Selling Your Business Online

I have run into a number of business owners lately who want to sell their business. They are a number of interesting cases in point, with some similarities.

The first independent business owner ran an upholstery business in Vancouver, BC for about 25 years. He told me that he started the business as a Jamaican immigrant during a time when others told him that it would be impossible to sell goods to the dominant white population. He told me that to work around this problem, he would just say when asked, "Is the owner here?", that he's taken the day off or just walked out. He made his businesses by offering a good service at a fair price to local people. He did not have computer or technology to guide him.

In many ways his experience is correct. The internet is not a golden panacea or solutions for all the ails of business. If your run a profitable landscaping or plumbing business, then internet advertising can complement your existing business and add to the power of your reputation or brand as people talk about. Websites can also say those things that your might not have time to say when your hands are thick in muck.

The second business owner sold saddle racks. Its kind of hard to explain but my understanding is that a "saddle rack" holds your saddle in the correct shape and has some holders for cleaning brushes and other items that a rider might need. This business owner has a great product. He intended to sell it mostly to Canadians and Americans. The lack of sales caused him to call me to sell his business.

After talking with him, both he and his wife, I realized that wherever they had sales, they occurred in places where demand for equestrian related activities is high. For example, they received numerous requests from Calgary, South Africa, New Zealand and Australia. These locations were confirmed by my own analysis of internet data.

Give the fact that this independent business owner claims that customer satisfaction is high; the internet may be the best way to sell goods. Unfortunately, they chose a more traditional route of attending tradeshows and talking wither people about their product. Well targeted internet advertising, in contrast, allows people who have a demand to find your product. In this circumstance, the business has a great product but is limited by its lack of an understanding of clear market demographics on where and when to advertise. Internet advertising and sound business planning can solve these problems. The ill health of an owner, which cannot be forecast, is the primary factor holding this business back.

The third business owner, oddly, also runs an upholstery business in Vancouver. I visited her at the location and realized that she also wants to get out of business. They had been in business for about 20 years, and started with very little. They built a good small company serving the upholstery needs of frugal families in Vancouver's lower mainland. She also wants to leave business due to the ill health of her husband.

The lessons that we learn here are as follows: (1) life is never predictable because you can be on top of the hill for a short while and at the bottom later; (2) the elder baby-boomer is trying to find a way out leading to lots of opportunities for the young who are prepared to do manual work; (3) internet advertising for independent business owners and contractors works providing that you have a sound product, sales, and targeted customer demand; (4) the internet is a good way to sell your business.

If you are an independent business owner who has questions about internet advertising, search engine optimization, selling your business or are just getting started, ask me a question and I'll try to help. We invite you to link to our website (www.pacificwestglobal.com).

Thank you,

Paul Williams