by theEmother | Mar 6, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, the business model
Of late, I’ve had quite a few website owners come to me saying they want to sell… excellent. But (following on from yesterdays post), when asked to “prove” what they’re telling me, they go very very quiet. So what’s going on?
Whether it be a business or a website, you still need to answer these questions:
- have you been able to make a go of your Business/website?
- Is your business/website making a profit?
- How does your Business/website make money?
Just because it’s a website does not make the answers to these questions any less important.
Having a website for sale implies similar criteria is being taken care of, as is for a business ie::
o a database of clients/customers
o systems in place (which may be technology driven)
o Google presence
o looked after its position
o growth potential
o automated, so it’s not reliant solely on the owner
o numbers that make sense and can be verified
o measurable ways of indicating how all of the above makes profit!
o assuming all goes ahead, options on how to make the sale happen
Bottomline = how can you prove what you are claiming?
Selling a website is no different from selling a business really.
It’s not called an Online Business for nothing!
The business model may be what’s different but the fundamentals still apply…
by theEmother | Mar 5, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
Lets review how well your Business sells itself, both online and offline. What I mean by that is…
- have you been able to make a go of your Business?
- Is your business making a profit?
- How does your Business make money?
A learned Broker colleague once said to me:
“What a buyer buys is profit, the reason they buy it is the potential”.
If you’re not able to demonstrate how you have made a go of your Business, how it is turning over revenue, paying all its bills and leaving profit for you as the owner, to do with what you will… then how can you expect a prospective buyer to believe that it’s possible and be able to weight its value.
Granted, there is always the acquisition of a business from a strategic point of view (ie buy it for its client list only for example), but that really does depend on a particular type of buyer,and they’re not likely to reveal that to you, the seller, are they?
Having a business as an asset implies certain criteria is being taken care of, that it has:
o a database of clients/customers
o systems in place, and ideally automated
o brand presence
o looked after its IP
o growth potential
o management, so it’s not reliant solely on the owner
o numbers that make sense,and have been reported
o measurable ways of indicating how all of the above makes profit!
o assuming all goes ahead, options on how to make the sale happen
Bottomline = how can you prove what you are claiming?
If any of the above cannot be qualified, then it raises the question of whether this business is actually an asset, or as good as first portrayed, ready for sale.
The answer may very well be no.
However, that’s not to say that parts of the whole cannot be sold and some payback realised. It may mean though that the vision of grandeur dreamed about come sale day will not eventuate after all…
Start with the end in mind TODAY, regardless of how old your business is, and slowly but surely think through how well you can demonstrate and illustrate what your Business does, what you can do to improve it, restructure it, have it show the profit that all Buyers are looking to score!
by theEmother | Feb 28, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, BUY a Business, Buy a Mother of a Business, Consultant EXIT Options, EXIT execution, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, growth by acquisition, how to sell a business, Online Strategy incl. www, Sell Your Business, SELL your Mother of a Business, Sellability Score, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, TEMpting, the business model
How Saleable is Your Business in 2014?
How Saleable do you want Your Business 2014?
What are you waiting for? GET YOUR SCORE…
As the one particular sale has got to a major decision time, we’re now playing the waiting game! That said, there’s been plenty to keep me busy with a growing number of Business Owners exploring the sale option.
Again this week, I’ve had discussions about what constitutes an Online Business. Just because a Business Owner calls it so (and there’s many that do!) doesn’t mean others agree.
What’s your definition of an Online Business?
And while you’re at it, what about an Online Strategy?
You’ve only got to read my blog posts over the last weeks to understand what I mean when talking about both…
GOT A WEBSITE FOR SALE?
If you want to do sell a website or you’re looking to buy a website (excellent bolt-on possibilities), please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au
If any of the following tickle your fancy, please email me at dhall@businessbrokers.com.au, letting me know which one it is…
FOR SALE…
BS30 Online Venue Business
Completed Sellability Score
One meeting booked for March and details requested from another. The main focus is on the custom-built technology platform this business runs on.
BS49 Home Help…
One party is very interested. The potential has been well and truly revealed so it’s down to price and the level of comfort required to “pull the trigger”, as they say in the classics! Final questions being flagged now, prior to an offer being made (hopefully!).
BS53 Balloons! and all that goes with them…
Such corporate appeal, so untapped. It’s waiting for the savvy operator that can see past the retail component and tap into it’s possibility as a warehouse servicing the larger players. Completed the database trawl, with a number of calls being made. 4 put their hand up to receive the CA with one requesting the IM. Good work.
BS57 Online Business
Signed good to go. It’s making money! Have received signed authority’s and in the process of developing the IM now. Stay tuned.
Others I’m talking too.. are you interested in?
- a particular event
- project management of large Melbourne events
- specialty educational toys
- “experiential” advertising and events provider
- niche in building trade (via Sellability Score)
- sales and services
- merchandise
- magazine
If yes, let me know as these revealed themselves this week…
Exploring the Sale Option?
GET YOUR SCORE…
Onwards and Upwards!
by theEmother | Feb 27, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
OK, so you’ve got a:
- website
- online business
- internet business
and you want to know how to go about selling it?
Like any business sale, one starting point is to list all the “assets” it owns as well as the processes it goes through to deliver the product or service.
Essentially you want to “map” the business, whether that be via a mindmap or a photo of a whiteboard or a note in a journal. Why? because it’s not only imperative that you understand what makes up the thing you’re selling but that it is also easy to explain.
Importantly, you want the potential buyer y to see themselves doing what you do, only better!
Then it’s about pulling together all the proof required to substantiate the excitement.
That’s why a Business Profile is vital in establishing what you’re selling.
Not only does it contain the map and the main details, it also nicely summarises for all to see. AS well as assisting the Business Owner to get really clear on what’s for sale…
by theEmother | Feb 26, 2014 | build a Mother of a Business, business ideas & thinking, buy | sell websites, exit strategy, Finish Unfinished Business, Online Strategy incl. www, so you think you're in business, start with the end in mind, the business model
Offline? Online? Or is it a combination?
Do you have a strategy for both? Do you have numbers and statistics for both?
How do they complement each other?
Some businesses lend themselves to being ideal for online commerce. Others are more your traditional bricks and mortar type business. Nearly all try and cover both methods of operation. Whilst there are no right and wrong answers with this, there are definitely right and wrong questions being asked…
For example, for those with a website: “How does my Business website get more traffic?” is not the right question to ask. “What type of customer am I looking for and therefore where do they hang out?” definitely is.
In other words, how well is the website working for you?
If you answer this with a blank, then whilst you may have an online presence for those who already know you, the rollout of your online strategy has a bit of work to do.
If the purchasers of your products and services are to be found in a particular spot, then your Business needs to be there, no doubt. But just because one type of strategy works for one business does not mean it will work for all.
When looking to Exit, what you want is to demonstrate what path you have taken, why you have taken the path you have and the results of doing so, regardless of the path..
If yours in an online business for example, then you want to provide the following information:
o Pages views per month
o Uniques per month
o Gross revenue per month
o Net profit per month
o Google page ranking
o Alexa ranking
If you operate off-line, where is your Business located? Why there? Is it about foot traffic? How successfully does it work? etc
For both strategies…how do your customers find your Business? Do you know how many referrals your Business gets? Is there a formal referral/loyalty program?
If you can’t provide answers to questions like these right now, don’t be alarmed. Start with the end in mind TODAY, regardless of how old your business is, and slowly but surely think through WHERE your Business trades and why, what results you have to back up your reasoning, and with your opportunistic hat on, where else there could be possibilities…
