19 Questions to Supercharge Your Business Plan

Whether you are seeking capital for your company or are optimizing your business strategy, the most important element – particularly for outside investors -may be your written business plan. You can tune-up and supercharge your plan using this 19-step checklist. When your written plan firmly answers yes to each of these 19 questions, your market/product strategy is in terrific shape plus you increase the odds of attracting investment capital.

If you don’t already have a written business plan – write one! Your business plan is a blueprint for your whole company. It describes in detail your goals, the financial and technical viability of your goals, and the strategy you will use (or are using) to reach those goals. And your business plan is a working tool – it is a yardstick to measure your progress and a compass to keep you on course.

Must a business plan be written?

Yes! A plan which is not written usually has not been thought through fully. And despite what you may have read, it is doubtful that any business ever attracted capital on the back of a napkin.

Use this checklist as a way to identify where your strategy, as spelled out in your business plan, needs work. Each of the questions below highlights an area considered critical to technology investors.

1. Can the key ideas behind your product or service be stated in one or two sentences? (y/n)

2. Does your company have at least one unique and compelling competitive advantage, which cannot quickly or easily be duplicated? (y/n) Examples are a special feature, a cost advantage, a technical refinement, a new delivery system or a special supplier.

3. Is your competitive advantage proprietary? (y/n) That is, can it be copyrighted, patented, trademarked or otherwise protected? Can you keep it exclusive to you?

4. Is your industry segment growing by 25% or more? (y/n) If not, can your new product dominate its segment? If the answer is no, you probably won’t be able to generate the kind of financial returns investors look for.

5. Does your product or service create a new market? (y/n) Although generally positive, this could be a trap – in a brand new market, the potential can be slow to develop. Lotus Notes created a new category but took years to create value for investors.

6. Is your market in “early momentum” – the market growth phase where market revenues have recently taken off? (y/n) Venture investors prefer markets in this stage because the time-to-create-value is shorter and the growth potential still large.

7. Is your target market segment 1) tightly defined over a population sharing common characteristics, 2) large enough to support significant profits, 3) served by communications channels to reach that market – i.e., trade or special interest publications, response mailing lists? (y/n)

8. Is your company filling a gap in the market, or do you have a “gee-whiz” product which you think is so terrific that customers will surely want to buy it? (y/n)

9. The benefit of your product or service to users is 1) significant, 2) quantifiable and 3) cost-justified? (y/n). If you provide a benefit which is important, and you can prove it – there is a much higher probability of generating sales.

10. Is there a demonstrated market for your product? (y/n) If you have an existing product, is your customer base expanding? Investors would rather fund sales and production than product development.

11. Is there wide appeal for your product or service? (y/n) Are there enough potential customers in the target market that you can earn significant profits, for a long time? Are there follow-on products to sustain revenue and profit growth?

12. Does your company have the ability to sell your product? (y/n) Particularly in companies where the founders have technical backgrounds, a question to ask is “Who is going to sell your product or service?” What about outside distributors?

13. Is there an experienced management team? (y/n) Investors would rather fund a solid team instead of one lone genius with a great idea. The team should be highly qualified in marketing, sales, finance, and the product/service area itself. Of course, a demonstrable track record helps.

14. Can you demonstrate a likely return of 5-15 times investors’ capital, over a period ranging from three to seven years? (y/n) The actual parameters used by venture investors will vary based on which stage you are in (idea, startup, development, expansion, turnaround).

15. Is there a clear exit strategy for investors? (y/n) The most common strategies for returning investors’ capital are 1) going public; 2) acquisition of your company; 3) new investors; 4) founder’s buyback or management buyout.

16. Have other investors already put money into the company, particularly the senior management team? (y/n) This reduces the apparent risk, reduces overall exposure, and shows that management “has its money where its mouth is.”

17. Have you clearly defined a structure for the investment you seeking? (y/n) The structure should include: who is involved, how much capital is needed, what minimum investment you will accept, how much equity that will buy – and, of course, the projected return on investment.

