There are many factors that determine the right time to sell a business. Certainly external economic factors come into play – the stage of the economic cycle, interest rates, alternative investment options, industry trends, etc. can impact the timing of a successful business sale. Unfortunately, these external factors are beyond your control. What you can control however, is the readiness of your business for a sale when the external factors become positive.

It is important to take the time to prepare your business for sale in order to make your business appealing to potential buyers. If the business is overly dependant on you – it may be time to put a strong management team in place. If your business relies heavily on one supplier – you may want to diversify your supply source to reduce this dependency. Are there opportunities to grow the business to increase profits – maybe now is the time to go after new opportunities. It is sometimes beneficial to put yourself in the buyer’s shoes – would you buy the business in its current shape? If you wouldn’t, take the time to make your business saleable so you are ready when the time is right.