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Share The Air

Business Plan Review: Share the Air

by Chelle Parmele on April 20, 2011

A few weeks ago a co-worker sent me an instant message:

“You’ve got to watch this business plan pitch. It’s crazy!”

Of course I clicked and watched it.

It only takes a few minutes before the “disbelief” starts. I’ve seen professionals shun slick PowerPoint slides to use handwritten or even marked up on whiteboard slides instead. So a handwritten slide deck didn’t immediately make an impact on me, but several things immediately made me stop and wonder what was going on.

The presenter, while energetic and dedicated to her subject, immediately shows us several facts which should throw big red flags. From incorrectly spelling her own name, to the percentage numbers on her “Air is” slide. (75+21+1+6 does not in fact equal 100), to the fact that she is willing to go to Atlantis to obtain this precious, magical air.

We know now that the pitch was part of a hoax for April Fools day, but let’s take a look at what she – as a business plan pitch person – got right and what she got wrong.

Mistake: Her target market is everyone. While that might be true, or you might really believe it’s true, it’s generally not wise to say so in your plan or pitch. Saying “everyone” tells me you’re lazy and haven’t really thought about who your customer is, which translates to wasting your time and your investors’ money on those not likely to buy. So slim it down. Pick a particular demographic that is more likely to buy than the others and start there.

Mistake: Not knowing what you need. In her investment pitch, she says she needs a team of “_________ specialists”. Point in her favor that she knows the company has a hole in the team, but to not know what type of specialist she’s going to need shows a lack of understanding of the “how” in her business plan. If you point out the positions in your management team that are not filled, it shows me that you at least know you need to fill them. As an investor, I will notice your company is lacking a VP of Marketing with experience in your field, but when you don’t mention it, I’ll wonder if YOU know that.

Mistake: The numbers don’t add up. I mentioned above that Rachel’s percentages don’t add up. But beyond that, make sure you check all your numbers. And make sure those numbers are in the right place and are correct. For instance, Cash Flow: this table tracks the cash balance (your checking account) and cash flow (how much that balance changes) from month to month and annually. The cash balance should never be negative; if your cash balance is less than zero, your checks will bounce. And if your business plan shows several months of a negative cash balance, I want the name of your bank, because my bank doesn’t allow me to keep spending money I don’t have. For months. And months.

Share The Air

So, here are some positive points from her pitch:

Good! Be unique. Admit it, if you had been in the audience, you would have remembered her pitch long after the event was over. So that take away is ‘make a lasting impression with your pitch’. The handwritten slides were memorable. Granted, there were several things wrong with that option, but if you watched 30 pitches in a day, would you remember the one with the hand drawn pictures of mountains and flowers, or the PowerPoint slide that had a picture of Mt Hood and a field of daisies?

Good! Emotionally connecting to the audience. As with any good story, you need to make what you’re saying matter to your audience. Whether you bring them in with humor, show them your passion or joy at using or participating with your subject matter, or make them a part of the demonstration, making them invested in what you are doing will ensure they become much more likely to want more.

Good! Have a real website. Real business plan pitch or not, she had an actual website. It has a “coming soon” on the front page but it’s real. This lends credibility to her business. Talking about a website without actually owning it shows a lack of attention to detail. You can mention having an eventual Web presence without naming an actual website name. That is much better than claiming ownership of www.taco.com for your taco stand, only to have your audience Google it later and find it belongs to a technical advisors company, and probably always will.

Even knowing the whole pitch was fake, here’s what did pique my interest: the Web app she mentions towards the end of her presentation. What a fun app idea! I immediately wanted to share that information with my friends. To me, the idea of marking the places I’ve breathed is much more quirky and fun than checking in via foursquare at the corner Starbucks for the 30th time.

Real or not, it was enjoyable to watch and has given us here at the office a lot to talk about.

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Are You a Small Business Owner Who Suffers from Promotional Panic?

by Chelle Parmele on January 18, 2010

Promotional Panic Syndrome often goes undiagnosed because many of its symptoms seem harmless at first. Recent studies have shown that early detection can decrease complications, including: wasted money, lack of new business and silent phone syndrome

My fellow Duct Tape Marketing Coach and Mentor, Cidnee Stephen coined the phrase “Promotional Panic Syndrome” to describe the sudden and often painful realization that you need sales NOW and that none of your existing advertising and promotions are working to bring in new customers. The ”victim” (the small business owner) then goes into a panic and the immediate reaction is usually to try to make the symptoms go away by buying more newspaper ads, banners, radio spots, fliers and promotions that don’t work; putting themselves into an endless cycle of worry and panic.

