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Business Plan Writing


Related to country: Zambia


Writing a Winning Business Plan—Ten Tips

Tip #1: Excellent Executive Summary

An Executive Summary can be a combination of both the background and introduction. You must write an effective and compelling Executive Summary. It will ensure that you and whomever reads your plan can instantly grasp what your overall projected business picture will look like. This is an overview. It addresses the who, what, where, when, why and how. It must be strong and fabulous.

Tip #2: Assess Your Skills, Abilities and Experience

It is very important to know what your skills, abilities and hobbies are. Your business is likely to be successful if you can transform these skills into ventures that can earn you money. This helps you focus on your strengths and not weaknesses. In your business plan, you need to clearly outline what your skills are and what other partners are also bringing whether it is in the form of skill or experience. Address the three Es. These are experience, expertise and examples. What is your experience in doing this kind of business? What exactly is your expertise and how will you be tapping into the expertise of others? Do you have any successful examples of how you the best person to run this business venture?

Tip #3: Realize the Risk of Business

Getting involved into business is also risk business. Remember that your business will need your undivided attention. This means you will risk money, you will risk time, you will risk personal resources, and you will risk your energy. Remember there is no sweet before you sweat. You clearly need to determine how you will ensure that your vision is sustained and your morale is high as you get into writing a business plan and implementing it.

Tip #4: Know your Competitors

Know your competitors by name. Where they are located, who are their managers, the varieties of products they offer, their prices, their discounts, their strengths, their weaknesses, and any other relevant information. Research, research and do more research!

Tip #5: Know your Customers

Know what kind of people are going to buy your product and service. Are you going to get the same customers as those of your competitors? Or are you entirely creating a new customer base? Do you know the demographics of your customers—their age, income, where they live, lifestyle, etc? I am often disappointed when I help clients writing business plans because they seem never to have a target customer base in mind. I often encourage them to have a target market and design their products to meet the needs of that market.

Tip #6: Have a Marketing Strategy

It is important to develop a step-by-step plan on how you are going to enter the market. Put up a plan on how you are going to compete favorably on the market. Are you going to be price-driven or service-driven? Marketing strategy is the pillar of the business plan. Many small businesses in Zambia have failed because our entrepreneurs lack the skills of marketing and the spirit of resilience.

Tip #7: Have a Start-Up Budget

Ensure that you have put aside a specific amount of money for the business. Whether this money is borrowed or is from your pocket. The start-up budget should clearly be reflected in the business plan.

Tip #8: Put up a Strong Management Team

The people that are going to run your business are very important. They are like builders. The blueprint is already done and all the materials are already gathered. Now the huge task to making all these materials transformed into a lovely building remains on the shoulders of the builders. The management team needs to know what to do every time. Ensure that your management team knows what your expectations are. Give them goals to meet. Do not tolerate any slackers.

Tip #9: Do a Cash-flow Analysis

This is perhaps the most important part of your business plan. If you are borrowing money or looking for potential investors or business partners, this is where they will first look at. A cash-flow analysis determines what your revenues will be, what your costs will be and what profits you will be making over a predetermined period. Cash-flows are the blueprints of the business plan.

Tip #10: Utilize Professional Services

In order to come up with a compelling business plan it is important that you use professional help. Consult a professional business plan writer, a banker and a lawyer so that they can help you put all the loose ends together. It will cost you but it is worth every Kwacha spent. Remember cheap is expensive.

This weekend 2nd April, 2011 we are hosting a workshop on “Creating Investment Opportunities for Entrepreneurs”. This is a great opportunity for those in Lusaka to network with other businesspeople. During this time, I will be helping those who would like to write a business plan in order to raise capital. My other colleagues will also be sharing on other topics. Feel free to contact me for more information. Wes_ngwenya@yahoo.com


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Producing a Top Television Advert in Zambia


Related to country: Zambia


Producing a Top Television Advert in Zambia

 

In my previous article on Quality advertising in Zambia I discussed some of the reasons why we have low quality adverts in Zambia. One of the reasons discussed was the cheap productions of adverts in Zambia. In this article, I will discuss on how to come up with a very good advert on television as well as the cost of advertising.

