Zen and the Business Plan

presented by

Scott Miller

Do you need a 50 page business

plan?

•"Rip it Out" Video

Why be Brief?

•Investors don’t read a long plan

•Hard to keep a long plan, current

•Poor tool for having a “conversation”

•Banks like them....but banks don’t like us

Why be Brief?

•A long plan does not guarantee success

•Most of you will go with “Plan B”

•Writing the plan should be joyous!

Why write a plan?

•Document our “Hypothesi”

•Speculate about the future

•Ground our assertions

•** Form a basis for a “conversation”, with investors, partners, employees, spouses

The Business Plan as a “living document”

•To be updated as we learn more

•Out with the old hypothesis, in with the new! Plan B.

Our plan should be

•A pleasure to write

•Easy and FAST to read

•Easy to update

•Easy to share

The “One Pager Plus”

•Economy of language

•Forces us to be “clear”

•Conversations are efficient and quick to start

•One Line Pitch

• Leaves them wanting more

•Business Summary

•Team

•Customer Problem

•Product / Service

Class shares........

•Target Market

•Sales / Marketing Strategy

•Business Model

•Competitors

•Competitive Advantage

Class shares........

Financials

•Many entrepreneurs suffer here

•Start simple

•Detail and form is business dependent

Financials Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Customers

Revenues

Avg. Sell Price

Website, LLC

Financials Year 1 Year 2 Year 3

Revenues

Gross Profit

Net Profit

Service & Products, LLC

“Plus”

Competitive MatrixCincinnati Hamburgers

Convenience

* You determine the competitive axis

Taste

Terry’s

FlippDaddy’s

McDonald’s

Cash Flow Projection

Sales / Marketing Plan

•Calculate your Total Addressable Market (TAM)

•Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

•Lifetime Customer Value (LCV)

Customer Portrait

•Who are they?

•What is their problem?

•What are their aspirations?

•IAMS example

Team

•If you don’t have a lot to say, don’t.

Intellectual Property (IP)

•Don’t disclose too much. A bit of mystery is good.

•Your plan may fall into enemy hands!

Go for it!