Bruno, No B.S.’s most eligible bachelor coming to you from inside the Wealth Zone in Dallas, Texas.
As I write this, we just wrapped up the Pre-Day at the Wealth by Entrepreneurship and Marketing SuperConference… Focused on How To Grow The Value and Equity In Your Business, Even if You NEVER Plan To Sell…
Attendees were able to discover how to make their businesses worth a whole lot more, even if they aren’t interested in selling.
Because whether you plan to sell your business or not, Dan Kennedy has long taught that it is wise for every business owner to have an ENDGAME planned out. This is for multiple reasons including the fact that most people at some point want to “retire”.
I’ve got to say, as a young bull, before today, I wasn’t really thinking about exiting my business. After all, even in “Bull Years” that seemed like a long way off, especially now that I’m out of the rodeo and bullfighting business.
However, I discovered that you should not only be thinking about it, but you should also have a plan to make your business more valuable now.
Because when you do…rather than just closing your business, if you plan for it, you can build up the value and equity so you can sell your business or arrange for a replacement.
We even heard from Cliff Oxford that you can set up a sale where you get paid royalties for years after you sell!
One client of Cliff’s ended up getting $10 million in royalties whereas without the plan, his business would have only sold for maybe $1 million, if he was even able to sell it at all!
These options provide you additional income during your retirement or give you some years where you don’t have to worry about anything should you decide to sell and do something different before you are ready to retire.
Plus, I discovered that even if you don’t plan on ever selling, there are additional reasons raising the value and equity in your business is a smart move:
- – It can make your business stand out as superior to your competitors.
- – It will help you scale your business.
- – It puts you in a position to charge more for your products and services.
- – Most importantly, it is key to building your wealth.
If you weren’t able to join us this year, you’ve seriously got to come next year. (We even got gifts today and they fed us lunch –score!)
Oh, and there were some crazy successful people in the room. I thought I’d be intimidated by this, but you know what –they were super nice and answered questions, helping anyone who approached them. It was pretty amazing. One guy I sat near had a 9-figure business and was talking to a whole group of people!
Anyway, sorry you aren’t here this year so I compiled some “Writer Downers” from today’s event.
At Pre-Day Grant Schuette shared his valuable and vast knowledge on How To Make Your Business Sparkle: The 7 Steps To Increase the Value of Your Business.
Grant is the director of the Oxford Strategic Group at Advantage. He offers entrepreneurs strategic counsel to make sure you are moving in a direction that is right for you and your business and guides you through the exit process.
Grant walked us through how to get the answers to questions such as…
- – What’s is your business worth?
- – How many years do you have to build value in your company before you consider selling?
- – How do you time your exit? And when is the best time to exit?
- – How do you know if you’ve received the best offer?
The big take-away for me was that you MUST plan. Not only will this help you protect your legacy, it will maximize the value of your business. Because if you don’t plan your exit, you’ll be leaving money on the table. Plus, you set yourself up to sell to someone who won’t properly run your business.
And you know what else? The same 7 elements of a valuable business that we covered not only let you exit on top, they also are the key to scaling your business!
We discovered the answer to which of the 7 elements has the greatest leverage too…
If you want to exit your business, a strong and steady financial stream will have the greatest impact. But…if you want to scale your business, having a strong culture is the most important.
During our Lunch & Learn Presentation, we learned about Valuation, and the Pros and Cons of Potential Buyers of Your Business.
And then Cliff Oxford and Richard Kopelman shared how to manage the sales process and avoid exit traps.
An internationally successful Atlanta entrepreneur, W. Cliff Oxford is the premiere thinker on how to scale your business and strategically exit your business.
Twice named a Most Admired CEO in Georgia and Who’s Who in the accounting industry, Richard Kopelman serves as CEO and managing partner of Aprio, LLP, a nationally-recognized, CPA-led business advisory firm.
Cliff explained how you work all your life creating this company… you take all the risk…put hours and hours into it… and what so often happens is that when you go to sell, you find out your business isn’t worth that much.
The good news is, Cliff and his team created a process that avoids this trap. This works especially well for lifestyle businesses, legacy businesses, info-marketing businesses and professional practices.
Two things Cliff told us about how to avoid this trap (that no one ever tells you):
- – When you go to sell, you are going to have to write off debt. It can’t be brought to the table. This allows you to say your company is debt-free which makes you attractive to potential buyers.
- – You must have clear due diligence set up in an organized fashion. This gives buyers confidence.
Richard disclosed that he, (like other buyers), keeps a scorecard based on what he is looking for in a company. Three big secrets he revealed were:
- – He looks for the story he’s not hearing. In other words, where are the bodies buried. He said he prefers a straight shooter and can sometimes even help sellers when they are straight with him and he knows there is a problem.
- – Leases and real estate can kill a deal. He recommends you always leave yourself an out on lease deals or buy great real estate that you can lease to someone else.
- – Get cloud-based accounting set up so you can easily share your financial info to potential buyers.
Cliff Oxford called Brian Reynolds “the most brilliant person in the room”. Brian showed where the money is flowing to by providing a forecast of the mergers and acquisitions environment. As a Founder of Chatham Capital, Brian specializes in lower-middle market companies and has taken part in over 340 deals reflecting $25 billion+ of transactions!
In Rod Robertson’s presentation he revealed how to successfully navigate the post-sale “after life” with a smile on your face. As Managing Partner of Briggs Capital, Rod has led scores of small to medium-sized business acquisitions. He’s also sold multiple of his own businesses. Whether you’re looking to grow your business or preparing to sell it, Rod is the man who can give you the roadmap to increase the value of your business.
Of course, there was a WHOLE LOT more shared today. It’s impossible to put everything from a whole day into one post!
I can tell you this, after what I already discovered, there will be another reason to vote me most eligible bachelor again…
Cause, I’ll not only be the best-looking bull in the room, I’ll be the wealthiest too.
As Day 1 of SuperConference starts today, I’m more excited than my friend Ferdinand the Bull when sitting in a field of flowers!
Here’s what’s on deck for today…
- – Dan Kennedy will reveal The 5 Things No One Else Will Tell You About Money
- – Steve Forbes will join the stage, discussing Politics, Trade, the Economy, and the Future of Capitalism in America
- – Ken Fisher will disclose how he built Fisher Investments into a Multi-Billion Dollar Business
- – During our night session, Cordia Harrington will unveil how she Built a $100 Million Empire on Buns, Starting With Only $587 In Her Pocket
- – And we’ll also hear from Adam Witty, Dave Dee, Chris Tomshack, and MORE on Day 1 of the Wealth by Entrepreneurship and by Marketing SuperConference 2019.
I can’t wait to let you know how Day 1 unfolds, so keep an eye out on your inbox tomorrow for more details.
Source: Dan Kennedy