THESE ARE SOME OF THE MOST
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS I RECEIVE FROM INDIVIDUALS SEEKING MY
SERVICES.
Q: When I hire
you to prepare my business plan, what services am I
paying for?
A: As with any professional
consultant, you are paying for my time, and my experience. I
have been writing business plans since 1986, as well as doing
public relations work since 1977. As for my time, it
typically takes me at least forty hours, and in some cases sixty
hours to complete a business plan. Assuming it takes me 40
hours, and I charge you $1800, then that comes to $45.00 per
hour. That's a very low rate for consulting fees. So, I
think you'll agree that, considering the ultimate funding goal you
are seeking, you are getting your money's worth.
Q: What do you need from
me?
A: I need as much information as
you can give me about yourself, your products/services, and your
business. No doubt, you've been thinking about your business
for some time now; simply supply me with whatever information
you've collected. If it's not written down, or published
somewhere, then the questionnaire(s) I provide you will supply me
with the information I'll need to complete your plan. The
rest I’ll research on my own.
Q: Is it really necessary
for me to answer a detailed questionnaire?
A: Occasionally, people resist filling out my
questionnaires. Let's face it, nobody likes to fill out
forms. "Besides, isn't that what I'm paying you for?" you may
be asking yourself. But the fact of the matter is that I
can't read your mind, nor do I know your business as well as you
do. So you have to supply me with the details, so that I can
write your business plan. If you want to avoid filling out a
long questionnaire, then supply me with documentation, or tape
record your answers, or use an inexpensive voice recognition
software.
Q: How long will it
take?
A: That depends, in large part, on you. The
quicker you can supply me with complete information, the faster I
can turn something around. But I can't perform
miracles. While it's conceivable I could write a business
plan in two weeks -- assuming I drop all my other projects -- you
wouldn't want a business plan prepared that quickly. Writing
a business plan "by the seat of one's pants", cutting corners, and
slapping something together is not the way to go about preparing a
document such as a business plan. I need time to think about
what I'm doing, digesting the information you're giving me, talking
with you, and in some cases doing my own independent
research. I simply cannot learn in one or two weeks what may
have taken you perhaps years.
Occasionally, people come to me in
dire financial straits. Coming up with a business plan when
on the verge of bankruptcy usually indicates to me a poor planner,
and someone who should not be in business for himself or
herself. If that's your situation, you'd be wise to try some
other approach to raising money quickly.
Q: Do you use templates or
business plan writing software?
A: No, I don't use template(s) or business planning
software. I've been writing business plans before those
things were developed. So, I prefer my own way. Let me
tell you why. Venture capitalists, investment bankers, etc.
get inundated with business plans everyday. Most of them look
pretty much alike. After awhile one gets rather adept at
spotting those business plans put together in a cookie cutter
fashion.
You want your business plan to stand
out from the rest, don't you? Just filling in the boxes of a
template is not how you go about writing a business plan. A
business plan is a complex undertaking in which all the parts must
be interrelated as a whole. Most importantly, a business plan
must be persuasive, without being hyperbolic. It must be
formal and adhere to the strictures of conservative business
writing. And it must be original. To my knowledge,
there is no template available that can automatically turn raw data
into a winning and convincing business plan, and make it stand out
from the rest.
Q: What do you offer that
your competitors don't offer?
A: I've written many business plans, and seen a lot of
business plans written by others. It is not difficult
to distinguish the amateur from the professional jobs.
You can imagine what lending institutions go through every
day.
Producing a well written business
plan is not something done over night, nor is it accomplished by
turning it over to a committee. It is a painstaking process,
with careful attention to detail. Typically, I will go
through several revisions before I'm satisfied with the end result.
Most of my competitors are only interested in turning over new
clients. So, if a business plan preparer says he can write
your business plan in 10 days, beware.
Keeping this in mind, I offer you
close personal attention, bringing my years of writing experience
to the task at hand. You work directly with me, or one
of my carefully chosen associates. When you contract
with John V. McCoy, Business Plan Consultant, you talk to me
-- not a bureaucracy. I don't know of many of my
competitors who offer that -- and that includes in-house business
plan preparers at the top accounting firms or investment banking
firms. So, if you want to have a business plan that will pass
your muster, and get the attention of lenders and investors, why
take the chance on turning it over to someone in the business of
mass producing business plans?
I should point out one other
thing. I don't accept all the business plan writing requests
that come my way. That may sound odd for someone in the
business of writing business plans. But the fact of the
matter is I get more than enough satisfaction from my other
pursuits, including my teaching obligations. If I can't make
a difference in helping you achieve your business goals, then I'll
suggest you try another source.
Q: How many of your business
plans have resulted in funding?
A: Tough question. Here's the answer: The fact
of the matter is that I don't keep track of every client I've
written a business plan for. But, informally, I've kept note
by reading the trade press of those clients who are doing well
after my contract with them was completed. Many of them are
thriving, so I can only assume that my business plan consultation
has contributed to their growth. But whether it directly led
to a funding source, or not, I'm not usually aware of.
Q: Can you guarantee that I
will be funded?
A: If I tried to guarantee that you would be funded, I
would soon find myself in legal trouble. The fact is that
nobody can guarantee you will get funded. Think about
it. I encounter the whole gamut of clients -- from those who
are completely deluding themselves about their prospects of
business success, to some of the hottest prospects ever to hit the
street. Unfortunately, the latter category represents a very
small minority.
Here's another way of thinking about
it: Suppose you ask me to write your resume. You want
to get a job teaching at the Harvard Business School. You've
run a successful convenience store, but you never graduated from
high school. Other than running a mom-and-pop store, you've
had no other significant business experience. Then doesn't it
stand to reason, that short of lying about your experience, the
best resume I can write will never get you an offer from the
Harvard Business School? By analogy, the same applies to
writing a business plan. Unless you have the qualifications,
and/or a hot product line, I can't guarantee you funding, even if
it's the best plan I or anyone else has ever written.
I should point out one other
thing. Let's suppose you take your fresh new business plan to
a banker or investment group. You will be going
alone. They don't want to hear from your accountant or your
business plan writer. They want you to convince them that you
understand the numbers and everything that's in that business
plan. After all, you are asking them for money for an
untried venture. You've got to be able to stand one your own
two feet. I'll help you. I'll even coach you. But you
have to convince the bank that you have the knowledge, skills and
drive to make this business work.
Q: Do you guarantee
satisfaction?
A: That's a different story. While I cannot
guarantee funding, I will guarantee your satisfaction. What
that means is that if you are not satisfied after I complete the
draft of your Executive Summary, I'll refund your money, no
questions asked. If, at the end of the project, you have
changes, I'll make those changes to your complete
satisfaction. (You may want to make modifications later
on. That's to be expected as your business grows.
That's why I supply you with a copy of the finished
product.)
