This combination is compiled for those who wish to sell businesses, primarily to individuals, with selling prices between $500,000 and $10,000,000. We have been asked many times, "What is the difference between a Broker and an Intermediary?" Both are brokers as they sell something that belongs to someone else. The difference between them lies in the processes they use and that difference can be summed up with one word - PREPARATION.

This combination of books and software is based upon lessons learned through selling more than 2,000 businesses and is designed to help you:

Get paid for all you do (professionals get paid),
Sell more businesses and
Earn larger commissions and fees.

If you are presently a business broker or if you are considering entering the field then this has been written for you. Allow me to introduce myself and share a bit of how my business brokerage office changed to a fee based operation over twenty years ago. My name is Ted Burbank and I began my business brokerage career late in 1979.

At that time no one in my market nor anyone I knew ever charged up "front fees" when listing a business. Charging up front fees was never a consideration as we began the journey that would end with my brokerage collecting a retainer with every listing. I can tell you that the change did not take place until we were convinced that our collecting a fee was in the best interest of our client. Prior to this the staff and business owners alike viewed up front fees as a benefit to the broker only.

It turned out that business owners really wanted the fee based approach over the free based one -
they just didn't realize it until we offered them a sensible alternative.

Let me share with you the catalyst for our transition from a typical business brokerage office where businesses are listed without a fee to one where every listing was accompanied by a fee. My wife and I were at a party and someone asked what I did for a living. Quite a few people gathered around to hear more after I explained that I sold businesses. After answering all the usual questions such as “What’s the best business to be in today?” I still had an audience so I continued and pointed out that many entities sold businesses. In fact Century 21 sold more businesses than any other organization. I was quick to add that those numbers were purely a function of their size and not their effectiveness.

For example if every other Century 21 office sold one business a year that might represent several thousand sales. But – they sell less than one of twenty listings or an effectiveness rate less than a five percent. Business brokers typically will sell one in six to seven of their listings. However, (drum roll please) my office was successful in selling one in four of our listings.

The adulation and praise was short lived as on the drive home my wife asked “Is it true that you sell one of four listings?” "Why yes indeed." I replied – my chest expanding with pride. "Yes we do."

I was unprepared for her foundation shaking reply. “You mean to say you only satisfy twenty five percent of your customers?” Oh wow! I never looked at it that way. What other professional has a success rate that low? Perhaps a baseball pitcher’s batting average, but I couldn't think of anything else. I was really troubled and decided that we would find a way to improve our effectiveness. It’s not easy being married to an intelligent woman.

It took over a year for us to come up with the solution to the low effectiveness problem (Notice the objective was not to collect fees although the result was we became a fee based operation). Our effectiveness rate went from twenty five percent to the high nineties percent and now I want to share with you just how we did it with this book and software package.

"We were able to
increase our Listing to Sale Ratio by a factor of Four
using the methods outlined in this program"

What Transition to a Fee Based Practice contains:

First Book: Transition to a Fee Based Practice - 232 pages of step by step instruction and examples to facilitate your transition to a Fee Based Practice and become more effective selling businesses. Most importantly you will gain an understanding of why your collecting a retainer is in your client's best interest.

Some of the topics covered in the book include:

How the process evolved from Free Based to Fee Based
Lessons learned from Wall Street applied to Main Street
Why the business brokerage terms and language you use has to change
Presentation of services including a sample presentation
How to identify and then find the "right buyer"
How to properly match buyers with sellers
How to manage buyer and seller expectations
Tips and techniques in developing the report
Wealth creation strategies for small and mid size businesses
and much more

Listing Presentation: The book includes a word for word transcript of an actual presentation that results in prospective clients asking "How much will this service cost?" That's right - you may never have to ask for a fee to obtain one.

Second Book: In & Out of Business. . . Happily

The second piece in the package is the book, In and Out of Business Happily. Let me caution you though. If you're looking for an academic treatise on the sales process, this is not the book. But if you want practical, useful information based on actual experiences, I think you'll be happy with this book.

