7 Steps to Selling Your Business

Posted on | October 15, 2009 | 1 Comment

How to Sell Your Business Interested in selling your business some day and have time now to watch a short, well-done video on the steps involved in?

Well then, check out this 5 1/2 minute long piece by John Warrillow from the Globe & Mail Newspaper that’s available on their Report on Business | Business Incubator webpage at www.theglobeandmail.com/…/seven-steps-to-selling-a-business

Who is John Warrillon?

John’s an entrepreneur, speaker and author of the book Drilling for Gold (Wiley, New York 2002) with experience starting and exiting four companies. Most recently he transformed Warrillow & Co. over a period of 12 years from a boutique consultancy into a subscription-based business with a stable recurring revenue model which he sold to The Corporate Executive Board (NASDAQ: EXBD) in 2008.

About John’s ’7 Steps to Selling Your Business’ Video

Now in this video John doesn’t talk to what it takes to turn a business like yours into one you can readily sell, which is the value build process that best maximizes your selling price. Also, he does skim over a lot of stuff in this 30,000 foot high view of the process. But despite that, he does do a great job giving this overview and his points definitely cover off the major steps involved. Because of that and how he offers lots of insider tidbits along the way, I recommend you spend time listening to what he has to say.

  Seven steps to selling a business
  Globe and Mail – Update Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009 12:11PM EDT
  Author John Warrillow explains the ins and outs

The ’7 Steps to Selling Your Business’ Check List Video Summary

Now if you prefer reading as your way to gain new knowledge and, should you need a check list to track what’s involved, here’s my summary of JohnWarrillow’s 7 Steps to Selling Your Business:

Hire an M&A advisor to represent you and act as a foil and buffer in negotiations (consider it just like how you hire a real estate agent when you’re selling your home)

Write up a 2 page anonymous/no-name ‘teaser’ document with the help of your advisor that gives an overview of your business so you have something to send prospective buyers, which is how you get them to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (‘NDA’) if they are interested enough to want to check out your company

Prepare a ‘book’ about your business for those you’re interested in negotiating with that has 2 parts: (a) a full description of your business and its history of results; and (b) a ‘think-big’ business plan about where your company could go if it had more resources to grow

Make management presentations that will whow your prospective buyers and convince them to make your an offer

Receive and review Letters of Intent (‘LOIs’), which are non-binding offers from prospective buyers that set out how much they’re offering for your business, something that usually is split into a cash up-front sum due on closing and an earn-out amount which is your ‘at risk’ / may-or-may-not get paid portion (by the way, you should avoid giving prospective buyers deal exclusivity at all costs)

Due diligence, or what John calls the entrepreneur’s equivalent of a proctology exam, a long, 60 to 90 days, uncomfortable process of detailed and sometimes intrusive questions that you need to answer, which is something that’s unavoidable

Closing meeting when the deal gets finalized and the buyer pays the up-front cash amount into your lawyer’s trust account, that’s the conclusion of the sale process and it can take between 6 and 8 months to reach

When You Sell Your Business - don't roll the dice, get CNi's help

© Blog.TonyJohnston.biz & Compass North Inc. 2009

Article by –

Tony Johnston, CMC, CGA, MBA, BA (Econ)
President
Compass North Inc.
18 Balding Court
Toronto ON
M2P 1Y7
Office: 416-342-5652
Mobile: 416-346-4140
www.CompassNorthInc.com
www.CNiRapidResearch.com

Tony Johnston is a results-oriented executive & management advisor with success in 4 turnarounds and many significant other business accomplishments to his credit who helps companies drive:
› top line growth (revenue)
› bottom line improvement (profits)
› cashflow management (credit line control)
› growth strategy (more / new)
› financing & stakeholder relationship management (debt / equity)
› enterprise value maximization (mkt price)
› acquisition planning & execution (find / close)
› divestiture preparation & execution (prep / negotiate)
› information gathering (competitive intel / market research)
› crisis control (turnarounds & wind-downs)
› enterprise leadership (CEO / CRO / CFO)

Compass North Inc. is a management & advisory services firm that helps companies access and use money brilliantly so they achieve important, challenging goals. Examples of what we do include helping companies and their owners:
– make better decisions by providing customized competitive intelligence,
– grow by crafting strategic plans and implement them,
– get turned around by dealing with their debt or other business problems,
– borrow more money and/or raise more equity, and
– plan, prepare, negotiate and close acquisitions, divestitures and ownership
transitions.

Bottom-line: The benefit that Tony and Compass North Inc. deliver is helping company owners maximize both what they earn while they own their business and what they bank when they sell.

> Follow me on Twitter @CompassNorthInc

Comments

One Response to “7 Steps to Selling Your Business”

bizsugar.com
October 15th, 2009 @ 11:34 am

7 Steps to Selling Your Business | Biz Money Matters |…

Thinking of selling your business some day? Take time to watch this short, well-done video by John Warrillow on the 7 steps involved. It will give you a 30,000 foot high overview of the process that covers all the major steps. John speaks from experie…

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Posts by:

Tony Johnston
President
Compass North Inc.

Tony provides executive management and advisory services that help companies get MORE !!

sales / profits / cashflow
financing / exit valuation

Tony delivers the leadership or leadership support needed that can make remarkably outstanding results happen operationally, economically, financially and in the eyes of customers, lenders & transaction counterparties.

If you are a decision maker in a company that wants MORE, give him a call at 416-342-5652 or check out the Compass North Inc website [click here].

Tony's ability to help companies achieve important/challenging goals is well demonstrated by his long record of success, which includes:
- 4 successful turnarounds lead
- $66 mil+ increase public
  company's value
- $34 mil value harvested
  from biotech cofounded & lead
  as CEO
- $12 mil/3x investment gain
  in 2 years delivered for
  VC partners
- $2.5+ bil in public & private
  market debt, equity and
  M&A deals done
- 1 successful company IPO
- 4 new businesses organized &
  grown: Biotech; Securitization /
  Mortgage Servicing; Third-Party
  Logistics (3PL); & Consulting