Project ART: business plan
Yesterday I spent a few hours on the business proposition for Project ART. Whilst I was thinking it through I recalled all the business plans and Private Placement Memorandums I’ve read over the years — either in an official professional capacity as a banker as well as out of personal interest. What I keep returning to is that you can tell quite a lot about the business plan simply from how someone orders their contents page.
Here’s mine:
It may look easy-peasy, but it also reveals how systematic or structured the author writing the BP is. I’ve read BPs which open with pages upon pages of information about technical specifications of a system, but almost no information on the size of the potential market being targeted, the segmentation of customers who will use the platform or any material on marketing execution.
With Project Art, I wanted to make sure there’s a statement of principle along with the commitment of practice:
The other key area to really pin-down early on is, “Who are your competitors?” You have to be able to do a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) on them as much as on your own business proposition. Only then can you more accurately know where and how you’re differentiated, so that you can find your unique value metrics and market position and play to your own strengths.
