Closing the Deal When Buying or Selling a Website Business
Insight from Chris Sheedy — VP of Sales at Website Properties
There is a lot that comes with the process of closing the deal on a website business from both the buying and selling side.
We sat down with Chris Sheedy, VP of sales at Website Properties to gain insight on everything from what may cause a deal to fall through and how to avoid this from happening to setting realistic expectations and building trust to ensure a smooth closing process. Get in touch with Website Properties today with any questions!
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What Causes An Online Business Deal To Fall Apart?
While there are numerous reasons a sale of a website business may fall apart, there are a couple key contributing factors. When it comes down to it, transparency and expectations play a big part in this. Below you will find more details about how this happens.
Lack of Transparency
It is vital that website business sellers are transparent with their potential buyers. When this is lacking, it can lead to a messy selling process as the buyer begins to learn the facts about the business and the deal itself.
Unrealistic Expectations
Another key factor is unrealistic expectations on either side, but specifically the seller’s. If a seller is asking more for their business than it is evaluated at or offered by a buyer, they may try to pull out of the deal.
One of our main focuses as website brokers at Website Properties is to avoid having the deal fall apart and offering a smooth transfer. While this isn’t always possible, we have the experience and expertise needed to set realistic expectations on both sides and mediate transparency and communication throughout the process of selling a website business.
Maintaining Realistic Expectations When Selling Your Online Business
Selling a website business is very different from selling a residential property. With real estate, the price of housing affects large areas at once in most cases — allowing you to have a good idea of what your property is worth at any given time. With a business, however, there are a lot of moving parts and different variables that can affect the value of your online business. At Website Properties, we offer a free evaluation of your website business so that you can have an idea of it’s worth before listing your business for sale.
Even with realistic expectations on the seller’s side, somea buyers may come in with varying offers, including those with specific stipulations or terms that may not always work with your specific situation. Our team is also here to guide you through these offers and figuring out what will and won’t work for you.
Avoiding Deal Fatigue When Selling/Buying A Website Business
The process of buying or selling an online business is not an overnight thing and in some cases can be extremely lengthy. When this is the case, oftentimes deal fatigue can set in on either side of the proposed deal — creating a more difficult situation and the possibility of losing the deal all together.
There are also a lot of people, attitudes, and personalities involved in a deal that can cause issues. From the buyer and seller to the broker, lawyers, accountants, and banks, there are many things that don’t always mess together how we would want them to. For best practices, the following should be followed when looking to buy or sell an online business.
Educate On Deal Fatigue
As website brokers, one of our big focuses is to simply educate our clients on deal fatigue to avoid it whenever possible by helping guide them through those moments and feelings.
Be On the Same Page
A key part of avoiding deal fatigue is being open and communicative as the buyer, seller, and anyone else who is involved to ensure that everyone is on the same page during the process.
Financials
A big step in the process of selling an online business is providing and proving the current financial state of the business. Within this step, it is important for the seller to be as transparent as possible.
Closing the Deal
Finally, the time comes to close the deal on the website business. To avoid deal fatigue it is important that you are in it until the very end to ensure a smooth and pleasant closing and transfer.
One of our main focuses as website brokers at Website Properties is to avoid having the deal fall apart and offering a smooth transfer. While this isn’t always possible, we have the experience and expertise needed to set realistic expectations on both sides and mediate transparency and communication throughout the process of selling a website business.
Trust And Transparency During The Buying/Selling Process
Trust is a major part of the buying and selling process of a website business. The buyer must be comfortable and obtain an extremely high level of trust in the seller as this is a major investment for them. As we work through the discovery period of the process, it is common for hidden expenses or components of the business to come up that may turn the buyer off.
Hand-in-hand with trust must come transparency. Many sellers try to hide certain negative pieces to the deal so that they receive maximum value for their website business. However, as we mentioned earlier, a seller must be fully transparent with the buyer to build that trust with them and gain the ability to close the deal. If a seller fails to be transparent, trust is lost and the deal will most likely fall through.
Who’s Responsible For A Deal Falling Through?
