Mr. Keith received BRC Broker of the Year in 1998 for selling more businesses than anyone in Utah. He is a member of the International Business Brokers Association and is a Principal Real Estate Broker. Prior to becoming a Business Intermediary, Mr. Keith was with Salt Lake Financial Group providing consulting to Business Owners. For six years he was in the auto industry. He was with Dan Eastman Jeep/Eagle in Bountiful Utah for 3 years. After that he was the first Sales Manager of Hayes Brothers Jeep/Eagle/Chrysler in Salt Lake City.

Mr. Keith has been involved in the sale of hundreds of businesses, many mergers and acquisitions, and has provided consulting to business owners since 1982.

Education: The Negotiation Institute Birmingham, Alabama.
Business/Political Science: Boise State University.
Psychology: The University of Utah.

Mr. Keith's strengths are networking and creative marketing strategies to generate good buyers. He has a talent in his ability to fit the right person, or group, to a business that fits them. Many times this does not occur in the market place. As a result, a very good profitable business goes under, and many times law suits result.

One of the things that is important to Mr. Keith is the fact that there has never been a buyer default on a loan, in the purchase of a business where the seller has carried the standard of 70% or more of the sale price. This is very important in this industry since most all businesses sell with seller financing.

The usual carry back of 10 years at 7% to 9% interest has been a nice investment for exiting Sellers. Many sellers say that the carrying of the note was the best investment they ever made. This is especially true in the case of retirement where, in many cases, the Sellers are depending on the payments. This also is a nice tax strategy, since the gains, most the time, are paid in the year they are received, not up front.

Since 1999, when Mr. Keith left Business Resource Center to start his own brokerage firm, he has had as many as 10 employees and brokers at a given time. Since 2004, Mr. Keith made the decision to give personalized service to every Seller and Buyer, rather than spend time split between administration and his personal clients.

Mr. Keith works directly with all Sellers and Potential Purchasers. With a lower number of businesses for sale, Mr. Keith gives more quality attention to each business, the marketing, its Seller(s) and the Potential Purchasers generated. Businesses do not get lost in a "big pond" of 50 plus businesses for sale. Nor do they get hidden from marketing by individual agents who want both sides of a commission, which is frequent in larger companies, rather than get marketed to target the best potential purchasers.

For marketing businesses for sale, David Keith and Associates uses the same Internet Marketing Sites that all Brokerages use. However, in addition to this, David Keith and Associates uses Internet and Direct Marketing which is exclusive to David Keith and Associates. This includes finding and contacting potential purchasers directly, rather than relying on placing ads and waiting for responses. In addition to this effort, and a bonus to Sellers, Mr. Keith has a working relationship with two other Business Brokerages in Utah. This is something that is rare in Utah. However, due to his background and the trusted relationships he has formed over the years, he is able to offer this service for his Sellers to help generate purchasers.

Most all businesses that are offered through David Keith and Associates come as a result of referrals. This says a lot for David's work, the trust he earns, and the results that Sellers and Purchasers have received over the years as a result of doing business with David Keith and Associates. There are many things that come up in transactions that David has seen many times. A deal can be saved or lost according to how a given situation is handled. Trust in the seller or the company can deteriorate quickly if a problem or point of negotiation is not handled properly. We see this time and time again in the "For Sale by Owner" arena. Further on that point, when such deals occur we typically see the wrong fit, the wrong structure, misunderstandings and, as a result, law suits or defaults. No matter how skilled a business owner is at running their company, they are simply too close to the situation to avoid potentially serious problems down the road when they choose to put a deal together without the use of a skilled Business Intermediary. Sometimes we see the FSBO Seller try to make up the difference in the use of an attorney. Since their attorney is naturally in an adversarial position with the buyer, and the attorney is unable to get as close to the buyer as a broker can in the transaction, it doesn't seem to avoid potential problems. The fee paid to an experienced Business Broker is well worth the investment. It will simply save a Seller time and money and potential distress down the road. There is a pace and process and trust that must be maintained in working with a buyer. A good broker can monitor this. If the pace is not maintained, or a step is skipped, or trust is lost, even the perfect buyer won't be retained.

"At David Keith and Associates, we do not offer for sale distressed businesses. The businesses we offer for sale, for our clients, are successful, turn key opportunities. Turn Key meaning you turn the key, open the door and you own a good and successful opportunity."

Many people have asked me: "What is the best business to buy?" My answer is always the same: "A business that fits your personality and your objectives." "Not every good business is a good business for everyone!"