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Peter Siegel, MBA Founder of BizBen and the BizBen ProBuy, ProSell Programs discusses interpreting reported earnings from sellers through tax returns, financial statements and other means when buying a small to mid-sized California small business.

Lee Petsas, a Southern California business broker addresses how he handles potential business buyers when they request information on a business for sale listing. He gives his strategies and tips for handling and directing business buyer inquiries.

To be successful in buying a small business you must be able to look objectively at the company and determine whether or not it is a business that will be able to grow into the future. The key to long term survival is when a business is able to change and grow along with the needs of their consumer.

A problem owners encounter when offering a California business for sale is that not all so-called buyers are qualified to make the purchase. It's frustrating and costly to waste time showing non-qualified buyers the business. Here are ways to identify time wasters so the focus is on real buyers.

Each day, more than 10,000 Baby Boomers turn 62. Around this age, Americans, many of which are small business owners, start to think about their exit strategy from the workforce. For a small business owner, the process can be complex and their decision to retire has an impact on many others.

A business plan is a living document that should serve several purposes for your business. When you are buying a small business, a business plan will assist you in obtaining business purchase financing by showing lenders and investors how you plan to repay their loan by running a profitable company.

Determining the right time to sell a private business is as much an art as a science, because there are so many factors at play and each business is unique. The timing of a business sale is critical. Christina Lazuric, CBI, Orange County Business Broker discusses this topic on this BizBen Blog post.

Owners often ask agents to sell business offerings for them. It's usually more difficult than selling houses when working to find a buyer for a business, to satisfy contingencies and close escrow. Business sales intermediaries either agents or brokers may want large fees, but often are worth it.

Buyers search for an absentee business, wanting to collect profits generated by a successful enterprise without having to stand at the sales counter or cash register, without having to cook, operate equipment or talk to customers. Peter Siegel, MBA offers his intake on absentee run businesses.

First, we must define, who are the Millennials? The exact years are up for debate, but Millennials were born during approximately between 1981-1986, which today would be between 22 and 37 years of age. Joe Ranieri looks at what these buyers are looking for and what qualities they seek in businesses.

What are actual adjusted net earnings (cash flow) of a small business being purchased with business acquisition SBA Loan financing? That's an important amount that lenders need to know. Peter Siegel, MBA (BizBen.com, SBALoanAdvisors.com Founder) reviews this important concept with BizBen Blog users.

Only 30% of all small businesses for sale that are put on the market overall are sold! A surprising statistic to most business owners, agents, and brokers trying to sell a small business! If however you follow the strategies (BizBen Protocol Method) in this blog post you should see success!

Peter Siegel, MBA discusses buyers who want to buy a business or franchise know about asking the seller to provide part of the financing with a carry-back note. Many business buyers need some cash to help fund the down payment and for working capital. Here are four ideas about how to get that money.

Despite precautions, business owners often face lawsuits, even when innocent. Litigation, even if won, means losses in money, time, and resources, leading to uncertainty and negative publicity

Every day I speak to business brokers, business owner/sellers and I hear some pretty amazing stories about potential buyers of small businesses. I tend to ask them what buyer traits do you listen for to see of a potential buyer is serious? What traits or buyer actions are "deal killers"?

Being prepared when potential buyers contact you about your business for sale is a good idea. Too many sellers (and brokers) are unprepared & miss good opportunities or get involved with unqualified buyers. This Discussion post and answers from ProIntermediaries on BizBen assist with this issue.

We're hearing more and more about "crowd funding" through sites like gofundme and kickstarter as a possible way to raise the cash needed to buy a small business. This method of collecting funds has proven successful in other kinds of situations. Could this strategy work when buying a small business?

Just had a discussion with a owner/seller about non-disclosure agreements and confidentiality agreements when selling a business. Here was her question: "I am selling my business and I have heard I should have potential buyers sign a NDA. What items of information should I have on my NDA?"

It can take months, sometimes longer to sell a small business. Here are 6 questions plus other information from myself plus other BizBen Users to ask yourself to help you determine why your small to mid-sized California business isn't selling. You might be surprised what those reasons are!

Sometimes business brokers just can't win with their clients, because if an offer comes in too fast & too early then they must have lowballed the price & the seller is suspicious, and if not enough offers come in after putting the business on the market - they may look unproductive to their clients.

Who really represents the buyer? The selling broker or agent through dual agency? Many brokers and agents weigh in on this Discussion on BizBen. Bottomline is all business buyers need to know who really represents them and has their best interest at heart when seeking and negotiating on deals.

It's important to remember that selling a business takes time. Unlike selling a house, which can be sold relatively fast, a business can take up to six months to a year to sell. I discuss this topic with other advisors and intermediaries on this BizBen Discussion.

There can be many reasons why Brokers take awhile to get back to potential Buyer & to other Brokers and Agents if they are cooperating on the listing. Broker's reasons include: unprofessionalism, too busy, the listing is no longer available, the buyer doesn't sound viable, etc. We discuss them all.

A seller just posed this question to me in a BizBen ProSell session. Any feedback for this business owner, potential seller? I would like to hear some feedback from my fellow BBNers on this topic. Make sure you're comfortable with the person with whom you are dealing.

When seeking SBA loan financing many potential business buyers have wrong information about the process of securing the best financing to buy a business. Peter Siegel, MBA a business purchase financing expert delves into the myths regarding SBA financing and business purchase financing.

Many business buyers complain to me about business intermediaries not getting any financial information about the business they may be interested in purchasing. There are multiple reasons for this but I agree that financial information should be readily be available to interested buyers upfront.

Business buyers many times ask in my ProBuy consulting sessions - how long should I ask for due-diligence when buying a small business? The answer really depends on several factors. They include: type of business, demand for the business, complexity of the business. Advisors weigh in on this topic.

A buyer who I have been consulting with on the BizBen ProBuy Program is looking to buy a liquor store (and possible other "cash" oriented businesses). They asked me how they should verify cash being generated by the business and how to go about conducting due diligence etc.