Your Company is capable of making money.
Very few business owners think they are making all the income their business is capable of making. In fact this is overwhelmingly the number one complaint that business advisors hear.
Occasionally a CPA will hear a complaint from their client that he is making so much money the government is getting rich off of him.
CPAs and tax attorneys love this kind of client because this is what they are trained for. Save the client taxes. Unfortunately many are not experienced in finding out WHY their client is not making enough money.
Have you ever heard the phrase? “If the problem is what you thought it was, it would not be a problem.” What exactly does that mean?
It means that asking the right questions will get you the right answers.
Let’s look this over very carefully. For example, let’s take a situation where the profits are down, and the sales are stable. What do you do first? Find out what changed? If you do not know what changed, you cannot put it back the way it was. Conversely if you know what changed you can use your experience to solve the problem and return to affluence.
The normal solution for a business, that is not making as much money as they were before, is to go to their banker and say. “I need money.” But this is not the solution.
Find the answers by clicking on this link Read more…
Consulting “By the Minute”
/in Articles, Business Buying Troubleshooting, Due Diligence/by Willard MichlinLast week, at the end of the day, I was ready to go home, but because I had to wait for my wife, I could not. Not being one to lay back in my chair, and close my eyes, I had an idea. It has been months since I acted like a business buyer and went on the web to see who in the cloud also offered CPA Due Diligence services. To my amazement I came up on the first page!
Next, I put in due diligence services and I found dozens of listings related to due diligence computers. I am not young enough to compete with computers that do due diligence and I do not understand how a computer can even do “due diligence.” Will someone tell me how a computer smells fraud? Read more
Fire & Water Restoration Companies
/in Articles/by Willard MichlinIt is a great industry to be connected to if you do not want to worry about economic issues. Even the pandemic of 2020 has not affected the number of insurance claims coming into my office. Homeowners file claims in good and bad times. Fires, floods, hurricanes, and tsunami do not care about economic conditions.
Overview
Let me explain my relationship to the Fire & Water Restoration industry. I have been a business broker selling main street businesses for 25+ years. I also am a CPA that does the necessary due diligence when a buyer finds a business they want to buy. I have done my share of fire and water restoration companies over the many years. Lastly, I own a landscape inspection company that does inspections for insurance adjusters on their claims received when it involves damaged landscaping, usually due to fires or floods.
In this article we are going to talk about the pluses and minuses of being in the restoration business. We will also address the reasons to buy or not buy a franchise. ServPro™ is the largest franchise in this industry. Read more
A Fresh Approach to Finding a Business
/in Business Buying/by Willard MichlinIf you have gotten tired of looking at the same old main street businesses, I would like you to know you are not alone.
You should be prepared to look for up to two years to find the right fit. Read more
Does it makes sense to buy business in these COVID-19 crises times?
/in Business Buying/by Willard MichlinAs I was picking up my daily e-mails, the above question was staring me in the face. I thought, “Wow” this is a great question? What I have been noticing is the way consumer business is changing. A lot of those changes are permanent and not just in place because of the virus. Let’s look […]
Find Your Passion In Your Work When Buying A Business
/in Business Buying, Due Diligence/by Willard MichlinThe most common comments I hear from business buyers are “What is a good business to buy?
I am open to any business that can make me money” They also bring up this question whenever they find any company that looks interesting. “Is this a good industry to be in?” What they are not getting is that every industry is a great industry for the few doing well and a terrible industry for the rest of the world. I would say that 50% of all business owners just barely get by, 30% do average, and 20% of the business owners make a profit that they are proud of. It has nothing to do with what industry it is but everything to do with the management of the company.
So if it is all about the management, how do you know if you are going to be good top management material?
Well there are several things.
Let’s review some of those traits. Read more
Do you know why your business is not making enough money?
/in Articles, Specialties/by Willard MichlinYour Company is capable of making money.
Very few business owners think they are making all the income their business is capable of making. In fact this is overwhelmingly the number one complaint that business advisors hear.
Have you ever heard the phrase? “If the problem is what you thought it was, it would not be a problem.” What exactly does that mean?
The normal solution for a business, that is not making as much money as they were before, is to go to their banker and say. “I need money.” But this is not the solution.
Find the answers by clicking on this link Read more…
What’s a good business to go into?
/in Business Buying Troubleshooting/by Willard MichlinBusiness Buying Opportunity: Should You Buy A Distressed Business?
/in Business Buying/by Willard MichlinEveryone wants to buy a good profitable business making over $100,000 per year. The problem is there are only a limited amount of these businesses on the market. The reason for this is everyone wants the same thing. The results is the pricing is too high and the availability is too low. Read more
Upfront Fees with Business Brokers
/in Articles/by Willard MichlinUpfront Appraisal or Valuation Fees by Business Brokers I live in California, where upfront fees are illegal. The way brokers can get around this in California is to charge for an appraisal and be paid for it. After the appraisal is completed, the broker can ask for and receive a listing. If the listing is […]
The Art of Getting Financial Records Before Signing a Letter of Intent
/in Articles, Business Buying, Specialties/by Willard MichlinHow to handle brokers wanting offers before due diligence We have all heard of “The battle of the sexes”. What is not as well-known but as difficult a battle “is the one between “brokers and business buyers” regarding getting a business’s financial information. This article will discuss: 1. How to get listing brokers to release […]