The schedule for the WoMEN: What Mom Entrepreneurs Need teleseminar series continues every second and fourth Tuesday of each month at Noon ET.

Listen to the entire series on blogtalkradio!

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The 5 essential ingredients every business plan must have to be successful.

• How to write a vision statement that graphically describes your business in two sentences or less. 
• How to create a mission statement that attracts your ideal customers. 
• How to design quantitative business and financial objectives that drive behavior and produce results. 
• How to craft strategies that will make your business successful over time. 
• How to define the 5-7 critical projects or programs that are critical to implement in the next 12 months. 

Program Information:
This is an online, e-facilitated program in a highly interactive environment. Class size is limited. A skilled facilitator will give a quick overview of The One Page Business Plan methodology, then work with program participants to help create the first draft of their own One Page Business Plan.

The “One Page Business Plan” Company is an international consulting firm with over 450 consultants. They specialize in helping business owners “re-think” their businesses and then help them construct extraordinarily clear and concise strategic business plans-on a single page. The original “One Page Business Plan” book has been an Amazon.com best seller for over 11 years. Their next book, due out this summer, is the “One Page Business Plan for Women in Business.”

Please review this page, they also have several 1-page Mom templates for your review.

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I can’t wait to interview Melodie Lane, National Marketing Manager from the “One Page Business Plan” Company for my next teleseminar in the WoMEN: What Mom Entrepreneurs Need teleseminar series. This will be the third installment in the WoMEN series, and it will take place next Tuesday, April 28th, at Noon ET on my BlogTalkRadio show.

The “One Page Business Plan” Company is an international consulting firm with over 450 consultants. They specialize in helping business owners “re-think” their businesses and then help them construct extraordinarily clear and concise strategic business plans-on a single page. The original “One Page Business Plan” book has been an Amazon.com best seller for over 11 years. Their next book, due out this summer, is the “One Page Business Plan for Women in Business.”

Check the entire post out on Mom Biz coach blog.

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What are you building? – The One Page Business Plan ^® uses this simple question to define your vision. I have yet to see a more effective question to get you started. They go on and ask you to describe what your product/services will look like in 1, 3 or 5 years. When I add the terminology of Marketing Plan Pro and Duct Tape Marketing you include target market and the ideal client description into the mix. If you you can simply feel in these blanks taken from The One PAge Business Plan, I think you can go a long way in describing your vision:

Within the next ___years grow (company name) ___________ into a $ ______(est. annual sales)

(local, regional, int’l)______________ ( type of company) ________________________

providing (describe products/services)_____________________________________

to (describe target customer and ideal client)_________________________ with annual sales of $_______.

I would encourage you to start building your marketing plan with this statement in mind and come back to it often. Add, but do not subtract from it till you have a complete marketing plan intact. Since this is the roof of the Lean Marketing House it will provide the perspective that all other material will be based on. As you add your ideal clients and target markets, you may segment part of this message but for now you must have an overall theme tying your entire vision together.

This will be  a great way for you to stay on course during the process.

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You must develop your personnel through outlining their objectives, strategies and actions. Critical information must be gathered, linked and displayed. This allows time for information to be used instead of gathered. Focus, feedback and Management that allow managers to see a total overview by giving them only the information they need. Achievers must become readily visible, problems must be spotted before they cause real trouble, and managers gain greater control over their own performance.

Managing your team is a great opportunity to access and develop their strengths and skills, to share your goals and objectives and so achieve your business aims. It is a continuous process which includes regular review discussions, action plans and success.

Ok, you know all this but how do you go about it. I use the The One Page Business Plan® not as a business plan but as a performance plan. Review the layout and tell me what you think. I think it is a winner for this.

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I was able to do it for One Page Business Plan, 4 of the last 6 days but Duct Tape Marketing has stumped me though. I just can’t do it.

Now for the fun part. I am not a neophyte when it comes to SEO but let me tell you something. I don’t even try. But you tell me, why is my ratings so good or not so good?

Give me some suggestions, I need help!

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The last day of a recession is the best day to start a business, the saying goes. So tackle the 10 steps in this guide now – and be ready to ride the rebound when it comes.

Step 1: Interview yourself for the job

Step 2: Have a cushion

Step 3: Leverage your expertise

Step 4: See what the customer thinks

Step 5: Write a winning business plan

- By the way they recommend the One Page Business Plan

Step 6: Pick your advisers carefully

Step 7: Make it official

Step 8: Chase the moola

Step 9: Lure customers, on the cheap

Step 10: Go 2.0

Take a look at the description of each of these steps. Light easy read but you may get an idea or two.

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Find out more!