Here are some of the topics covered in the book’s twenty four chapters

Types of buyers active in today’s marketplace and how they determine value
An overview of how a savvy business person sells his/her business
Moves you can make to maximize a company’s value before you put it on the market
How to sell a business without anyone knowing it was for sale until after the sale is consummated
A complete and comprehensive description of the types of buyers in today’s marketplace. Determine which type will be best for any business and pay the most money and how to avoid the rest
How to position a business to assure that you get the right price
Expensive traps and mistakes to avoid when selling a business
Types of buyers active in today’s marketplace and how they determine value
Ten reasons why selling a business is different from selling essentially anything else you can imagine and how to capitalize upon the differences.
Non financial factors that impact a business’ value
A comprehensive overview of the proper sequence of steps to the dance that ensues once you have attracted what appears to be the right buyer (For example: Tax returns are one of the first things buyers request but should be among the last items provided)
Bottom line or between the lines? How to help your buyer understand the real profitability and opportunity your business represents.
How to increase your business’ value without increasing declared profits

The financial component of selling a business is made easier to understand by eliminating financial jargon and dispelling the mystery that usually surrounds business valuation. In addition, the book’ s appendix provides: definitions and examples of key terms used in a buy/sell transaction; explanations and models of various ratio analyses and comparisons within your industry; and various tables such as those showing present value, monthly loan payments, future value, and balance remaining on a loan.

First Software ~ Professional Advantage has four segments and is the exact same software we developed and refined over a twenty year period especially for our fee based practice.

1. Buyer Identification and Business Valuation - This program has been designed to be used by the Non-Financial Professional and is very easy to use. The books provide you with the different buyers' rationales and motivations. The software will crunch the numbers the same way the different buyers of small and mid size businesses will. Simply enter numbers into a template and the software will automatically:

Illustrate the price and terms different types of buyers would be willing to pay today and why
Show how much financing your seller would be expected to provide and, if they were to insist upon a cash price, what an all cash price might be
Identify the best type of buyer to attract as well as the type(s) of buyers you should avoid.
Transaction Structuring Model – Allows you to compute “what if” scenarios by changing down payments, interest rates or terms etc and calculate your ROI and Fairness Testing so you can get back to the negotiating table quickly
Develop a comprehensive financial analysis of your business designed to give you a view of your client company's from the outside in (An accountant would have to charge much more than the cost of our program for this feature alone)

Don't let the ease of use fool you. This is very powerful software and an exceptional tool that is highly valued and used by MBAs, CPAs and other financial professionals all over the world. With our software you'll be able to present your business in a most professional way, raising the value of your business and the price you can get for it.

2. Marketing Tools: Sample solicitation letters, post cards, flyers and brochure for you to adapt to your use in marketing your services are also available on the CD-ROM.

3. Three Sample Reports: The sample reports will help you as you create reports of your own. The samples include retail, service and manufacturing/distribution businesses representing small, medium and large private companies. Having completed reports to review facilitates a fast track understanding of this mysterious subject. The combination of our books and the examples will help you determine and, of equal if not more importance, defend the value of your services. The first is an example of a basic report - The retainer collected, $1,500 The second and third are essentially the same but with more research and customization - the retainers collected, $5,000 and $25,000

4. Sample Prospectus or Selling Document

Three sample selling documents ranging from a one page version for the smaller businesses to one with twenty pages for a somewhat complex, larger business. Knowing how your target buyer thinks and how they approach the acquisition and valuation process is like your having a spy in the enemy's camp. It's not what they see but rather how they see it.

Every business has its weaknesses or problem issues. The book explains how and why these factors help you define your best buyer. The examples will highlight how the "low spots" of your business can be made to appear as part of the exciting opportunity your business represents.

Everything you need to start your transition to a fee based practice is provided in this package. We are so confident you will be satisfied we offer a no questions asked money back guarantee.

The Third Book -- Buying a Business Made Easier (Read - "Selling a businesses made easier")

Buying a Business Made Easier is modeled after the "Buyer Education" methods we employed in our brokerage office. You are most likely aware that twenty buyer interviews are typically required to obtain one offer and that it takes two or three offers to get to a sale. That's a lot of work! We felt there must be a way to become more effective. Before too long the answer became very apparent - EDUCATION. Book's one and two essentially chronicle development of Seller Education methods and the resulting dramatic increase in success. We wanted to now tackle improving Buy Side success ratios. The results of that endeavor are outlined and described in this book and software combination.

