How Do You Find A Good Business Broker? 2 Questions To Ask



Whether you are a business buyer or a business seller, the best way to navigate the business transaction process is with the help of an experienced and qualified business broker.

 

How can you tell if the broker you’ve been talking to is experienced and qualified? Let’s start by finding out how a person becomes a business broker in the first place.

 

To become a business broker, someone first needs to have an interest in helping people buy and sell businesses. Business brokers come from all kinds of backgrounds – they are former entrepreneurs, former finance professionals, former real estate brokers, etc. The experience of business ownership and a background in finance are obviously helpful, but aren’t necessary.

When a business broker first starts out, they must obtain the same license a real estate agent needs (there is not a special license for just business brokers, so they get lumped into the real estate industry). Once they have this license they need to work as a business broker/agent for someone who is a licensed broker (just like a real estate agent works for a real estate broker) for two years and then they are eligible to become a licensed broker on their own.

 

It is not necessary, however, for a broker to ever get the “broker” license if they continue to work with someone who is already licensed this way. As such, if the business broker you are working with doesn’t have the “broker” license this is not a bad thing. In fact in many instances broker/agents work within business brokerage firms for many years with great success without ever getting a “broker” license.

 

When you first begin speaking with a business broker, you can ask them about what kind of license they hold, but the answer to this question is not as important as you might initially think.

 

Lots of people have a real estate license but never actually sell a house – and, unfortunately, lots of people also try to dabble in the business market. We come across realtors, lawyers and even doctors who try to be business brokers “on the side”.

 

As a buyer or a seller, you want to stay well away from these part time brokers. Buying and selling businesses is a complicated process, and you are going to want someone who actually knows what they are doing helping you through your transaction.

 

You wouldn’t let your family practitioner perform plastic surgery on you – so don’t let a real estate agent or your dentist try to help you buy or sell a business.

 

Now that you know how a person becomes a broker, what are the questions you should be asking to find the right one? There’s two that can tell you a lot:

 

1. How many deals have you closed in the last year?

A broker who regularly closes deals is probably well established and clearly knows what they are doing. They have connections within the industry, they know how to successfully negotiate business transaction contracts and they are able to work with commercial property owners to get their clients a lease.

2. How many clients have referred you to a friend or have used you more than once?

A broker with repeat or referral clientele is someone that others have enjoyed working with. The experience was so positive they would trust that broker with their personal connections. Like a great review of a business, referrals and repeat transactions speak volumes about what your experience with that broker will probably be.

 

The message here? Ask the right questions and you will quickly find out whether the broker you have been speaking to is the right person to help you with your transaction.

 

Are you looking for a business broker and have more questions about how to find the right one? Want to ask us about how many deals we have closed or how many referrals/repeat clients we have? Please feel to leave us a comment or question here and we will be happy to get your questions answered.

 

 

 

 

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
12995 South Cleveland Avenue, Suite 249
Fort Myers, FL 33907

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

 


Buying A Florida Business – We’ve Got More Than Beach Bars



Florida is the sunshine state. We’re the home of palm trees, plastic pink flamingos, alligators and white sand beaches. We’re the place where anyone who spent their life in the cold north comes to retire.

 

 

We’re also the place where many inspired entrepreneurs dream of coming to buy a beach bar and spend their days absentmindedly running said bar from the comfort of a nearby hammock.

 

We totally get that dream. It sounds amazing, and it is amazing because it’s completely impossible. For starters, absentmindedly running a business is really just running that business into the ground.

 

You can, however, still have a piece of that Florida dream without having to buy a tiki bar that plays only Jimmy Buffett music.

 

You can have the nice weather and a plastic flamingo in your yard by buying a business that will actually help you achieve your goals. Goals like having more free time. Like making more money. Like following a passion. Like getting to spend more time with your family. You can achieve these goals because here in Florida we have far more than white sand and alligators. We have real people who lead real lives.

 

Do you know what real people need? Real businesses that don’t all sell margaritas. They need grocery stores, daycare centers, car washes, plumbers and roofers. They need pizza places and auto mechanics. They need all the goods and services that any community has to have in order to function – and you can be a business owner who meets those needs.

