Improving Your Options and Your Odds – Part One of Three
“Hi Joanne. This is Denise. I understand that you might be interested in selling your home. I can help you with that,” said the Realtor when the homeowner answered the phone.
“Great! I am interested in selling,” Joanne replied. However, when Denise began to ask for more information, such as the price, address, square footage, and number of bedrooms, Joanne quickly cut her off. “I don’t want to put it on the market, but if you have a serious buyer, I’ll give you my address and more details about the house once you bring me an offer,” she said.
Denise quickly realized that Joanne had created challenges that would likely mean that she would not receive the highest price and best terms for her house. These included:
1. Limiting the quantity in the buyer pool
2. Expecting offers prior to disclosing information
At Apex, it is not unusual for us to have a similar conversation with a business owner who communicates a desire to sell but unknowingly creates these same obstacles. Parts One and Two in this series of blogs will address these barriers. Part Three will detail a recent success story that highlights how smoothly the transaction process can and should work when the business owner and their Apex Business Advisor work in tandem towards the same goal.
Expanding the buyer pool to improve the quantity of buyers
Simultaneous interest from multiple parties is critical to obtaining the best price and terms and to moving the transaction forward at the most expedient pace. Business owners who limit brokers to one specific buyer or who only entertain the random buyer or two who approach them directly are undermining the process that would render them the highest price, as this creates no sense of urgency or concern of competition for the buyer.
A business is of the greatest value to buyers for whom it most closely aligns with their buying criteria. Taking a proactive approach by allowing your Apex Business Advisor to concurrently present basic non-confidential information to a vast number of potential buyers can create immediate traffic on the business and a sense of urgency among buyers. The buyers for whom the business is the best fit and who are most motivated will quickly rise to the occasion.
Contact your Apex Business Advisor to further discuss our processes for maximizing the quantity of potential buyers for your business.
Anita Lieser
Senior Advisor
