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Digg it UP - How to Write a 'Killer' Business Plan
So, here we are in 2006 and you may still be trying to figure out what to do with the rest of your life. If self-employment has been a long-time dream, you might wonder "How does one get there and minimize risk?" Or if you are tired of the corporate life and want to control your own destiny, you may wonder "Can I break free from the corporate cult?"The answer to minimizing your risk, controlling your destiny and uncapping your earnings potential could be through a franchise business. Franchising a business format has been around for more than 60 years. And this style of business is more than just a booming trend. According to the International Franchise Association, franchised sales account for al
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, in
Indubitably, it is the future impact small business will face; the emerging trend of franchises across the country. Needless to say, numerous mom-and-pop stores are being forced out of business; because of the proliferation of giant companies like Wal-Mart. Consumers deem it shrewd to shop, where there is more variety and products are cheaper. Giant companies are able to provide consumers with cheap goods, because the cost per item produced is low.Are consumers completely shunning mom-and-pop stores? If, so, on what basis? As obvious as it may sound, it may not be the case. Are consumers more prone to shop at these giant stores because they feel that in the case of a frivolous lawsuit, companies will p
Tip 1 Understand the Need for a Plan
Without a clear strategy and long term objectives you may be reducing your chances of success and so its important to commit time to plan ahead. Having put in time, energy and resources to come up with the ideas, why spoil it all by not having a structured plan for the future? The benefits of business planning cannot be underestimated. There are some potentially business-changing reasons to prepare a Business Plan. You must view planning as a crucial investment of your time, which could mean the difference between success and failure.
Tip 2 Dont Go It Alone, Ask For Help
Picture this. You've never written a Business Plan before; you sit down at your table and end up staring at a blank piece of paper for 3 hours! Then, another 3 hours later, all you have is a bin full of scrap paper. However, in order to help you put a plan together there are a variety of sources of help you can tap into:
Professional advisers
Business colleagues
Advice agencies
Your staff
Books (see our free e-book offer at the end of this article)
Tip 3 Follow a Framework
Having a framework or outline to follow can make the task of writing a Business Plan so much easier. The 3 parts to your Plan are:
Where you are now
Where you intend to be
How you are going to get there
This is your framework which will guide both you and the reader through your business and your idea.
Tip 4 Tell the Reader Where You Are Now
In your first section you want to paint a picture of where your business is now. These are the main areas to cover:
Business history
Location and premises
Your product or service
Your market
Your customers
Your competition
Your staff
Equipment
Provide an insight into each part of your business so that the reader of your Plan knows how the business looks now. Obviously if you are just starting up, give an idea of how you see these parts of your business once you get going.
Tip 5 Tell the Reader Where You Intend To Be
Having given an overview of your business, the next step is to tell them where you want to be. The main points to cover are:
Your objectives and goals
State what you want from the reader a loan or overdraft for example
Explain why you need and what it will be used for
Tip 6 Tell the Reader How You Are Going To Get There
Its all very well promoting your idea and business but the important point to put over is how you are going to get there. Here are the key points to cover:
Marketing plan
Additional resources needed to meet your objectives and goals
Your contribution in terms of cash or equipment
Security you can offer to support a request for finance
Profit and loss and cash flow forecast to show that you plan to make money and that you can pay back the loan
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, inc
Pace refers to how rapidly you speak. Obviously, you don't want to sound unnatural, but research has shown that people who speak faster, louder and more fluently are perceived as more persuasive than those who do not. Stories that are delivered at a more upbeat pace are more persuasive than those that are delivered more slowly because the lively storyteller comes across as more competent and knowledgeable. You can slow down your speech occasionally for effect, but don't speak slowly on the whole. Otherwise, your presentation will seem sluggish. It is much better to keep up the energy and enthusiasm than to let it drop.In most cultures, deeper voices, for both men and wo
Tip 2 Dont Go It Alone, Ask For Help
Picture this. You've never written a Business Plan before; you sit down at your table and end up staring at a blank piece of paper for 3 hours! Then, another 3 hours later, all you have is a bin full of scrap paper. However, in order to help you put a plan together there are a variety of sources of help you can tap into:
Professional advisers
Business colleagues
Advice agencies
Your staff
Books (see our free e-book offer at the end of this article)
Tip 3 Follow a Framework
Having a framework or outline to follow can make the task of writing a Business Plan so much easier. The 3 parts to your Plan are:
Where you are now
Where you intend to be
How you are going to get there
This is your framework which will guide both you and the reader through your business and your idea.
Tip 4 Tell the Reader Where You Are Now
In your first section you want to paint a picture of where your business is now. These are the main areas to cover:
Business history
Location and premises
Your product or service
Your market
Your customers
Your competition
Your staff
Equipment
Provide an insight into each part of your business so that the reader of your Plan knows how the business looks now. Obviously if you are just starting up, give an idea of how you see these parts of your business once you get going.
