How do you sell your business with help from PR?

04/06/2024 16:05:12
Share     
Whatever your reasons may be for selling your business, you will want to ensure you gain the maximum value for all your hard work and the company’s future potential. PR is absolutely key to building, and demonstrating, that value. 


Here, we talk about how to sell your business with the help of PR 

Getting your business ready for sale with support from PR


Doing some PR legwork before you come to sell your business can help get it in the optimum position for sale and dramatically affect the outcome. 

Firstly, good PR can be used to enhance the credibility of your business. Positive media coverage, in targeted outlets, can establish your company as trustworthy, and a thought leader or expert in its industry. You may wish to share success stories, industry insights and opinions that position your company as valuable to the industry, as well as in itself. 

Case studies are a great way of demonstrating your company’s capabilities and successes, especially if you can create them in conjunction with another business or client. Having a third party publicly endorse your business significantly increases trust and shows the quality of your work. 
good PR can be used to enhance the credibility of your business

In a recent survey by Weber Shandwick, research showed that on average 63% of a company’s market value was attributed to its reputation. Using the above PR tools, you can look to grow your company reputation.

This links with the second way PR can assist in a business sale, and that is creating brand awareness. Visibility in the media, be that national, regional or trade, will build recognition and familiarity with your brand, making it more attractive to potential buyers. 

Both of these together can help to attract more customers and employees to your business which will give you stronger financials and a stable workforce, increasing its bottom line value.

Answering the question how do you sell your business with the help of PR


Building credibility and visibility will give you a strong platform from which to sell your business and now it's time to set out your stall. 

The next task on your PR journey is to continue with the above activities but with a slightly different angle!  Weaving in a narrative about your company's success and future potential, as proven by previous media activity. This gives evidence as to why your business is an attractive investment with a great reputation. 

Your PR should now be more strategic, with a focus on sale. Positive messaging regarding milestones, awards, and growth will continue to bolster the desirability of your business as you move through the sale process. You will want to continue to explore the relationships you have built with industry experts and journalists who can vouch for your company reputation. These relationships are also an asset to any buyer. It’s also important to make sure that the business owners are not the only recognisable faces in your media relations activity, so that a potential buyer can see there is strength in depth within the team. 
Reputation matters

Thorough research around which buyers are in the market, what they are looking for and what media they engage with will help you funnel your communications down the most effective route and get in front of the right eyes. 

Our final PR tips on how to sell your business


The more established processes you have within your business, the more attractive it becomes to a buyer. From a PR perspective, having a crisis communications strategy that sits alongside your business continuity plan is a useful part of pre-sale preparations. 

It shows potential buyers that your business is well run, because you have put processes in place to mitigate against the reputational impact of potential crisis situations. We delivered a crisis communications plan recently for a senior team for precisely this reason. 

It can also prepare you in case of any negative media coverage or situations in the wake of your sale, such as disgruntled employees. Having this in place will be an asset to anyone who takes over the business. 

And finally, if you are looking for a PR agency to help you prepare your business for sale, it is well worth looking for one that has experience in mergers and acquisitions.

If you have any questions about using PR strategically to help get your business ready for sale, or would like to see what we could do for you, please get in touch.

Contact us today