Accurately Valuing a Small Business

Starting from the practical viewpoint of, “I would rather be approximately right than perfectly wrong” this book provides a commonsense comprehensive framework for small business valuation that offers solutions to common problems faced by valuators and consultants both in performing valuations and providing ancillary advisory services to business owners, sellers, and buyers. If you conduct small business valuations, you may be seeking guidance on topics and problems specific to your work. Focus on What Matters: A Different Way of Valuing a Small Business fills a previous void in valuation resources. It provides a practical and comprehensive framework for small and very small business valuation (Companies under $10 million of revenues and often under $5 million of revenues), with a specialized focus on the topics and problems that confront valuators of these businesses.

Larger businesses typically have at least Reviewed Accrual Accounting statements as a valuation starting point. However, smaller businesses rarely have properly reviewed and updated financials. Focus on What Matters looks at the issue of less reliable data, which affects every part of the business valuation. You’ll find valuation solutions for facing this challenge.

As a small business valuator, you can get direction on working with financial statements of lower quality. You can also consider answers to key questions as you explore how to value each small business.

• Is this a small business or a job?


• How much research and documentation do you need to comply with standards?


• How can you use cash basis statements when businesses have large receivables and poor cutoffs?


• Should you use the market method or income method of valuation?


• Techniques that improve reliability of the market method multiplier


• How might you tax affect using the income method with the advent of the Estate of Jones and Section 199A?


• Do you have to provide an opinion of value or will a calculation work?


• How do you calculate personal goodwill?


• As a valuation professional how can you bring value to owners and buyers preparing to enter into a business sale transaction?


• How does the SBA loan process work and why is it essential to current small business values?


• What is the business brokerage or sale process and how does it work?


• How do owners increase business value prior to a business sale?

This book examines these and other questions you may encounter in your valuation process. You’ll also find helpful solutions to common issues that arise when a small business is valued.