You will need to gather a significant amount of information at the beginning of a potential company sale. This is critical for developing an attractive equity story, refining projections and preparing due diligence later in process.
The collection, analysis and presentation of data is a time-consuming process. It involves working closely with your colleagues from key business functions as well as advisors to identify relevant information that best depicts the company’s performance.
Develop an information strategy
It’s important to have a clear idea on what buyers are looking for at the beginning. Once you are in the full swing of a process, your time for information gathering will be limited! Moreover, you should be bale to present the information in an attractive light, while keeping to the facts and making sure that the information is accurate and truthful.
Not all information is created equal and here are some considerations you might want to bear in mind during your information-gathering mode:
- Not everything will be relevant to buyers - knowing what to share will avoid the time-consuming process of finding information that buyers will not be interested in seeing
- You may need to overlay analysis on some information, to tell the full story (for instance your business might be highly seasonal)
- You might want to disclose information that could attract additional questions from buyers towards the end of the process, with high-likelihood buyers only
- Especially when dealing with trade buyers who might have competing interests, some information will be confidential and will need to be shared only towards the end of the process
Everything should be scrutinised and planned to present an attractive and accurate picture of the business. By doing this, you will create a positive first impression and increase your chances of securing a transaction at the best possible valuation.
Information as a tool
When gathering and preparing information for potential buyers, it is important to remember that a data dump is not the best way to share information. Being on the front foot and sharing buyer-ready information, will not only help speed up the pace of the diligence and reduce drop-out rate amongst buyers. It will allow you to better control the narrative and ensure that buyers are looking into your business in the right way.
While this exercise is very important, it is also extremely time-consuming. Our specialists can help you in:
- Discerning the information that buyers will want to see, from less relevant one
- Prepare and overlay analysis and narrative when sharing information with buyers
- Redact confidential information
- Stage the timing and release of data with your counterparties
But, perhaps most importantly, our specialists will help you save a considerable amount of time, so you can focus on running and growing your company!
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