174 | HOW TO WRITE A BUSINESS PLAN
Ask for the Money
Here’s one bit of essential advice about
meeting with your backers: You must ask
for the money. Don’t make the common
mistake of discussing your plan in gener-
alities and then saying “Thank you” as you
walk out the door.
As part of every presentation, you must
ask the potential source of funds if he
will invest in your venture or lend you the
money. Repeat this phrase:
“Thank you for listening to my business
plan. Will you invest/lend me the money I
need to get started?”
If you are turned down, don’t hang your
tail between your legs and slink away in a
puddle of embarrassed perspiration. Ask
why. Sometimes the reasons why a person
won’t help finance your business will be
more valuable to you than the money.
Leave Your Plan With Your Backer
Give your potential backer a copy of the
business plan after you’ve met with her.
If at all possible, don’t mail copies of
your business plan, or summaries of your
plan, to people before you meet. Your
presentation loses a great deal without
your personality and enthusiasm. It’s also
a good idea to number each copy of your
plan and keep track of who gets which
plan. That way you can remember to
follow up with everybody. Also, if you’re
selling stock in a private offering you need
to keep track of who gets the plans.
Follow Up
After a week or ten days, telephone all
of your potential backers and ask if they
have any questions. If they do, you can
answer them on the telephone or make an
appointment to meet. Remember to ask for
the money you need.How to Approach Different Backers.....................................................................................
Chances are you have long since decided
whom to approach first for a loan or invest-
ment. For example, you might decide to
first approach your father, then the Bank
of Newcastle, then the Small Business
Administration. If you haven’t decided
yet, review Chapter 4 and develop a list of
priorities now. Below are some ways you
might approach specific types of backers.Friends and Relatives
The first rule of borrowing money from
people close to you is that you want to be
very sure they can afford to lend it to you
and that you will be able to pay it back.
Everyone who works with small business
financing can tell horror stories about
business owners who had to deal with
both the failure of their enterprise and a
bunch of angry relatives. Put simply, it’s
no fun.