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Consider your Audience when Writing a Business Plan

March 29, 2010 by Frank Goley, Business Consultant

Once you have developed, integrated and implemented your Comprehensive Business Plan for the success of your business into your Company’s Operations, you can go about creating ancillary Business Plans for various audiences.  Remember to write these specialized plans from the viewpoint of the person(s) reading the plan.  It is a snap to pull out certain sections of your Comprehensive Plan and create these targeted plans.  Some examples: 

1)     Investor Plan:  Investors and Venture Capital Groups often advertise what they are looking for in an investment.  This should be the template for your plan.  They are interested in your Experience, Track Record, Integrity, Competitive Advantage, Growth, Uniqueness, Gaps and Threats, Integrated Marketing, Strategic and Financial Plans and so on.  A good Investor Plan consists of highly targeted information to a specific investor’s or venture capitalist’s requirements. 

2)     Lender Plan:  This Plan is combined with a Loan Package to directly target a specific Lender’s funding parameters and requirements.  Things like Experience, Track Record, Cash Flow, Loan to Value or Cost, Debt Service, Debt to Equity Ratio, Financial Statements and so forth are key elements of a Lender Plan.  Each Lender has different things they look for when considering funding a loan so tailor your Plan around those parameters. 

3)     Joint Venture / Strategic Alliance Plan:  Achieving a common objective through shared resources at a lower cost and lower risk can be highly lucrative, limiting your dependence on outside funding sources.  Important sections of this plan could address Objectives, Anti-Trust Issues, Resources, Geographic Variables, Corporate Culture Fit, Type of Relationship, Control Mechanisms, Exit Strategies, Termination, Liquidation, Buy-Sell Agreements and so on.  

4)     Supplier Plan:  Cementing your supplier relationships can be essential to your Company’s success.  Ask yourself:  What can a specific supplier do to help your business? 

5)     Customer Plan:  You can utilize this Plan to make your customers true partners in the growth and future of your Company.  Find out specifically what your customers want and need (not what you think they need) and present them a Product/Service, Marketing and Strategic Plan to meet those needs. 

6)     Marketing Plan:  A good Marketing Plan will help your Marketing Team develop, expand and create new markets.  A very effective tool to link your Sales Division with your Marketing Team so development and communications are two way and intertwined.  Disjointed Marketing and Sales Teams are often disastrous.   

7)     Strategic Plan:  This plan forces all your departments and divisions to work together to produce a synergistic plan that addresses all levels of your Company and their contributions to the Company’s goals and success.  The Strategic Plan actually translates your Business Plan into an effective and believable Financial Plan. 

Remember:  You write a specific plan for a specific purpose to a specific audience.  This list is not all inclusive.  The point is to develop your Comprehensive Plan first; then forming ancillary Plans is a snap and very effective.

Posted in Business Planning.