Finances

Online Listings: Be Effective When Listing Your Practice for Sale

By Mark Wright, OD, FCOVD

SYNOPSIS

Increase your chances of finding a buyer by strategically listing your practice online. The web sites of optometry schools are a good resource to utilize.

ACTION POINTS

LIST YOUR PRACTICE WITH THE SCHOOLS AND COLLEGES OF OPTOMETRY. On the college web site, click on the “alumni, friends and donor” button.

LIST YOUR PRACTICE WITH THE SURROUNDING STATE ORGANIZATIONS. Capture potential buyers who may be considering a move to your area.

LIST YOUR PRACTICE WITH THE AOA. Contact the AOA and ask for help navigating their web site and placing the ad for sale.

With the leading edge of the baby boomers at age 68, we expect a significant rise in the number of practices being put on the market for sale.If you are seeking exposure to people looking to buy your practice, a prime place to go is the Web. The Web is fast-becoming the marketplace where practice buyers shop.

Where Should You List?

In listing your practice online, you want to target schools and colleges of optometry. Each year there are approximately 1,700-1,800 graduates from all the schools and colleges of optometry entering the workforce. These graduates are potential associates and partners. This group of people should be targeted.

In addition, you need to put your listing on state optometric web sites and the AOA web site.

Unfortunately, there is not just one web site that everyone looking to buy a practice or join a practice can go to–there are many. Because of that fact, it is important to list your practice everywhere there is a potential buyer.

Where On the Web Site Should You List?

When you get to the web sites to list your practice, specifically, look for “practice listings” or “seekers and providers” sections of the web sites. Unfortunately, more often than not, it is not obvious where to go on the web site to list a practice for sale. It may take you a few minutes looking around. On the schools and colleges web sites, it may be listed under Alumni sections of the web site.

For example, here is the College of Optometry at The Ohio State University’s web site. To list a practice, from the home page you need to click on the “alumni, friends and donor” button. It is the second button from the right on the screenshot below.

Then, on the next page, at the bottom of the left side of the page, you need to click on the Practice Opportunities button.

This takes you to the page shown below that contains the SEEKERS and PROVIDERS buttons.

Seekers are those people who are looking for a job or practice opportunity. Providers fall into two groups: those looking to sell a practice and those looking to provide an employment opportunity. This is an open web site, so Seekers can look for Providers and Providers can look for Seekers.

List Your Practice With Your State Optometric Organization and Surrounding States

You should also list your practice on your state optometric organization web site. You should also list your practice on surrounding state optometric association web sites to capture those people who may be considering a move to your area.

List your practice with the AOA

You should also consider listing your practice on the AOA web site. Here is the place to start: http://www.excelod.com/career-center. The AOA web site is currently built to help employers find employee optometrists. To list your practice for sale with the AOA, your best approach is to contact the AOA and ask for help navigating their web site and placing the ad for sale.

Note: You May Have to Pay for Listing

You also need to know that some groups charge a fee for listing your practice and some do not. For example, the AOA charges a fee for non-AOA members of $225 and about half that for AOA members for a 30-day listing.

Prepare to Be Patient–and to Search

The bottom line is, if you are listing your practice online, be prepared to spend time navigating web sites and then deal with the decision to pay or not pay for listing your practice for sale.

Related ROB Articles

Practice Sale and Retirement: One OD’s Success Strategy

Ready to Exit Your Practice? Check Your Finances and Emotional Readiness

Practice Transition Team Checklist: Get the Right People On Board

Mark Wright, OD, FCOVD, is the founding partner of a nine-partner, three-location, full-scope optometic practice. He is currently the CEO of practice management firm Pathways to Success. To contact: mwright@pathways-o.com

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