How Ready Are You to Sell Your Business?

Most of the two million business owners in Australia run their own business to make money, have greater flexibility and freedom, create legacies and reap the financial rewards when the come to sell.

For many, the ultimate goal is the sale of their business. But with so much focus on what life will look like after the sale, less energy is often directed at the sales preparation process.

It can take 18 months to two years to sell a business - longer if it is not ready for sale. By being prepared, you can capitalise on favourable market conditions, reduce the selling timeframe, and sell to the right buyer for the right price at the right time.

How Ready Are You to Sell?

Here's a handy checklist for you to gauge how ready your business is for sale against eight key success factors:

Key Success Factors	Measurement	Status
Price	Has your business undergone an independent valuations?	Yes / No
Growth Potential	Are you in a growing industry? Are your growing your market share?	Yes / No Yes / No
Market Demand	Describe the demand for your produce / services	High / Medium / Low
Profitability	What is your Gross Profit Margin? Have you undertaken a cost minimisation process?	______% Yes / No
Brand Awareness	Is your brand well-known by your target market?	Yes / No
Policies & Procedures	Do you have current policies and procedures in place to guide operations?	Yes / No
Team	Describe the quality of your management team	High / Medium / Low
Intellectual Property	Are all rights to patents, copyrights, or trademarks in place?	Yes / No

How Did You Go?

You can use the answers generated by the above exercise to create your ‘pricing story’. Your story works alongside your price to substantiate how you arrived at your price, how it balances risk, the key success factors that you have in place, the potential earnings and opportunities for your business.

For More Information

For more information on readying your business for future sale, please contact the Archer Gowland Redshaw team on (07) 3002 2699 | info@agredshaw.com.au.

How Ready Are You to Sell Your Business?