Let me tell you what motivates me to help you build a BIZ to sell

Build itWhether exiting or selling your business is even on your mind is not really the question. Plainly, every owner eventually transitions their business. The significant question is: Have you created a business that is attractive and valuable enough that someone else even wants to buy it much less pay you big bucks for it?

Business value doesn’t come from just selling more or increasing revenue, it comes from being able to find, hire and keep the right employees who make decisions as good or better than you would make, it’s about knowing who your ideal target customers are so you can create a marketing strategy and messaging that resonates, stands above the “noise” of the marketplace and gets heard and understood because it is clear, easy to understand, memorable and repeatable.  It’s about having systems that allow your business to run on auto-pilot whether you are there or not. And it’s about Cash-Is-King – having positive cash flow.

Here are some sobering thoughts: [source: Exit Planning Institute]

One: 70-80% of all small businesses are not saleable for the terms and/or timeline the owner wants because it won’t pass the due diligence test. One of those tests is whether the business is dependent upon a single person or a small group of people – lack of systematization. No sophisticated buyer is going to even want to purchase a business like that.

Two: 80 to 90% of an owner’s financial wealth is locked-up in their businesses.

Three: 63% of the business owners indicated they needed the income from the business to support their lifestyle.

Four: 56% of the business owners indicated they needed to harvest the value of their business to support their lifestyle post-transition.

Let me tell you what motivates me to help you build a BIZ to sell.             

I’ve owned and operated a small business for over 35 years and I’ve sold two multi-million-dollar businesses that were sold on timelines and terms I didn’t want.

In 2003 I was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and treated at Mayo for 5 years.

During these 5 years, I learned that my cancer was likely caused by my exposure to petrochemicals – a product extremely prevalent in my auto dealership.

I had two young teenage children at the time and I had to make a choice, keep my dealership and risk a reoccurrence of my cancer or sell and live to see my kids graduate and maybe even marry.

I sold it in 2008.  Not the peak economic time to sell.

Then three years ago, my brother got terminal cancer. Before he died, he asked for my help selling his office equipment business.  His dream was to sell for $5.5 million when he decided to sell at retirement.

The problem: He thought he had plenty of time to build his business to thrive without him, after all, he was still in his 50’s.

We ended up selling for a far cry from his desired amount.

Those two lessons motivated me to work with small business owners to build their business to thrive as well without them as with them.

Small to medium-sized businesses are the heart and soul of America.

When I sold my new car/truck dealership, I employed 82 people.

Like you, I never missed a payroll.

And like you, we provided access to great health care for them and their spouse and kids.

Our employees purchased homes, autos, recreational vehicles, groceries, took vacations, and their kids got to go to better schools all because we sold products and services that people wanted and needed.

When businesses like yours succeed (and eventually successfully transition to a new owner) the world becomes a much better place. Not just because of the money, we put back into circulation, but when we run a principle-centered BIZ, we affect the community as a whole.

Together, it’s businesses like yours that build the middle class.

It’s because of what you do, children get to go home tonight to a warm meal and sleep in a warm bed.  And tomorrow they get to wake up and go to a good school.

We don’t want to help you grow your business just because of you alone. We know what you do with your money. We know the legacy you are leaving matters to a whole community by creating jobs that matter and communities of co-workers that are truly meaningful.

Here’s to the success of your marketing and selling messaging, the systems that help your business run on auto-pilot and the empowered workforce that all allows you to focus on the real success of your business and the legacy you leave.

God Bless you and all you do.

If the owner IS the business, it’s worth nothing.
If the owner runs the business, it may be worth something.
If the business is totally independent of the owner and he or she can take 4-week vacations whenever they want, THEN it is worth money
.

P.S. After the execution of our program, you may not want to sell because it will be running so smoothly on virtual auto-pilot generating more cash then you thought possible.

P.S.S. Even if you’re not planning on selling, building your company to Sell It is building a company that is built to own.

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Build Your BIZ to Sell It

Guiding_Principles_safe_image
Even if you’re not planning on selling, building your company to Sell It is building a company that is built to own.

Build your business from the inside out to run independently of you AND in the process, make it valuable enough that someone would be willing to pay you big bucks for it and allow you to sell on a timeline & terms of YOUR choosing. We do this by helping you to identify, focus on and execute the very few Critically important goals that will give you 5, 10, 20 or even 100X’s ROI.