Buyer education efforts improved our Buyer in to Sales ratio dramatically. My top three associates enjoyed a fantastic ratio of 2 buyers in to 1 SALE, not offer but sale. The ratio for the entire office was 5 buyers in to 1 sale. We found the key was to provide buyers with the information the required to make an informed decision before they needed it. When we gave information early we were viewed as sincere professionals. When tried to provide the same information (education) as it was need, our efforts were rejected as only Salesmen Tactics. Understanding what education is required and recognizing the appropriate time to provide it is covered in the book.

Buyers In to Sales Ratio for the entire office
averaged 5 Buyers In to 1 Sale

This practical guide, written in understandable "shirt sleeve" language, simplifies a very complex subject. The book focuses upon the motivations and perceptions that drive a sale. The Case Studies and Examples provided illustrate every major issue and help make this complex subject easier to understand.

The book walks you through the Business Buying Process one step at a time. Each major point is illustrated with an actual case study example so you can buy or sell a business as if you had purchased or sold businesses hundreds of times before.

Some of the tips and insider information illustrated in "Buying a Business Made Easier"

Three questions to ask so you don't waste time and money reviewing businesses that don't "fit" you or your lifestyle - cut right to the quick without offending either the seller nor the sellers advisors

Ask the four key questions used by the Pros to determine profitability before seeing the books - Save hundreds of hours and perhaps thousands of dollars in professional fees analyzing businesses you should never buy

Learn how to determine the real profits of any business, especially cash businesses, using techniques employed by the IRS and savvy business buyers

Avoid pitfalls and common mistakes that can cost dearly

Learn negotiation techniques that produce win-win results

Where to obtain the best advice (and it's usually free)
Determine a proper price and transaction structure for purchasing the business (it's not what you pay but rather how you pay it).

The Book represent a compilation of the experience gained in successfully negotiating the purchase and sale of more than 2,000 businesses. The information is based upon real experiences and not scholarly theory. Learn how to buy your business like a pro.
Profit from the experience and insight gained
in negotiating more than two thousand business transfers

The Fourth Book - Interpreting Financial Statements for Business Acquisitions - A Layman's Guide

This Workbook and software combination has been expressly created for the non-financial entrepreneur or executive engaged in
buying or selling Private Companies.

Obtain a clear and concise understanding of any company's financial strengths and weaknesses quickly. Ratify opportunities a company represents in minutes using this unique book and software combination. This combo was created for non-financial professionals and is based upon experience gained participating in more than two thousand Private Company acquisitions. It is written in clear, plain, shirt sleeve English and not accounting jargon or code that is understood only by members of the "Financial Circle."

Selling a Cash Business? The book explains how to determine what the real earnings of any company might be under your ownership and the "MBA on CD ROM" software makes "crunching the numbers" easy. Impress your accountant with the quality Due Diligence review the "MBA on Disk" software produces. Save the hundreds if not thousands of dollars he/she would have to charge you for a similar work product. The book and software enables you to fully understand any company's financial position and maintain complete control over the Due Diligence process.

No need to be intimidated by accounting and finance jargon any longer.

Second Software ~ Deal Master 4.0

Deal Master 4.0 consists of several interactive components that cover the entire acquisition process from start to finish. Applying the "Insider Information" this package provides can save you thousands of dollars in legal and accounting fees plus save you hundreds of hours reviewing inappropriate businesses or companies that were not right for you.

Deal Master 4.0 is designed to simplify and make safe the "need not be complex" process of buying a business.

Part 1 - "Your MBA on Disk 4.0":
Simply enter one to five years of financial data from accounting statements or tax returns, answer a few questions regarding the business, make a few decisions - press a key and PRESTO! The program has calculated:

The Real Profits of any business (special section for use with Cash Businesses)! Deal Master 4.0 has a unique ability to show you the real profits of any business - even Cash Businesses
A Fair Price and Terms for the business - You can perform countless "What if" scenarios and calculate scores of possible transaction structures quickly and easily to determine a Fair Price
Fairness Test and Justification of Purchase Price Calculations - Make sure the business can afford the price, and that your Rate of Return is commensurate with the risk involved - this is a double check on whether or not the price is fair.
Determine the real profits of any business, especially cash businesses, using audit techniques employed by the IRS and savvy business buyers
Pro-forma projections of profitability under your management - Easy and straightforward calculation that employ the scores of historic operating ratios generated by the program.
Cash Flows and working capital requirements - Make sure you will have adequate reserves and money to grow your new business
Comprehensive Ratio Analysis with explanations - Scores of ratios are calculated by Deal Master 4.0 along with an explanation of what each ratio means, why it is important and how it is calculated
Deal Master 4.0 will generate Comparative Income Statements and Balance Sheets
Risk Analysis Reviewer ~ Checks out factors other than "the numbers"
Graphs to visually view key factors

Deal Master 4.0 also calculates a range of Price and Down Payments and Transaction Structures that insures:

You start with a living wage commensurate with your down payment and
The existing cash flow of the business will carry your acquisition debt service plus
You will receive a fair return on your investment

Deal Master 4.0 helps you analyze counter offers for fairness and "get back to the table" with a proposal you can defend quickly and confidently.

