When selling your business there’s one thing we can all agree on, that is that we hope to see some financial benefit. However, in order to appear attractive to the right buyer, a unique selling point must be identified and BCMS have created some step-by-step tips to ensure you find the selling point that works for you, here we will break it down for you.
Step One – understand what is important to the buyer
Just like finding the USP for a product first, you must consider what buyers are looking for. Obviously, if your business is doing well financially this is a natural selling point that won’t take much explaining – after all you can let the numbers do the talking. However, in some cases, buyers may be looking to invest in a particular sector that they require for an existing business, or perhaps they are looking to expand their own portfolio with expertise in a niche area.
Consider what your business can offer, ask yourself, do we have a niche or mass-market product offering? Are we specialists in a certain area? Is there potential for growth?
Step Two – Looking at the wider market
The buyer will also be interested in the long-term, so knowing what sets you apart within the market is also important.
Here we could consider our 4p’s:
Product
Is your product different to that of the competitors, if so what makes it different? This may be a subtle difference such as colour or more defying like an advance in technology.
Also, consider your brand and intellectual property it could be a patent or trademark that gives you the competitive advantage.
Place
Think about your distribution, if you have a physical product that requires thorough logistic operations and your business is in the perfect accessible location you may be on to a winner. Alternatively, you may offer a service that customers require direct access to and you are in the city centre.
Remember your online community too. You may have a large following on the right platform of which to sell a certain product or service, and this could work in your favour.
When selling a business, it’s not always about what you sell.
Promotion
Closely connected to place, your promotion is important to consider, after all you may know your customers very well and can therefore provide knowledge the buyer does not have. No doubt, you will have access to data from successful and unsuccessful campaigns; it is this type of knowledge that may be extremely valuable to the right buyer.
Price
What are your price points in comparison to the competition? If you can afford to provide competitive rates, a potential buyer may find this attractive, as it could be an easy way into the market.
On the other hand if you offer premium rates with a brand and product that reflects this it can be equally as appealing.
Step Three – Selling Your USP
Once you have your USP it’s time to reach the correct buyer so ensuring your message is clear and consistent is vitally important. Mergers and acquisitions specialists can help with ensuring your message is presented in the best way possible, so consider asking the professionals.
