About This Blog
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Peter Siegel, MBA is a nationally known consultant and author - with over 25 years experience on the topic of selling, buying, and niche financing (the purchase of), small to mid-sized businesses. His clients include: business buyers, business owners/sellers, small business advisors, and business brokers. |
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This Blog contains observations, tips, news, events, and case studies relating to selling or buying a small business. |
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This Blog is ideal for business buyers, business owners, advisors, business brokers & agents. |
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Opinions expressed on this site do not necessarily represent those of BizBen. |
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Opinions expressed here do not constitute legal advice. Those interested in specific guidance for legal matters should seek competent professional advice. |
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5/7/08
Franchised businesses are more than twice as likely to still be in business after 5 years than non-franchised businesses. This is a compelling reason for any aspiring entrepreneur to consider buying a franchise. But just what is it that makes a franchise more successful than non-franchised businesses?
There are several reasons:
Established Operating System. Franchises have developed, tested and honed an operating system that has proven to be highly successful. By applying this proven formula for success, new franchisees greatly increase the odds in their favor that they will also be successful.
Collective Buying Power. Since franchisors make arrangements to supply all of their franchisees with the goods and services they sell, the franchisor can leverage this buying power into lower costs of goods sold for their franchisees. And one of the keys to success in any business is keeping more of every dollar you earn, this buying power gives franchisees a powerful advantage over their competition in the marketplace.
Branding Power and Marketing Plan. People buy from companies they know and trust. And the more they see and hear about a company, the more they tend to trust it. By pooling all of their money together, franchisees are able to build a strong nationwide brand that benefits all franchisees equally. It’s truly a case where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
Startup Assistance. Getting started is one of the most critical periods for any new business. The franchisor has been through the startup process many times and is experienced at making the right decisions. Franchisees weather this timeframe successfully because they have the support and expertise of the franchisor behind them.
On-Going Support. Once the doors are open and the business is up and running, the franchisee has the on-going support of the franchisor. This is critical to success because the franchisee has an experienced mentor they can rely on to continue to make the correct business decisions that will ensure their long-term success.
To view a directory of hundreds of successful franchise opportunities, visit the BizBen Franchise Directory at http://franchises.bizben.com and use the powerful search tools to find the perfect new franchise for you to buy.
Technorati Tags: franchises, franchise, franchises for sale
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 Comments: (1) Post A Comment
Really enjoyed it, I wanted to click out and
you kept pulling me back in! Many thanks
and keep up the great work! . . . more
Posted by: Chad Harris, Franchise Whale | Link | May 8, 2008 - 1:55 pm
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5/4/08
The annual Summit conference of the Angel Capital Association (ACA) kicks off on Wednesday, May 7, 2008, at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego and runs through Friday, May 9.
The conference, to be attended by members of angel groups throughout the U.S. and Canada, provides a valuable opportunity for successful entrepreneurs to learn more about how they can invest their capital and their skills in small businesses in their communities. Among the programs will be interactive sessions focused on increasing investor skill and investor returns, supporting portfolio companies, negotiating deals, and co-investing with other angel groups.
(Angels function much like venture capitalists--searching for promising companies and business ideas, reviewing proposals from entrepreneurs, and providing capital along with management expertise for small businesses. The companies in which angels are involved usually are smaller than those which attract venture capital investors. And angel ?clients? are not ordinarily destined to be sold via public offerings the goal of most venture capital clients.)
Tech Coast Angels, a San Diego-based member of the ACA, is host of this year's summit and is sponsoring a program on investing in medical devices and life science companies. Special sessions will be conducted to explore the need to recruit more women angels and improve ties with university-connected angel groups.
The summit is open to members only and not available to business people seeking support of angel organizations. However, entrepreneurs who want to explore the financial and non-financial resources offered by the many U.S. and Canada-based angel groups associated with ACA, are encouraged to visit the organization's website
www.angelcapitalassociation.org
The ACA has conducted member summits since 2002, and was formally incorporated as a non-profit membership organization in 2005.
Technorati Tags: small business, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship
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5/4/08
SCORE of Central California is hosting a workshop this Friday, May 9th in Fresno:
Learn How to Double and Triple Your Web Site Sales
Keynote Speaker is:
Eric Stein - Director, Local Markets, Google
As Director of Local Markets at Google, Eric Stein is responsible for Google's efforts to bring online solutions to small business advertisers and generate revenue from national advertisers in a Local context. The Local Markets team does this through partnerships with a variety of companies that have relationships with SMB's, including media companies, technology providers and financial service institutions.
