06 Jul What Every Broker Needs to Know
Our recent webinar brought renowned Canadian Business Intermediary and Business Broker, Doug Robbins. Since founding Robbinex® in 1974, Robbins has emerged as one of Canada’s and the world’s top Business Brokers and experts in the field. Over the last 45+ years, Mr. Robbins has completed over 400 business sales and has also invested in 32 businesses. During the webinar, he lent expertise on a range of topics that every Business Broker and M&A Advisor should know.
One of the key points that Mr. Robbins wanted to convey during the event was that getting started in the industry is not easy and it takes time, effort, and patience. Secondly, Mr. Robbins wants Business Brokers to realize that marketing is a challenge. As he stated, “Bringing in new clients is one of the hardest jobs. Maybe I should qualify that bringing in new clients with reasonable expectations is one of the hardest jobs in the M&A world.” Business Brokers, as Mr. Robbins points out, must be ready for the sheer volume of work it takes to not just find a client, but to find a client that has realistic expectations.
Frequent readers will note that this is a sentiment echoed by many of our other guest speakers. Managing client expectations from the first meeting through to the successful sale of a business is of paramount importance. Clients with unrealistic views regarding the worth of their business can spell disaster.
During business evaluations, Robbins endeavors to discover what the real issues are with a business and gain a full understanding of a client’s perception of their needs. After this, it is possible that Robbinex® will become involved in enhancement programs. Over the years, they have been able to dramatically increase the value of businesses, especially over a multi-year period.
One of the single most important steps a Business Broker or M&A Advisor can take is to avoid a seller who has unrealistic expectations and is unwilling to accept an accurate business evaluation. On the flipside of the coin, avoiding a buyer who is not serious or lacks the financial means to acquire a business is of equal importance.
Bringing in new quality clients is very difficult work. That is a fact that those new to the industry must be ready to face. For example, Robbins notes that, in his considerable experience, that only about 30% of clients who approach Robbinex® regarding selling their business actually go through with the process. The reason for this is that after Robbinex® puts the seller through their comprehensive business analysis, which can be approximately 80 pages long, the majority of buyers decide against selling their business.