Business owners are SWAMPED, caught in the Whirlwind of the Urgent of their day-to-day activities; always putting out fires, taking on more responsibilities but not having the time, systems, people, or cash flow to handle them. They are so overwhelmed that they no longer have the confidence to know what to say “Yes” to and what to say “No” to. All because they have no True North Compass to guide them.

You are not only risking your business but your emotional well-being, physical health, family, marriage, personal savings, and possibly even your retirement – but you don’t have to. Our “Build Your BIZ from the Inside Out” product will give you back control of your time, your business and ultimately, your life.

You will no longer be confused about what to focus on and fix next, what to say ‘Yes’ to and what to say ‘No’ to. You will learn to identify and execute on the One Thing, that if you do it, everything else is either easier or unnecessary. 

In short, your business will now be working for you instead of you working for it.

A good ROT to remember:

If the owner IS the business, it’s worth nothing.
If the owner runs the business, it may be worth something.
If the business is totally independent of the owner and he or she can take 4-week vacations whenever they want, THEN it is worth money.

Here are some sobering thoughts: [source: Exit Planning Institute].  70-80% of all small businesses are not saleable for the terms and/or timeline the owner wants because it won’t pass the due diligence test.

To pass this test, focus all of your energy, time and resources in 6 Key Areas:

Connect Mission & Guiding Principles:  Most companies have mission statements that no one understands, is confusing and not at all memorable. Because of this, your marketing messaging gets caught up in the noise of the marketplace.

Your systems, your meetings and most critically, your employees are confused about your company’s purpose and this then spills into everything else.  And, if your employees are confused, imagine how your customers must feel.

Fix this confusion and suddenly your marketing is clear, your meetings are more effective, employees are aligned & unified and everyone is in the same boat, rowing in the same direction executing at the highest levels of excellence.

Create Consistent Positive Cash Flow: Positive cash flow gives you the financial cushion – and confidence – to implement changes AND make your BIZ more attractive to future potential buyers because they won’t have to commit funds to working capital.

80/20 Selling & Marketing – through targeting the right audience, isolating your unique offering and helping you clarify your messaging so it is clear, easy to understand and make people want to follow you – your marketing and selling message will stand out amongst the noise of the marketplace and attract the highest quality customers – the 20% that will generate 80% of your results.

Systematization of Key Functions – Identify & isolate your core functions that have the highest impact on your BIZ

Build Your Team: Recruit & Retain Super Star Employees & Managers – the 20% that generates 80%.

  • Build a website recruiting page that recruits the right people 24/7
  • Rewrite job descriptions & job ads

Execute – You will no longer be confused about what to focus on and fix next, what to say ‘Yes’ to and what to say ‘No’ to.  You will learn to identify and execute the One Thing, that if you do it, everything else is either easier or unnecessary.

Most people do too much. Their lives are cluttered with unnecessary stuff and a confusing, burdensome array of choices. They waste themselves responding to the urgent while ignoring the important. They’re busy, but not all that effective. They’re burning calories they don’t need to.

In contrast, highly effective people think differently and are focused and calm. They concentrate on only the most important, and on the one thing that really matters.

So, instead of throwing more effort at whatever situation or problem you face, consider first, what you can discontinue.

The key to getting more with less is more about stopping than starting, it’s about knowing what to quit doing, what to say no to.

Create white space in your schedule, in your mind and in your life as a whole. It’s about emptying your days of those things that don’t justify your time and effort because the return on investment is so poor.

Imagine taking some of this new white space you’ve created by uncluttering your life and investing it in those things that really matter and count the most, work best, and bring the greatest rewards getting you 5,10, 15, 20 or even 100 times improvements.

5 Principles of Execution:

  1. Connect & Communicate Mission & Guiding Principles Execution begins with clear, concise, easy to understand communication. When the message is clear, stakeholders will listen which is the first step to commitment and engagement. When we confuse ‘em, we lose ‘em.
  2. Put First Things First – Focus on the Critically Important First Things – the 5% that generates 95%. Eliminate everything else – create white space.
  3. Act on Lead Measure Activities. Define and Act on the Leveraged action that will enable you to achieve your Critical Goal
  • Predictive:  measures something leading to the goal
  • Influenceable:  something that can be changed
  1. Create a compelling way to measure and track – you cannot manage what you do not measure & track
  2. Create a rhythm of accountability – weekly 20-minute accountability meeting
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