Business Exit Planning

Selling a Marriage Officiants Business

We hear from a lot of business owners who are timid about listing their marriage officiants business. Despite the mood of the market, we think there are still opportunities to receive a good price for your marriage officiants business. Here's what you need to know . . .

The business-for-sale market is just as frustrating for buyers as it is for sellers these days. Although there are plenty of entrepreneurs who want to buy a marriage officiants business, capital restrictions are holding them back.

Success is a factor of preparation, execution and a keen eye for the market. But for business sellers, the process begins with having the right mental attitude.

Sweetening the Deal

Today's marriage officiants business buyers expect sellers to offer concessions to persuade them to close the deal. Concessions can consist of non-cash as well as cash incentives. When you've reached your limit on price, consider offering non-cash concessions to encourage a commitment from the buyer. A limited amount of training and mentoring may seem inconsequential to you, but to a young marriage officiants business owner, they can be critical launching points for their ownership journey.

Selling Time

Hoping for a quick marriage officiants business sale? You may be disappointed. Unfortunately, there are no hard and fast rules about the length of time your business will be on the market. Pricing plays a role in sale length, but there are no guarantees that a fairly priced business will sell quickly. On average, it takes a minimum of six months to prepare a marriage officiants business for sale and many sellers spend a year or more positioning their business to command a higher price. Even though it's conceivable that an attractive opportunity could sell in weeks, an immediate flood of offers could indicate that the business is underpriced.

How to Work with Business Brokers

Brokerage is a mainstay of the business-for-sale marketplace. Brokers routinely work with marriage officiants business owners to achieve desired outcomes and deliver a successful sale as quickly as possible. But a good broker doesn't relieve your responsibility for contributing to the sale process. Like it or not, you are going to be an integral player in the sale of your marriage officiants business. Successfully brokered sales are based on solid relationships between brokers and sellers as well as the strict execution of a common selling strategy.

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