 

A very good advert is judged on two characteristics. The first is the quality of the production of the advert. How the advert combines the audio and visual as well as how good the script is. The second is the effectiveness of the advert. Has the advert delivered its message effectively, efficiently and affectionately to its targeted audience?  These are qualities that every advert on our airwaves must possess.

 

As I write, this article America has just hosted its biggest television event this year—Super Bowl XLV. This is a time when Corporate America showcases its products and services to the American people and the world through edgy, smart and funny adverts. When you watch this event you will notice that a lot of logistics are needed to be done before the advert comes on air. There were models, endorsements, filming, scripting, editing, music composition, and a lot more.

 

It is clear that producing an event is not a cheap exercise. Before embarking on a television advertising campaign advertisers have to look at the entire cost of making an advert. Generally, there are two separate costs of television adverts. The first is the production cost. Production costs can be very high especially if you want a professionally done advert. In Zambia, a professionally done advert should cost anywhere between K14 million and K22 million. Now, that is not to say you cannot find production companies who can do a good job for less. But always remember “cheap is expensive.”

 

The second cost that needs to be considered before embarking on a television advertising campaign is the cost of airtime. Airtime in Zambia is very high considering that we have very few television stations offering this service. An advertiser should expect to pay not less that K2.5 million for a 30 second commercial during primetime on national television. This is only one slot mind you. If you are going to place in a hundred slots you are, therefore, expected to spend K250 million.

 

Now let us compare the cost of television adverts in the United States of America. Producing a professionally done advert there can cost as much as $350,000 while airing the advert can cost about $100,000 per 30 second during primetime on national television. During this year’s Super Bowl, however, adverts were costing as much as $2.6 million for a 30 second commercial. Now, that is a lot of money to spend to advertise for 30 seconds only.

 

Television adverts can be very effective tools if used well. To make a very good advert you will need to communicate your concept to the producer of the advert. Or you could generally communicate what you want to achieve to the producer who will come up with a concept for your advert. Your task, after you have approved the script, is to identify the models you are going to use. Based on the product, you may want a middle-aged woman or a teenage boy as your ideal models. Matching the product to the right demographic group is essential to a successful television advert.

 

The marketing or public relations department needs to be involved throughout the process of producing a good advert. If you want to use humor in the advert, then involve a professional comic writer in script writing. All these are processes that are going to save you a lot of agony. Many marketing and public relations managers avoid investing time in advert production but instead leave it to the producers to do all the work. Remember that it is through the advert that viewers are going to create an image of your company. A very good advert is, therefore, the only way to go.

 

On the other hand, there are marketing and public relation managers who have an “I know it all” attitude. They leave no room for creativity leaving the producers frustrated. They want it done their way and only their way is the right way. Although, they may end up spending a lot of money on the advert the end result you see on air is just their dull, unimaginative and boring little minds. Little wonder why they don’t see results even after spending so much money.

 

As an advertiser, your role is to win the hearts of your viewers and you only have 30 seconds to do that. A good television advert should capture the imagination of the viewer, it should make the viewer want more, it should raise emotions, leave the viewer happy or sad (depending on the intention), and it should bring the viewer in the storyline. And most importantly, a good television advert should bring you money.

 

Next time you want to make an advert, ensure that you count the cost before you even start the process. I have seen advertisers who spent a lot of time and money on a television advert and yet the advert never made it to the airwaves because they had miscalculated cost or never even calculated it at all. The onus to bring adverts in Zambia a notch up is on advertisers who must make sure that they hire quality people to make them. It is only then that we are going to improve the standards of television adverts in our country.


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Quality Advertising in Zambia


Related to country: Zambia


Quality Advertising in Zambia

 

The quality of advertising in Zambia continues to plunge. The nature of the adverts and the nature of the advertising campaigns remain mediocre. It is because of this that the Zambia Institute of Marketing (ZIM) is determined to regulate advertising in Zambia. Although it is taking the institute long to obtain necessary authorization to implement this, it is imperative that advertising standards are improved in our country.