Hard Copy Sample included for reference

"Your accountant would have to charge you many times
the cost of this package for the business and ratio analysis alone"

Part 2 - IRS Tax Return Data by Industry
Who would have believed you would have direct access to Internal Revenue Service information directly from your computer and the Deal Master 4.0 CD-ROM. The financial data collected from tax returns filed with the IRS is compiled in spreadsheet format by Industry, Business Form, and other criteria.

We have made it easy for you to use the data to justify/ratify your assumptions and compare your target business to other businesses of the same size within the same industry. For example, you might want to use this data to ratify that the Gross Profit percentage you expect to maintain is realistic and attainable. This would be especially helpful in adding credibility to your projections and increasing a lender's confidence.

Compare:

Gross Profit
Net Expenses
Recast Income and Profitability
Rents
Labor Costs
Real Profitability of one Industry with Another and More.

Thanks to CDROM technology, the copious amount of IRS data is readily available to you as dynamic information. You can forget about the tedious data input that is required with static information found in books, articles and reports. Deal Master 4.0has organized the data on CD-ROM - ready for you to use and analyze as you wish.

Part 3 - IRS Field Agent Audit Guide by Industry
In addition to the IRS financial data the Deal Master 4.0 CD-ROM contains the IRS's internal Audit and Investigation Guides for businesses from Architect to Veterinarian. Thanks again to CD-ROM technology, the vast amount of information involved is readily available for download to your printer or for on screen review by industry .

Each Audit Guide provides an overview of the industry under review to familiarize the you with industry lingo, practices and then outlines just what questions should be asked, what documents should be reviewed etc. Actually the IRS agent's Audit is essentially the same as the Due Diligence Review one should conduct before acquiring any business. Investigate and Audit your target business using IRS techniques and information

Now you can have the same
Audit and Investigation Tools the IRS uses

We can keep the cost to you very low by providing the data on the Deal Master's CD-ROM rather than in a telephone book size document.

Part 4 - "Loan Proposal Generator"

The Loan Proposal Generator portion of Deal Master 4.0 is unique in that it automatically creates a Loan Proposal based upon actual Lender's lending criteria and presents the data in the format the Lender's like to see making it easy for a lender to say yes to your loan request.

Special Bonus ~ Deal Master 4.0 will facilitate your contact with the most competitive lenders willing to "do your deal" at the best available rate. Run a possible transaction by the lenders before you make an offer to determine:

What the lenders will consider a Fair Price
What down payment will be required of you
How much bank financing is available and at what rate
The Amount of seller financing that may be required

You can structure your offer with confidence and present yourself as a savvy business person to the seller and the seller's advisors. Sample Loan Package included for reference.

"Present yourself as a professional"

Third Software -- DealMaker docs 5.0

All the documents needed to Buy, Sell or Merge a Private company are on this easy to use CD.
Find the "just right" document, contingency or special wording quickly and easily.

Save time and money
Use documents tested in thousands of negotiations world-wide
Separate documentation for large, small and mid-size companies

The ONLY product of its kind
If you are involved in selling businesses - you will really appreciate this unique and comprehensive resource. The program reflects experience gained in THOUSANDS of negotiations and more than twenty years of use. Thousands of hours have been invested in development so that you will have the right document, wording, condition or contingency at your fingertips in minutes. Imagine just how long it would take you to create just one of the contracts from scratch or imagine how much your attorney would have to charge you to do it for you.

Professional Documentation
DealMaker docs is an ideal resource for those either entering Business Brokerage or upgrading their existing practice.

Entering Business Brokerage - In addition to all the forms and contracts you will ever need to sell a business the CD-ROM also contains - an Office Policy Manual, Independent Contractors Agreement, Co-Broke Agreement and the Business Brokerage Code of Ethics.
Upgrading to Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) - DealMaker docs has all the paperwork you require to do the larger deal using M&A language and protocol.