Tip 5 Tell the Reader Where You Intend To Be
Having given an overview of your business, the next step is to tell them where you want to be. The main points to cover are:
Your objectives and goals
State what you want from the reader a loan or overdraft for example
Explain why you need and what it will be used for
Tip 6 Tell the Reader How You Are Going To Get There
Its all very well promoting your idea and business but the important point to put over is how you are going to get there. Here are the key points to cover:
Marketing plan
Additional resources needed to meet your objectives and goals
Your contribution in terms of cash or equipment
Security you can offer to support a request for finance
Profit and loss and cash flow forecast to show that you plan to make money and that you can pay back the loan
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, in
The topic will be explained over about a 3-4 week period (so you are not bogged down with too much info all at once) and it all starts now.You will learn all about MySpace, Blogs, YouTube, Ezine Articles, Podcasts, RSS Feeds, Newsletters, eBooks, eStream Downloads, Banner Advertising, Free Classifieds, Business Card Flyers, Resource Pages and have access to all the associated links and websites. Plus, you will get a full explanation about what all these things are, how simple they are to do, how effective they are, how they all tie in together, where to find all the resources, but best of all, demonstrate that they are all free and eff
Where you are now
Where you intend to be
How you are going to get there
This is your framework which will guide both you and the reader through your business and your idea.
Tip 4 Tell the Reader Where You Are Now
In your first section you want to paint a picture of where your business is now. These are the main areas to cover:
Business history
Location and premises
Your product or service
Your market
Your customers
Your competition
Your staff
Equipment
Provide an insight into each part of your business so that the reader of your Plan knows how the business looks now. Obviously if you are just starting up, give an idea of how you see these parts of your business once you get going.
Tip 5 Tell the Reader Where You Intend To Be
Having given an overview of your business, the next step is to tell them where you want to be. The main points to cover are:
Your objectives and goals
State what you want from the reader a loan or overdraft for example
Explain why you need and what it will be used for
Tip 6 Tell the Reader How You Are Going To Get There
Its all very well promoting your idea and business but the important point to put over is how you are going to get there. Here are the key points to cover:
Marketing plan
Additional resources needed to meet your objectives and goals
Your contribution in terms of cash or equipment
Security you can offer to support a request for finance
Profit and loss and cash flow forecast to show that you plan to make money and that you can pay back the loan
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, in
For a marketing plan to be successful, the mix of Product, Price, Promotion, and Placement must reflect the wants and desires of the consumers in the target market. Trying to convince a market segment to buy something they don't want is extremely expensive and seldom successful. Marketers depend on marketing research, both formal and informal, to determine what consumers want and what they are willing to pay for. Marketers hope that this process will give them a sustainable competitive advantage. Marketing management is the practical application of this process.Most companies today have a customer orientation (also called customer focus). This implies that the company focuses its activities and product
Tip 5 Tell the Reader Where You Intend To Be
Having given an overview of your business, the next step is to tell them where you want to be. The main points to cover are:
Your objectives and goals
State what you want from the reader a loan or overdraft for example
Explain why you need and what it will be used for
Tip 6 Tell the Reader How You Are Going To Get There
Its all very well promoting your idea and business but the important point to put over is how you are going to get there. Here are the key points to cover:
Marketing plan
Additional resources needed to meet your objectives and goals
Your contribution in terms of cash or equipment
Security you can offer to support a request for finance
Profit and loss and cash flow forecast to show that you plan to make money and that you can pay back the loan
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, in
In a competitive job market companies will take a look at candidate's skills and decide how they will best fit into their environment. During an interview you want make sure that you emphasize your skills to set yourself apart from the other candidates.In this article we will focus on three different types of skills:1. Portable skillsThese are skills that you currently have that can be utilized for the job or the company. Many employees will take a strong look at what your current skills are that will require no additional training. This is what you emphasize on your resume and probably the main reason you got the interview in the first place.2. PersonalityWhen an employee i
Tip 7 Provide Some Supporting Information
Your Plan will have contained a lot of information, so it is helpful to include supporting documentation to provide more background. Placing these additional items as an appendix ensures that the flow of the Plan has not been affected by additional information.
What sort of items could you include?
Letter of support from your Accountant
Confirmation of pending orders from customers
If you are purchasing a property, you could include the sales particulars
Independent industry surveys showing that your sector is doing well
If you are buying machinery, include quotations
If you business main asset is you, include your CV!
Tip 8 Ask Someone to Review It
When you are totally immersed in a task you can easily miss obvious mistakes. Ask someone to review your Plan to ensure there are no spelling or grammatical errors dont rely on Spell Check! Does it all make sense? Have you been logical in your arguments?
Tip 9 Get the Presentation Right
After having spent a lot of time and effort on the content you dont want to spoil it all with poor presentation! Here are some tips:
Get the Plan typed; it will make it look more professional
Make sure all the papers are clean and that there are no dirt marks or coffee stains! Buy some good quality paper
Purchase a classy folder or binder to put your Plan in (paper clips or staples may not portray the right image!)
dont forget to include all your contact details
Tip 10 Deliver Your Plan to the Reader in Time
Once you are satisfied that your Plan is a good representation of your business you can post it but ideally you should deliver it, at least you know it has got there! Prior to a formal interview (if your aim is to obtain finance) you need to give the Manager time to read your plan. Ask to make an appointment with him in 3 days so he has time to read it.
Enclose a covering letter saying that you have made an appointment and your Plan is attached for him to review and to prepare any questions.
All that remains for you to do is to turn up at the agreed time and present your case!
© Robert Warlow Small Business Success
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