What is the difference between a marketing plan and a business plan?
How important are financial records, financial forecasts and financial goals?
1. What is the difference between a marketing plan and a business plan?
The marketing plan is usually a segment of the business plan, though it is commonly used as a stand-alone document. The marketing plan
identifies the business's target market (client base) and isolates specific goals and courses of action needed to achieve those goals.
The business plan contains all of the financial information of the company or business, which is not normally a component of the
marketing plan. A solid marketing plan, supplemented with financial forecasts and information from your accountant (or from standard
reports created in QuickBooks), will provide you with an excellent business plan. The business plan may provide you with financial
goals; however, in my opinion, it is the marketing plan that will drive you to achieve those financial goals. In most of my
consultations, I do not push the business plan as much as I do the marketing plan.
2. How important are financial records, financial forecasts and financial goals?
Extremely important! As a small business owner, you must be able to acquire the financial status of your business in a matter of
minutes. In a large corporation, the CEO merely calls the CFO, who merely calls the controller, and the exact financial position of the
company is presented at that moment. Most of us do not have that luxury! If you are trying to run an effective and efficient small
business and do not have computerized accounting, now is the time to invest in it. I have found that QuickBooks is not only the most
cost-effective small business accounting package, but certainly the most efficient. I also work closely with an accountant - we do the
work, and then simply drop off a disk every quarter for them to review. Again, if you want to succeed as a business, you must act like
one. |
