When Selling your Business: Marketing is an Excellent Investment.

by 20 June 2021 | LINK Business Brokers 20th of June, 2021

When Selling your Business: Marketing is an Excellent Investment.

If you own a business, then you will understand the importance of marketing. Marketing gets your story out and allows customers to know you exist, what you offer and why you should be preferred over your competition. Without marketing, you’re unlikely to operate at the optimum level. The same is true when selling your business. But marketing a business can be very different to marketing a product or service.

Many small businesses rely on budget-conscious, bootstrapped marketing techniques: flyers, signs and networking that get their name out as widely as possible. When selling your business you need discretion and to be sensitive to the possibility of unsettling customers and staff. So shouting your plans from the rooftops isn't usually a good idea.

Good business owners are careful with their marketing spend, considering options and demanding accountability and effectiveness measurement. It’s important to understand that marketing is not a cost; it’s an investment on which you should expect a return. Business brokers have the experience, resources and buyer database assets to effectively focus your business sale investment and achieve a high return.

Identify the Buyer

The first thing you learn about marketing is to identify your target. Business brokers understand people who are looking to buy a business and are able to determine the sort of buyer your business will attract, whether it’s a competitor, an investor or someone looking for a specific business type or geographic location.

Identifying the buyer also means identifying and understanding their motivations. Are they looking for something to run themselves or something they can leave in the hands of a manager? Do they want to work in the industry they love, or are they hoping for a business that will let them make money while cutting back hours? Experienced business brokers understand the motivations of different buyers and how the relevance and appeal of your business may suit them.

Advertise Accordingly

Once the business broker understands your target buyer and their motivations, they advertise your business in the right places. Remember, confidentiality is a key part of a successful business sale, so it’s important to know how to advertise without revealing certain specifics regarding the business.

With their understanding of your potential buyer, a broker knows how to cost-effectively reach them, whether through online advertising, traditional media or privately via an established and evolving database network of investors and buyers.

Create Competition

The more interest generated for your business, the higher the price it will command. A good broker can create competition between prospective buyers, giving you a better chance of achieving a high price quickly.

Brokers are able to create the marketing materials, content and channels that will attract serious buyers looking for exactly the type of business that you have built. The sale of a business requires unique materials including Information Memoranda and other documents, which emphasise the benefits of buying your business without disclosing any identifying details if necessary. This is a very particular type of copywriting and it is essential to invest to ensure it is done properly.

Monitor and Report

As with all good marketing plans, it’s important to know whether your business sales marketing efforts are working. A good business broker monitors their marketing efforts on your behalf and reports back to you about what is working and what is not. The important measures are rate of response, relevance of the respondents and evidence of what they understand from what they have seen or read. From there, the broker will adapt or refine marketing if required, to assure you of the best possible outcome.

Monitoring and reporting is an essential part of a broker’s business. It provides important information about the state of the market, trends in business selling, preferences and demand and which channels and content work best. Investing in a business broker provides access to all that knowledge.
When planning to sell your business, always consider marketing as an essential investment. It will ensure that you identify the right type of buyer, find that buyer and demonstrate that your business is a very attractive prospect and relevant to their needs.

If you would like to know more about selling your business with LINK or preparing for maximum sales value you can learn more here.

Originally published by LINK

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