Reviewing Your Business Plan

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business planDecember is National Write a Business Plan Month, and while this month of holiday gatherings and indulgent food may seem like an odd time to write a business plan, it actually provides a much better opportunity to prepare your business for 2017 than the typical January scramble. You want to be able to hit the ground running New Years Day, not be starting from square one. December will also likely bring fewer requests from clients, vendors, employees and partners, allowing you to focus on your business plan without interruptions.

We already covered the steps to building your original business plan here, but did you know you should also carve out time at the end of each year to review your business plan and make necessary tweaks as well? Before you reach for the old plan though, take the following actions to evaluate your company’s current situation and identify new opportunities.

 Pay attention to your customers.

Make note of who your customers are, what demographic seems to be your “bread-and-butter,” which unexpected demographics you’ve picked up, and what value your company seems to bring to their lives. Also, search for customer reviews on your social media channels, Google and review sites. Record the qualities people seem to most appreciate about your business and which they could do without.

 Talk to your employees.

Like you, your employees are on the front lines of your business, and are intimately familiar with your company and its products or services. Unlike you though, they are likely more aware of issues within your business or with your product that you may be blind to. Tap into this wealth of information by having honest discussions with a few of your trusted employees, or pass out a survey around your office.

 Note pleasant surprises.

If you’ve had any wins this year that you didn’t expect, identify them and think about what caused them to occur. Maybe you picked up a new expected customer base, or one of your services was significantly more successful than anticipated.

 Note unforeseen challenges.

When crafting an initial business plan, every entrepreneur has one aspect of the company that should be a breeze, but for whatever reason just doesn’t seem to be coming together. Make note of what that is for your company, and why you think you’re having trouble with it.

List out new industry trends.

In today’s fast-paced world, even the most even-keel industries change and go through different trends year to year. Record what those are for your industry, and try to identify new opportunities and problems you can solve within them.

Once you’ve taken these steps, you’re ready to revisit your business plan. Armed with the knowledge you have from the above research, you’ll be able to map out a strong course of action for 2017.

Heartland Renaissance Q & A with Christa Clark

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Heartland Renaissance Q & A with Christa Clark

Arkansas Capital is proud to announce that its CDE, Heartland Renaissance Fund, LLC, has been awarded a $65 million allocation in New Markets Tax Credits to foster investment in businesses and economic activities in low income and underserved communities throughout Arkansas. This allocation is the second-largest amount Heartland has ever been awarded. To learn more about this momentous occasion, we enlisted Christa Clark, Vice President of Heartland Renaissance Fund, to answer a few questions about the allocation, and give some insight on what how this money will change Arkansas communities for the better.

Q: What was your process for receiving the allocation?

A: New Market allocations are awarded by the Dept. of Treasury’s Community Development Institutions Funds in a competitive process each year. Heartland staff spends several weeks completing the application and analyzing the impacts from our prior investments when submitting the application. The applications are reviewed by third parties and by U.S. Treasury staff and scored.  Historically, only about 28% of applicants are awarded allocation in a given year in this highly competitive process. We are always honored when we are selected, as there are always over 200 other CDEs in the applicant pool with us. We are especially thrilled this year that this is our fifth award of allocation.

Q: What areas of Arkansas has Heartland worked most with in the past? What areas do you foresee benefiting from these funds?

A: Heartland focuses almost exclusively on investing in Arkansas’ low-income communities throughout the state.  We focus on areas that are underserved by traditional financing sources and direct our investments in the projects that have the most community and economic impacts to that area. As with prior allocations, Heartland will make investments statewide with at least half of its transactions in rural areas.

Q: What industries typically see the most benefit from these allocations?

A: That is one of the benefits of a flexible lending product like New Markets Tax Credits – we can use the funds to finance a variety of projects.  We have financed a wide range of projects with New Markets, everything from educational facilities to non-profits and large rural manufacturing. We will continue to focus on our three core areas of education, health care, and economic development projects throughout the state.

Q: What has been one of your most rewarding experiences working with Heartland?

A: It is hard to narrow that down to one. We have so many projects that I have been blessed to work with that are improving their communities. There was one manufacturing project that we worked several months to bring to financial closing that was located in a town in the Arkansas Delta with very high unemployment and had several large employers that had closed down in recent years.  When the project was about to open, I was doing a site visit and the company brought in BBQ and we ate with the newly hired plant workers in the cafeteria. The plant manager stood and thanked me, and explained how grateful they all were that they had jobs again and were able to provide for their families.

Q: How have you seen Heartland’s work positively impact the underserved businesses, the communities of underserved businesses and the entire state? 

A: There have been so many benefits to underserved areas from our investments.  Our New Markets financing was used to build a state-of-the-art life skills and work training facility for disabled adults in northwest Arkansas.  We have seen hundreds of first generation students attend college for the first time. There has been thousands of quality jobs created in Arkansas’ manufacturing sector that are located in some of the most economically disadvantaged areas throughout the state. Our investments have enabled environmentally-sustainable products to be produced here in Arkansas and have revitalized Main Streets transforming once shuttered properties into vibrant city centers.We continue to see positive impacts for years after we close a transaction as these investments serve as catalysts for economic growth in these communities.

Discover the Age These Famous Entrepreneurs Got Their Start

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Copy of Myth-2 Before starting a company, most future entrepreneurs wrestle with reasons they shouldn’t take the plunge. Of course losing money and having to drastically reduce personal time are on this list of fears for startup owners, but there’s another key factor that can prevent entrepreneurs from pursuing their dreams: age. Older people fear their time has passed, and they won’t have the energy to start a business. Middle-aged people feel more responsibility to provide for children and aging parents, and don’t think the risk of starting their own company is worth it. Young people worry they lack the experience and knowledge to run their own company. While all of these are valid concerns, we want to encourage those with solid business ideas to think instead about the positive aspects of their age over the negative. Not sure what those are? Read on. [Read more…]

5 Ways to Spring Clean Your Business

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arkansas small business Spring will be here in a matter of days, and the best way to embrace this sunny, green season is with some spring cleaning – and not just on your home. A little elbow grease can work wonders on your business as well! Here are a few ways you can dust off and freshen up your business so you can take on the rest of the year more organized and better prepared for whatever comes your way: [Read more…]

Providing Your Clients With a 2nd Look

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2ndLookBlog Arkansas Capital gets excited about a lot of things. Supporting small businesses in Arkansas. Local art. Educating students in the art of entrepreneurship. A hot cup of coffee. Watching our clients succeed. But one of the main things we get excited about is getting the chance to give a traditional bank’s potential client a 2nd look. [Read more…]