Selling Your Business? Do Looks Matter?

First impressions do matter. We all know that. When selling a business and attempting to attract the attention of a potential buyer for your business, they matter even more Here’s why…

A clean, well-kept business that is in good condition can give current customers a more positive feeling for the type of service and/or products they can expect to receive from your business. When it comes time to sell, this attention to detail can also attract new buyers.

Take a quick walk through your facility and really take a look at it from the eyes of a customer or buyer. What do you see? Not sure what to look for? Here’s a list of some of the key areas that can make or break a sale.

What to look for, on the interior of your business:

• Overall cleanliness – overflowing garbage cans, dirt, and an overall messy environment will turn off many buyers.
• Facilities maintenance – the condition of flooring and paint along with burned out light bulbs or busted drywall can detract from your bottom line.
• Organization of work areas – do employees seem to be tripping over one another. Can customers easily access merchandise or freely move about and feel welcomed into your offices?
• Inventory levels and organization – does the amount of inventory seem adequate? How well is the inventory organized?
• Equipment – is the equipment well maintained or disorganized? Care of business assets tells a story about your facility, your standards and your attention to detail.

Take a look outside. How does the exterior of your facility look?

• Parking lot – maintaining a good appearance of the facility including the parking area is important. In fact, the exterior of the business, the parking lot is where business owners hope their potential customers will derive a great ‘first impression.’ Having a clean parking lot projects an image of success, and people prefer to patronize and buy successful businesses. A parking lot cluttered with debris, overrun by potholes and weeds may make potential visitors even hesitate to venture inside for a second look.
• Exterior of your building – if there’s graffiti on the walls, peeling paint, rotting wood or other signs of overall lack of care in terms of the facility itself, this isn’t a good sign to a potential buyer.
• Signage – does your business have adequate signage to locate the facility and is it in good condition?

A Worthwhile Investment

Keeping up the interior and exterior appearance of your facility will help in your day-to-day operations and when it comes time to sell your business. Keeping up with the small maintenance tasks now means that your business will be sold in tip-top condition, with increasing profits and good growth prospects.

Cress V. Diglio, Florida Business Broker    

Cress V. Diglio is a Certified Business Intermediary (CBI), a Merger & Acquisition Master Intermediary (M&AMI) and the past chairman of the International Business Brokers Association (IBBA).

Whether you are looking to buy a business, sell your business or merge with another business, Florida Business Broker Cress V. Diglio has the experience to assist you in all facets of the transaction. Call Cress today for complete transaction support and expertise, 407-583-4486, or visit https://floridacertifiedbusinessbroker.com.