Be able to articulate your firm’s value proposition to its target market.
Why should customers buy from you? What’s your competitive advantage versus other companies? Do you have a business plan that really makes sense to reach these target markets? “You’re not going to get anywhere with any knowledgeable banker if you can’t articulate this,†says Seiwert. “The banker is going to say, ‘If he can’t sell me, how’s he going to sell anything to anybody else?’â€Â He also suggests developing three plans: one with optimistic revenue and profit projections, one that shows a more likely situation and finally, a worst case scenario. In each case, state how the business will react to the situation. As banks are in the risk business, it will demonstrate you have a plan for mitigating these risks.