18. Are your financial projections realistic? (y/n) Have you soundly justified your projected growth rates and other financial assumptions?

19. Have you clearly examined the risks? (y/n) Investors like to know that you have considered the risks. This is key – can you turn your risks into opportunities?

Too many no’s? Remember, each “no” opens up an area for you to strengthen your business. Even if you aren’t seeking capital, each question highlights a critical success factor – which, when mastered, will increase your profits, your performance, and your future success.

In order to help you discover hidden value and opportunities in your existing business, and to make it easier to spot potential problems while you are just starting out, I’ve created the Business Building Guide. A remarkable aid to accelerating the growth and profitability of your business, this program of insight-provoking questions and checklists enables you to rapidly diagnose, troubleshoot and optimize every part of your business, from marketing to sales, customer service to product development and finance to production.

© Paul Lemberg. All rights reserved

Eight Steps To The Next Level – The Business Plan, "The Engine of Small Business Development"

This is the second of a series of articles describing how small business owners and managers can drive their business growth and profitable development through the creation and implementation of a business plan.

I know the prevailing view among many small business people is that “planning” is for the larger, more substantial business and “they are too busy running their business to have time for planning”. Indeed, many small business owners are “too busy” running the business, but they ignore, at their own peril and survival, that “failing to plan is planning to fail.”

I am convinced that the small business owner will benefit from engaging in this business planning process because of the nature of carefully examining and thinking through the way their business competes and operates; – and how that will align with their determination of “what business they want to be in”.

This business planning process yields a stronger, more profitable business which provides real value to its customers and the marketplace.

The business planning process described in this article is the most logical, pragmatic and practical examination possible of the small business. This process is far from arcane or mysterious, but totally focuses on the reality of the small business environments (the business, the economy, competition, customers’ needs, wants and desires) as well as the determination and allocation of the firm’s resources).

Business Planning Process – Eight Major steps

For the past thirty years, I have successfully used the following business and strategic marketing planning process. The following process consists of eight major steps which are sequential and continuous. I will describe the nature and function of each of these steps.

This process applies to all types of organizations; regardless of size, products, services, or industry…. I have even used this process with a national religious organization.

1. DEVELOP MISSION AND POSITIONING STATEMENT

2. SITUATION AUDIT

a. Internal

b. External

3. WOTSUP ANALYSIS

4. MAKING ASSUMPTIONS

5. DEVELOPING OBJECTIVES

6. STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT

7. SPECIFY TACTICS AND ACTIONS

8. PREPARE FORECASTS/BUDGETS/FINANCIALS

1. MISSION AND POSITIONING STATEMENT

With respect to the definition of your businesses’ purpose and mission, there is only one focus, one starting point; it is the customer or user of your products/services. The user defines the mission of any function or business. The question “what is our mission or purpose” “what business do we want to be in?”, can therefore be answered by only looking at your business from the outside, from the point of view of the customer or potential customer. What the user or customer sees, thinks, or believes at any given time must be accepted by your business management as an objective fact to be taken seriously.

By definition, the customer is purchasing the satisfaction of a need or want.

For example, here is a well-known and real example of a business mission which defined the way in which that company conducted its activities.

A drill bit manufacturer defined its mission as determining “what size holes customers need” their focus was directly on customer needs and not on their product specifications. They were customer-focused and very successful.

Once the mission statement has been completed develop the positioning statement for competitive advantage and prepare the USP – your unique selling proposition. “Why the business is able to provide more effective solutions and greater value than the competitors.”

2. THE SITUATION AUDIT- Internal and External

The situation audit is a description and analysis of past, present and future data (information) which provides the basis for pursuing the business planning process. It is an organized method for:

  • collecting pertinent information
  • interpreting its effect on the business’s environments (market conditions)
  • analyzing significant trends
  • projecting all pertinent factors, which could influence company activities.

