When you decide that it’s time to sell your business, you want to make sure that you get help from the right places. Choosing the right business broker is perhaps the single most important thing you can do to improve the overall sale process, and you need to know what to look for. Let’s take a look at some of the main things to keep an eye out for.
Experience
You want to look for a business broker with extensive experience in your niche. One of the main things that makes a good business broker is their network, and that’s something that will have taken brokers such as Dexterity Partners years to develop. Experienced service providers will have seen more things go wrong, and will be better equipped to ensure the process goes smoothly.
Reviews
When trying to see if a broker is the right fit for you, don’t just take their word for it. A great way of identifying the right business broker is by looking at their reviews from past clients, to see what kind of experience they provide. Look for online testimonials and Google reviews. While there may be the odd bad review, you want to choose someone who is able to provide the vast majority of their clients with a positive experience.
Legal Expertise
In some niches, there may be certain regulations that govern how you sell a business. This might mean that you can only market it in a certain way, or that you have a legal duty to inform your shareholders at a certain point.
It’s important that you choose a business broker who can inform you on these areas, or at least knows to point you to a solicitor when necessary. Selling a business is a complicated process, and you won’t want to experience any unnecessary hiccups along the way.
Fees
A good business broker can help you get a lot more for your business than you would otherwise receive. As a result, it’s important to view the fees you’ll pay them in the context of this benefit – paying a little extra might end up netting you a lot more in the long run. Still, it’s important that the broker you choose is straightforward with their fee structure. You don’t want to be hit by a surprise bill at the last hour, and you shouldn’t have to.
Communication
Finally, it’s important to identify a service that’s easy to communicate with. The sales process can get quite hectic towards the end, with a lot of different forms and documents flying back and forth. You need to be able to communicate in a clear, efficient manner with your business broker, even when things get stressful.
This should have made it somewhat clearer as to what you should look out for. While these points are quite generally applicable, there will likely be other details that are specific to your business or industry. It’s important to be clear on what you need your broker for before you start the search, so that you’re absolutely clear on what to look for.