- March 12, 2022
- Posted by: Business Brokers & Consultants
- Category: Seller Articles
When it comes time to sell your business, you only have one opportunity to get it right. In many cases, business owners have made critical mistakes while attempting to sell their business. Let’s take a look at some common errors that have occurred during the process when experienced professionals were not brought in to assist.
Not Prioritizing Confidentiality
We cannot understate the importance of confidentiality. When business owners try to go it alone, they often share valuable information with the wrong people, such as competitors. When confidentiality is breached, unexpected and unfortunate consequences can result. Employees may start looking immediately for new work and/or current clients may move on to other businesses. If any of these scenarios occur, it can devalue the business or even interfere with a sale going through properly.
Mistakes in Financial Information
If the party assisting you to sell your business lacks experience, he or she may accidentally omit preparing critical paperwork. Additionally, if the financial records are not properly audited, it could negatively impact the numbers. This could lead to lower offers and less interest from prospective buyers.
Failing to Involve Key Parties
Another error that could be caused by inexperience is neglecting to bring key parties into the deal. For example, when a business owner is guided by a layperson or trying to handle everything on his or her own, important people, such as the CFO, might accidentally not be brought into the due diligence process. While an error like this one might not necessarily kill the deal, it could lead to delays and complications.
Get Professionals Involved
The bottom line is that when it comes to a large transaction like selling your business, it is time to rely upon trustworthy professionals.
Experienced business brokers and M&A advisors will make sure that all the best practices are followed and that you come out ahead in the end.
Copyright: Business Brokerage Press & Otis Florence