Exit planning advisers occupy a space between an accountant, a management consultant and a business broker. Some are genuinely useful and some are the front end of a sales process for something else. The difference is visible in how they are paid and in what they will put in writing.
Get quotes to sell my business
What exit planning services involve
An assessment of what the business is worth now and why, a list of the things reducing that number, a plan to address them with a timetable, and a view on the route out. Good engagements are specific: name the customer concentration, name the person who has to be replaced, name the year. Vague engagements produce a document and a relationship rather than a change in the business.
How exit planning consultants are paid, and what that implies
A fixed fee for the plan, an hourly rate, a retainer, or free planning tied to an expectation of the sale mandate or a financial product later. The last is not disqualifying and it is worth knowing. Ask directly how they are paid, whether they take a fee on any transaction that follows, and whether they sell anything else.
Telling a useful business exit consultant from a salesperson
Ask what they would tell you not to do. Ask for two clients whose businesses they worked on two years ago and what changed. Ask whether they will put the valuation view in writing with the reasoning. A firm that will do all three is selling advice; one that answers with a process diagram is selling the process.
Questions people ask about exit planning advisor
Is this different from a business broker?
Yes. A broker sells the business when you are ready; an exit planning adviser works on the years before that. Some firms do both, which is convenient and worth asking about.
What should business exit strategy consulting cost?
Fixed fee planning engagements are common and scoped. Ask for the scope and the deliverable in writing before agreeing to anything.
Do I need one?
Not necessarily. An accountant who understands transactions plus an honest self assessment covers much of it for a small business.