How to Overcome Your Four Biggest Fears After Getting an Offer on Your Business
Every business owner is battered by letters or phone calls asking about the sale of his or her business. You learn to ignore them or simply not put too much stock in them. But then, there’s a letter or phone call that’s different – you can tell there’s a real buyer on the other side. Read more
How to Start Strong in Your Business Exit Process
Honesty.
Selling your business requires honesty.
You must be prepared to answer the questions that buyers have in an honest, almost clinical way.
Starting strong in your business exit process involves being honest about your motivation, your numbers, your employees, your customers and your competitors.
It’s a bit like going to the doctor to get your moles checked – annoying, frustrating, a bit anxiety inducing but you come out on the other side aware of what needs to be removed and what looks a little funky but is actually just fine.
Read more
“Can I Afford to Buy a Business?” Two Frameworks to Help You Answer That Question
If you’ve ever considered purchasing a business, the thought right after, “I can be my own boss!” is likely “Can I even afford it?” Business ownership is rewarding in many ways- beyond finances. But it also brings lifestyle changes that impact those around you. It’s an investment you want to be confident in.
We won’t talk in absolutes about whether or not you can afford to buy a business. But, after a decade of seeing executives buy businesses, we’ve developed two frameworks that work in tandem for helping you answer that question.
5 Mistakes People Make When Valuing a Business
As merger & acquisition professionals, we know that much of our job is education. The work we do day-in and day-out is a little bit complicated, a little bit obscure, and a whole lot different than a business owner’s day-in and day-out work. We value and enjoy our role as educators but sometimes we get frustrated when our clients get tunnel vision and choose to focus on any problem but the one that matters. We find ourselves having the wrong conversation over and over.
Are You Ready to Buy a Business? Six Questions to Ask to Find Out
Buying a business is hard work. Are you ready for that task? Below are six questions to help you find out. These questions are tailored specifically for the individual executive seeking to acquire a business (a different set of questions should be asked by corporate buyers). If that’s you, take some time to consider these questions.
70-90% of Strategic Acquisitions Fail – Here’s How Corporate Buyers Kill Deals
Strategic acquisitions have a historical failure rate of 70-90%. That’s a pretty dismal stat.
So, what are you doing wrong? And, more importantly, how do you properly lead your team in an acquisition process when the cards are stacked against you?
Below are five of the most common mistakes we see corporate buyers make when going through the acquisition process. These mistakes can be costly – especially, if the deal dies after you chased it for months. We’ve included reminders of basic, yet vitally important, acquisition principles that will allow you to steer clear of failure and action items to help your team gain momentum in the right direction.
My Top Tips for Business Owners Considering Selling [Guest Post]
Thanks to Kirk Kaiser for contributing this post to The DVS Group blog. He is an owner of Barrier Technologies. He founded the company in 2008 with Jaye Sieland. Barrier Technologies is a national containment contractor that specializes in preventing the spread of fire, smoke, sound, water, and infection in buildings.
“Where’s All the Drama?” How One Business Owner Successfully Sold His Business
Jeff Hutsell sold his company, Levels of Discovery, in 2013. Recently, we interviewed Jeff to find out what he recalls about the process and what advice he has for others.
The Value of Business Ownership
Is business ownership a valuable experience? Read the story of Robert Drumm, a DVS Group client, to find out.
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Lawyer, brewer of beer, writer, dad, husband – all words used to describe Robert.
In 2013, he was ready to add one more role to that list – business owner. Read more
Investment Banking Done by Humans, Not Investment Bankers
This is the final post in a series on The DVS Group Tenets – the principles, philosophies, values that guide our merger and acquisition work. Find the other posts in the series here.
The final DVS Group tenet is “Human”.
In an industry that’s known for being stuffy, arrogant and all about the numbers, we believe humans matter. Read more
What Is a Tailored M&A Process?
This is the third in a series on The DVS Group Tenets – the principles, philosophies, values that guide our merger and acquisition work. Find the other posts in the series here.
ARM was a niche business in the pharmaceutical industry, seeking to advance medical knowledge exchange by pioneering innovative tools and solutions. The founders were proud of the business they had built but felt it had grown beyond their comfort level. A customer was asking to double their business but the founders didn’t feel equipped to add that responsibility. They hoped to stay on for the long term but desired to sell the business to allow that growth to occur. Read more
A Day in the Life of an M&A Advisor
I find that people are often confused about what I do as an advisor at a mergers and acquisitions firm. If you search for an answer about what people within the industry do, you are inundated with posts about dog-eat-dog competition and long hours. Well, turns out, it’s possible to care about other people and get home to your family for dinner as an M&A advisor. Here’s a peek into a day in my life: Read more