You may have started your company with the best intentions…keeping it until you are ancient.  You may have started out the expert and no one could come close to knowing all you know.  You may want everything in your company to be done the right way; your way.  Too bad for you.

There will come a time when all of that just can’t continue.  At some point, you will want to sell your company, you will get tired of training new people and going through everything again, or your health might fade, or your son or daughter want to take over, or you end up with an unexpected business partner, or perhaps, you will want money from the bank.

Any of that sound even possible?

Your business is only worth what someone else can get out of it.  Whether that is based on brand recognition, or a mathematical evaluation, frankly, getting stuff out of your head isn’t that easy!

Processes are worth money!  That is why the whole concept of franchises works, and sells.

Anyone can open a hamburger joint.  But many feel buying a brand is better. Why?  Not only brand recognition, but a whole slew of people, training manuals, not just proven business practices, but documented results proven business practices.

You likely have tremendous business capital in your head.  Things such as statistics, data, leveraged experience, employee knowledge, ratios, qualified sources, lists of experts, pricing structures and much, much more!

You are valuable to be sure!  But data is more valuable if it is in a “movable” form.  Although a collection of hard copy paper is great, a more profitable type is a digital or electronic format.  

Your intellectual property must be able to move from your control to any other new owner, and verbal just doesn’t cut it. 

The best suggestions to start:

• Record things, preferably in a list or database format such as Microsoft Excel.
• Use a contact management system, such as Outlook, GoldMine, Sales Force, BuildTopia, or something.
• For larger builders especially, but anyone, you should be using a Customer Relationship Management system, which would manage the entire customer lifecycle experience, from inquiry to lead to prospect to buyer to homeowner to referral partner.
• Start creating a digital library, organized in some fashion, of all your documents you use on a regular basis.
• Keep track of things you have done, articles, speaking, contracts, charity, etc.
• Get, and use, a fire proof safe
• Create a company digital photo library to use for award entries, employee events, home shows, and many other types of collateral
• Back up your data. Back it up often, diligently and safely. Back it up again.  There are many ways to automate this relatively easily and inexpensively.

If somehow your building were burned to the ground, could you be up and running the next day? If so, you are good to go, and your company is worth even more.  If not, you have work to do to get the most value, and the best dollar for your company, or even to give it away successfully and see your legacy continue.

Erik Cofield, CGA has leveraged technology and provided business management consulting for all sizes and types of builders, developers and Remodelers since 2000, including volume, multi-family and custom, to help them improve their business. He is the National Accounts Manager with BuildTopia (www.buildtopia.com), a widely used international construction management software company.  He can be reached via ecofield@buildtopia.com.