Separate Documentation for Small, Middle Market and M&A Transactions
Deal Maker docs addresses the changes that occur in documentation protocol as transaction size increases. The documentation used to sell a "Main Street" coffee shop is not appropriate when transferring ownership of a Multi-Million Dollar manufacturing company. Deal Maker docs covers it all with documentation appropriate to all levels of business - Main Street businesses through multi-million dollar M&A transactions.

The Contingencies and Special Wordings alone are worth the entire price.
When you're in the heat of negotiations you don't have time to be creative developing language to cover that special situation or condition. DealMaker docs has special wording to cover most any situation. Take a look at the Contingencies and Special Wording Table of Contents

Questions: How would you handle Multiple Offers on the same business at the same time? Were this event to occur you would want access to the right language quickly. How about special language that allows several buyers to proceed while the Seller reserves judgment and maintains control in safety.
How can you be sure your buyers are not stuck with bills or other liabilities of the Seller? How can you make offers on two separate businesses safely (what if both accept your offer?). How can you be sure your "Due Diligence" investigation has covered everything?

What do you get?

Sample of all documents in a sturdy 1 1/2 inch 3-ring binder (267 pages)
Easy to use CD ROM for Windows® 95 - 98 - NT - XP
Documentation field tested in thousands of negotiations
Fast and easy access to the "just right" document, language or contingency

"Deal Maker docs" are being used by
Attorneys, Accountants, Business Brokers, Intermediaries and Consultants
on Every Continent in the World!

One hundred twenty two documents comprise all the forms, letters, checklists and closing documents you need to buy, sell or merge a private company. The software program contains: Purchase and Sale Agreements, Letters of Intent, Conditional Offers to Purchase, Due diligence check lists, Data gathering sheets, Letters of Authorization, Notes, Leases, Releases and much, much more. The sturdy 9" X 12" three ring binder contains a sample of all the documents found on the CD ROM. Click here for table of contents that lists all 122 documents.

Simply insert the CD into your computer and access the documents using Windows Explorer. You will easily customize the documents for your use using the powerful features of Microsoft Word or other Windows word processing software. No need to learn a new software program as you can use your favorite program and integrate DealMaker docs documents into your existing document system.

Save hundreds of hours in typing and thousands of dollars in legal fees.

If you want to:

Sell larger businesses
Become more effective selling businesses
Transition to a fee based practice
Obtain more referrals

You need this special combination of products especially developed for the business brokerage community by a business broker. Access experience gained in over two thousand transactions and 25 years.

How Much Will It Cost?

Purchased individually, these tools add up to a total value of $944.25 but, by purchasing the package, you save $194.25. Take a look.

Items	Regular Low Price
Book & Software ~ Transition to a Fee Based Practice plus Professional Advantage software and marketing materials	290.00
Book ~ In & Out of Business. . . Happily	65.00
Book & Software ~ Buying a Business Made Easier plus Deal Master 4.0 Buyer Education Software	195.00
Interpreting Financial Statements for Business Acquisitions, A Layman's Guide including "MBA on Disk - Business Analyzer"	75.00
DealMaker docs - Business Transfer Documentation including special wordings and contingencies - Book of Samples and Software	295.00
Shipping	24.25
Total	944.25
Discount	-194.25
Special Price	750.00

YES
Please ship me my
Introductory Offer Direct from Publisher
Regular Price $944.25     Save $194.25 Now Only @ 750.00

Two ways to buy:

Ship hard copies of all five books and
four software programs:
Transition to a Fee Based Practice and Report Writing software, In & Out of Business. . . Happily,
Buying a Business Made Easier, plus
DealMaster 4.0 software

Interpreting Financial Statements for
Business Acquisitions, - A Layman's Guide plus
MBA on Disk - Business Analyzer

DealMaker docs software and book of samples


USPS Priority Mail included

"Download* " all four books and
four software programs
plus we will mail you a CD ROMs containing all five books and four software programs



USPS Priority Mail included

* We will send books and software as email attachments within 24 hrs of purchase

$750.00

$615.00

Includes Shipping by USPS Priority Mail (approximately 8.0 pounds)

Includes Shipping by USPS Priority Mail (approximately 8.0 pounds)

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