One of the most important considerations in selling a business is confidentiality. Many business owners do not want their customers, employees, competitors, or the general public to know about the sale until it is final. There are several reasons business owners want to keep listings and potential sales confidential, such as:
- They do not want to worry employees about a potential sale and the impact on their jobs.
- They do not want to share knowledge of business profits with customers.
- They do not want customers to worry about the quality of service after the sale takes place and take their business elsewhere.
- They do not want to alert competitors that a business sale is possible in order to prevent them from poaching customers, key employees or market share before or after the sale.
Working with the Orlando business brokers at Crowne Atlantic is the best way to avoid these problems and ensure sale confidentiality. We specialize in marketing a business for sale without disclosing many of the attributes that can identify the specific business, including the name, location, and the intimate details of the operation while still attracting qualified and eager buyers.
Business Brokers Provide Professional Advice and Confidential Representation
Business brokers help sell a business by providing best practices advice to business owners so they can position the business for maximum exposure and value. At the same time, a broker can represent you and your business with 100% confidentiality until you are ready to announce the sale. Some of the techniques we use to maintain confidentiality include:
- Blind Advertising. Advertisements that withhold identifying information about the business such as the name of the business or the business owner provide enough useful information to get inquiries while still maintaining anonymity.
- Confidentiality Agreements. As the seller, you can require an interested buyer to sign a confidentiality agreement before they are able to see any personal or identifying information about you or your business. These agreements provide you with legal protections if confidentiality is breached by the interested buyer.
- Recommended Information to Keep Confidential. You’ll want to keep certain information confidential from potential buyers. We can help you decide specifically what to withhold, but in general, the list includes: customer lists, trade secrets, contact information for venders, and access to employees.
- Recommended Information to Share. Even if you want the listing and sales process to be as confidential as possible, you will need to share certain information with potential buyers. We can help you determine what to share and what to hold close until the time is right. Information that business owners should consider disclosing to buyers after nondisclosures are filled out include: financial information, leasing information, attributes about the business, and potential growth strategies.
Trust The Crowne Atlantic Business Brokers Facilitate Your Confidential Business Sale
Crowne Atlantic Properties is here to help you sell your Florida business, confidentially and with confidence. With a business broker from Crowne Atlantic acting on your behalf, you can rest easy knowing your business is being represented by professionals with decades of experience and respect in the Orlando business community and an extensive network of buyers who are actively looking for purchase opportunities.