What We Do

Is it time to sell?

Being in the mergers and acquisitions marketplace every day, we know what buyers are looking for, how they evaluate companies, and what increases company appeal. We can apply this knowledge base to your company and advise you on whether the timing is right, whether you should concentrate on taking certain steps to better prepare your business before entering the marketplace, and assessing whether a sale may meet or exceed your expectations and goals.

Five years prior to your exit is the best time to start looking at these issues so that you can make adjustments that will maximize value when you are ready. No matter what stage you find yourself in, the sooner you get the right information, the better.

What Is YOUR BUSINESS Really Worth?

Unlike most other sales transactions, the value of YOUR BUSINESS is not easily determined. The scorecards (financial statements or tax returns) most businesses keep are prepared on a tax basis where tangible asset values are written off as fast as possible, intangible asset values are not even reflected, and the goal is to minimize income and reduce taxes.

To get the best price for YOUR BUSINESS, it is critical to take your everyday tax basis financial information and make documented, explainable adjustments to identify the maximum earning capacity of YOUR BUSINESS. Industry multiples and rules of thumb do not capture the unique attributes and value of YOUR BUSINESS. It is critical to have a thorough analysis and understanding of value before starting the sale process to be able to lead the buyer to the highest price conclusion and negotiate around the buyer’s risk perceptions and end up with the best deal. Otherwise it would be like going into surgery without having blood and other tests for the doctor to know what he is dealing with. Our proprietary Market Pricing Analysis^© identifies the maximum justifiable sale price and equips us with the information to negotiate a superior deal.

Professional documentation to market your business

Before you ever talk to a buyer, it is important to have professional documentation ready to go. The presentation of the information to buyers has a huge impact on how seriously they will consider your business and what price they will eventually agree to offer. We constantly receive praise from buyers on the quality of our presentations. From the initial Confidential Business Review through successive releases of more in depth information, it is important to provide concise, pertinent information and control the release to ratchet up commitment, while leading buyers to the right conclusion.

Development and execution of a marketing plan to reach buyers

We utilize web portals to attract buyers, research tools to target buyers, trade association memberships to find buyers, and a buyer database from over 15 years of selling businesses to market a business nationwide to individuals, corporate acquirers, and private equity groups that are seeking quality business acquisition opportunities. Working closely with the business owner to protect confidentiality, we will screen, pre-qualify, and narrow down a buyer pool to several capable prospects to compete for the business.

Managing buyers and communications during the business review process

We will handle all buyer communications during this phase with the goal of only releasing information as potential buyers demonstrate increasing interest. This includes managing information requests, dealing with sensitive issues, and balancing the release of information to give the buyer what they need to make the best offer while guarding confidential information to the maximum extent possible.

Want to find out more about how we market your business to generate a competitive environment that gives you the advantage? Contact Strategic Endeavors to request a free, confidential consultation.

Facilitate negotiations leading to an offer to purchase.

Acting as an intermediary, we will facilitate the negotiation in a way that downplays emotion and allows you to make informed decisions as opposed to spontaneous responses that may have unintended consequences later. We will also introduce allocation of purchase price and risk allocation concepts in a general context to prepare both sides before paid-by-the-hour professionals are engaged and hard dollars are spent that will be lost if a deal fails. Finally, we will seek to obtain a clearly worded offer or letter of intent that outlines all the key issues while leaving the specific accounting and legal details open for your accountant and attorney to address.

Financing the transaction.

We often connect buyers with lenders that want to finance business sale transactions. We have good working relationships with multiple lenders that are actively looking to finance acquisitions. And we bring our experience and knowledge to bear on the financing approval process (which often includes a 3rd party business valuation) to keep the transaction on track and get the funding in place to close a premium deal.

Final negotiation and due diligence.

Accounting and legal issues can often become deal-breakers. As the intermediary that has managed the relationship up to the final negotiation and earned the trust of both sides, Strategic Endeavors is invaluable at this stage to propose solutions and resolve disputes. We also manage the due diligence requests, deal with buyer concerns, and try to implement the offer that the parties have agreed to.

Closing and post transaction issues.

As Closing approaches, there are a myriad of transition issues (i.e. transfer of leases, contracts, utilities, credit card processing, etc.) that need to be dealt with. We have experience with this and take the lead to deal with what can be very time-consuming issues. There has been more than one deal that fell apart at the closing table. Again, as the one player who has been there for every detail from start to finish, we will be there as a calming, reassuring force to resolve any final issues and get the signatures on the final document and the money in your hands. We are also available for post-closing consultation to keep things on track and see that follow-up details are handled.