How to Sell a Niche Market Business
Selling an Environmental Training Business
You've heard the naysayers - now isn't the time to sell a environmental training business. But what they don't know is that many entrepreneurs see environmental training businesses as a smart business investment.
Despite your best intentions, great business sales don't happen overnight.
Many business owners don't know that environmental training businesses are still a hot commodity, to the extent that sellers have properly prepared them for the marketplace.
Preparing Your Employees
As a business owner, you want to keep you employees informed about your plans; as a seller it's in your best interest to keep your employees in the dark for as long as possible. The more people who know that the business is on the market, the riskier the sale becomes. However, the longer the selling process drags on, the more likely it is that rumors will begin to circulate throughout your workforce. So at some point you will have to resign yourself to the idea of telling some or all of your employees that you have listed the environmental training business on the market. Maintain a positive tone in your conversations and answer your employees questions as completely as you can without jeopardizing the sale.
The Emotions of a Business Sale
Business sellers sometimes struggle to handle the emotions of a sale. You probably have good reasons for selling your environmental training business now, but that doesn't make the emotions you will experience any easier. Instead of feeling guilty about your emotions, take the time to process them with a mentor or friend. At the same time, it's helpful to consult with people who can help limit the influence of your emotions on negotiations and other aspects of the sale process.
Sale Documents
We run into a lot of environmental training business sellers who intend to wait until the final contract to negotiate details. Big mistake. With few exceptions, sale structure is hammered out early, in the Letter of Intent . If you are seeking buyer concessions, the time to address them is before the Letter of Intent is drafted. For sellers, that makes a close review of the Letter of Intent more than a formality - it's a critical juncture on the path to closing.
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