it's just a shift in how you think, and how you go to work "on" your business every day.

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