What’s the difference between sale-ready and ready to sell?
This has been a common question that I answer on a regular basis. Many business owners are not yet thinking of selling their business so that therefore being sale-ready is not on their minds yet.
There is a clear difference in the two.
Ready to sell means that you have made up your mind to sell your business. This is a mindset decision as well as a business decision. It often comes with an “I’m Done!” attitude which does not foster growth. Ready to sell has a shorter timeline of 1-2 years and may have a last-minute band-aid mentality.
Sale-Ready has many factors to it. Being sale-ready doesn’t mean that you have selling your business on your mind. The mindset style is thinking ahead with the end in mind. It involves planning at a relaxed, non-disruptive pace. Making your business sale-ready is all about making your business strong, profitable, and attractive so that you have choices whenever you wish to sell it.
Having a sale-ready business has a lot of benefits to it right now. Strong profits, more owner freedom, and a recognized leader or expert in their industry are just a few. This unique type of business model can be achieved when the owner has a clear and distinct direction that they are leading the business. The team supports the direction making it easier to reach your goals.
How does a business become sale-ready? The make sure that they have all the attractive features that buyers are looking for. There are many types of buyers out there and you probably want to stay away from being in a situation that involves a ‘fire sale’ where the buyer is paying only pennies on the dollar for the valuable assets. Sometimes the transactions involve a succession to either ‘Junior’ or a Partner. With these types of transitions, you want to have a strong business that can afford to buy you out while continuing to provide for the new owners. If you are being bought by an outside party like the competition or someone who wants to enter the market, then your business must have a positive opportunity with future revenue within a year so that it is win-win for both you and the buyer. Having multiple and passive income streams with strong potential to continue is a great way to make your company profitable today and attractive later.
Making your business sale-ready now is a smart move at phase that you are in; new, growth, or sustainable.
If you are curious about making your business sale-ready? Book a call with us, we are happy to evaluate your company and discuss what a plan would look like for you.
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