 

What then would be the reason we have so low advertising standards in Zambia despite that some of the advertisers have huge advertising budgets? By low advertising standards I am talking about low quality adverts. I am talking about the adverts with poor audio, picture quality, and poorly done scripts. I am talking about the adverts which use the same personalities who do not even use the advertised products or services they are spokespersons for.

 

One of the reasons we have poor quality adverts in the Zambian media is the poor sense of humor of the advertisers. The advertisers are using the same personalities to advertise their products and services. Oftentimes, these personalities have scripts that are dry, unprofessional, and not humorous. The plan is usually to make the viewers or listeners laugh, but it is actually becoming annoying and getting out of hand.

 

Now, there is nothing wrong with being funny. In fact, most of the best adverts in the world are funny. Watch the American National Football League (NFL) Super Bowl every February and you will see what I am talking about. The Super Bowl debuts some of the most ingenious adverts of television. Sense of humor is a very good thing in advertising because it captures the attention of viewers or listeners. However, the Zambian advertisers seem not to have grasped how to use it. Could it be that as consumers we have such a horrible sense of humor and we take anything even what is not funny?

 

The other reason we have such poor quality adverts is the lack of creativity. Zambian advertisers seem not too eager to invest in the creative department. Before embarking on a marketing campaign, the advertiser needs to be clear on what message they intend to deliver. Meanwhile, a creative method of reaching the viewers or listeners needs to be created. The Zambian media is desperately in need of creative adverts.

 

In order to have creative adverts, Zambian advertisers need to start using reputable production companies. Most businesses who advertise products such as soap, snacks, beverages, and other food stuffs use cheap production companies. They are not willing to spend a lot on a good advert, therefore, they resort to using backyard production companies.

 

The danger of cheap productions is that their life spans are short. The adverts are unable to stand the test of times. We live in a time when technology changes by the day. A well done advert will stand the test of times. More viewers and listeners will want to associate themselves with great adverts. Use professional models and actually supply them with the actual products. Let the models use the products at home so that they are a real testimony to the effects of the products. Production companies or advertisers need to get in the habit of using the same models. The consistency in using the same models is a good image for the companies as opposed to using a different model each time a new advert is done.

 

This also applies to voiceovers. The same voiceover should be used on all the company products or services. This voiceovers need to be recorded in an actual audio studio not on a camera. Remember that listeners are not stupid. They are able to see or hear the differences between something done professionally and something not. I know a company, a major advertiser, that uses the same voiceover every time it makes a radio or television advert. The voice has become the brand of the company. Every time that voice comes on radio, then you immediately associate it with the product.

 

Mass marketing seems to be the only way to advertise in Zambia. Advertisers lack the ability to define the target market by demographics. Every product to everyone may not be as effective as it is thought to be. When the target market is defined, then the message on the advert is more specific. It even becomes cheaper because even the mediums used become more specific.

 

Here in Zambia, we are still in a growing phase as far as advertising and media is concerned. There are only less than 5% of advertisers, on the market, who actually advertise. The other 95% plus do not actually advertise or have never advertised their products. Advertising is actually a powerful tool to grow a business. Zambian businesses need to plan for advertising in the budgets.

 

While the media is one way to advertise products and services, there are many other ways to do this. With ever changing technology and consumer dynamics, other powerful and more effective advertising platforms naturally emerge. It is up to the advertisers to seize such opportunities. I know an advertiser who has stopped using television and radio but has started using mobile phones. With mobile phones they are able to get about 40% feedback of the sent messages while from television it was less than 1% of the catchment area.

 

The final drawback that is affecting the quality of advertising in our country is the hiring of incompetent communications and marketing managers. There is a lot of misplacement in the industry. Sadly, people who do not have the academic qualifications, relevant experience, skills or expertise are the ones calling the shots. About six months ago a marketing manager from one of the financial institutions asked me to do an advert in the form of an article which they were going to place in a major business magazine. Little did I know that the work this person was asking me to do was actually what the superiors had given the person to do but could not because the person was not competent to do it.