3. WOTSUP ANALYSIS

The acronym WOTSUP stands for Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats and Strengths Underlying Planning. This step flows naturally from the fact base (Situation Audit). The Weaknesses and Strengths constitute an internal analysis, i.e. “what are we at good and bad at?”-

Opportunities and Threats, on the other hand, form an external analysis. From this analysis, objectives can be formulated with specific action plans designed to overcome weaknesses and threats by exploiting the business strengths and opportunities.

4. MAKING ASSUMPTIONS:

Assumptions make planning possible. Without the use of assumptions, planning would be almost impossible. Since planning deals with the “futurity of current decision-making” and events in the future are almost impossible to predict with unfailing accuracy; – assumptions make planning possible.

5. DEVELOPING OBJECTIVES

Overall objectives are the real crux of the Business and Marketing Planning Process. They deserve every last ounce of time and effort – often frustrating. The objectives form the umbrella under which the balance of the whole planning structure is built. Because of the key role they play they must be thought through and be expressed in the most specific and concrete fashion. In simplest terms an objective is… “what do you want to accomplish?” Objectives are prepared to overcome weaknesses and threats developed in the WOTSUP Analysis and to exploit the opportunities and strengths.

6. STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT:

Once the objectives have been developed, the preparation of strategies is the next step in the process. Strategies, must explain, in a broad sense, how the objectives will be achieved.

7. SPECIFY ACTION PROGRAMS:

After the objectives and strategies have been developed, describe the work to be performed. The actions must be very specific; what work is to be done, by whom, how and when.

8. FORECASTS/BUDGETS/FINANCIALS PREPARED:

The action programs when completed form the basis for budget preparation. The cost of each action and the revenues derived from the detailed actions generate the operating budget and cash flows for the Business Plan.

Many organizations confuse planning with budgeting. One important purpose of the budget is to ensure the business has adequate financial resources to function. Budgeting is about not failing, planning is about what is possible.

4 Easy-To-Do Online Business Ideas

Ideas just sit idly, waiting for someone to take notice and put them into action in order for these intangible concepts to materialize. But technology made looking for business ideas even simpler than before. Search engines can make your life simpler by helping you get in touch with related websites when “online business ideas” is typed on the search bar.

Online Ordering System

One of the most common forms of online businesses is an online ordering system wherein the website acts as an online store of things that can be ordered via the internet, paid with cash or through the use of credit cards/CODs, and delivered using the client’s preferred mode of delivery. This a great business-venture for people who find exploitable markets in neighborhoods with distant marketplaces and shopping malls. Online shops are also helpful during peak seasons such as Christmas or Valentines’ Day since going to the mall means braving a massive throng of people who are also doing their holiday shopping. And the client may even have the item delivered right at the doorsteps of the person to whom the gift is intended for.

Article Writing and Desktop Publishing

The transition to the digital age entails beefing up web pages with content. That is the reason why many website owners, especially those with commercial pursuits, are looking for people who can provide good quality content to their website. This writing job is often solicited within the country but the fiscal crises compelled business owners to find cheaper alternatives. Now known as the BPO industry, article writing and desktop publishing are part of this industry of outsourced occupations. These online business ideas will inevitably continue as long as the internet remains bullish in the upcoming years.

Paid Blogging/Twittering

It could be the ultimate wish of all bloggers out there: to get paid for what they do best. Paid blogging exists and offers for paid blogging will almost surely be bundled up with banner ads that must be posted by the blogger on strategic spots in his blog site. Paying a blogger to blog about products and services a company offers are based on certain criteria: blog readership, influence of the blogger, number of subscribers to the blog, and of course, good writing. Twittering works the same way – but is only limited to 150 words.

Online Restaurant

Too busy or tired to cook for dinner? Need packed lunch to be delivered to your child’s school just in time for lunch? Online restaurants are websites, which offer a menu, have it cooked and delivered right where you need it. If the entrepreneur in you knows that you have the skills to whip up a gourmet dish, then turn that hobby into a lucrative activity. Online restaurants can be as simple as setting up a page in a social networking site to setting up a full-blown website dedicated to featuring the latest additions to your menu, online restaurants are great online business ideas for frustrated chefs who can’t establish his own restaurant.

