Posts Tagged ‘negotiation’
If you are determined to receive the best price for your business when it’s sold, it is important to prepare your business for its eventual sale.
The five key aspects of the preparation process are.
1. Stop Running the Business
Many buyers have been conditioned to think that a business cannot perform without the original owner. Many prospective purchasers are afraid that once the current owner leaves, the company will underperform and this fear prevents many businesses from ever being sold.
When preparing your business for sale it is a good idea to reduce the amount of time you spend running the business on a day to day basis. Most small businesses are built around the owner/manager which is why prospective buyers feel the business will falter once it has changed hands. If you can show that the business can operate profitably without you then you have a business with value that should sell for a premium.
2. Hire Managers
Buyers like stability and they dislike risk. One way you can decrease the perceived risk of acquiring your business is to put good managers in place. If you are able to hire managers and build in a chain of command that removes you from the day to day running of the business, while ensuring it still runs efficiently, you have taken away a significant stumbling block for many buyers.
A profitable business which comes with well-trained managers who know the business well, and are willing to continue running it from the day one, is an attractive proposition that many buyers will not pass up on.
3. Put Business Systems in Place
During the preparation period, aim to have all your business processes documented and working in a defined system. All business practices should be well-defined and each member of your organisation should have a clear role with a well understood job specification. Use the preparation period to build in systems which explain and document how each process of your business works and all employees should be well versed in how these systems work.
Building in systems is important as it will improve a buyer’s confidence and this will lead to better offers. A business that works smoothly and efficiently, with clearly defined processes and systems, is a positive for many buyers as this reduces the amount of time and resources they have to spend understanding and fixing inefficient practices.
4. Legal Issues
It is very important to settle any legal disputes or issues that may affect the sale of your business as any buyer worth their salt will conduct some form of due diligence if they are serious about purchasing your business.
Many deals have collapsed due to legal issues or disputes that the vendor has failed to sort out or disclose. If you are able to solve these issues prior to negotiations and due diligence you have paved the way for a successful sale. Issues such as lease agreements on property and equipment, outstanding payments or court settlements and other potential liabilities should be tackled prior to the negotiation period as these issues are notorious for collapsing deals.
It’s also a good idea to turn any verbal agreements you have with key suppliers and customers into written contracts. Prospective buyers want to feel confident that all the key aspects of the business are tied down and enforceable by law.
5. Housekeeping
It is important to pay attention to your premises and ensure that all equipment and stock is up to date, that your office looks neat and professional and all unsold or out of date inventory is moved on. First impressions of your business count so it’s important you make a good one.
You should also use this period to begin looking at your company accounts. Many small businesses are set up to minimize tax but this method of accounting leads to lower valuations as many offers are made by applying a multiple to yearly profits. If you are able to adjust your accounting methods or at least build in a framework that shows the business’ true profitability this will eliminate much of the time wasted haggling over the business’ value.
It is a good idea to look at the situation with your debtors and reduce the amount of bad debt on your books. Buyers are weary of purchasing businesses where it seems the level of bad debt is too high or businesses where the customers take too long to settle accounts. You should use the preparation period to reduce the amount of bad debt and possibly restructure how certain accounts are paid.
If you are determined to receive the best possible price for your business it is important that you take the time and effort to prepare your business for sale otherwise you risk leaving money on the table. A poorly prepared business is rarely sold so it is important not to cut corners during this period.
Looking for bankruptcy? Don’t go for it! Instead, keep bankruptcy as your last option and try out the other options which are available in the market. There are a few debt relief options to consider. The best 3 are mentioned below with brief explanations for each one of them.
Do it yourself – debt management:
This method involves arrangement of the credit cards or other personal unsecured loans in an order. The order will be a descending one with loans having high interest rates getting top priority and then followed by the ones with lower interest rates. In this method, you will have to create a new budget in which, you will have to eliminate some of the unnecessary expenses and then save some extra money. Pool this money with the amount out of your paycheck that you keep aside for loan repayment and start repayments with the one, which has the highest interest rates. This helps in containing the debt due to faster accrual of interests.
Professional or self arbitration – debt settlement:
In the method of settlement, you will have to negotiate with the creditor on your own or you will need to use professional help for doing the same. In either case, the process converges to push the creditor to eliminate the debt by a certain percentage. The amount not forgiven is to be paid in lump sum to the creditor. To force the creditor to eliminate at least 50% of the dues, the use of the bankruptcy threat is essential. Once the remainder is paid, the consumer will get a clean cheat and the debt will be considered as paid in full.
Reducing monthly installments – debt consolidation:
In this method, negotiation with the creditor is carried out by a professional negotiator who negotiates for the reduction in the interest rates and elimination of associated costs like insurance charges, over limit fees, late fees and other. The threat of bankruptcy is used to force the creditors to agree to the above conditions. When the creditors agree, they re-amortize the loans and then the monthly installment burden for the consumer is reduced significantly.
The above mentioned three methods ensure that the credit score of the consumers remain unharmed and that the consumers get back their financial stability and get out of their debts asap. This is not possible in case of bankruptcy filing because, once the consumers go for bankruptcy, the FICO score will be lost completely. This brings in more financial troubles for the consumers. Hence, personal bankruptcy should be avoided.
You might think that debt relief is the most common dream – but this is a fantasy that can come true. For a debt-ridden man, debt consolidation is a solution among many others; but did you know that it is actually possible to avoid getting into this problem in the first place?
By changing your lifestyle and developing a different mind set, you can stay out of it, or at least enjoy relief from it before you are forced to seek the help of a debt consolidation company.
We have some tips here that can help you avoid it altogether, so that you can eliminate the possibility of a debt-mire, way out of which could only be consolidation of loans. Go on, ponder over the following:
Amount Of Debt That Can Be Handled
Let us begin with credit card debt. You must determine how much load you can afford to get into. This involves taking a serious look at your financial status. Depending on your income and expenditure, you will be able to work out how much burden you can easily handle. Once you arrive at the figure, you must be extremely careful about not allowing your total dues to exceed this limit. Making a budget and sticking to it is the most important step. If you allot specific amounts towards each expense that you have listed in your budget plan, avoiding debt becomes effortless. Remember, discipline is the key to staying out of a financial mess. You must learn about how credit works with all your expenses, so that you can act accordingly in order to stay loan-free.
Consider All Possible Options Before You Decide To Take A Loan
There might arise an unavoidable situation where you do need a loan. First look at the options that are available to you. Check out the rates of interest that are being charged with each type of loan. Since there are hordes of debt consolidation companies vying for your business, you can search for a deal that would suit you the best. Go in for counseling that’s offered by many nonprofit companies. This counseling would comprehensively explain all the pros and cons of going in for a consolidated loan. Make sure that you can afford the loan, as the idea is to get debt relief, not get into more money problems. You can shop for the lowest interest rates through negotiation.
Developing Good Monetary Habits
This is really a no-brainer – you must track your bills carefully every month and pay them on time. Develop and stick to a system where you clear all your bills in full well before the due date to avoid having to pay late fees. By ensuring that you pay the bill at the same time every month, you can avoid extra charges. With almost every establishment accepting credit cards these days, it is very easy to lose track of your expenditure when you shop. It is okay if you use your credit card for making the initial payment for a car or on a home, but buying at random without proper planning can lead you to paying for things that you don’t really need.
Easy Debt Management
Finally, saving money is the best idea. All you need to do is to start putting money aside for the future or for an emergency expenditure. Begin with saving a small amount each month. It is said that little drops of water make the mighty ocean, and this is true in the case of savings as well. Check all your bills to see if there is any discrepancy so that you can get the matter resolved as soon as possible.