Road Map to Success
Business Plan Preparation Workshop
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The Innovation Centre
Innovator Member Support
Entrepreneurial
Programming
Innovation & Project
Development
The Hatchery
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Executive Summary
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Write this last
Create excitement about the opportunity
Outline benefits and market potential
State clearly any financing required and
terms expected
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Mission Statement
• A clear statement of your company’s long-term
mission. Try to use words that will help direct the
growth of your company, but be as concise as
possible.
WHAT BUSINESS ARE YOU IN?
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Business History & Objectives
History
• Reasons why
Objectives
• Short Term
• Measurable
• Believable
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Business Overview
• List key management resources
• Include previous accomplishments to show
these are people with a record of success
• Summarize number of years of experience in
this field
• Ownership Structure – Sole Proprietor,
Partnership, Incorporation.
• Location and Facilities
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Products and Services
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Description
Features vs Benefits
Production of Products and Services
Future Products and Services
Comparative Advantages
State consumer problems, and define nature of
product/service opportunities created by those
problems.
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Market Analysis
Market Research
• Secondary
– Industry Associations, Trade Journals, Statistics
Canada, Economic Information..
• Primary
– Focus Groups
– Surveys and interviews
– Potential customers, suppliers, industry experts…
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Market Analysis - Conditions
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Industry size
Trends and outlook
Economic trends
Product trends
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Market Analysis - Competition
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Summarize competition
Outline your company’s competitive advantage
Strengths and weaknesses
Barriers to entry
Positioning
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Market Analysis -Customers
• Key Product Segments
• Key Market Segments – Describe
your typical customer
• Purchase Process and Buying Criteria
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Market Strategy
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Price
Product
Promotion
Place –distribution
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Benefits of Segmenting Your
Market
• Choose the promotion that will reach most of
your target customers
• Ensure the target customers identify with the
strategy
• Motivate them to purchase
• The compromise between the mistake of treating
all customers alike and the inefficiency of
treating them all differently
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Advertising & Promotion
• Strategy & execution
– Deliver a message successfully
– Generate maximum response at least cost
– Objective
• Sell specific amount of product
• Position a product or service
• Educate the market
• Gain response
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Other Promotion
• Direct marketing
– Overview of strategy, vehicles & timing
– Overview of response targets, goals &
budget
• Third-party marketing
– Co-marketing arrangements with other
companies
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Marketing Perceptions
• Perception IS reality
• It is personal and emotional and
based on experience
• What you think does NOT
matter
• ASK: What does this do to the
perception of my customers?
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Image Creation
• Everything creates image
– Policies
– Procedures
– Product
– Service
– Location
– Colours
– Interior
– Telephone answering
– Promotional Material…..
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Be Consistent
Know Your Customer
Base it on your customer
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Distribution
• Distribution strategy
• Channels of distribution
– Direct Sales, Dealers, Distributors, Big Box,
Licensing
• Distribution by channel
– Wholesale
– Retail
– Sales rep
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Management and Staffing
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Organizational Structure
Management Team
Staffing
Labour Market Issues
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Regulatory Issues
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Intellectual Property Protection
Permits
Environmental issues
Future regulation
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Financial Plan
• High-level financial plan that defines financial model,
pricing assumptions, and reviews yearly expected sales
and profits for the next three years.
• Cashflow – monthly for first 12 months
• 3 year Income Statement and Balance Sheet Projections
• Statement of Forecast Assumptions
• Sources and Uses of Funds Statement
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Risks & Rewards
• Risks
– Summarize risks of
proposed project
• Addressing risk
– Summarize how risks will
be addressed
• Rewards
– Estimate expected payoff, particularly if seeking
funding
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Key Issues
• Near term
– Isolate key decisions and issues that need immediate
or near-term resolution
• Long term
– Isolate issues needing long-term resolution
– State consequences of decision postponement
• If you are seeking funding, state specifics
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Thank You!
Graham Mailhot
NWO Innovation Centre
1294 Balmoral Street
Thunder Bay, ON P7B 5Z5
Phone: 768-6682
Email:
graham@nwoinnovation.ca
www.nwoinnovation.ca
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