Co-Preneurs – Married Business Partners Meeting Unusual Challenges and Reaping Magnificent Rewards

Co-preneurs are husband-wife teams who jointly own and operate a business. Co-preneurship is one of my favorite topics. I find the combination of entrepreneurship and the marriage relationship fascinating. And, I am a co-preneur myself.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2002 Economic Census more than 3.6 million businesses in the U.S. are run by co-preneurs. Certainly, no single model fits all of them. Some are part of a revolution that is pioneering a new model of marital and business equality. For others, their business is an extension of a traditional marriage where mom is behind the scenes and dad runs the show. The recent growth in co-preneurship has been attributed to a wide variety of causes, everything from new franchise availability to the high cost of child care.

For many co-preneurial couples no part of life is separate from the others; your financial, spiritual, professional and family lives are intertwined. As such, copreneurs face some unusual challenges, and reap some magnificent rewards.

As a result of both my work with co-preneurs and my personal experience as one – building my own business (A Friendly Divorce) with my husband, David – I have come to see that there are no easy answers. What works for some will be disaster for others. However, some key concepts are essential to making co-preneurship work. Here are my top six tips for working with your spouse.

1. Be patient. It’s necessary to learn to work together. So, when you start a new business, be prepared for a learning curve. It takes time to establish the right working relationship and pace. So whatever you decide today may not be what you are doing tomorrow. Starting your new venture will involve trial and error. So don’t get discouraged.

2. You will be making business decisions based on your priorities and values. Find and define your shared vision and values. Shared vision and values are necessary for success. It’s important that co-preneurs agree on the purpose of their business; is it a way of life or a way to earn an income?

3. Divide the work. The more distinction you have in your tasks and job descriptions, the better. For many couples, dividing tasks according to ability, not gender stereotypes, is difficult. But this is what often works best. As with all business partnerships, co-preneurship will work best when the partners possess different skill sets.

4. Communicate. Find out how what your partner really thinks and feels. Have you considered how this endeavor will effect your marriage? Take about it. Write about it.

5. Fight fair. Hear each other out. Keep all arguments focused on the current dispute instead of reverting back to old hurts and squabbles. And, when you disagree, give yourselves a cooling-off period before making the final decision.

6. Put the saver, not the spender, in charge of money, finances and budgets. The spender may go kicking and screaming, but this is almost always the best business policy.

Co-preneurship can destroy a marriage. So, before you take the plunge, honestly assess your situation. You already know whether you and your spouse operate as a team or as two individuals who happen to share a space and a future. If you regularly struggle with control issues in your marriage, running a business together is not a great idea. Remember, there is no getting away from your co-worker when you are married to him or her.

Quick Money Making Ideas for Internet Marketing

Did you click that link that promised to show you how to make $500,000.00 per month with a few clicks of a mouse? What about the one that guaranteed you would be making $1000.00 a day in one week? There is no shortage of “Quick Money Making” ideas being marketed every day and although some of these do use valid ideas, it is difficult to cut through the “hype” to find good solid training on how to become a successful Internet marketer. Over the years I have managed to pull the veil away and if you are interested, read on and I will present the methods I have proven to work for myself.

Introduction to Quick Money Making

Did you hear that “Rome wasn’t built in a day?” Even making a small house to live in takes time to build a foundation, erect the walls, put a roof on it, and finish it up with all the “little” things that make it nice. So when we talk about “quick” money making, we must keep the term relative. Developing a solid, self-sustaining business does take time but if you are starting off with no plans and not knowing what materials to use, much time will be wasted even though your efforts are honest and earnest. There are people out there promising you the moon and the stars who only care about how much money they can pocket by showing you little “tricks” for getting rich quick. So let me help you to define “Quick Money Making” by stating that you will reach your goals the quickest by following an honest, well laid out plan that is backed up by proven experience. To do this, you must plan on working hard and keeping focused – basically ignoring all the “Quick Money Making” schemes that seek to interfere with your progress by diverting your concentration from the methods that are proven to work.