Eric is a former Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Bessemer Ventures where he led an effort to build a hedge fund using a new strategy relying on fundamental data from a variety of new sources. He began focusing on the usefulness of new data sources for investment research as a co-founder of Majestic Research, a private research firm that provides unique fundamental insight into key performance metrics. Prior to Majestic Research, Eric was an early employee at DoubleClick and led several key areas of operation, including Abacus and International Media as VP and GM of both divisions.
Eric is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Business School. He is on the Board of Advisors of Collective Intellect, a new media business intelligence company, and the Awards Committee of the Empowerment Schools in New York City.
Our Other Informative Speakers include:
Nancy Johnson – Online Advertising Pioneer and Gary Janzen of Theilan IdeaCorp
Jim Lowe – Vice President of Jeffrey Scott Advertising
Marc Raygoza – President of Vine Global a new global sales tool that will open up billions of
dollars of new American Online Exports.
Tina Henson – President of Plastic Jungle, Inc. of Clovis, California who was written up in the March issue of INC for creating so much demand that it over powered her web site.
The workshop is being held at National University which is located at the NE corner of the 41 Freeway and Friant Avenue with a continental breakfast starting at 7 A.M. and the first speaker at 7:30 AM. The workshop will be over at Noon.
We are limited to only 80 seats which should go quickly.
People can sign up for an advance ticket for $50 at www.centralcal.score.org.
Technorati Tags: small business, business
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4/30/08
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that California's small and disabled veteran businesses are registered at record-breaking numbers to compete for the state's more than $9 billion a year in contracts, and exceeding goals he put forth two years ago.
There are now 16,005 certified small and disabled veteran businesses able to bid on state contracts, up from 12,000 just one year ago. "Small businesses are the backbone of our state's economy," said Governor Schwarzenegger. "Ensuring that small businesses have the tools they need to succeed has always been a priority of my administration, and I'm pleased that more small businesses and disabled veteran businesses are taking advantage of one of the many tools available by registering and competing for state contracts."
Under State and Consumer Services Agency (SCSA) Secretary Rosario Marin's leadership, the Department of General Services Procurement Division has made simplifying the small business certification process a priority.
"In most cases, the new online application process can be completed in twenty minutes-a wonderful accomplishment, compared to the former paper-based system that oftentimes could take months," said SCSA Secretary Marin. "This is a prime example of technology successfully serving our citizens and enabling our government to operate at the speed of business."
Last year, more than $2.7 billion in contracting went to small and disabled veteran businesses. This was more than 28.3 percent of all the state's contract spending and exceeded the goal of 25 percent that Governor Schwarzenegger's Executive Order (S-02-06) requires.
Expanding on these efforts is a high priority for the administration this year. Representatives from the State and Consumer Services Agency sponsored and attended more than 137 small and disabled veteran business outreach events in 2007, and they plan to exceed that amount in 2008.
Ninety-eight percent of California businesses are defined as small, which means they have fewer than 100 employees and less than $12 million in average gross annual receipts.
For more information about how you can register your small or disabled veteran business with the State of California, go to www.getcertified.dgs.ca.gov.
Technorati Tags: small business, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship
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4/29/08
I speak with many (over 80 daily on the phone) business owners/sellers, business brokers, and agents about deals they are doing and the complications that can arise when selling a small business. What most people don't realize is that over 50% of all deals fall out after they enter into an LOI or purchase agreement to buy or sell a business.
Reason vary - for instance a current BizBen advertiser, Robert (a business owner) who is selling a couple of Sears retail stores in the Central coast area has been in escrow 3 times with buyers who have backed out due to 'the current housing situation" and other financing problems. Even though he has gotten a tremendous response on the BizBen Fast Track advertising program - he has taken back-up buyers knowing that deals can "fall out" at any time. He tells me he is currently in escrow again and things look good, but until a deal is done and the final check in escrow is cut - keep on taking names!
To Avoid Your Deal From Falling Out Make Sure You:
1. When selling a business keep taking names/back up offers of interested parties until the deal closes.
2. Make sure the buyers you are dealing with have been pre-qualified by quality contacts at SBA lending institutions if there is possible financing in the picture.
3. Keep marketing/advertising the business heavily (utilize the BizBen Fast Track advertising for maximum exposure) until it sells - do not believe you have a buyer and then "stop taking calls and names".
4. Make sure your business for sale ad and profile you have written up is complete, honest, and varifiable so when buyers go into escrow and do their due diligence the deal doesn't fall apart because you didn't do your part in preparing the business and documents before you went on the market.
5. Have your advisers - CPA, attorney, SBA lender, and other resources ready to go at any time when you go into contract and the due diligence begins!
Do you have a recent experience of a deal falling out? Share your comments and tell us why your past deals have fallen out!
