Project:

Business Plan Guidelines

Students will develop a business plan for a potential commercial leisure enterprise. The guidelines are included below. All Business Plans are due on Monday, November 10 by 5:00 PM. No business plans will be accepted after the 5:00 PM deadline.

For ALL PRM majors, this assignment should be saved and placed in your PRM Professional Portfolio.

Project Format:

Use the American Psychological Association's Publication Manual (5th ed) format (margins, font size, citations, etc).

Title Page:	Include the name of the assignment, the class prefix and number, your name and the date.
Font:	Times New Roman or CG Times
Font Size:	12 points
Margins:	1inch, top and bottom - left and right. (Hint. In MS Word, select "File"; select "Page Setup"; select 1 inch (1") in the Top; Bottom; Left; Right; boxes; then ok).
Justification	Left justified
Print Color:	Black
Line Spacing:	Double space
Outline	The paper should be in an OUTLINE format addressing every item listed in the guidelines.
Page Numbers	Number pages at the top right, do not number the first (title) page (Hint. In MS Word; select Insert; select "page numbers"; deselect the box "show number on first page"; select "format"; select "start at;" select zero in the box; then ok; ok).
Pictures	No pictures should be included in the business plan.

NOTE: Spelling counts, any misspelled words will automatically reduce your grade by 5 points.

Submit this project to the course facilitator using a Microsoft Word (.doc) or Rich Text Format (.rtf), file, as an email attachment.

HOW TO CREATE AN E-MAIL ATTACHMENT

	Create your paper in MicrosoftWord as you would normally do.
	Save the document as a .doc or .rtf. file.
	Save the paper (file) to your hard drive (drive "C" usually in "my documents") or to a disk (usually your A drive, 3 1/2 floppy).
	Open your e-mail program.
	Create a new message to your Instructor (charles.hammersley@nau.edu
	Somewhere in your e-mail program is "Attach file to new message" or something like it. Different e-mail programs use different wording.
	Click on the attach command.
	A box will appear and ask for the file name. You can select it from drive "C" , my documents, or the "A" drive if you saved your paper to that drive, or where ever you saved the file.
	That's all there is to it. The paper is now attached to the e-mail so just hit the Send button. Please contact me if you are having any trouble with your email.

CAUTION: There are two reasons to pick a specific business idea:

1) Because you can get the necessary information for the project from friends or an existing business. This is the easiest method and usually grades well.

2) You have a burning desire to start a particular business and are willing to go the the lengths necessary to locate the required information. This is a more difficult method and the grading is usually lower due to the fact that much of the required project information is not readily available.

Either way, be sure to provide ALL of the required information for the business plan.

Business Plan Guidelines

BE SURE TO FOLLOW THE OUTLINE FORMAT PROVIDED BELOW - EXACTLY! Any omission or deviation will result in loss of points.

1. Business Image (10 pts):

	Identify what business you are in (see page 11 in the textbook).
	What type of business are you starting? Give a brief description and a location (City or closest metropolitan area) where the business will be located.
	Write a "mission statement" for your business (usually 2-3 sentences).
	List & briefly describe what services you "will" and "will not" offer.
	List and briefly describe what "differentiates" your business. What are you trying to do better or differently?
	Identify the "most appropriate" legal form (type) for your business organization and WHY you chose it.

2. Marketing (20 pts)

	Identify the market area (city, etc.) and population and growth of your market area (all socio-economic and demographic factors) U.S. Census (2000) (select: total population, income, educational levels, gender, ethnic groups, and maybe age groups etc).
	Identify and list other competitive services in your market area (how many, what is their pricing structure, what are their advantages over your business?).
	Identify your specific "customer market profile". Get an industry profile if possible or construct your own.
	Project the "demand" for your product or service (from your textbook, identify the specific demand projection approach used and show your calculations). *Remember: divide the demand figure by the number of competitors +1 (Zero Sum Theory) to get a more accurate demand.
	Identify the local ordinances, zoning regulations and type of trading area affecting your business.
	Identify your building needs (square footage, parking, public transportation, labor supply (labor supply is the unemployment rate), fire and police protection)
	Identify if you will build your own facility or rent and why.

3. Attracting Customers (20 pts)

	Identify your pricing strategy(ies), and why?
	Describe where in the Product Life Cycle your products or services are located.
	Describe your customer service policies (services offered and their estimated cost).
	Identify your form(s) of advertising (size of audience, frequency of use and cost)

4. Selling to Customers (10 pts)

	Determine the "Per Unit Cost" ,show all calculations, (Total (year or season) operating expenses divided by total demand, (customers, trips, etc.).
	Include a table listing all MONTHLY overhead expenses; rent/mortgage, utilities, benefits and payroll taxes, payroll wages, etc. for one month (overhead is the same as your operating expenses for the line item budget for one month) listed as line items.

5. Business Expenses (10 pts)

	Identify and list your start-up costs (fixtures; equipment; inventory; office supplies; remodeling; utility deposits; legal fees; license/permit fees; and operating cash for one year (*operating cash is equal to one year's operating expenses).
	Describe the funding source(s) for financing your business. YOU MAY ONLY PROVIDE A MAXIMUM OF 20% OF THE TOTAL REQUIRED FUNDING FROM PERSONAL/FAMILY/FRIENDS/PARTNERS. No grants or donations may be used as a funding source. Be sure to include:

The name of the financial institution and terms of your bank loans (number of years to repay);

Interest rate;

Monthly payment; and

The maximum percentage the bank will loan to a business). Small Business Administration.

6. Pro Forma Budget Report (20 pts)

	Estimate your business's first twelve months income and expenses. A "Running Line Item" operating and maintenance (O & M)budget format is required. Use the sample Quoggy Jo Ski Center's Profit/Loss Statement for examples of types of line items. This is NOT a running line item budget.
	Prepare a separate capital budget (one time purchases of expensive (over $1,000) and long lasting (3+ years) items i.e.: computer, vehicle(s), buildings, etc.). These are start-up items and do not appear in the operating budget. Sample Capital budget.

7. Summary & References (10 pts)

	Determine the viability of your business based on the data you have collected and analyzed. This is the most important part of the paper. Be insightful and support your conclusions with the data collected.
	Be sure to include ALL references and citations in APA format.

	The name of the financial institution and terms of your bank loans (number of years to repay);
	Interest rate;
	Monthly payment; and
	The maximum percentage the bank will loan to a business). Small Business Administration.

[Class] [Syllabus]