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More information on individual products:

The One Page Business Plan

Duct Tape Marketing

Get Clients NOW

Learn more about our  28 Day Plan

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• The obvious: sales are decreasing faster than the economy is shrinking.
• Customers are leaving for reasons that you have control over.
• Clients complain their calls are not being returned.
• Clients complain their problems go unresolved.
• Most projects are over budget.
• Employees are unsure of company direction.
• Employee meetings are unproductive and poorly attended.
• Good employees are leaving.
• Your receivable and payables are increasing.
• Expenses are climbing while gross profit is declining.
• Biggest problem: Your product no longer serves a need.

Ok, you might have control over many of these but with a sound plan you should recognize quickly that certain objectives are no longer attainable. There is not a more important time than now to develop a sound plan that is simple and straightforward that everyone in the organization can follow. The One Page Business Plan is such an instrument and I encourage you to use it through out your organization.

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Maybe, we should embrace it rather than keep fighting it. The OPBP is one of the best planning tools I have ever been associated with. I am not saying it as a plug but just as a simple truth. It is such a good template that it can easily used for various types of organizations and also for departments and individuals. It is simply just a good planning and performance tool and I have used quite a few of them.

My pages are littered with examples and if you would like specific examples, I would encourage you to request an example and we will try our best to furnish one. As  a side note, I have a Webinar this Friday on The OPBP and hope you will take the time to consider it.

By the way, what can you do with One Page, try the Declaration of Independence for starters.

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Most start-ups put their plans on the shelf after funding is received and never look at them till the next time funding is needed. The OPBP provides a document that is usable for them and provides accountability through out the year. It is a tool that can be easily reviewed with their staff and quickly address concerns and issues.

I can attest after doing several small business start-ups and growth companies, that getting funding for lines of credits for $200K to 1 million that I would have been held more accountable with a OPBP than the 4 inch thick pile of paper, I supplied. I heard this once in a OPBP tele-seminar, don’t fund the paper, fund the person.

A story I heard once from the guy that invented the PDA. He went to a funding session where people were presenting their ideas for funding. The came in with tons of paper, supporting documentation, and more. He, thinking it was only to be a preliminary type meeting had just a few pages. So, instead of presenting the paper, he threw his wallet in the middle of the table and talked about what the PDA would be able to do and what it would look like. As they say in the movies; “He had them at Hello!” They even picked up the wallet and passed it around. The executive summary explains the paper, The wallet(OPBP) says it all!

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1. 10 ideas for marketing in a tight economy.
2. Recession proof your business.
3. How to successfully market, your small business in tough times
4. Recession-Buster

That was an afternoon check of my e-mails. Ok, aside from the dot.com era which was largely regionalized, when was the last recession that all these people have gained their experience from?  The last recession that I really remember is in the Jimmy Carter era.  When we had, double-digit inflation, interest rates skyrocketing, and long lead times or scarcity. Does anybody remember?

We have been blessed for the last 25 years, with relatively low interest rates, practically zero inflation, and next day availability. With that in mind, I think it will be extremely interesting the path people will choose to counteract these turbulent times. Just ignoring it will not make it go away. Have we decided been there, done that – doesn’t count anymore. Have the recession – busters decided to "Just say No."

I think it’s a great time to re-evaluate your strategies for moving forward. To be completely transparent, I am a gray hair myself but I would recommend adding a little age to my circle of advisors. Most importantly in the strategic side of your planning.  I just don’t think it is going to hurt to have some been there, done there talent surrounding you. Just like the IRS will tell you, ignorance of a tax law is not an excuse. Ignorance of recession, if it happens, is not one either.

Important tip: Make 3 budgets out for next year. Best, Worst and what you think scenarios. Watch  the accounts that deviate the most.

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1. 1. Intuition or "gut feeling. = you have always been taught to go with your gut feeling.
   2. Lack of know-how =  difficult to know how to plan and what to plan for.
   3. Fear of the unknown = you are dealing with the problems of today, how can worry about what’s going to happen in the future.
   4. Inexactness = plans never working out exactly the way they should, so why plan?

These obstacles are real. However, they must be overcome if you are to be successful. While we may find it difficult to face the future, heading into it without any direction is much worse. So what’s the answer. Well Oprah found one this week, she called a great idea, whose time has come . She called is a 6-part guide but it is The One Page Business Plan® by Jim Horan.

I ave been associated with 1PBP for several years and have always been impressed by its simplicity but the difficulty in making it simple. This 6-part guide is tough but why? Because it forces you to ask yourself tough questions. However, if you use it the results are tremendous. I encourage you to use it through out your organization for not only business planning but also departmental planning and performance planning.  The real coolness of this instrument is that if everyone uses the same plan, planning becomes second nature and that lack of know-how, fear of the unknown and inexactness disappears. Oh, gut feeling, well your gut feel is to use The One Page Business Plan.

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