Life is crazy and there is never enough time in the day. Most days my time is gobbled up working with clients, building the business, and most importantly, spending quality time with my #family.
But I decided to block an hour to interview my top "rock-star" #businessbroker. I wanted to know more about his business. What was working and what wasn't. What are his #dreams and #goals. What motivated him and what was his daily grind like. To be honest, its information I wanted, but not necessarily information I expected to be super exciting. But I was wrong! One scheduled hour turned into almost four hours of fascinating conversation and I'm happy so share some of the highlights with you.
Whats your favorite part of the job?
"Working with #entrepreneurs with different backgrounds and hearing their interesting stories. Helping them accomplish their #dream. For #sellers, they have spent many years building their company, they have a lot of pride built into that. Now it is time for them to cash out and move on the next chapter in their life. Maybe they are starting a new venture, want to retire and spend time with their family, or perhaps sail off into the sunset. We get to help them realize that dream. Also, for #buyers, they are following their dream to be #businessowners or expand their operations. We get to help them through that process, help them achieve their #goals and dreams and when they are successful, we are successful. Thats very rewarding to me."
Whats your least favorite part of the job?
"Unmotivated people that are wishy-washy, buyers can waste a lot of time if they don't know what they want and keep changing their mind. Its a long process and they can have a change of heart and decide not to buy. With seller's it is always disappointing to meet those who you know you can help and you know you can get them the best price and terms while they #focus on their business, but for whatever reasons, they want to do it themselves, usually trying to save money, but in the end it costs them dearly. They end up with no sale, or a deal that takes way to long, with lower price and terms than I know I could have gotten them, or even worse, their business falls apart because they have taken their focus off operations to instead decide to be a business broker temporarily, which is a full-time profession in and of it self, so they take their focus off their own business at the worse possible time and things go south, or they don't screen their "buyers" properly allowing competitors to see their books, methods, or trade secrets, thinking it will help sell their business, but it ends up costing them #marketshare. That is always frustrating to see an otherwise #savvy business owner who in an expert in their #industry decide to play the role of a business broker which they have little to no experience at, when it is such a major financial decision that should be managed by an experienced professional."
What is your biggest challenge in connecting with a new prospect?
"most of my clients are repeats and referrals, but if I need to get ahold of a business owner for whom I may have a potential buyer, it can be challanging getting past the gatekeeper in a #confidential manner. #Intergrity is our core #value, so we would never lie about our reason for needing to speak to the owner directly, however #confidentiality is another one of our core values, so I would also never disclose to a receptionist or assistant or any other #team member that I am a business broker calling to see if the owner is interested in selling. Business owners never want anyone to know they would consider selling, especially not their staff, at least until the time is right. So it can be a little tricky getting through to the owner without disclosing my exact reason for needing to do so."
Whats the typical timeframe it takes to sell a business?
"Strategic exit planning can take months or years to implement and get things optimized to give the best chances of a #successful #sale at the best possible price and terms. Some sellers have been consulting with me for a while so, when they are ready to sell, things can move fast and smooth. Other sellers are extremely motivated for various reasons and the sales process can move very quickly as well, sometimes in 6 weeks or less from signing a #listing to #closing the sale.The national average is 6-9 months, but we don't take that long unless the seller wants to slow-play things. #Savvy sellers may engage with me in #exitplanning for a couple years and then when the time is right they pull the trigger and that's the best way for max ROI."
Well, speaking of 'never enough time in the day', Thats all the time I have for part 1. But stay tuned for part 2 where I ask our top business broker why he chose this profession, what kills the most deals, more about his background, story and qualifications, what is his #niche and how did he choose it, what his thought are on the competition, and a whole lot more.
Before I let you go: Can I make a recommendation with all due respect? I learned more than I ever could have imagined in an ehgaging, fun conversation with our certified business broker & you can to. Contact us today to schedule a confidential, complimentary, business or exit planning strategy session, and pick his brain like I did. I #guarantee you will get a lot of useful information, enjoy your time, and maybe make a new friend while your at it 😉!
Call: (866) CA-DREAM
Visit: www.DreamCompanies.com
Email: hello@dreamcompanies.com