Confidential Business Reviews Should Establish Trust

When you are selling a business, your Business Broker or M&A Advisor will likely create a Comprehensive Business Review, or CBR.  This comprehensive document can then be presented to prospective buyers once they have signed all necessary confidentiality documentation.  It is essential that this document builds trust between both parties, as this will go a long way towards achieving a successful deal. 

Be Honest

The bottom line is that your CBR will be 95% positive.  The majority of the document will be dedicated towards selling and promoting your business.   Therefore, it only makes sense to disclose some potential problems.  When handled correctly, the disclosure of problems can actually be a strong asset. 

For example, current weaknesses of your business could become strengths in the mind of the buyer.  For example, a business with a very poor online presence represents a substantial opportunity for a buyer to improve marketing and communications.  Summed up another way, don’t be afraid to include negative information, especially if that information represents an opportunity.

Sharing Information

It is important that there is an element of trust between the parties.  Creating that sense of trust begins with the CBR’s seller section. 

Buying a business is radically different from buying a home or investment property.  When someone buys a home or investment property they usually don’t care too much about the person who they are buying from.  But buying a business is usually a different experience.  Your buyer will want to feel as though they have a fairly clear understanding of who you are and what you are about. 

In the seller’s section, the buyer should get a decent idea of who you are.  Your Business Broker or M&A Advisor will want to interview you to gain ample information to include in your CBR.  Your Business Broker or M&A Advisor  may even want to find out about your family, hobbies, interests and more.    

The bottom line is that a potential buyer should be able to pick up the CBR and get a good feel for what you are like.  If no level of trust is ever established between the buyer and seller, then it will be much more challenging for the deal to be successful.