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Preparing to launch
a new business venture and preparing to produce a film share a very similar
process. Factors such as economic climate, competition, demographics, and the
people who make up the team all have to support the basic concept of the project.
Not only do these components have to be solid in order to approach potential
funders and investors but the ideas must be presented in an efficient business plan. This document acts as the voice of a project and is a reflection of the
competency and vision of the entrepreneur.
Business expert Akira
Hirai writes in his blog post “Ten Questions Every Business Plan Must Answer” about the importance of establishing
a management team that impresses funders with their experience, ideas and
overall ability to interconnect with the brand. Hirai states that the
management section of a business plan is often the most highly scrutinized
portion and recommends highlighting the strengths of the team. In my specific
business plan, I have put substantial time and consideration into the type of
individual qualities I would want to represent my brand.
Hirai supports
this concept in another blog post titled, “Finding Helping Hands for your Small Business”, by advising entrepreneurs to look
for high quality employees that can drive the business even when resources are
limited. Employees that perform “above-average” can bring in twice the revenue
that an average worker can and are worth the investment. I have made sure to
highlight the fact that I desire experienced, hard-working and committed
employees and I am willing to extend the resources needed to attain them. Similarly
to how a cast of a film can affect its box office earnings, the talent of a
business cast can drastically affect its success.
In addition to
paying attention to what I am saying about my company and who I want to help me
build it, I am also scrutinizing how I am conveying these needs. Small business
expert Barry Moltz relays the importance of keeping verbiage clear and concise
in his article “What Not to Say in a Business Plan”. I admit that I have a tendency to be overly verbose in my writing. While this “story-telling” style may be necessary in a
screenplay, it is not appropriate in a business plan. I have consciously
limited my word count and have gone through multiple times with the purpose of
removing excess and unneeded information. I have also focused on formatting in
order to be more appealing to the reader. By shortening my paragraphs and
adding space between idea groupings, I have created a less intimidating document.
Most importantly,
I have taken Barry Moltz’ advice from his blog post “Business Ideas are Meaningless” and have gone through and modified
my business plan as my company has progressed. He explains that a plan is just
ideas and can be molded repeatedly in order to provide the most impact. My
mentality is, if the first execution is unsuccessful, I must modify the plan,
shape the ideas and try again.
Creating a
business plan is a daunting yet vital undertaking in the business creation
process. A well-written document that
highlights the appropriate features of a company can garner the attention,
respect and potentially the resources of investors. Just as a film package must
grab the attention of funders with facts, figures, projections, and a complete overview
of the project, a business plan must include the same requirements.
