BUSINESS & FINANCIAL PLANNING DURING A PANDEMIC Steps and - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

1 WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER BUSINESS & FINANCIAL PLANNING DURING A PANDEMIC Steps and Resources W W W. W B D C . O R G

2 Introductions WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Blanca ca Berthier ier Direc ector tor of I IL SBDC bberth thier@wbdc ier@wbdc.o .org https://wb ps://wbdcsched dcschedul ulin ing.a g.as. s.me/ me/Blan Blanca caBer erth thier ier

3 Introductions WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Abiga gail l Scanlan anlan Ass ssociat ociate e Direc ector tor, Access ess to to Capit ital al asca canl nlan@wbdc an@wbdc.o .org https://wbdcscheduling.as.me/AbigailScanlanCHI

4 Road Map for today … WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Be Aware of Available Resources 04 Current funding resources • Ongoing sources to help grow your business • Manage & Assess Your Cash Flow 03 Cash Flow Statement your best ally • Know your costs & pricing • Plan for Profit 02 How can I expand my • revenue streams? What new action steps • can I take? Create a Strategic Business Plan Post Pandemic 01 Assess your situation • Set business and financial goals by • adapting and pivoting

WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER 5 Let’s take a moment …

WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER 6 How do we create a new strategic business plan post pandemic?

7 Assess Y our Situation WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER • How is my business being impacted? Is this temporary or long term? • Should you stop marketing and advertising during a crisis? • In time, the market will recover, business will pick back up. • When it does, will you be there when your customers are looking? • It’s easy to be reactive during stressful times, but… Reac active tive response ponse is j jump mping ing from m tactic ic to tactic tic without hout a pl plan, n, and making ing decis isions ions based ed on fear ar.

8 How can we adapt to change? WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER • The world has changed whether we like it or not. • Small business owners have been thrown into a world of transformation. • Plan for the short and long term. • Establish goals. • Pivot your marketing. • Review what is working, what you can keep? • Listen, observe and find out what your customers need.

9 Strategy: Vision for your business WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Time to plan for the new business realities and what that means for your business Wh What wi at will ll be be di differ erent? ent? 30-60 30 60-90 90 6 Months? 1 Year? Days ays • Imagine your business in 6 months, 12 months and ask yourself “What will my market look like in a year?” • • “What do I need to do to get through this time”? Develop and align your short and long-term goals and turn them into an action • plan based on strategies that will help you meet your goals.

WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER 10 business plan Review your

11 Name __________________ 2 months I will… In Company ________________ 6 months 12 months WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Operations & Sales Marketing Finances Other Management Understand how to use financial Have processes Understand my tools to better for human Have a consistent ideal customer operate my resources (job presence on social business (P&L descriptions, media statement, Have a plan to paperwork, breakeven no.) acquire more employee customers procedures manual) Review my pricing Create or improve structure Institute a my company’s Customer website Have a plan to Solve a current Relationship retain my financial problem Management employees my business is (CRM) System experiencing Appear in local Set standards to media Obtain money improve customer Find opportunities from a lender for service for subcontracting my business Create or improve Create operational my company’s B2B Invest more of my Become certified processes marketing material own money to as a M/W/DBE grow my business

12 T ake Action WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Some me clie ients ts might ght If you you are e check k yo you u out on tempora te mporarily y closed, sed, social ial medi dia. a. let people ple know, , Rev evie iew w yo your ur Tell your clients you’re • - Have you posted an along ng with th an fina nanc nces es and update? open n for or busi sine ness, ss, they ey expectatio ex ation, , when n prep epar are e for a loa oan n • - Are you active? probably don’t even know! they ey can exp expect t to to if yo you u need d one. • - If not, they might take that as a sign that hear back ack from om you’re closed. you. yo u.

13 WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Communication • Start by clarifying your message. • Did you have to pivot your operations to stay open during this time? • If so, share this information with your clients. • Let them know you are open and how you are servicing them. • The content you share during difficult times will be remembered, so : • Stay away from self-serving content. • Practice empathy. • Engage with your community. This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

14 T actics WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Before e yo you can n sprea ead d the wo word, d, Crea eate e a mark rketi eting ng plan. n. Revie eview w yo your r target get mark rket et and Which ich channe nnels ls should uld yo you use? e? it’s important to know where re yo you deter ermine ine appropria riate e need ed to sprea ead d the wo word. d. communi co unicati cation n channe nnels. s. Your website Google My Business Facebook Twitter YouTube LinkedIn Look at your analytics data

15 Record video updates about your business to share on social media. WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Keep your customers informed about your operations. Other ideas … Provide updates on how things are going. Record a video on how you’re giving back to the community. Record videos that are useful, such as ways potential clients can use your products or services. It’s a Time to Be Social, people are spending more time on social media right now. When considering - content needs to be helpful content creation for your social media - address pain points and give information channels, keep in mind: - should not be self-serving.

16 WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Show your values • Show your values and who you really are, seize this opportunity! • When the dust settles, people will remember those who help and give back in a time of need. • Share your brand message - consistent and not self-serving. • Think about how to engage with messages that help solve your customer’s biggest problems or fears. • Think about what your clients’ needs, concerns and how you can address them.

17 T en Recommendations WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER 1. Let your clients know if you’re open for business 2. Add d a w website site banner ner or pop up on your ur website ite 3. Update ate your ur contac tact t fo forms ms 4. Update ate hours s and posts ts 5. Share are content tent on social al media ia 6. Try y writing ting a bl blog 7. Look fo for rele levant nt groups ps to join n in social al media ia 8. Share are videos os 9. Be present sent 10. Show ow you u care This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA-NC

18 WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER BUSINESS FINANCIALS Wh What at sho hould uld I focus cus on n to re-build to build my my bus usines iness s an and stay y he heal althy? y?

19 Financial Statements : What are they telling Y ou? WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Income Statement Tells you if your business is profitable aka Profit and Loss Cash Flow Statement Tells you if you are going to run out of cash • Do you have more assets than liabilities? Balance • How much cash do you have? Sheet • How much do you owe? • Lots of additional details like: • How quickly are you paying your vendors? • How quickly are your customers paying you? • Do you have enough short-term assets to cover your obligations?

20 Cash is KING! WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER Cash flow is the lifeblood of any business. Ste tep 1 Ste tep 2 You need CASH to buy You use ASSETS to Cash Ca Assets ts ASSETS generate SALES Sales Ste tep 3 You get CASH from SALES

21 Managing Y our Cash Flow WOMEN’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER • Know current costs • Licenses • Deposits • Equipment • Inventory & supplies • Know your Ongoing Costs • Marketing, Insurance, etc. • Inventory & supplies • Labor costs (wages plus taxes) • Space costs (rent, utilities, property taxes, etc.) • Estimate your Revenue • What are new streams of revenue?