What You Should Know About Selling Your Chicago Business Selling your business of the most important decisions you will ever make. It represents years, decades or a lifetime of hard work. When it comes time to sell, there are key steps you don’t want to miss. Plan Ahead. One of the most important steps you can take is to begin the sales process far in advance. Working with an experienced business broker in Chicago is a great way to ensure that you have everything ready and help you avoid the abundance of pitfalls that can come with selling a business. Be Flexible. Another important thing to remember when selling your business is to remain flexible and open-minded. Selling your business may not go as planned, and you will need to remain respectful to your potential buyers and be able to anticipate that they will need a multitude of information to make an empowered decision. Be Realistic. It’s important to understand the statistics so you can be realistic in your expectations. About 75% of sellers will end up receiving their asking price, and businesses listed as “all cash” generally do not sell. Seller financing will be highly likely, so the more realistic you can be about the terms of your sale, the better chances you have of selling. Keeping an open mind and your emotions out of the process will increase your chances of selling. It’s understandable you may be ready to sell, but the reality is that you won’t be able to just walk away, there is a process to be respected.