Advice on Selling a Business - Producing the Business Sale Document 

The 2nd stage of the business selling process is to begin work on the Business Sale Briefing Document. Good business brokers recognise the importance of providing buyers with a high quality document presenting the business to be sold fairly but positively. The objective is to attract serious buyers, giving them enough information to properly determine their level of interest. The document typically comprises the following sections:

• Executive Summary
• Business Overview – history, products/services, customers…
• Business Operations – sales & marketing, pricing, operations…
• Trading Performance – historic accounts, current trading, forecasts…
• The Offer – guide price, deal structure... 
• Additional Information – statutory accounts, other information…

We supply a template for the owner to fill in the relevant factual information. We will then carefully construct the Business Sale Briefing Document and refine the content until we and the owner are satisfied that we have described the business satisfactorily. Producing this document also enables us to understand the business better and ensure we get the Guide Price right. Depending on the size and complexity of the business the document may extend to 30 or 40 pages including the accounts. Employee names and any other very confidential information should not be included. 

Quote from History: ‘The whole of truth lies in the presentation;’ Joseph Conrad (1857-1924)

In summary, Anderson Shaw advises owners that a high quality business sale document is a key tool for selling a business and is always deployed by good business brokers.