Month: February 2015

5 Ways To Attract The Attention Of An Acquirer

Frank Mancieri, Chief Growth Advisor

In any negotiation, being the person who makes the first move usually puts you at a slight disadvantage. The first-mover tips their hand and reveals just how much he/she wants the asset being negotiated.

card hand

Likewise, when considering the sale of your business, it is always nice to be courted, rather than being the one doing the courting. The good news is, the chances of getting an unsolicited offer from someone wanting to buy your business are actually increasing.

According to the Q2, 2014 Sellability Tracker analysis released in July 2014, 16% of business owners have received an offer in the last year, which is up 37% over Q1. Said another way, you’re 37% more likely to get an offer to buy your business today than you were at the beginning of the year.

Big companies are buying little ones for a lot of reasons and the current market conditions are accelerating their appetite: interest rates are low and stock markets are high, which provide the ideal platform for acquirers to realize a return on their investment from buying a business like yours.

So how do you ensure you are on their shopping list? Here are five ways to get noticed by an acquirer:

1. Win an award

Getting recognized as the “Widget Maker of the Year” by the Widget Makers Association is a great way to get the attention of acquirers in your industry.

2. Hire a PR person

Engaging a public relations professional to tell your story to the media can get you on the radar of buyers in your industry. A lot of media relations professionals focus on the big mainstream publications, and while these are important, ensure that your PR firm also targets trade publication and industry-specific websites that are read by acquirers in your industry.
(more…)

FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterlinkedinmailby feather

Read More

Exit Thinking – Is Your Business a  ‘Consumption’ or an ‘Accumulation’ Asset?

Frank Mancieri, Chief Growth Advisor

spend

save

 

Thinking About a Future Transition

 At a certain point in time, a successful business owner stops thinking about all the day-to-day operations and the strategic planning for the company’s execution in the marketplace, and starts to think about the future ownership and who will own and run their business after them.  This process is often referred to as ‘exit planning’ and will often begin with the personal desires of that owner, including their personal goals as well as what they would like to see happen with the business.  When considering your personal goals, it is helpful to identify whether your business is an accumulation asset or a consumption asset.  This newsletter will provide details around this distinction and assist you, the business owner, in thinking through how your business asset may be transitioned to someone else in the future while helping you achieve your goals.

(more…)

FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterlinkedinmailby feather

Read More

What a Study of 14,000 Businesses Reveals About How You Should Spend Your Time

Frank Mancieri, Chief Growth Advisor
 IMAGE: Getty Images
.
You’ve heard that you need to be “close to the customer”, but a new study reveals founders should actually keep their distance in order to maximize the value of their company.
 .
Who does the selling in your business? My guess is that when you’re personally involved in doing the selling, your business is a whole lot more profitable than the months when you leave the selling to others.

If your goal is to maximize your company’s profit at all costs, you may have come to the conclusion that you should spend most of your time out of the office selling and leave the dirty work of operating your businesses to your underlings. After all, you’re likely the most passionate advocate for your business. You have the most industry knowledge and the widest network of industry connections.

However, if your goal is to build a valuable company–one you can sell down the road–you can’t be your company’s number one salesperson. In fact, the less you know your customers personally, the more valuable your business.

The Proof: A Study of 14,000 Businesses

We’ve just finished analyzed our pool of Sellability Score users for the quarter ending December 31. We offer The Sellability Score questionnaire as the first of twelve steps in The Value Builder System, a statistically proven methodology for increasing the value of a business.
(more…)

FacebooktwitterlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterlinkedinmailby feather

Read More