Selling Your Business Keats Group LLC specializes in selling privately owned businesses. We have deep technical understanding of business transactions in areas of valuation and appraisal, deal structure, marketing, financing and project management. We are highly respected for our professionalism and ethics, and our client results. We manage all steps of the selling process for your company: Business worth valuation. We understand the various methods buyers and sellers use to determine fair market value of a business. These methods - discounted cash flow, capitalized income, asset based pricing and comparable transactions analysis, might be used alone or in combination to achieve the optimum position for your business and personal circumstances. We also understand balance sheet items, which often are the source of ideas for deal structures that optimize price for sellers and risk for buyers. Deal structure and terms. We analyze the business and position it optimally for sale, looking at the transaction from both owner and buyer viewpoints. Sellers can get up to 90% cash.  Working capital and tax planning. We work with your tax professionals to assess tax allocations of purchase price, important in lowering personal tax liability for the sale. Pre-arranged financing. To make the business easier to sell, we line up bank and SBA financing, equity or asset financing and working capital. Business profile. A blind business profile and financial analyses are prepared to share with qualified prospective buyers. We also gather and package key information about company products, market position and growth potential. Target marketing. On a confidential basis, we identify, contact and negotiate with individual prospects, firms in the industry, acquisition groups, and retired or out-placed executives. We advertise the business on our website, run Internet and print advertisements and direct mail to targeted buyers at our expense. Qualifying buyers. Each prospect signs a non-disclosure agreement and provides us with a financial statement. We then personally interview qualified buyers. Introductions to the owner and business. We schedule and participate in owner-prospect meetings and tours of the business. Letter of Intent. We discuss terms for the Letter of Intent with serious prospects. In many cases, we are successful getting the buyer to use our LOI; in all cases, we secure an escrow deposit. Legal documents. At your option, we can refer you to affiliated law firms to help prepare the necessary legal documents and represent you at closing. We oversee the preparation of sale-related documents, and we do not derive any fees or income from referrals.   Selling a business without the help of a broker-advisor is not easy, and it doesn’t come without cost. First, selling a business takes a great deal of time; this amounts to days or weeks you’ll spend away from running your business.   Second, selling a business takes expertise in business worth valuation, structure price and terms, contract negotiation, closing preparations and financing. Often, one or two contract terms negotiated in your favor can offset some or all of our fee. Buyers of businesses will almost always have experienced advisors, and most buyers look at multiple opportunities; it takes experience to separate serious candidates from prospects that will never buy.       Third, selling a business requires confidentiality. Your risk of business disruption or loss of momentum is lower with careful planning and confidential marketing. Since many prospects inquiring about your business will not have serious intent, risk tolerance or reasonable expectations about what to pay, you do not want to disclose information identifying your business until a prospect is qualified and serious. We pre-qualify and interview all prospects for you.       Last, buying a business through a reputable broker is perceived as less risky than negotiating with and buying directly from the owner. Keats Group professionals have been in business in this market for many years working with executives, bankers, attorneys, tax advisors and business owners. We know the market.