Question:

I learn a lot from your question and answer section. My questions are: 1) Is business brokering a good business to be in and can you really make good money selling businesses? 2) How do you deal with buyers who want to buy a business but are reluctant to pay the broker an upfront fee?

Answer:

Thank you for your kind comments. We receive wonderful feedback from buyers and sellers from these regular columns. Business brokerage can be a tremendous business to make money. Like all other commission-based fields there are usually a few top earners, then tons of people earning a living, then a few starving ones. I personally believe

business brokerage is a wonderful way to earn a living, the opportunity exists to make really big money, and you can have a significant positive impact on peoples lives.

The key, I believe, is to get properly trained, and then latch on to a successful broker mentor.

It is easy to develop bad habits in any field and so by aligning yourself with someone who is already successful you can shorten the learning curve to success and always have a sounding board to help you with new situations.

Insofar as dealing with buyers, most business brokers work with, represent, and are paid a commission by the sellers.

If you want to have a niche and approach this business as a buyers broker then you will need to really qualify the buyer prospects since so many never end up buying.

Charging an upfront fee is a good way to separate the serious ones from the tire-kickers. If they don’?t want to pay a reasonable upfront fee, then let them find someone else who is willing to put in a ton of work for free.