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writing the winning business/service plan

writing the winning business/service plan. m. w. piczak September 2006. WHY BUSINESS OR SERVICE PLANNING? . Going beyond conversation Securing funding Obtaining government & other agency subsidies Providing guidance on an annual basis (operating plan) for emerging priorities

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writing the winning business/service plan

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  1. writing the winning business/service plan m. w. piczak September 2006

  2. WHY BUSINESS OR SERVICE PLANNING? • Going beyond conversation • Securing funding • Obtaining government & other agency subsidies • Providing guidance on an annual basis (operating plan) for emerging priorities • Demonstrating that the writer has thought through the project to a high level of detail • Argue feasibility • Behaving in a business-like manner increasingly important

  3. YOU AND YOUR BLANK SCREEN • Set work aside & let your progress to date percolate • Identify what is keeping you from making further headway? • Who could help you? (misery sometimes likes company) • Bounce obstacle off colleague & get outside ideas • Sit down again in a few days with fresh start • Write different section of report & then return to problematic area • Have someone else write it

  4. Think outside the box • “When the going gets weird, the weird start thinking” • Break it, if it is not broken • New paradigms

  5. COMPONENTS OF THE WINNING PLAN • Substance • Appearance • Presentation

  6. CLASSIC PLAN: 5 ELEMENTS 4 Subplans & backup materials: • Marketing plan • Operations plan • Customer service plan • Financial plan • Appendices/supporting materials

  7. PLAN CONTENTS • Table of contents • Executive summary (highlights across 4 subplans) • Concept/Mission/vision/values/beliefs statements • Background/description of service/need • Stakeholders (in public sector) • Marketing plan • Operations/human resource plan • Risk assessment/contingency plans • Customer service plan • Implementation plan • Financial plan including control systems • Program review/assessment plan • Overall conclusion/feasibility • Appendices

  8. THE STATEMENTS • 4 PRIMARY STATEMENTS: • Concept/Positioning • Mission • Vision • Values/beliefs

  9. CONCEPT/POSITIONING • In 25-35 words, clearly sets out purpose of organization • “ABC Limited is a business that…that what….

  10. SAMPLE POSITIONING STMT. • BI provides effective, innovative, and affordable offender management and rehabilitation solutions to government customers in over 2,700 locations in all 50 states and 6 countries. • BI offers a continuum of innovative offender compliance technologies and proven, research-based program services to provide tailored solutions for effectively managing criminal populations. TAKEN FROM WWW.BI.COM

  11. MISSION STATEMENT- THE PILOT METAPHOR Think of a jet pilot’s singular purpose as they set out on a sortie…their mission • Words like ‘committed, purpose or dedicated’ signal evidence of mission • ‘mission control’ at NASA

  12. SAMPLE MISSION STATEMENT

  13. VISION STATEMENT • What you want your organization to grow up and become • What you aspire to become • Roughly equivalent to the concept of idealized self • Often useful to think in terms of short and long term goals

  14. BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

  15. MARKETING PLAN Contains number of key components • 4 statements • SWOT • Competition analysis • Target markets/segments • 4Ps • Promotion plan (daily, monthly, quarterly, annual) • Networking plan

  16. ENVIRONMENTAL SCANNING

  17. DIAMOND E FRAMEWORK MANAGEMENT PREFERENCES ORGANIZATION STRATEGY ENVIRONMENT RESOURCES

  18. SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY ADDED

  19. SWOT CHARACTERISTICS • Occur at the INDUSTRY level • Referred to as trends, shifts, directions • Every industry has them • Not all equally important • Beyond control of industry players • Ever changing • Typically be winners and losers • Business has bias towards stability • Speed/direction = velocity • O or T simultaneously • No response required; awareness sufficient • Affects industry players differentially

  20. THINKING AT THE INDUSTRY LEVEL THE INDUSTRY Co. E Co. D Co. C Co. F Co. B Co. A You are here

  21. INDUSTRY LEVELS CAN THINK OF THE INDUSTRY AT VARIOUS LEVELS: • International • National • Provincial/state • Regional • Municipal

  22. DATA SOURCES • Government sources and databases • www.strategis.ic.gc.ca • www.myhamilton.ca • Small business enterprise centers • Business incubators • Industry associations of all kinds • Special interest groups • Research houses (www.forrester.com) • Time, Macleans and other popular business press • Corporate web pages or annual reports

  23. IT’S THE SOURCE YOU WANT

  24. SWOT LEVELS • Industry level (O & T) • Business level (S & W) • Personal level (S & W) • Plus, plan to shore up weaknesses

  25. WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE SMOKING BY-LAWS RELAXED The relaxation of no-smoking bylaws by the City of Richmond was welcome news to food service operators ending years of frustration and uncertainty. The by-law posed serious challenges to operators who faced considerable expense in upgrading HVAC systems. CFRA Surveys show consumers, especially in bars, enjoy having their cigarettes with drinks and meals. (Richmond Reporter, August 31, 2003)

