5 Things You Must Know About Business Plans

By Chuck Markham

First, if you're only reading this article because you want to find a good format for writing a business plan, then you will find some good formats, templates and software at Intuit's website - you know, the same people who make QuickBooks, Quicken and TurboTax. Well, if you go to the Intuit website, then you will find its new business plan service under the name of "JumpUp."

And even better, some of the templates and software are free. But, I have a feeling you might have a few more questions about business plans, so here are a few more pointers.

Second, something is more important, however, than just the writing a of business plan. The most important thing is that you decide WHERE you want your business to go and HOW you want to get there. Your decision about the where and how of your business goal is more important than the writing of it.

Third, the next most important thing is your specific use of the plan itself. If your business plan's purpose is to serve as a guiding light to you and your key people, then it will be in that type of format. If its purpose is to create measurable goals, help evaluate progress towards those goals, and guide decision-making, then the plan might take a different shape. And, if your business plan's purpose is to attract investors or to obtain a loan, then it might be in a different format altogether.

Fourth, and a special note for start-ups, if the business plan is for a start-up business and is for the last 2 purposes (measurable-goals/decision-making or investors/lenders), then I recommend a specialized process. First, write a business plan as if you were writing it to be your guiding light. I have worked with many clients with a new business who should not be writing an investor/loan business plan just when they are starting up the company.

Why? Because a business plan should not be a something that you create just so that it sounds good to other people (or yourself). The plan should really be an actual reflection of the desired destination and the means anticipated to get there. So, for the new business owner, these insights and realizations need some time to evolve. Sure, a new business owner starts out with goals, dreams and ambitions. But, it takes time for these goals, dreams and ambitions to mature in the marketplace. That is why it is important early on to write the business plan, but do it with the "guiding light" purpose.

When DO you take the next step and write the business plan with the potential investor or lender in mind?

When the heart and mind agree on the destination and the means of getting there. Then, and only then, is it the right time to transform the "guiding light" plan to a business plan for measurable-goals/decision-making or investors/lenders.

Fifth, once the mind and heart agree, then it is essential to commit the business plan to paper because without a clear destination, there is no basis upon which to make decisions. Decisions should be made with the destination in mind. Writing down how to reach the destination establishes mile-markers that will measure progress. Without some way to measure progress, we are only left with our feelings - and feelings change from day to day or moment to moment.
Milestones help us to make needed adjustments while the vision of our destinations keeps us on track.

To sum up, a business plan is important. The pre-work, however, is even more important. The follow-up, which measures our success against the plan, is what gives the plan its purpose.
Copyright 2007, Chuck Markham, MA, LAC ("Business Coach Chuck")

Chuck Markham, MA, LAC, aka Business Coach Chuck, creates creates strategies for his clients that leverage their strengths - so they can spend more time doing what they love. Learn more at BusinessCoachChuck.com, or call him for a free 30-minute "test-drive" consultation at 973-670-7215.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chuck_Markham

The Joy of Party Plans

By Helen Dowling

Let's start with the obvious question first of all. What are party plans? Like everything in marketing, they mean different things to different people, but my definition of them (which is the one I'm talking about in this article) is organising an evening get-together of several people and bringing your products and services to the party to
a) tell people about them and
b) get people to buy them.

You can organise a party plan for virtually any product or service that can be demonstrated. For instance, a health and beauty company might organise a party to give makeovers to people as a taster of what they can do; a local craft company may sell products at a party; a dog walking company could organise a party to show people how to look after their dogs and a personal trainer could organise weekly 'power fitness' sessions where anyone could come to trial out the session.

In other words, a party plan gives you the opportunity to demonstrate what you can do and encourage people to buy from you in the future.

So, should you charge for them?

Ah, the difficult question. Should you charge for them and if so, how much? This is obviously quite personal to you - if you don't feel comfortable charging for them, no amount of persuasion will convince you otherwise. But my general feeling is that you should charge for the party plan. After all, you've had to organise it, buy stock, and turn up on the night - this all costs money, with no guarantee that the people there will turn into regular customers.

Now, the question of how much should you charge. Well, the easiest way to work this out is sit down with a calculator and write down how much it's costing you to organise the parties. Think about your time from when you go out until when you get back; your travelling expenses and any stock you have to buy. So, if I wanted to get £20 an hour and planned to be at the party for 4 hours, that would be £80. Stock might costs me £15 and travelling at 40p a mile about £5. So my total costs for that night would be £100.

OK, so we know how much it costs us - let's say that on average at each party there are 10 people there. To cover all my costs, I would have to charge them £10 each. But, I wouldn't mind making a bit of profit on this too (after all, I have to live), so I might put the price to £15 each. This means that I would bring in £150 (£15 each x 10 people). My costs are £100, so I would make a profit of £50.

So, we know how we can make a profit on the party plan. But, it's easier said than done isn't it? After all, you might not feel people would pay £15 each. There are several ways to look at this.
Firstly, people usually pay over £15 for a good night out and they're getting a treat and pampering themselves at the same time. Secondly, no one would expect you not to make a profit on the party plans - after all, if you're in business, you're not a charity.

