One year ago, this September I enrolled in the Entertainment Business Masters program at Full Sail University and I have learned so much in less than a year. I have learned the importance of a professional blog and regularly maintain the one you are currently reading. The big payoff is my business plan thesis, which is due next month. All of our classes have been leading up to the final project, our completed business plan. I am extremely excited by this project because I have never written a business plan before. I think I have a quality business plan on my hands. When I am done refining it, I will need to find investors to fund the business venture. Finding the right investor for a particular business plan is the key for successfully starting any business, regardless of the industry. Capturing the attention of an investor and getting them to read through the whole business plan can be tricky, but if you know the potential investor, you can tailor the business plan to what they are looking for.
For my industry of theatrical and event technology, there are only a few companies out there with investor entrepreneur CEOs that invest in companies like the one I am writing my business plan for. One these investors is Jeremiah "Jere" Harris, the Chairman and CEO of Production Resource Group (PRG). PRG is the world’s leading supplier of entertainment and event technology. Jeremiah’s philosophy involves investing in new technologies as well as partnering with other similar industry companies. This approach has brought him considerable success. He buys up smaller, strategic companies and new ideas to keep PRG fresh and current. Being on the leading edge of technologies, trends and changes has kept him at the forefront of the industry. Another one these investors is Jason Friedman, the Chairman and former CEO of Creative Realties (CRI). CRI is an experiential marketing design firm with a theatrical flare. CRI grew rapidly by investing in the early stages of digital signage, before it became a standardized commodity, but Jason made his money while the area was hot. Jason is also the CEO of Wind Tunnel, Inc., an entrepreneurial think tank and investment group. It is his smart investment thinking and ability to see around the curve that has kept him at the helm of many successful companies. For these investors, I will tailor my business plan by having an extensive operations and technology section. Both Jeremiah and Jason are big into technology; what new technology and new ways of working with it can achieve. They both have companies that are well established and very profitable. These investors are looking for new ideas and resources and my business plan will be designed to grab their attention and be what they are looking for.
Successful investor entrepreneurs know what they are looking for in a business plan, enabling them to invest money wisely into what will hopefully become a successful business. Tailoring my future business plans to the wants and needs of a particular potential investor is extremely important to capturing their attention. Creating a business plan that seem profitable and fits into what the investor wants to invest in is important. Also, having new and innovative ideas in new and/or underdeveloped niches that leverage and compliment the knowledge, skills, expertise they already have will surely enable a business plan to jump out at them.
