Show Me Your Business Plan (Again)

Saturday, 12 December 2009 21:25

So now you have had a year to strategize your business's direction. It takes work and forethought to plan these areas of your business, but it is better to prepare your future than to react to emergencies. You should have already written out an outline of how to respond to the events. The act of thinking through these scenarios puts you one step ahead of the situation when it arises than if you had not planned at all. There is an ancient military proverb, "The more you sweat in practice, the less you bleed in battle."

If you have been following this year's blog, and putting the suggestions to practice, your business plan should be near completion:

Budget

You have written out your budget, starting with conservative numbers at first, until experience can hone them to be more accurate. Writing the budget is only part of the financial analysis. You must review the budget at least monthly to ensure that the projected and actual numbers are close in proximity to each other.

Marketing Plan

Your marketing plan should contain a strategy for retaining existing customers, wooing back past customers, and finally funneling new customers to your business. The best return of your marketing dollar is by retaining existing customers, as you have established a good business rapport with them. The most expensive marketing plan involves new customers, as you have to prove why going with your business is better than what they are currently doing now.

Risk Assessment

Sharpen your pessimist pencil and write down anything and everything that can go wrong with your business. For those items that are more likely to occur and have the most adverse effect on your business, write down how to prevent the event from materializing or if it does, how to minimize its negative impact. Write down your action plan now, so when the emergency occurs, you have instructions written in a clearer state of mind to take the best most objective action.

Target Market

You cannot be all things to all people. Focus on those customers who will appreciate your business the most, but set your sites on the customers you would be proud to serve. Surrounding your business with your target market will make running your business more successful and profitable for you, and more appealing to your customers.

Competition

Each business is an experiment in the capitalist spirit. Experience is not the best teacher--example is. Learn how your competitors are running their business. Identify those processes that could work in your business. Pat yourself on the back for those procedures you do that is better--and advertise that difference to your customers!

Customers

Know your customers. Know who they are, what they buy, and what they expect. Analyzing purchasing trends is not just self-serving to your business; it anticipates your customer's needs so you can provide them with what they need as they need it.

Exit Strategy

Market your business to investors. Their pecuniary boost is the potential to give your business the edge it needs to grow. Provide them with accurate data on your business so that their investment is valuable to both theirs and your interest. Outline the exit strategy for when their investment money will no longer be needed.

Investment Summary

Your investment summary is a rollup of your business plan. It encapsulates the key points of your business in an easy-to-consume format (e.g., bullet points, charts, graphs, maps, etc.). Keep the investment summary short. The investors will ask questions on the points that they are interested in delving deeper. Make sure you have the supporting data for their questions, or can research the information after the meeting and get back to them quickly with the correct answer. Do not bluff your way through an answer.