If you do decide to lower your prices though, please please make sure you don't go below your costs. I met a girl recently who was charging just £5 per person for the parties and was making a loss of over £90 per party plan. Remember if you make a loss, it's not worth your time to do the parties. How do I turn the parties into business?

If you're thinking about doing party plans, I hope that this is one of the burning questions you have in your mind. It's all very well giving them and if you make some money from them all the better. But, surely you want to turn these people into regular customers too?

Firstly, don't expect them to turn into customers if you do nothing other than turn up on the night. We all lead incredibly busy lives and it's highly likely that once people walk out of the party, they'll start thinking of their kids, what they're doing the next day, tomorrow's food and so on. You'll be the last thing on their minds even if they had good intentions to contact you while they were there.

So, here's some ideas of how to turn the parties into regular business.

a) Get them to buy something there and then. If they've had a great time, they'll be up for buying stuff, so get them to commit to buying something there and then i.e. if you're a health and beauty business, get them to book an appointment and pay for it then (give them discounts that expire after the night to make sure they pay for it now); if you sell jewellery, get them to make a purchase. But here's the important bit - don't give them the item there and then. Send it to them afterwards. Why? Two reasons - firstly you get their contact details so you can follow up with them and secondly, they'll be looking forward to receiving their gift so you'll be fore front in their minds.

b) Tell them you'll send them all a free gift. This is a great way to get contact details of anyone who doesn't buy from you on the night so you can follow-up with them afterwards. The free gift could be anything from a bottle of wine to a gift voucher and could also be a free tips sheet too.
Competitions work just as well, but it's vital to get everyone's contact details while you're there.

c) Follow-up with everyone afterwards. Remember that people will forget about you and even though they said they'd call, it's unlikely they will. So, take the burden out of their hands and follow-up with them instead.

The little details
Finally, I guess you also want to know about the little details - the things around organising. Let's look at organising the party first. The easiest way to do this is to team up with a friend and get them to invite all their friends to it. Have details of organising a party plan with you when you go to the party and make an announcement about looking for other people to host one while your there. Send this fact sheet out with your free gift when you contact people. A word of warning though - hosts expect to be paid for using their house and putting on a small buffet, so don't forget to add this into your costs.

What about purchases? Having a cash float with you on the night is essential for change. Make sure you have enough cash broken down into smaller amounts to give change. Think about taking cheques and also think about having a card machine with you on the night (very useful for impulse buying). If you don't have a card machine, but have methods to take payment on your website, why not have the internet on a laptop in front of you and take payments directly onto it?

For receipts, I would simply go to WH Smith and buy a receipt book (they cost about £2) and give out receipts that way.

Although party plans are hard work, they can be worth it - setting expectations before you start putting one together of what you want to get out of them can really help focus your mind on achieving that goal.

Helen Dowling from http://www.Exceptionalthinking.co.uk is a specialist in niche marketing and business plans.

For further help on marketing, check out our e-books on our site. Just go to http://www.exceptionalthinking.co.uk/Survive-Course.php to find out more.

What Are The Best Cheap Dental Plans For Your Child's Health?

By Joe Stewart

If you've been looking into cheap dental plans because you are concerned about your child's dental health then there are a few things that you may not be aware of. You see, all dental plans are NOT created equal and some will charge you way too much money and not provide nearly enough coverage. Compared to other things that are available now, some of these other plans are on the verge of being a rip off. Are you curious what I'm referring to? I thought you might be. Read on...

The plans that I'm bringing into question are called, you guessed it - Dental Insurance! What? I'll bet you thought I was going to tell you how great they are, weren't you? Regardless, dental insurance is not the best way to get dental care for you or your child. The main reason that I say this is because most "competent" dental insurance plans are very expensive and do NOT cover pre-existing conditions. Pre-existing conditions are any problems that you or your child may have before you purchase the policy. This means that if you or another family member has a cavity, needs a root canal, ect. that you will NOT be covered and will have to pay for treatment out of your own pocket at full price. Dental insurance is more designed for routine care, such as cleanings, flouride treatments and other basic dental work.

If you are in need of a dental plan right away because your child or someone else in your family has a major dental problem, then you need to take a look at a Dental Discount Plan instead.

Dental Discount Plans are not an insurance policy, they simply provide big discounts to their members by joining. You'll see a qualified dentist or dental specialist, depending on the care that you need, and you'll save anywhere from ten to sixty percent off of the usual cost of the procedure. These dentists are just like any other that you've ever seen. As a matter of fact, your current dentist may already be a member without you knowing it.

If you or your children are in need of a good family dental plan, I recommend that you take a look at dental discount plans and compare them directly with dental insurance. Make sure that you read the fine print and you'll soon see that I'm right.

Do Dental Discount Plans Really Save You Money or is Dental Insurance The Way To Go? Find Out The REAL Truth by Visiting Discount-Dental.net or by clicking on Cheap Dental Plan Child Health . Joe Stewart is a former Life And Health Insurance Agent that now works for himself by providing solid, expert information to consumers.