NORTHERN BUSINESS REVIEW
The Business Entrepreneurs Dilemma: What value do business consultants offer?
by Trevor Nel – a ‘100% of NOTHING’ to ‘100% of SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT’ Zero-Risk Business Consultancy
Here is a harsh reality.
A business without profits is worth ‘100% of nothing..!’.
No matter how emotional you are about your business?
No matter how long you have been in business?
No matter what assets you have in your business?
Repeat: A business without profits is worth ‘100% of nothing..!’.
The business of business is profits.
Annual profit is one general measure of valuation for a business.
No profits, no value..!
Every quality business entrepreneur, sooner or later, will want to work with consultants to build the value of their business.
Consultants will come in two basic forms (including a hybrid of both): fee-based or equity-based.
Fee-based consultants will consult on a fixed-fee time-rate basis. They get paid within 30 days of invoice whether the business succeeds or not.
They tend to be corporate-consulting groups requiring the security of regular revenue from cash-rich corporate clients to pay the salaries of their consultants.
Equity-based consultants will consult for a slice of the cake that they help bake. They get rewarded primarily on the success of the business project.
They tend to be savvy, experienced, proven business entrepreneurs with successful track records who are prepared to take a risk on quality business entrepreneurs.
For business owners who do not want to dilute their shares, ‘equity’ does not necessarily refer to a ‘shareholding’ in a business.
Equity’ can refer to ‘an interest; a right; a financial share’ in the outcome of a project.
Equity-based consultants tend to attract business entrepreneurs who have diligently built business foundations that suck up all available cash/revenue resources into covering costs, often resulting in the need for further loans & overdrafts, inferring regular book losses (i.e. zero/negative profits) and zero resale value for the business.
As equity-based consultants, we refer to the scenario of zero profits and zero resale value as: ‘100% of nothing’, represented by the image of the empty cake stand below.
The question we ask of potential clients is: ‘Which picture do you prefer for your business, the empty plate above, or the bulk of the cake remaining in the image below after sharing the difference with the consultants who helped you bake the cake?’
That is: ‘Do you prefer 100% of NOTHING (doing as you are doing) or 100% of SOMETHING SIGNIFICANT (the bulk of the cake after the equity consultants take their share).’
As equity-based consultants, we provide many more significant benefits, where applicable:
- Original shareholders retain 100% ownership and control of the shares in the business
- Proprietary Business ACCELERATOR model controlled.
iii. 0% downside risk to shareholders. No profit. No value. No pay.
- Consultancy rewards derived from positive revenue/profit/value results only.
If you have a great business that is not growing as you know it should be growing, and you are prepared to share a slice of your business pie as it grows, at no-downside-risk to you, then.. and only then.. contact Trevor Nel 084 332-4421 or trevor@fccc.co.za
About Us
The Northern Business Review is a business community newspaper that provides a platform for businesses to market their products and services, as well as build their brand, but equally important the publication provides information, advice and topics of interest, including business, entrepreneurial, economic reviews and simple ideas to grow your business. The publication has a primary objective to “uniquely” represent businesses to a wide audience across the community as well as provide a media platform of business articles and information that affect, influence and uplift the business environment within our defined geographical and cultural community.