There is no clear-cut answer to if the seller or buyer is more likely to be responsible for a deal falling through as it can easily come from either side. We have spoken a lot about how the seller must be transparent to build trust with the buyer, but the buyer also must meet them halfway. Depending on who the buyer is, whether it is a savvy institutional buyer or an individual, there is a varying amount of information they will request about the website business and the deal itself.
This means that the timing of that hidden piece of information about the business, if there is one, will come out at different stages of the selling process. In addition, the level of participation within the deal can be a factor in who causes the deal to fall through. As website brokers, we at Website Properties do our best to find the perfect buyers for the online businesses we are helping sell to ensure that the selling process goes smoothly and that the deal doesn’t fall through.
What To Know When Selling Your Online Business
Before listing your website business for sale, there are a few things that you should know and understand.
• First off, you have to have realistic expectations in every aspect — from the price of your online business to the selling and closing time frames.
• Next, you must be transparent with our team when it comes to the state of your business and any pertinent information we or the buyer should know.
• Additionally, it’s important to fully understand the selling process from beginning to end, and to be highly available and involved every step of the way.
• Lastly, prepare for the emotional journey that is involved in the life-changing decision to sell your online business and the process it involves.
At Website Properties, our experienced team is here to walk side-by-side with you throughout this process, and to help prepare you for what to expect along the way. Choosing us as your website brokers is one of the best decisions you can make as you plan to exit your online business. Get in touch today to get started, or to learn more about our selling process!
Recovering Deals That Are Starting To Fall Apart
When a deal is on the brink of falling apart, there are ways that you can recover the deal. This is a major part of our team’s job as website brokers to have conversations with the buyer and/or seller to get things back on track.
Oftentimes in these situations, it is the seller that gets cold feet or thinks that they could get more for their business. This is when we step in to have conversations with the seller to lay out the options, and explain to them what may or may not happen if they pull from the deal and relist their business. While some deals inevitably fall apart, we will fight till the very end to recover a deal if our knowledgeable team believes that it is best for our clients. Contact us today to learn more about recovering website business deals!
The Impact Of Having Your Website Business Deal Fall Through
If a deal cannot be recovered, it can have an incredible impact on the seller as they have put everything into this deal, and have mentally prepared to exit their online business. It is our job at Website Properties to educate sellers on the impact it can have when a deal falls through. While our proven sales process is designed to prevent deals from failing, it can be unavoidable at times, and we have to pivot to properly fit the needs of our clients.
Emotional Impact
When you have put in the time and effort of listing your business for sale, finding a buyer, and making your way to the end of the selling process, it can have an extremely large emotional impact if a deal falls through. Even if it is the seller’s choice, they have emotionally prepared to exit their business and not crossing that finish line often leads to their business going downhill.
Reputation Impact
When a sale falls through and the business is relisted, it can be challenging to find another buyer as they may be hesitant about why the previous deal didn’t close. Even if another buyer is interested, the process often becomes much more fragile and may require more time, understanding, and transparency to build the trust that is needed to close the deal with the new buyer.
Preparing To Sell Your Website Business
If you are looking to exit your online business, it is important to be prepared and educated on the entire selling process and have a professional on your side to help guide you along the way. At Website Properties, our team is here to do just that. Get in touch today to get started selling your website business!
Website Business Valuation
First and foremost, it is important to understand the value of your online business so that you can have an idea of what you are going to be able to sell it for.
Realistic Expectations
Once you have the valuation of your website business, you must set realistic expectations based on the value that your business has been given.
Prepare for Varying Outcomes
Not all deals go smoothly or have the exact outcome that you want. It is vital that you prepare for the different offers and outcomes that this journey may lead to.
Choosing a Website Broker
The most important thing you can do when looking to exit your online business is to choose the best website broker to be by your side throughout the process.
Work With Website Properties Today!
While you may sell one or two website businesses in your life, at Website Properties, we have more than 20 years of experience and have assisted in the sale of over 500 websites. Our proven sales process has allowed us to maintain an 85% closure rate. When choosing Website Properties, you can have confidence that our professionals will be there every step of the way — providing our clients with the very best website broker services as they exit their online business on a high note. Contact us today to get your free website evaluation, and take the next step in selling your website business!
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