Quick Money Making Internet Business

Making money on the Internet involves selling a product or service just like any other business. But unlike having a store or an office, your business is in Cyberspace. The methods for advertising your business and selling your products and services are somewhat different – but not altogether different – you are just using a different medium. The information super-highway has unbelievably efficient tools for marketing your business with creative banner ads, marketing video presentations, articles in popular “Internet Magazines,” free gift give-aways, contests, text ads and listings on search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing, websites, weblogs, press releases, affiliate marketing, email marketing, and the list continues. A combination of these methods will surely be profitable for your business but if done wrong, will certainly waste a lot of your time and money before you can make a profit. Learning to use these methods is not difficult but you need to have a well planned and comprehensive training program if you want to progress quickly into profits.

Keys to a Quick Money Making Internet Business.

1. You need a product to sell.

It does not have to be your own product, it can be someone else’s. But if you are to be successful the product needs to help people with their problems and have good value. You can either be an Affiliate who gets paid a commission for marketing a product or you can develop a product of your own. Being an Affiliate Marketer is the easiest with unlimited potential. Developing your own product is not difficult as long as it is something you are knowledgeable of and are willing to take the time to create it. Another solid method is to purchase Private Label or Master Resell Rights to an existing product. The key to quick money making with a product is to identify products that are in demand – something thousands of people need.

2. You need a storefront.

This can be a weblog, a website, a mini-site, or a membership site. In many cases, several of all of these types of web stores can be combined to market one product. Creating these web stores takes a little work but fortunately, if you can use a word processor and understand how to upload and download files, modern technology has simplified this task to the point that anyone can do it. A good training program can teach you the best ways to do this for effective sales of your product or service.

3. You need customers.

By far the most important aspect of any business is customers and there are many methods to do this on the Internet. Unfortunately, this is where most of the “hype” marketers will try to step in “to help you.” But to create a large, steady stream of customers coming to see your product or service is where you will need the most help from someone who knows and can effectively train you in the true methods that work. For any business just starting out, it is necessary for these marketing methods to be both powerful and cheap to implement. Fortunately, this is one of the most outstanding aspects of the Internet as it provides the medium for marketing effectively at little cost.

4. You need a plan.

A well laid out business plan is essential for any business. From your first step into Internet Marketing until you have created your dream business, you need a clear path of sequential and well proven steps to follow. These steps must be optimized for you by knowledgeable people if you are to progress quickly. A plan that will use the best methods of presenting the product, advertising the product, and managing your business in a way that makes use of the 24/7 automatic features available on the Internet. Without this plan, you will undoubtedly get side tracked with all the “hype” marketers who are simply trying make money off of your efforts to create an online business.

Building a Quick Money Making Internet Business is well within your capabilities. I know several successful Internet business owners who are not the smartest people and they will tell you the same. But their success came by learning the methods that truly work, focusing, and following a proven plan to success.

Massage Therapy Home Business – Free Marketing Ideas

Free Business Cards

A lot of online companies offer up to 250 free business cards you can design yourself. My favorite is Home Business Center. You can design your personal massage therapy business cards using any of their 42 card templates to deliver your message and contact information. Keep your business cards on you and hand them out to potential clients. Listen to what is being said around you in conversation. For example, when someone complaints about a back ache or a stressful week suggest a massage and give them your card. Also, ask friends and family to hand out a few to coworkers that might be interested in a home massage.

Local Directories and Home Business Directories Online

Submit your business information to local directories. Even if you do not have a web site for you massage therapy home business your services will appear in local search results. The top three directories or local map search engines to submit to are Google Local Business Center, Yahoo! Local and Bing Local Listing Center. Add contact information, specialty services, pictures and hours available. Also, submit your massage business to local company directories in your area.

Participate in Raffles Ticket Giveaways in your Area

Find local events in your area and donate a free massage to the community raffle. It is free advertising for your massage home business and if the raffle winner enjoys their massage (and I am sure he or she will) you got yourself a client and referrals from their network of friends.