Promotional Panic Syndrome often goes undiagnosed because many of its symptoms seem harmless at first. Recent studies have shown that early detection of Promotional Panic symptoms and immediate treatment can decrease complications, including: wasted money, lack of new business and silent phone syndrome.

Symptoms:

■ Terror that is almost paralyzing because the phone isn’t ringing
■ Fear of losing everything because no one is buying
■ Choking sensation whenever you think of the $1000/ month you’re paying for that Yellow Pages ad
■ Nervousness, shaking and stress because you have no lead generation strategy that works
■ Muscle pain, especially in neck and shoulders from banging your head against the wall
■ A sudden and almost uncontrollable urge to write a check to the first advertising salesperson who walks through your door

WARNING: IF YOU ARE EXPERIENCING ANY OF THESE SYMPTOMS, PUT YOUR CHECKBOOK DOWN IMMEDIATELY AND CONSULT A PROFESSIONAL.

The AMA (Awesome Marketing Association – fake of course!) reports that millions of small business owners suffer from this common anxiety disorder each year. Research has shown the main cause to be a lack of marketing planning and strategy. Studies have shown that no amount of advertising will cure these symptoms without first finding the root cause. In clinical trials, writing a check to buy more advertising to relieve Promotional Panic symptoms has the same affect as taking the first pill you can get your hands on to treat a serious medical condition. Without analyzing the symptoms, learning the root cause of your condition and then working with a professional to develop a treatment plan you are merely popping a bunch of random pills and hoping that one of them works, before the wrong one kills you.

Treatment for Promotional Panic symptoms is varied and a number of approaches can work. The most effective treatment has been a strict regimen of marketing strategy and planning followed by repetitive and consistent execution of marketing tactics. The goal in treating Promotional Panic Syndrome is to reduce the pain caused by ineffective advertising and promotions and help you manage your marketing spend and lead generation efforts.

Prolonged use of a marketing plan has been shown in clinical trials to improve the overall health of your business. Four out of five Marketing Professionals recommend working on marketing strategy daily.

The side effects of Marketing Planning are: increased leads, increased sales and profits, more repeat business, higher revenue per sale, improved business relationships, happier customers, time off, vacations, restful nights, and business longevity and growth.

Admitting you have Promotional Panic Syndrome is the first step to recovery. The second step is getting help, contact a professional today and learn how you can manage Promotional Panic symptoms.

ducttapemarketingbadge Carolyn Higgins is the President and founder of Fortune Marketing Company. Her personal mission is to help small businesses stop wasting money on advertising and promotions that don’t deliver and help you implement an effective marketing system that will bring you more customers – consistently.

For more information about Carolyn Higgins and Fortune Marketing Company please visit http://www.FortuneMarketingCompany.com. Email chiggins@fortunemarketingcompany.com or call us at 707.631.6340.

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Despair Humor Success

by Steve Lange on December 30, 2009

Here on the Business In General blog, and at Bplans.com, we are committed to optimistic support of entrepreneurship and the startup and growth of business, especially small- and medium-sized businesses.

I’m not Pollyanna-ish about our business environment, however. It is unrealistic to think, or even hope, that a few short months of so-called recovery, including a pre-and-post-holiday spend-a-thon, can repair the damage caused by a decade of questionable high-finance economic activities. It is a time of despair for the tens of millions of people who have suffered the devastating impact of the current depression.

Still, humans are resilient, hence the old, often paraphrased saying, If I didn’t laugh, I’d surely cry. And with that sense of humor and appreciation of the absurd, comes opportunity. Despair.com is one company which has succeeded in business by encouraging us to poke fun at our adversities, to laugh, albeit cynically, when we are most suffering from social and economic hardship.

I discovered them early in the last decade when they released a series of Demotivational posters — humorous send-ups of those smarmy, pretentious posters that were supposed to make us all happy about working harder for less.

Since then they have added greeting cards, calendars, more Demotivator posters, laptop computer skins, t-shirts, a Pessimist’s “The-glass-is-half-empty” mugs and glassware, and more. This year they are offering “The Rise of Mr. Ponzi“, the long-suppressed autobiography of Charles Ponzi, the great-granddaddy of financial and investment wizards.

Despair.com has shown that opportunity and success are possible, when the prospects seem worst, even as they busily make fun of their own industriousness and schadenfreud. Go to Despair.com. Look over their site and their offerings. If you cry, it could be because you are laughing so hard.

Steve Lange
Palo Alto Software

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