The Business Plan
7.) Prove you know what you are doing. Anyone interested in seeing your business plan want to see VALUE, VALUE, VALUE, What is the ROI. People want to be confident and trust that they will prosper as a result of their participation.
Before you continue, 2 things:
1.) Don't attempt to do this on your own.
2.) If you do choose to do this on your own, have a professional look at it before you try and use it.
This may seem harsh, but for most people this is a much more difficult task than it may seem. This is not just a resume, but a biography and future prediction of your business. It is the equivalent of grant writing something best left to specialists. This does not mean you cannot attempt to create this on your own, on the contrary the more you create and that comes from your feelings and ideas, the better, but before you finish, seek guidance. More guidance than this article.
Contact me or someone like me. You can pay or seek free guidance through state mentoring programs or your local SBA and take advantage of their Retired Business People programs. If you know of a Bank that has a small business development program even better. What better way to have guidance on what you need in your business plan to get financing than from the place that may be financing your business. There are more banks starting to offer this service. It is in their best interest to keep you in business and successful they want a healthy ROI and hopefully for the life of your business, the longer you stay in business, they larger you will hopefully grow and the more services they can offer you to assist you in that growth. That translates into long term growth income.
Your Business plan consists of the items that were reviewed in the first 2 articles. This is where they all get put together in a fluid, progressive document and preferably a presentation. The easier it is to review the easier it is to understand. A PowerPoint presentation goes a long way when seeking financing and/or investing.
Now the pointers!
1.) Write an outline first, a rough draft, jot things down in bullet points and blunt thoughts.
2.) Organize the plan according to a sample plan of a business similar to yours. If it's a new type of business use a sample plan for the type of business like retail, hospitality, service etc. You will find most business plans are in a similar format.
3.) Review your goal and turn it into your mission statement, what do you want to accomplish and how. this should be a less than elevator pitch. You can find most public company's mission statement easily.
4.) Make sure you can back up your information and that it makes sense especially when it comes to projections. Its tempting to make up numbers based on emotion, but without a basis they mean nothing. A statement of " A ten year projection of revenue of 10 billion dollars annually shining shoes" is a fantastic goal, but it had better include a detailed expansion plan and a business model for how you plan on making 10 billion dollar per year at an average of 10 dollars per shine plus tips. Stay realistic.
5.) Remember you are writing and/or presenting this for others to easily understand and remember people who need to see value and ROI, minimize or eliminate risk.
6.) Develop and outline a detailed marketing plan including your target audience, budget, and focus tag lines and a motto are a plus for example "you can't eat just one"
And last but not least...
7.) Prove you know what you are doing. Anyone interested in seeing your business plan want to see VALUE, VALUE, VALUE, What is the ROI. People want to be confident and trust that they will prosper as a result of their participation.
If you think there is something important that should be mentioned please comment I love comments and welcome additional information a that can help a future aspiring entrepreneur.
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