How long will it take my business to sell?

One of the questions I’m most often asked is how long will it take my business to sell? Trust me: I wish I had a magic crystal ball that could tell you. 

Unfortunately, I don’t have a crystal ball and there’s not a simple answer to that question because you have to take so many things into consideration. 

So let’s break down a few common questions to determine just how long it will take to sell your business.

re you sure your business is ready to sell? Absolutely positive? No? I thought so.

Here’s where your friendly neighborhood exit plan coach comes in. I know how to get a business ready to sell and I hate to tell you but it takes time. On average, you should START the process of working with an exit plan coach and getting your business ready to sell at least a year (yes, 12 whole months) before you actually want to sell it. 

Your business didn’t happen overnight and neither will the sale of it.

Did you know that there are things that can make your business unsellable? I’m not talking about a loss in valuation, I’m talking about a business that simply won’t sell. Your exit plan coach (hi!) will guide you through this and I’m more than happy to book a free consultation with you to go over some of the high level details. 

Do you HAVE TO sell by a certain time? Having to sell by a certain date dictates where we need to start with prepping your business to sell and how we market it for sale. It also changes my strategy since we have a hard stop on you owning the business.

Lucky for you, this isn’t my first rodeo so having to sell by a certain time is no sweat for a seasoned exit plan coach such as myself. I’ll hold your hand the entire way and ensure that your business sells when it needs to and for what it needs to.

What’s your endgame? Retirement? A new venture? Relocation to Tahiti?

Every business transaction is different. Do you want to take the money and run? Do you need a certain amount to do that? Would you be willing to stay on as a consultant for the company or do you want to be sipping Mai Tai’s on the beach with no cell phone in sight? Do you want to move onto your next business venture and devote 100% of your time to that? What I’m telling you is that by knowing exactly what you NEED out of the sale of your business guides me in finding the perfect buyer for you at the perfect time.

Look, I wish I could tell you exactly when, to whom, and for how much your business would sell. (Do you know how easy my job would be?!) Unfortunately, I don’t BUT I can get pretty close. An experienced exit plan coach means I can guide you through the entire process of selling your business. I may not be able to tell you the exact date your business will sell, but I can tell you what you need to do before we can sell it. I can tell you what the market for businesses like yours is and I can even get your business in front of the right buyer to be sure it sells for top dollar at exactly the right moment.

Sound too good to be true? I promise it’s not. Book a free consultation with me today and let’s start the conversation about selling your business.