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Home Blog Selling Your Business – The Top Reasons to Hire An Advisor

April 8, 2018

Selling Your Business – The Top Reasons to Hire An Advisor

By Jeremy Albelda

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‘I know the value of my business and I have three buyers knocking on my door each week, I will sell my business on my own (and save the commissions)’ – statements often expressed by business sellers.

“As the old adage goes, ‘you don’t know, what you don’t know’ – this is exactly the reason many business transfers never close, or ultimately end up in court” says Achim Neumann, President, A Neumann & Associates, LLC, a New Jersey based Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory firm, “unfortunately, all too often, business sellers are not familiar at all with all the nuances and challenges of a business sale (while still being excellent and successful business operators).”

Here is a list of the top fifteen reasons why a business owner should hire a professional M&A Advisor:

  1. Professional cash flow recasting with a reconciliation of tax returns vs. financial statements and a compilation of all operational business information in an organized fashion;
  2. Establishing a Fair Market Value by way of an accredited third-party business valuation firm – defining the best price and terms before going to market;
  3. To maximize net receipts, M&A advisors can recommend additional external professional advisors – transaction attorneys, tax lawyers, CPAs, estate planers, etc.;
  4. Advisors prepare a professional investor package with a winning marketing strategy;
  5. Most business buyers start with an M&A Advisor / business brokers in their searches;
  6. A deep advisor’s database of buyers and investors will attract more than one offer;
  7. Confidentiality preservation – pre-qualification of potential buyers without divulging the name/location of the business for sale;
  8. Advisors can initiate contact with likely purchasers without releasing the name of the business – with the knowledge of what/when to show buyers. Sellers do not have to fear adverse effects of a premature sale disclosure to key employees and lenders;
  9. Minimize interference with owner’s ‘running of the business’ as most owners do not have time to sell the business (or the business’ performance will dramatically decline);
  10. To avoid owner’s adversarial positioning in the negotiation process with buyer;
  11. Advisor will coach sellers to answer buyers’ questions and concerns not setting red flags;
  12. Broker depersonalizes negotiations and takes seller out of ‘negotiation front lines’;
  13. Advisors help to evaluate purchase offers and reduce frustration during offering and sales process – most deals die numerous times, good advisors know how to revive them;
  14. Advisors help buyers to obtain bank financing – for cash to be at the closing table!
  15. Compensation is commission based upon a sale – what does a seller have to lose?

In sum, professional M&A advisors and Business Brokers know how to sell businesses. Most often, their objectives – by way of a back-end fee – are completely aligned with the objectives of a business owner in maximizing the value and terms of a transaction.

For that reason, it is very sensible to bring a professional M&A advisor in to develop a transaction as much as a business owner would hire a CPA to perform the tax planning or an attorney to handle legal matters – not doing so will simply translate into a performance decline of the business (aka a lower price) with a sub-par deal at the end.

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About A Neumann & Associates, LLC

A Neumann & Associates, LLC is a professional mergers & acquisitions and business brokerage firm having assisted business owners and buyers in the business valuation and business transfer process through its affiliations for the past 30 years. With an A+ Better Business Bureau rating, the company has senior trusted professionals with a deep knowledge based in multiple field offices along the East Coast and has performed hundreds of business valuations in its history. The firm’s competitive transaction fees are based on successfully completing transactions. For more information, please contact A Neumann & Associates at 732-872-6777 or info@neumannassociates.com

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Client Testimonials

“I had been in touch with Karin and Gary from A Neumann & Associates regarding some opportunities and was looking forward to meeting with them. Hence, when they organized a seminar in Princeton, NJ, I was quick to sign up. The seminar was very informative as the team walked the attendees through various scenarios and referenced real life buying/selling situations they had been through. The sessions by Gary, Karin and Achim were crisp and focused and brought clarity to potential seller and buyers. I strongly recommend the team and look forward to continue working with them.”

Gaurav Tyagi

“Thank you for your Event on "How to value, Sell, and Buy A Business for Maximum Profit" and the insight into ANA’s approach on what is involved in the Business Exit for sellers. Garys Hervieiou's "Business Valuation", Achim's "Deal structure" presentation and Karin’s "Preparing the Package" are real street knowledge shared. They answered attendees questions which makes it more interesting for learning from others. Great for small businesses like us. The presentations were totally worth our time and travel for the event to Princeton, NJ from Rockville MD. Ravi Bhutani, President, CIPS”

Ravi Bhutani

“Gary, this is to thank you for an excellent job done in selling our business. We could never have done it without your professional expertise, dedication and time put in without reservation to make it happen. We will gladly and highly recommend you to anybody in our position.  It was a pleasure to work with you.”

Pat Iammatteo, Owner

“Your vetting is simply outstanding, among the best I've seen from a broker.”

Eric H., Investor

“I recently contacted A. Neumann and Associates about getting a valuation of my business done. I spoke with Marc, who explained the process in detail. After meeting with Marc in order to get a clear understanding of my business, and what I was hoping to accomplish. His patience in answering all my questions and his knowledge of the proper way to market my business gave me great confidence that this is the firm I will be using to sell my business for max value. Working with Marc at A Neumann & Associates was very easy and professional. I did not know all that was going to be involved in selling my business but they helped me through the process. What I thought was going to be a just another one of those pushy sales companies was just the opposite. Polite, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to talk to and deal with. I highly recommend this firm to anybody who wants to sell now or down the road. Marc not only knows his stuff, but actually is a real nice guy.”

Double Diamond

“Used A Neumann & Associates to sale my business. could not imagine having done it with out the patience and experience Gary provided. Thanks Gary,”

Dennis Frazier

“Working with Marc and his company was a pleasure. What I thought was going to be a just another one of those pushy sales companies was just the opposite. Polite, knowledgeable, and a pleasure to talk to and deal with. Marc handled most of the interaction and he has one of the greatest demeanors. Again, it was a pleasure working with him and his firm.”

Douglas DiCeglio

“I recently completed an acquisition using A Neumann & Associates. Tony Valentino was very helpful and accessible during the entire process. They do a thorough job vetting both parties and got us to the finish line.”

Srini Mudambi

“Claus out of Florida helped us with the sale of our business. We had never done anything like this and him and his team walked us through the process from start to finish. We had some challenges through the process and Claus continued to show up even in the difficult conversations.”

Colby Harris, Co-Owner, Del Mar Designs

“Claus Madsen thoroughly helped us with selling our company. From the 1st introductory meeting explaining to us what was possible, to providing us with resources to assist with the sale. Claus was invaluable throughout the whole sales process. Claus was with us every step of the journey and always made himself available for any questions or issues that came up along the way. If you are interested in selling your business, I encourage you to reach out to Claus and the ANA team so that they can let you know what’s achievable. These guys will make it happen!”

Ron Harris, Co-Owner and Vice President, Del Mar Designs
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Contact A Neumann & Associates, LLC

If you are considering selling your business, please contact us to learn more about our comprehensive service spectrum. Our experienced professionals will answer all your questions about selling a privately held business in complete confidentiality. Please fill out our contact form, or call us at 732-872-6777. We will contact you directly and will never identify ourselves to your employees.

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