As we wrap up our Sale Ready series, let’s explore essential but overlooked action planning steps. These actions are often missed, especially as you approach a sale or receive business offers.
Reduce business “clutter”
Knowing your business is easier once you’ve reduced the “mess” within it. This includes cleaning premises, accounts, and operations.
Sell or discard assets or stock that’s unusable or unsellable, ensuring they’re excluded from the sale package. This could include an old vehicle or expired stock that needs clearing. Think of this time as a spring cleaning for your business inventory!
Ensure any personal assets, valuable goods or items kept at the premises are stored away off-site. Especially important for family businesses that would be looking to change hands.
Get your ‘elevator pitch’ down
A licensed business broker provides valuable marketing expertise and insights to attract buyers. Owners must confidently understand their business’s value and key facts to ensure it’s sale-ready.
Anticipate due diligence questions, including tricky or specific ones, and prepare answers in advance. Research early to avoid uncertainties about your business during the sale process.. A self-assured and informed business owner will always mean a smoother sales process overall. A business broker will prepare you for any and all important questions a buyer wants to know.
Refresh your premises
For storefronts or showrooms, present your business well for photos or buyer visits. This might include minor upgrades, cleaning, or reorganizing stock and displays. Avoid overcapitalizing on renovations; focus on making your business impressive and functional.
A commercial clean is a great way to get those hard-to-reach places across your offices or warehouse, just like you might do before an open home.
Take stock of your talent
Evaluate your team, identify skill gaps, and discuss the sale’s impact with key members. Address any underperforming employees by coaching them or , consider alternative placements if they’ll stay post-sale.
Equally, action planning for your staff helps to work out whether your top performers are likely to stay on under new management. Give them a chance to talk to you openly as their leader, and listen to their concerns and feedback. A new owner of your business will appreciate a level of assurance as to what staff members will stay and who they will need to hire afresh.
In the final part of this series, we’ll go through your all-important self-reflection checklist to ensure you’re on track to be sale-ready and take those next steps to get your business on the market.