 

And you don’t have to start from scratch. At any given time there are a multitude of businesses for sale – businesses that have great numbers and can be your ticket to the life you’ve been dreaming of. Want to see a few? Try our business search here.

 

What type of Florida business would be right for you? It depends on a few key factors – factors you should discuss with and experienced and qualified broker so they can help you find the right business for you. For instance, what are your goals for business ownership? Do you want to make the most money possible in the shortest amount of time? Are you looking for a specific industry that is your passion? Do you want to have a more flexible schedule than your current job allows so you can spend more time with your kids?

 

You ultimate goal for business ownership coupled with the amount of working capital you have available and your prior work experience will help you determine what types of businesses might be right for you. You and your business broker can work together to look for businesses that meet your goals – and you might be surprised by what you find.

 

For instance, if your goal is to spend more time with your kids and you think you want a tiki bar – think again. The restaurant industry has notoriously long hours, especially in the evenings and at night. You might find that a small service company (like a pest control or home-watch business) where you set your own schedule will be far better for your work/life balance.

 

Talk to a business broker today about your goals and take a peek at what’s currently available. You can have the Florida dream – and the pink flamingo – without buying a bar on the beach.

 

Have you always wanted to buy a business in Florida and want to know what types of businesses would meet your goals? Would you like to know what industries are doing well in the areas where you’d like to live? Ask us! Leave any questions or comments here and we would be happy to help.

 

 

 

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
12995 South Cleveland Avenue, Suite 249
Fort Myers, FL 33907

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com


Staying Alive And Selling In The Age Of Amazon – How Small Business Owners Can Become Community Business Owners



 

If you own a small business, especially a retail business – the seemingly unending domination of Amazon and the other massive retailers might look like a death blow for businesses like yours on the main streets of towns everywhere – but it doesn’t have to be.

 

Amazon (and the rest) might be able to compete with you on price, but that’s all they’ve got. While there is no way you can win the price war, you can save your business and the future prospect of selling that business for a financial return by redefining what you are.

 

You aren’t a small business owner anymore – you’re a community business owner.

 

What do we mean by that? There are two very simple ways you can beat back a giant corporation, and these changes are something that this next generation of younger consumers are looking for – buying local and a good customer experience.

 

The “buy local” movement can set your business apart from those around you if what you are offering is something unique to your area. Try adding products by other local businesses or artisans, coming up with your own local take on something you already offer or joining community shopping programs like farmer’s markets to help advertise your business to those who value spending their money close to home. Buying local can also mean sourcing the products you use or sell from those in your local community – and advertising that fact to potential customers. By teaming up with other businesses in your community and supporting each other within the buy local movement you can give mindful consumers choices they can’t find online. 

 

Creating a good customer service experience might seem like a basic premise of business success, but in the new retail environment this can mean something slightly different. By incorporating local products and services, teaming up with other local businesses and offering your products at community events like markets or festivals you are improving the customer experience because those who buy from you can feel good abut their purchases – because those purchases go right back into the local community. Focusing on community business building can absolutely help your brand and reputation. Other ways you can incorporate this community-building-experience for your customers? Get out there. Help with local charities. Participate in community events. Donate goods or services to local schools. Do all the things a giant like Amazon wouldn’t know to do because they don’t live in your community.

 

Making these changes now also has an added bonus of making your business very appealing to the next generation of small business owners looking to buy their way into entrepreneurship. A business with very strong community ties will look far better to a buyer than one locked in a futile price war with corporate giants.

 

The ever-evolving nature of the retail space shouldn’t scare you, but it should motivate you to change with the times. Turn your small business into a community business and then make sure your use every marketing tool available (events, social media, a blog, etc.) to let your buy-local customers know about the changes you’ve made. We can stick it to Amazon yet.

 

Do you own a small retail business and want to know more about how becoming a community business might help you build your brand and get you a great return on your investment if you sell? Please leave any questions or comments here and we would be happy to help.

 

 

 

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com
12995 South Cleveland Avenue, Suite 249
Fort Myers, FL 33907

www.InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

 

 

 



Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

5111-E Ocean Blvd
Siesta Key, FL 34242

Michael Monnot

941.518.7138
Mike@InfinityBusinessBrokers.com

9040 Town Center Parkway
Lakewood Ranch, FL 34202




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