What things can you do to prepare your business for sale? No doubt that this issue of Make it Business is chock-full of tips, hints, thoughts and ideas for getting your business ready to sell, and maximizing the value of your sale. Follow the advice from these pages and I’m sure you’ll be on the fast track to having a very attractive business to sell.

But what if your business is not for sale? Doesn’t your business deserve to be at its best and running on all cylinders all the time? Of course it does.

It seems that when trying to maximize the value on anything (something, someone or some situation) we are at our most productive and at our best in the moments, days or months before the “event” itself. Whether you’re trying to maximize the sale of your business, the sale of your home, the last days of work before you leave on vacation, or the first impression you make with a new client, it always seems that when leading up to these events we are in a frame of mind of being totally organized and clear on what needs to be done - we are in the frame of mind of thinking about maximum productivity and efficiency.

Think about it: Selling your home? Trim the bushes and plant some flowers, paint the fence or the whole house, fix the leaky faucet. Day before vacation? Make a list, follow your list, ignore time wasters, get in early, stay late, get it done.

First meeting with Mr. Big? Wear your best suit, get a new haircut, prepare a new PowerPoint presentation, shine your shoes. Selling your car? Get that big servicing done, fix the cracked windshield, and spray that “new car” scent. A professional athlete in season before the contract is up? Play big, score goals, make saves, have an MVP year.

Why not make every day the day before vacation, the week before the big meeting, the month before selling your home or business? Why not make it a mindset or philosophy to always be ready, keep things maintained, have your best foot forward, have things in order and up to speed.

I remember when my wife and I were getting our previous home ready for sale. After all the maintenance and fixing up, I wanted to keep the place. What a beautiful home – everything was working, renovated, looking great and suddenly we had more room than I had remembered.

How about you? Have you ever wondered how you were able to get so much done the day before your recent vacation or business trip?

Ever wondered how much more efficient your business would be and how much more piece of mind you would have if you had your books in order, your showroom updated, your sales team on the same page, your team of lawyers, accountants and bankers in place, your client touch points organized and structured, procedure manuals updated, your equipment maintained and meeting minutes documented, to name a few?

My message? Don’t wait until your business is for sale to get it ready. Make it a policy and a discipline to regularly and routinely maintain the many facets of your business.

Make it a procedure to always have your business in shape, up to speed, polished, shiny and of course efficient and successful.

Whether you are thinking of selling your business or not, find out what you need to do to get your business ready for sale and then adopt the frame of mind your business should always be ready for sale regardless if it actually is or not.

If you do this, you will have a business that you and your team will be proud of, a business with systems in place, a business that attracts the best employees and customers.

You will have a business that has correct and timely data available to help make proper strategic decisions, a business that is efficient and productive in every aspect. And, of course, a business that is successful and one that will hold its maximum value should the day ever come when you wish to sell.

Robert Ciccone is the president and founder of Success Unlimited Sales and Marketing Group (www.susmg.com). He is also the creator of the Marketing for Profit Program, a three-part results program that provides the marketing systems, tools and ongoing support to help participants effectively build, manage and operate a profitable business (www.susmg.com/MarketingForProfit). Robert can be reached at 604- 535-2111 or rob@susmg.com.