  26. WRITEUP STRUCTURE • SWOT is introduced and explained • 3 LEVELS OF ANALYSIS • Each 4-5 word point in table gets its own subheading • Each subheading receives explanation as required • O and T receive credible citations or references • Ensure O’s > T’s • O & T May get probability of occurrence and impact assessment • Need plan of action to shore up weaknesses

  27. COMPETITION ANALYSIS • Among the worst things done in a business plan • Long on description • Lean on analysis • No write/discussion

  28. COMPETITIVE SURVEILLANCE • Web visits • Field visits/shopping the bad guys • Newspaper accounts • Using your survey to compare competition to you • Examine corporate image materials for clues • Asking customers • Getting products in • Reverse engineering

  29. PLAYING HARDBALL NICE GUY…

  30. WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE

  31. ANALYSIS – SYSTEMATIC COMPARISONS • 5 SWEEPS THROUGH THE TABLE: • Looking for commonalities across all competitors in strengths = KSFs (CURRENT WINNING FORMULA) • Looking for commonalities across all competitors in weaknesses = KFFs (INDUSTRY PROBLEMS) • Looking for differences between competitors’ strengths and your strengths = CA1 • Looking for differences between competitors’ weaknesses and your weaknesses = CA2 • 1 last look for differences between competitors’ weaknesses and your strengths = CA3 • Finding something that you do that noone else does well = DISTINCTIVE COMPETENCE/SIGNATURE Competition Analysis: Beyond Description

  32. FINAL PRODUCT… • Table with narrative setting out • KSFs • KFFs • CA1, 2, 3 • DC/SIGNATURE

  33. SEGMENTING THE MARKET • “I target the old, young, rich and low income…” • Targeting everyone targets noone

  34. SEGMENTATION BASES • Demographics (age, income, education, gender) • Psychographics (attitudes, interests, opinions (AIOs)) • Technographics (mouse potato, geek,) – www.forresterresearch.com • Benefits (white teeth, high speed) • Usage (heavy vs. light; recreational vs. serious; beginner vs. advanced) • Lifestyle (active, jet setting) • Consumer/industrial/commercial/government/military • Large/small/plus sizing • Children • Price (Value segment at Lakeport)

  35. WHO TARGETS? • CUSTOMS/AIRPORT SECURITY OFFICERS (female shoppers, racial profiling) • POLICE WITH SPEED TRAPS (roads from highways, transition zones, road to highways, bottom of hills, flat roads) • STUDENTS WHEN THEY STUDY (particular topics based on need to know; acting on professor’s hints/emphasis) • TELEVISION PRODUCERS (varies by show) • SPORTS TEAMS (Bulldogs = families; Leafs = ????) • COCA COLA (selected campaigns go after particular segments) • BEER COMPANIES (18-35, male, sports lover, value) • SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE (urban, 25-50, $) • JERRY SPRINGER (lower income, female) • SOAP OPERAS (house wife, Caucasian) • CRIMINALS (seniors, individual walking alone, empty homes during day time, particular cars, particular parking lots)

  36. RELATIVELY EASY TARGETS • Families • Seniors • Females/males • High/low income people • City dwellers • Apartment dwellers • Home owners • Children • 18-34 Males • 18-49 Females • Commercial operations • Industrial operations

  37. GETTING THE NUMBERS • Having identified targets, must get NUMBERS to back up size of market

  38. NOTICE THE ‘NONE’ CELLS

  39. OUR MISTAKE • To argue that you will get your marketing messages out to everyone • The reality is that there is not enough time, money or you

  40. ONE SOLUTION • Define the target • Call Canada Post for Geo Post free service • Co-ordinate with direct mailer and Canada Post to work your database

  41. ANOTHER SOLUTION… • Enter every customer contact into a customer relationship management software program

  42. 4Ps • Product/service • Price • Place • Promotion

  43. PRICING: TRADITIONAL METHODS • Skimming • Penetration • Odd figure ($.69) • Psychological (<$10.00) • Some groups/times exact premium or discount • Discounts by volume

  44. PRICING: VARIATIONS • Mail in rebates • Cash back • Cheaper on weekends or weekdays • Pioneer/Canadian Tire money • Discounts at P. of P. • Air Miles • Buy X, Get X-(X-1) free

  45. PROMOTION PLAN

  46. OPERATIONS PLAN WHAT GOES INTO THIS PLAN: • Licenses • Regulations to observe • Permits (fire, permits, elevators) • Gst/pst/bin • Suppliers Operations Plan Contents

  47. CUSTOMER SERVICE PLAN CHOICES FOR COMPETING: • Price • Service • Responsiveness • Innovation • Quality • Variety • Flexibility

  48. DEVELOPING A C.S. PLAN • Think through the entire customer service EXPERIENCE • Start at the beginning or end • Look at touch points (phone, voice mail options, web, reception, appearance of reps, etc.) • Search www using c.s. plans • Look around • Read books • Mystery shop yourself • Surveys/focus groups THE CUSTOMER SERVICE PLAN

  49. THE FINANCIAL PLAN • Only key financials conveyed • Unfolds like a story of a business yet to be started • Is a natural order • Use graphs to convey key points • Narrative accompanies graphs • Close with feasibility assessment

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