How to Sell Your Business

How to Sell Your Small Business

Steps to Sell Your Business

Ready to sell your business? There are a number of reasons why you may want to sell your business, including retirement, illness or succession. Whatever your reason for selling your business, having a step-by step plan is important.

Follow these 5 steps to get started on selling your small business

1. Get a Business Valuation

An important first step in selling your business is to conduct a business valuation. Simply put, a business valuation is the process of determining the worth of your business. Business valuations require analysis of financial statements, market trends, industry comparison and more. It provides stakeholders with valuable insights into your company’s financial health, growth prospects and overall value, enabling informed decision-making and strategic planning.

2. Decide Timing of Sale

You’ll also want to create a timeline for selling your business. At a minimum, you should prepare for a year before selling your business. It’s often better to prepare for the sale well in advance, but things change and priorities shift on a whim. Day-to-day management and decision making are hard enough to juggle in addition to preparing for sale. That’s why it’s so valuable to have a trusted financial partner who’s always in your corner and can help you navigate the process. Reach out today and we can help you along the way of selling your business.

3. Broker or Self-Negotiation 

You have a couple options when planning to sell your small business. You can either hire a business broker who specializes in selling businesses or self-negotiate throughout the sale.

If you are looking for a more hands-on approach, self-negotiation may be the way to go. However, ensuring that you work with an attorney or legal advisor throughout the process is highly advised.

Hiring a business broker can be a good option for busy owners since they handle everything for you. However, you’ll have to pay a broker’s fee which gives them commission on the sale.

4. Search for Buyers 

There are different ways to find potential buyers for your small business including:

• Hiring a business broker
• Networking within your industry or community
• Advertising your business for sale online or in relevant publications
• Reaching out to competitors or strategic buyers who might be interested in acquiring your business

By using a combination of these methods and leveraging the expertise of professionals such as business brokers, you can effectively identify and engage potential buyers for your small business.

5. Handle Profit After Sale

Selling a business can be a significant achievement, but what happens after the sale? Ensuring that you have a plan following the sale is important to retaining wealth. Financial advisors at WesBanco can help you determine the best strategy for saving, investing or making another purchase.

Remember, selling a business can be a complex process, so it’s essential to seek professional advice from attorneys, accountants and business advisors to ensure everything is handled properly.

Support When You Need It

At WesBanco, we know there are a lot of steps to sell your business, varying based on each individual situation. Our financial advisors can help you learn how to sell your business in a stress free, manageable process.

Reach out today to get started.

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Content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to provide legal or financial advice. The views and opinions expressed do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of WesBanco.

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