Seminar Syllabus:
Business Broker Training
(Each seminar is limited to 10
persons.)
The
Profession
Important recent trends
Licensing requirements by state
Reliable reference sources /
bibliography
Franchise affiliation or independent
office
Full or part time
Income expectations
The statistics of the profession
Setting up
office
Home or rental office
Solo practitioner or join an
established firm
Recommended software
Contact management
Office / listings /
sales management
Business appraisals
Setting up the files – categories
needed
Fax / Scanner requirements and
recommendations
Phones and answering options
Letterheads and business cards
Signage
Listings –
Your key to success
Number of businesses for sale at any
point in time
The 6 methods of obtaining listings
Advantages and
disadvantages of each
Quality versus quantity in obtaining
listings – the enduring controversy
The 3 most common problems with
listings and how to handle each
The
listing process
The need for
confidentiality
Initial contact with
seller
First interview with
seller
Business valuation
Three
commonly used methods
Written
pricing analysis
The third
party appraisal and when it’s needed
Recommended
firms to use when needed
Follow up interview with
seller
The vital need for
accurate initial information on the business
The critical importance
of handling company problems early
Getting the listing
contract signed
Length of
listing considering average length of time to sell
Commission
rate – the range currently in use
Other critical
issues
Important
protective legal language
Preparing the seller for
what is to come
Outlining
the process step-by-step can be critically important
Building the listing
file
Financial
statements – how many years needed
Tax returns
Company
history and narrative
Company marketing materials (brochures, etc.)
Lease
agreement
Other items
The importance of
staying in touch with the seller
Marketing
– To earn your commission
Selling yourself
Association memberships
Networking opportunities
Speaking engagements
Writing articles
Conducting seminars
Business Acquisition Financing
Most buyers will need
financing to acquire a business
Consulting with buyers
to assist in obtaining financing
The 4 sources of
business acquisition financing
Advantages
and disadvantages of each
How to pre qualifying a
business for financing
Marketing a
pre qualified business
Building
the listing’s marketing package (both hard copy and emailable)
The profile: a 1-page summary of the
business
What
to include
The
preferred layout
The recast cash flow summary worksheet
The necessity of recasting the profit
and loss statement to
calculate
owner’s discretionary cash flow (CPAs call it
“normalizing”
the profit and loss statement)
What is “owner’s discretionary cash flow” (ODCF)
Expense items to consider when adjusting for ODCF
How to calculate the final figure for
ODCF
Form to use to clearly show calculation to buyer prospect
Other items to include
in the marketing package
What to leave out of the
market package for later presentation
Selling
the listing while maintaining confidentiality
Newspapers
Other local media
Direct mail and personal
contacts
Your personal database
of buyers
Websites
Your own
local website
The
new importance of having you own
How
to build / contract for your own website
The
best host for your website in the profession
Methods
of insuring that your site gets noticed
National
“Business for
Ranked
by strength of results and our recommendations
Key wording to use in
all advertising to generate inquiries
Information that should
never be in the public advertising
Fielding buyer inquiries
Essential phrasing to
use in your initial response
How to maintain confidentiality while
being diplomatic
The non-disclosure
agreement
The buyer questionnaire
form
Obtaining financial
information from the buyer
Separating the “tire
kickers” from the serious prospects
The 3 frequent objections from buyers
and how to handle each
Giving the prospect the marketing
package: when and how
Managing the anonymous visit by the
prospect to the business
Setting up the next step: the buyer /
seller meeting
The buyer / seller meeting
Pre briefing the seller
on the outline for the meeting
Meeting the prospect at
the business: where and how
Six definite things the
seller should do during the meeting
Three critical things
the seller should not do at the meeting
The tour of the business
How the seller should
say goodbye to the prospect
How the broker should
prepare the buyer for the next step: the offer
Writing the “Offer to Purchase”
How to introduce the
“contingent” contract
How to address the prospect’s
natural anxieties
The issues covered in
the contract
Price and
financing terms
Closing date
Inventory level
to be on hand the day of closing
How
to adjust at closing if different from stated level
Training and
transition agreement
Non compete
agreement
Deadline for
response of seller to buyer’s offer
Contingencies
and the extreme importance of them
The
2 most often included contingencies and why
Negotiations
Seven do’s and don’ts that
can make or break the process
When to be diplomatic
When to be frank while
maintaining your professionalism
How to handle the
insurmountable
The importance of
momentum
How to wrap it up and
move on to the next step: due diligence
Due diligence
What is due diligence
and why is it so critically important
Buyer’s remorse and how
to deal with it
The business books and
records and how to handle with buyer
The other issues that
may crop up and how to handle
The importance of being
earnest
Satisfying the contingencies
Getting the buyer and
seller to sign off on the satisfaction form
Closing
Reconfirming the closing
date
Who can act as closing agent
The need for a cashiers
check at closing
The disbursements
The forms
The proceeds
disbursement summary
The bill of
sale for non realty assets
The deed for
the real estate (if there is any)
The note (if
seller or 3rd
party financing is involved)
The chattel
mortgage as security for the note
The covenant
not to compete
Any other
document as call for by agreement of the parties
Other issues
Proration of
rent and other similar expenses
A plan for
the return to the business from the closing table
The
meeting with the employees
Training
and transition schedule firmed up
Key to the business exchanged
Congratulations!
– You’ve completed the training and are ready for a new profession
The awarding of your handsomely
framed diploma attesting that you have
graduated
from the Advanced Business Broker Training curriculum of
the
American Business Brokers Association
At your option, we will take a
photograph of you receiving the diploma from
the
president of the association and write a press release for your
hometown
media.
All of
the items in the syllabus are discussed in detail in the seminar, with hands-on
exercises and a generous amount of time allotted for questions and
answers. At the successful conclusion of
the seminar, graduates will be ready to enter the profession with the knowledge
distilled from many years of practice by senior members of the
association. The seminar is personally
taught by the president of the association.
All forms, contracts and marketing materials needed for a business
brokerage practice are provided on computer disc in Microsoft Word format so
that they can be edited and personalized.
Also
included are dues for one year’s membership in the ABBA and unlimited follow up
support by telephone consultations as you establish your new business brokerage
practice. The investment in the program,
including all materials, is $995 at the door or $895 with advance registration.
Each class is limited to 10 participants, so please reserve you space early to
insure availability. Credit cards are
accepted thru PayPal.
To
register, please call:
William Bruce, President, American Business
Brokers Association
or
email him
and request a registration form at
We look
forward to seeing you in one of our seminars!