Technorati Tags: businesses for sale, sell a business, selling a business
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4/29/08
SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" announces a new section specifically for young entrepreneurs at the SCORE Web site, www.score.org. The new content area offers valuable mentoring and resources to help high school, college-age and 20-something small business owners succeed.
Visitors to www.score.org/young.html will find the following resources:
* Insights for Young Entrepreneurs features key articles on: entrepreneurship as a career choice; Web site design; university assistance; and how to start smart.
* Resources for Young Entrepreneurs lists more than 35 organizations, groups and Web sites that offer news, strategies and assistance.
* Competitions for Young Entrepreneurs features eight awards that help encourage and recognize business success.
* Stats on Young Entrepreneurs provides the latest research and facts on Generation X and Generation Y entrepreneurship.
Technorati Tags: small business, entrepreneur, entrepreneurship
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4/29/08
Self-Employed Women Differ From Their Wage And Salary Earning Counterparts
Age, Education, And Experience Are Key Human Capital Factors
Self-employed women differ from their wage and salary earning counterparts in several human capital areas. Most notably, self-employed women tend to be older, are better educated, and have more managerial experience than wage and salary earners. These findings are
contained in a report, Human Capital and Women’s Business Ownership ( http://www.sba.gov/advo/research/rs323tot.pdf) , released today by the Office of Advocacy of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
“Human capital factors such as education and experience have long been known to have a positive correlation with entrepreneurship,” said Dr. Chad Moutray, Chief Economist for the Office of Advocacy. “This report delves deeper into women’s business ownership and shows that factors such as occupational skills and entrepreneurial preparedness are essential to women’s entrepreneurship.”
The report, written by Business Development Advisors with funding from the Office of Advocacy, also compares human capital factors of self-employed women and men, as well as between self-employed whites and minorities. The authors presented the report during the annual meeting of the Urban Affairs Association in Baltimore on April 26, 2008.
Comparing self-employed women to other working women, the authors found that:
* Self-employed women have greater educational attainment.
* Self-employed women are more likely to be in managerial occupations.
* Self-employed women are more likely to work in non-traditional
occupations.
* Self-employed women are likely to be older.
For more information and a complete copy of the report, visit the Office of Advocacy website at www.sba.gov/advo.
The Office of Advocacy, the “small business watchdog” of the federal government, examines the role and status of small business in the economy and independently represents the views of small business to federal agencies, Congress, and the President. It is the source for small business statistics presented in user-friendly formats, and it funds research into small business issues.
Technorati Tags: small business, business, entrepreneurship
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4/29/08
The Uniform Franchise Offering Circular (UFOC) is a comprehensive document every franchisor is required to process and keep current. The FTC requires franchisors to give the UFOC to prospects that want to purchase a franchise from the franchisor.
The purpose of the UFOC is to give the potential franchisee complete background about the franchise. The UFOC includes detailed information on items such as the franchise’s business history, litigation, bankruptcy, initial franchise fee and other fees, total initial investment required, franchisee’s obligations, franchisor’s obligations, financing, territory, trademarks, patents, copyrights, restrictions, dispute resolution, earnings claims, financial statements, contracts, and more.
Once you narrow your list of franchises down to the ones that interest you the most, be sure to carefully read each franchisor’s UFOC as part of your due diligence process. What you find in it is often the case for moving forward with the franchisor, or moving on to another franchise opportunity.
In your search to find the perfect franchise for you to buy, visit http://franchises.bizben.com. There you will find detailed information for free about hundreds of potential franchises to buy.
Technorati Tags: franchises, franchise, franchises for sale
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4/29/08
353 California small businesses for sale were sold by business owners of small businesses, California business brokers, & real estate agents for the week of April 21, 2008 and April 27, 2008.
Sales of California small business opportunities & franchises by County include:
Alameda County: 18, Contra Costa County: 11, El Dorado County: 5, Fresno County: 6, Imperial County: 3, Inyo County: 1, Kern County: 3, Los Angeles County: 103, Marin County: 1, Merced County: 2, Monterey County: 3, Napa County: 2, Orange County: 51, Placer County: 6, Riverside County: 7, Sacramento County: 19, San Bernardino County: 10, San Diego County: 20, San Francisco County: 11, San Joaquin County: 1, San Luis Obispo County: 4, San Mateo County: 1, Santa Barbara County: 5, Santa Clara County: 23, Santa Cruz County: 4, Solano County: 2, Sonoma County: 2, Stanislaus County: 6, Sutter County: 1, Tulare County: 4, Tuolumne County: 1, Ventura County: 12, Yolo County: 3.
Business sales are down this time of year compared to last year April 2007 business sales of 2833 for the month. April tends to be a slower month for selling a business due to tax season.
Technorati Tags: business opportunity, business opportunities, entrepreneur
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