Putting your business on the market – DIY or use an agent?

Putting your business on the market – Use an agent or do it yourself?

You don’t have to use an agent to sell your business for you, here are some ways to present your business for market without an agent.

Start by getting a view on the value of your business:

Most agents will provide a marketing value free of charge (although it may not be accurate)

• Have a look at what price other similar businesses are on the market for, you can do this by
  • Checking business sales websites
  • Checking local agents that sell businesses

Once you have an idea of the prospective value of your business decide whether it’s still desirable to sell at that price. If you are not quite ready to sell then set some goals and implement changes in the business to provide a positive effect on the value of your business. Also, check out our top tips for selling your business.

The process for selling your business looks roughly like this:

• Gather necessary details and photographs and present them on a PDF ready to advertise
• Advertise on the popular business websites
• Or you may have been approached by or know someone who is interested
• Use a sign company for a “For Sale business unaffected” on the property. This is dependant on type of business and how quickly you want to sell.
• Use free websites such as Gumtree and Freeserve to advertise locally
• If you have a business website you can advertise on there – just be sure your search engine optimisation is good- plenty of help on line for this.
• Have a dedicated phone line and email when advertising so that you can filter enquiries
• Have all accounts, leases, licenses and employment details ready to produce to a suitable buyer once a provisional offer has been made
• Negotiation with the potential buyer to agree on the price you are willing to accept and they are willing to pay.
• This next step is a bit wordy and technical. Produce a Heads of Terms document to instruct solicitors once an agreement on price has been reached. This legal document contains names and addresses of the seller and buyer with the sale price agreed subject to contract. The rest is down to your solicitor and much like the sale of a house it takes time there are checks, searches etc.
• Inform staff of the sale agreed
• Instruct solicitors to deal with the sale
• Answer due diligence queries through the legal process

It is important to note that the process normally takes between 6-12 months. Starting with advertising and then depending on getting an acceptable price. However with niche or quirky businesses this can take up to 3 years.