How to Choose a Business Broker

It is time to sell your company.

After years of struggling to build it, now it is the time to reap the harvest.

But where do you start?  Who do you talk to?  What is it worth?

When seriously considering the sale of their company, most owners turn to friends and trusted professionals for advice.  Often, these folks have a strong desire to help but very limited real-world experience in preparing, marketing and selling a business.  Consequently the owner must embark on what can be a very difficult and costly journey of discovery to find proper representation.

Since 1984, Kasper & Associates has worked side by side with hundreds of business owners to successfully position their company in the marketplace and maximize their return at sale time.

Here are ten important questions we believe every owner should consider when choosing a business broker to represent them:

1. Is the business broker trustworthy?
2. Does the business broker have extensive experience selling your kind of business (industry, complexity, size, etc.)?
3. How extensive and active is the business broker’s network of active buyers?
4. What do previous owner/customers say about the business broker’s work?
5. How well does the business broker work with other transaction professionals including business lawyers, accountants, bankers and investment advisors?
6. Have the professionals associated with the business broker’s firm owned, operated and successfully sold their own companies?
7. Are the moral, professionals and ethical values demonstrated by the business broker compatible with yours?
8. Does the business broker have an effective system for establishing your company’s market value and validating that value to potential buyers?
9. Will the business broker’s reputation add to or detract from yours?
10. Would you be comfortable working closely with the business broker as required to successfully market and sell your company?