Local Classified Ads

Create seasonal classified ads to market specials or gift certificates for holidays like Christmas and Valentine’s Day. Submit your ad to Craigslist.org and other local classified listings.

Existing Client Incentives

Once your massage home business starts taking off you can ask your clients to submit reviews to your Local Business Listings with the incentive to receive a discount on their next massage. Also, you can increase clientele by offering discounts when they refer you to 5 friends.

Integrative Business Planning – 10 Tips On Common Pitfalls To Avoid

Business Planning, whether at the start-up of a new venture or during its growth, requires an integrative approach. It is important that all crucial aspects are addressed and balanced. The following tips show some of the common pitfalls that should be avoided in the business planning process:

  1. Certain aspects of a detailed and integrated business plan are ignored. A typical example would be market research. This is often due to the cost and time involved, lack of know-how or ignorance of the importance thereof.
  2. The different aspects of the business are not match. It is for instance important that there is a good fit between the team and the opportunity.
  3. Over-optimistic projections are used. Sales and market share projections are quite often not realistic.
  4. Assumptions are not tested and adjusted where necessary. An example would be where it is assumed that $x of marketing will result in $y of sales.
  5. Not enough time is allowed for the business planning process. The importance of proper planning is often negated in favour of execution.
  6. The reverse of tip number 5 also occurs regularly. Especially new entrepreneurs tend to fall in the trap of over-planning and almost seeing the business plan as an end in itself. A fine balance should exist between planning and execution.
  7. The use of resources is underestimated. More people, time and materials are normally needed than anticipated. This cause budgets of capital and cashflow to be insufficient with potential grave consequences.
  8. Critical obstacles and even fatal risks are ignored. It is important to work through and resolve any potential problems and not to turn a blind eye.
  9. Measurable and achievable goals and mileposts are not set.
  10. A big problem, of adhering to the requirements of integrated business planning, is that entrepreneurs often have preconceived ideas that they don’t budge from. This can be due to a lack of knowledge combined with specific personality profiles. It is extremely important to be flexible, acknowledge when you are wrong and to get assistance when needed.

Copyright© 2008 – Wim Venter

Business Development Strategy For Innovative Business Growth

The evidence is very visible and many have already spoken that innovation is the core element in creating new versions of growth. Long-term business growth requires an authentic innovation. However, it is not easy to detect what kind of innovation shall click and that will lead to platforms of development. And there are a lot of ideas to invest on and the time it takes for an invention to be innovated into a product requires patience. These big challenges mean managers usually send away truly innovative prospects as it is too risky, and the growth imperative stays unfulfilled. Nowadays, professionals concerned have developed proven ideas to improve the probability of success in innovation business growth and this is through business development strategy.

The innovators’ solution offers tips in making and sustaining growth in the globally competitive market. Disturbance is inevitable, but companies who can grasp the process can harness it and they can actually take advantage of disturbing growth. To take advantage of disruption and create new growth business, managers need to make counter-intuitive decisions. There are different identified areas in addressing business development strategy and some of them are:

According to research balancing not aligning is the key to create future platforms for growth. Strategic planning is also another helpful way as it combines elements of scenario based planning to real options and the result is a portfolio of flexible strategies provisioned to execute arrangement of contingent strategies.

Good and innovative ideas do not usually occur by chance and most successful companies have well designed processes, structures and tools to motivate and manage idea production. From ideas appear innovative strategies to be used in executing the plans. Ideas are effective plans and if they are already implemented, they can make a great difference. Ideas can be best achieved through group collaboration and team work.

Creating a new way for the business to grow is a way to unzip the process of innovation and it is through creating innovation-driven growth business all over again. Managers should be challenged in a way that they should best manage the capabilities of the company to deliver innovation. A best business development strategy will help identify the processes capable and incapable of accomplishing. That’s why a good plan is needed beforehand so all involved can look at and visualize all possibilities on how the business will go. In order to survive, learn how to apply these strategies at work.

