The Business Plan Assignment
©2009 Natalie Fobes
Due December 4th. Your Assignment Must Follow This Outline.
This is 40% of your grade. You will be presenting your plan on December 4th to a professional photographer. The presentation will be an additional 10% of your grade.
The Business Plan
Adapted by Natalie Fobes from the SBA website
www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/
Most people think a business plan is only for entrepreneurs and those looking for financing. It is a valuable tool for every business person. A good business plan will crystallize your thoughts about your business, help you see weaknesses and strengths, enable you to make and achieve goals.
The parts of the business plan are:
Company Description, Organization & Management
Appendix
1. The Executive Summary
The executive summary is the most important section of your business plan. HINT: Write this AFTER you have written the rest of the plan. The knowledge and insight you gain while researching the rest of the plan will help you craft this section. The summary has three parts.
A. The Mission Statement explains the thrust of your business in two sentences, or a paragraph. It should be as direct and focused as possible, and it should leave the reader with a clear picture of what your business is all about. You should be able to use this when a client asks you what kind of photography (or other business) you do. HINT: Practice this outloud.
B. A concise history of the business: when it began, who started it, number of employees, location, services and past growth. These can be in bullet form.
C. Your goals for one year, two years and five years. These can be in bullet form.
2. Market Analysis
In this section describe the industry, the trends, the potential growth areas, your target audience and your competition. Analyze the businesses you are competing against. List their strengths, weaknesses, pricing, advertising and approach. If you find out your competition is having problems try to figure out why so you can avoid the same mistakes. BE SPECIFIC.
3. Company description, Organization and Management
This is an overall view of how all parts of your business fit together. You should answer the following questions:
A. Is your business an llc, s-corp or sole proprietor? Who owns it?
B. What are your responsibilities? Are there other people in your business? If so, what are their responsibilities? Who is in charge? Even for a two person business it is important to develop a clear flow chart of duties and responsibilities.
C. What are the needs of potential clients/customers you are trying to satisfy? How are you going to satisfy them.
D. List the companies or individuals you want to target. Be specific.
4. Marketing and Sales Strategies
Marketing is the process of creating customers. You need customers to survive. Simple statements but ones difficult to achieve. Your marketing strategy is a living, growing creature that needs frequent feeding, attention and adaption.
What is your marketing message? Are you marketing a service or a product? This will determine to whom you send your marketing materials. How are you going to get your customers? Advertising, direct mail, word of mouth? Where are you going to advertise? Are you going to use a service for direct mail or do it yourself?
5. Your Service or Product Line from your customer’s point of view
Pretend you are a consumer of your service or product. Use their words to describe what you offer. For example, “I photograph people, places and wildlife.” It tells you nothing. This statement tells you a lot more. “I create well-lit, compositionally intriguing images that tell a story about my subject. I never miss a deadline and always come back with a great photograph. I am dependable.” Another example: “The Gourmet to Go Shop has 89 foods instock.” Better “I will offer busy people a convenient way to buy the food they want by keeping track of their purchases and keeping those items in stock.” Focus on areas where you have an advantage. Identify a problem that your target group might have and how you can solve it for them. Try to put yourself in the customer’s shoes. What is it about what you offer that they can’t get anywhere else? What is the value in your products and services?
6. Funding Request
While you may not be looking for funding you should act like you are. Create a budget for your first year of operation. This will help you figure out when you might need money and how much. Obviously your initial costs include camera/studio gear. But what about the advertising and promotion campaign you should be mounting six months later? Office supplies? Taxes? Be sure to include the amount you want now to start your business and the amount you will need in six months. BE SPECIFIC.
7. Financials
Once you’ve analyzed the market and set clear goals you can get a better idea of your financial needs. It is harder to do when you first start out because you have no historical perspective, ie, your expenses and income statements from previous years.
The documents in this section should include forecasted income vs expenses, cash flow and capital investment budgets. Will you need additional or faster computers? Additional lighting gear? Software upgrades? Where will your income come from? You should include where you are now and where you will be for EACH of the next five years. You can use your CODB as a basis.
8. Appendix
This is made up of documents on an as needed basis. It should include you resume, letters of reference, magazine articles, licenses,. It may include your credit history, leases, contracts, permits and list of professional service personel like attorneys and cpas.