Dental Tribune United Kingdom Edition

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(3 YEAR PROGRAMME STARTING 2012) IN ORTHODONTICS International Association for Orthodontics 1: Jan 10-12 2: Cephalometrics / Radiography Mar 5 - 7 3: Mixed Dentition treatment Jun 15-17 4: Class II Correction; Nov 16-18 OSA / Snoring Orthodontic Diagnosis 2012 2013 2014 5: Class III Correction Jan 21-23 6: Straightwire Mechanics Mar 15-17 7: High-angle Malocclusions Jun 18-20 8: Perio / Ortho Interface Nov 1 - 3 Year 1 Year 2 9: Biomechanics Jan 13-15 10: Surgical Orthodontics Mar 24-26 11: Esthetic Appliances Jun 10-12 12: Management of TMD; Nov 10-12 Stability / Retention Year 3 Special discount of £250 for Dental Tribune readers – quote promotional code DTMR11 when booking CONTACT: +44 845 644 2991 EMAIL: jane@personal-equilibrium.co.uk Recognised for 72 hours verifiable CPD per year Andy Acton from Frank Taylor and Associates takes a look at some of the many pitfalls to avoid when selling your practice... Practice sale No-No’s! I t never fails to amaze me, but so many sellers still fail to take care of some of the most basic items before they try and bring their prac- tice to market. I thought that I would take you through some of the biggest ‘no-no’s’ so that you won’t make the same mistakes. 1DON’T discuss the poten- tial sale with the PCT. Of course when you do this the PCT will be as nice as pie and full of good intentions. However, this may come back to bite you further down the line – do not do it! 2DON’T sell to anyone who gives you a call! If you were selling your house, would you sell it to someone who phoned up and claimed they were the only people looking?! I suspect not. In which case, don’t do it with your business. Cor- porates will call and try and offer a knock down price – make sure you promote to the entire market. 3DON’T spend a small for- tune on the internal decor. In- teresting one this. I think with the plethora of property pro- grammes on television offer- ing good advice on house sales eg neutral colours, new paint, new carpet etc., many feel that the same is true of a practice. In our experience this isn’t the case. It must be presentable but it is less of an issue when buying a business rather than a residence. 4DON’T be concerned about a slightly below average level of profit. In our experience, buyers often believe they can do bet- ter than the current owner and like to feel that there is room for improvement when they place their ‘stamp’ on the practice. 5DON’T try and inflate the figures! Many purchasers will be wary about BIG changes in in- come and profit – especially big increases in income and profit the year before sale without good reason. 6DON’T leave equipment that doesn’t work or redundant on display. Pretty straightfor- ward – if it isn’t of any use, pack it away or get rid of it. 7DON’T fail to plan in ad- vance. A typical sale will cur- rently take around 9-12 months. If you plan ahead and have two- three years you can make any relevant changes to the practice. Any less than this is unrealistic. 8 DON’T ignore contracts. Perhaps when you took your associate on it was done with a friendly chat in the lounge bar of the Dog & Duck! When it comes to selling a business, this will no longer do. A full legal document needs to be in place – they are an ‘asset’ of the business. 9DON’T talk to the world and his wife. Whilst it is of- ten useful to case opinion far and wide, the sale of a dental practice is generally not in this category. You tend to find that you will get five different opinions, many of which will be misinformed. 10DON’T be uncoop- erative with potential buyers. As long as you have used an independent agent to ‘weed out’ timewasters anonymously, you should be as open as possible with serious potential buyers and communicate with them fully. 11 DON’T try and keep back certain items eg prac- tice website. This can come up quite a lot and the simple answer is that the sale of a business includes everything. It doesn’t matter that your friend designed the website and you really like it; it is an asset of the business and included in the sale. 12ALWAYS use special- ists.Whetheryou’retalkingabout finance, solicitors or the agents who sell the practice, it is ab- solutely vital that you work with people who understand the potential pitfalls and how to avoid them. Selling a business is a big undertaking and as the vendor you need to maximise your re- turn on investment. Make sure that you don’t make any of these mistakes! DT Don’t forget to take care of the basics when selling your practice About the author Andy Acton is a director and co- owner of Frank Taylor and Associates – the leading independent valuers and sales agent to the dental profession. Its sister company, Loan Hunter, pro- vides financial solutions to the dental industry. Andy is a regular contributor to the dental media and has also de- livered many lectures across the UK. Tel. 08456 123434 Email: andy.acton@ft-associates.com Frank Taylor and Associates @franktaylorassc