Secrets to Generate Profitable Business Ideas

Business if done carefully may provide you with the riches that you are dreaming of, but if you are careless about it, then you might fall into debt. Therefore, it is very important to find business ideas to increase your income. It can be a difficult process in sorting out the perfect ideas for your business, but with some efforts and spending time on the research, you may actually come up with ideas that will suit your business. Putting yourself as a customer will make you understand the needs of the people, and therefore, will provide you with better ideas for the growth of your business.

One of the most important ways to find business ideas is, understanding the customer. Customers are the main source of your business, as without them, there will be no business. Your business idea should satisfy the desire of the customer and not what you think might be important for the customers. Try to find out the need or desire of the customers. Often, the owners have a tendency to act according to their ideas, and later on, they find that their customers don’t want the products that they are offering. So spend some time in understanding your consumers, their needs or desires, and plan accordingly.

To develop a perfect business idea, passion is very important. Passion here is not being obsessed about your products. Passion means showing interest in what you are doing. If you don’t have passion in what you are doing, something which doesn’t motivate you to work, then it will be very difficult to give your time and energy to make your business successful. It is also very important to understand the type of competition you are in, to develop a perfect business idea. If you don’t have any idea about the competition, then your competitors may take the advantage. You will be investing more in the competition of pricing, instead of finding plans to grow your business. By knowing your competitors, you will be able to spend quality time in developing plans for your business.

Knowing yourself is the most important factor in developing plans for your business. You should know your strengths and weakness. You should be willing to give what it takes to achieve success. Many businessmen due to their unwillingness to spend their time, energy and money have failed in developing plans for the growth of their business, and thus, have failed in their business too. Try to avoid distraction that may cause hindrance like your personal financial situation and you will be able to focus on developing plans for the growth of your business and earn more income.

Event Planner Trending – Entertainment Options And Ideas

Event planner trending? Of course #eventplanner might not be the top hashtag of the day, but I’ll bet if you’re attempting to plan a great event, you’ll be looking for an amazing event planner.

Event Planner Trending –

These are essentials for planning your event, and your event planner will need you to have these details already lined out before they come on board:

  • Specific purpose of the event and what outcome you desire at the end.
  • Limitations such as budget, time, travel for destination events.
  • Size, number of people, food choices, and entertainment options.

These three elements are likely non-negotiable. And you’ll need to be aware of any possible changes, prior to hiring your event planner. Start with these details and start locking in the basic plan before you contact the planner.

Structuring Event Options –

Who will be helping? Do you have a team on board already? Most business events have speakers lined up within the company, or specific for their purpose. You’ll want to share this information with your event planner. Know who is in charge of these items and let your professional planner know who they’ll be working with at the company.

  • Food planning and decisions.
  • Entertainment decisions.
  • Travel planning and organization.
  • Ultimate location, destination for event.
  • Emergency team. Know who to call in the event of an emergency.

Be sure to delegate responsibilities and get everyone involved.

Marketing Your Event –

If your event is more than company wide, you’ll want a bigger marketing team, but here’s a list of the basics for marketing and bringing in company attendance.

  • Layout your marketing plan.
  • Define benefits of attending your event.
  • Decide on media options (Social Media is ALWAYS good).
  • Bring company bloggers on board.
  • Determine what hashtags #eventplannertrending should represent your event.
  • Set up registration options.
  • Simplify registration and payment with online options.
  • Get YouTube Videos of all speakers. Snippets sell.
  • Splash the entertainment on ALL social media.
  • Increase word of mouth marketing by giving them something to talk about. Keywords and phrases matter.

Of course, you’ll be ready to capture an audience on the big day, but your audience should already be excited, thrilled to be attending, long before the event. If you’ve done your work as a business, your event planner will have access to all the pertinent information, and your marketers will have created quite a stir.

Bringing in great entertainment for your affair is an absolute MUST. Your planner should know who is currently trending and popular and be ready with a great selection of artists, bands, and big name entertainers ready to meet your needs.

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