5 Signs it’s Time to Sell Your Business

There comes a time in almost any business where you want to retire or move on to another product and the thought of selling comes to mind.

But, how do you know when the right time to sell your business is? How do you know when to do it so that you can maximize your profit?

Here are five ways to determine when it’s the right time to sell your business. Plus, if you’re just at the start-up phase, it can give you some insight on how to set things up so your business is salable.

1. The Market Is Right – People might have expressed interest in your business already, which means the market might be telling you that it’s time to sell your business. Just because someone offers you money today, doesn’t mean it’ll be on the table later. When an unexpected offer comes in give it some serious thought.

2. You Have Competitors Who May Want Your Business – When you have some close competition there is a chance to that one of your competitors might want to buy your business in order to eliminate the competition. If you have a few or more that you go to battle with over customers make a list of them for later.

3. Your Business Is As Successful As You Can Make It— You’re not in debt and your business is profitable every month. You make plenty of sales and have a large email list, fan base, and social media following that can translate into even more success and up the price of your business as you sell these assets. But, you feel like you’ve done as much as you can with the business and someone else can likely take it farther.

4. Your Business Isn’t Dependent On You – This is one of the biggest keys and one that can be repaired if you’ve branded your business to be all about you and your name but, if you’re the only one who can make the things that you sell, then you may have a problem. If you’ve designed your business with the future in mind, you’ve created a business that can continue long after you’re gone.

5. You’re Ready To Move On – You’re at the point where you’re not excited about your business anymore, you feel like you’ve done all that you can with your business. Alternatively, you are ready to retire. It’s been your plan all along to have an exit strategy so that you can eventually retire or start up another successful business.

Selling a business isn’t a sign of defeat, rather it’s a sign that you’re truly free to do what you want with your own business and that you’ve thought about your exit strategy from the beginning. It’s an excellent way to run a business, and having given it thought you’ll know when the right time to sell is.