Good questions to ask business brokers

For some entrepreneurs in the beginning of their journey it is almost impossible to think about the idea of leaving your company behind or passing it to someone else. But we are all just humans, and sometimes we are forced to make unpleasant but necessary and right decisions. One of such decisions is selling your business at the right time for the right price.

You may already know that you may find an experienced and professional online business broker at Websiteclosers.com but you don’t know what questions to ask a business broker about your business. It is a very important issue for every entrepreneur; and it may cost you a lot of money, time and health. In the end you should give your best to the process itself; and the first step is to find a reliable business broker with enough expertise; and qualification in your field of work and your industry.

Our team interviewed a number of business brokers and business owners in order to prepare a set of questions to ask your broker before hiring.

How long have you been providing brokerage services for business owners?

Keeping in mind that not all states issue licenses for business brokers; and don’t have according requirements and regulations for the people in this field of work; one of the easiest ways to check someone’s qualification is their experience in time spent on the job; and the amount of mergers and buyouts they have been a part of.

Also, you may ask about their professional career. It would be very useful to know that your advisor was a business owner at some point; and understands all the challenges and difficulties of being a businessman. On the other hand, experience of working in large investment banks; or corporations who systematically deal with mergers would be useful as well. You should remember that you’ll pay him a fee in the end; and it is only logical to expect the broker to bring value to the table. This should be one of the first questions to ask a business broker about their experience.

What was the difference between the initial evaluation of the business and the sales price of the signed deal?

This is one of the best questions to ask your broker in order to get a quick check of the results of their previous work. Experienced brokers must have a better understanding of the market and the possibilities of the growth of the business short and mid-term. In other words he has to know the prices of the businesses in this industry; and the possible improvements that may be implemented in the next several months to improve the company’s attractiveness for potential buyers. It doesn’t have to be the plan of future development but minor improvements that may; and should be implemented in the business day-to-day operations.

And for you, it would show not only the accuracy of their evaluation skills but also the skill of closing the deal with profit or a lack of it.

What was the average time period for your last three transactions?

This one is among questions to ask when you are looking to buy a business as well as sell your current one. The process of selling business is not among the most pleasant in the world and; understandably, you would like to end it as fast as possible. But it is not a short process with all the necessary steps of evaluation, diligence; looking for potential buyers and negotiations about the details.

If the business is on sale for too long it may seem as a shady investment with potential problems while it may be the problem of the broker and his lack of needed skills and understanding of the ways this task may be solved in a much shorter time period.

Also, it may be the sign of negotiation tactics that may work in some cases; and be not so effective in others. For better understanding on average the process of selling business from initial evaluation to the last signature takes about six months.

How many deals have you closed for the last twelve months?

This is one of the best questions to ask a business broker about the sales process. With the help of this question you can find out not only the whole amount of successful transactions but how much time your potential broker can invest into your specific situation. If the number is high you know that there will not be much possible attention for your company if there would be some troubles or difficulties with the negotiation process. On the other hand the low number can be a sign of poor negotiation skills and lack of enthusiasm.

You should consider your specific situation and what kind of approach you would benefit from. If you have a more standard company in the common industry that does not need too much narrow expertise to sell and promote; – some professional with a high number of deals might be the right choice for you. if your business is more unique and takes a professional to fully understand; and appreciate you should find someone who has the time, energy; and desire to invest his time into your company’s future sale for a fair price.