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Page 66
How To Investigate Any Business Opportunity
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Decreasing more than normally?
7. What is causing the increase or decrease in sales (a) for this company and ( b ) for similar
businesses?
This point may prove to be the one that basically determines the decision to buy or sell the business.
8. Has the rate of change in sales been increasing?
Are sales increasing more rapidly now than, say, a year or two ago? Are sales increasing less rapidly
now? If sales are decreasing, has the rate of decrease increased or lessened?
9. At the time of the study, where does the business stand seasonally?
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Is this normally the low point for sales in this kind of business? 
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Is it the high point? Somewhere in between? 
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Is seasonal variation so minor as to have little or no significance? 
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Are seasonal variations predictable? 
Seasonal variations may have a strong bearing on when the buyer is willing to purchase, when the seller
is willing to sell, and the price.
10. What percentage of the year. What percentage of the years business is done each month? What is
the monthly average over the past several years?
Monthly sales averages help to determine immediate working capital requirements and to plan sales for
the months ahead. They are especially important when the sales of a given month as a percent of the
year's total do not vary greatly from year to year. If there has been considerable variation, the reasons
for it should be identified if possible.
11. Do there appear to be any changes in the seasonal pattern of sales? If so, what appears to be
causing these changes?
Changes in consumer buying habits, the pressure of increased competition, governmental regulations,
and the like create changes over time that may affect the short-term sales cycle of the business.
12. If a change in the seasonal pattern is occurring, does it tend to increase total sales or merely
shift the volume from one month to another?
A comparison of several years' sales may show that the overall effect is not a proportionate gain in total
business but a readjustment of sales from month to month throughout the year.
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