Business Plans – Do You Have All Three?

Business owners must have three separate business plans:       

• A Business Plan
• A Marketing Plan and      
• An Exit Plan.  

Do you have all three?

A Business Plan allows the owners and shareholders to plan for the daily operation of the business and to put targets, budgets and operating systems in place. It’s like the “instruction manual” for the running of the business.

Every business should have one.

Good business managers regularly refer to the Business Plan and use it as a constant reference point when making business decisions. It should be reviewed at least annually and updated and adjusted regularly.

A good business plan includes:          

• A mission statement          
• Plans for growth and expansion
• Budgets
• Asset replacement plans
• Operational plans         
• Key Performance Indicators to be measured and
• Action Plans which summarise the actions to be implemented with dates and responsibilities 

A Marketing Plan refers to the business plan and the mission statement to outline the targets and outcomes to be achieved through marketing and details the plan for achieving those aims. It includes a budget, and a mechanism for measuring spending and results achieved. The Marketing Plan also includes KPIs that are to be measured and monitored. 

An Exit Plan. All that‘s required to produce an Exit Plan, is to:

1. Decide when you want to exit, and how much you’ll want to sell for
2. Plan on how much profit the business will need to show to sell for the price that you want to achieve
3. Set a program with targets and KPI’s (Key Performance Indicators) required to realise the price sought.
4. Decide who is the most suitable buyer of your business
5. Plan to prepare the business for sale
6. Seek advice from credible advisors to keep you accountable and “on-track” and
7. Measure your performance and adjust where necessary to hit targets

Then, make it happen by engaging an effective business broker who will:

1. Help set an appropriate pricing plan
2. Help set the sale plan (including how the sale is to be executed)
3. Prepare the data and information that buyers will need
4. Understand the most suitable marketing techniques and produce a bespoke marketing plan
5.  Pro-actively follow up on buyers and engage them
6. Remove emotion from discussions and help to negotiate the best outcome
7. Follow the process through due diligence and co-ordinate activity to finalise the transaction.

The first plan to prepare should be the Exit Plan. Remember to start with the end in mind, and work back from there. 

There are three Business Plans every Business Owner must have: Business Plan, Marketing Plan and an Exit Plan. You need these to run a successful Business.

The end of the year is the best time to set up your Business plans: Why not taking advantage of the Christmas break and finish your Plans? 

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