 

Quality advertising in Zambia has a long way to go. Zambia Institute of Marketing has to be given the mandate and move quickly to regulate the industry. Meanwhile, advertisers should shoulder the ethical responsibility of adding value to the industry by raising standards in their respective entities. Perhaps, as a country, we can be proud and show Africa and the world that we can also be creative and come up with some of the best concepts on television or radio.


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Should Zambians in Diaspora Come Back Home?


Related to country: Zambia
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Several years ago I was privileged to meet former president Levy Mwanawasa in Washington DC when he attended the annual United Nations Security Council Meeting. This was the year that Mwanawasa had just ascended to the highest office in the land. During the semi-former meeting at the Zambian embassy in Washington DC, the President encouraged the many Zambians present to come back home to contribute to the rebuilding of the economy.

At the time I was doing my last year at one of the universities in the area. With the passion I have for my country, I took the president’s appeal very serious. A few years later I packed my belongings and came straight home to help in the rebuilding of my country. I had been gone to the United States for nine years and during that time had never come back home. I experienced reverse “culture shock” from the dilapidated infrastructure around the city to the many people standing around street corners with nothing to do. It was then it really hit home in my mind on how real and high unemployment rate was in my country.

The next day after arriving I went straight to work—applying for a job to various businesses, government, and non-governmental organizations where I thought my education and experience would be taken advantage of. I have never been offered a job to this day although I was able to attend a few interviews. I must mention here that at my last count I had applied to roughly 260 places over the period of a year and half.

I guess the big question is; Should Zambians Abroad Come Back Home? Or to rephrase the question; Are we ready for Zambians Abroad to come back home? During my stay abroad, I attended meetings of various African politicians and Zambians politicians who continue preaching about creating jobs and appealing for the Diaspora to come back home. Unfortunately, little is being done on the ground to prepare it for these people when they come. I find it frustrating to struggle like this in my home country. In the United States the employers rushed to offer me a position when they looked at my qualifications. On the other hand, employers here don’t seem to appreciate the education and experience I have. Not to mention that I graduated on the top tier of my class in Business Administration and Marketing. My experiences have included working as a manager for one of the largest financial institutions in the world. Not to mention that in all my marketing position I have won awards for best performance. Not to mention that I went to one of the best private universities in the United States. Not to mention that I also got another degree in communication from an elite private school.

If I was an employer here in Zambia and a CV that looked like this came to my desk I would be wanting to talk to this person. Businesses in Zambia must realize that Zambians educated abroad are not a threat to their teams but an asset that they must take advantage of. The world is becoming more and more integrated into one marketplace. Businesses with personnel who have a worldview approach and a global touch to business will stand the chance to benefit. Employees with a global view bring a wealth of experience including the ability to work well with different people from other cultures as well as people of different ages.

Government has absolutely failed in changing the unbelievably high unemployment rate in this country. They have failed the Zambian people in having poor labor laws that disadvantage many Zambians. For example, why hire a South African to be a cook at a hotel, or an American to work as a marketing manager, or a Chinese (who can hardly speak English) to work as a secretary? Needless to say that companies go to great lengths in acquiring work permits and other immigration papers for these people. Moreover these people are often paid three times or more what a more qualified Zambians is willing to take home. Is there any business sense in this other than the fact that these business owners have identified our weak labor laws and will relentlessly take advantage of them?

If government will attract the Zambian Diaspora to return home they need to even the playing field for everyone. As a matter of fact, the playing field should advantage the Zambians. Foreigners come to Zambia with little or no capital but within years they get wealthy. Of course they get wealthy since they get the huge government contracts, don’t have to queue for anything, and easily get business loans to start their businesses. Why advantage foreigners over your own citizenry? Do you think this would happen in Canada, Germany, Botswana or India? Of course not. The government, therefore, has an obligation to create an environment suitable for a poor woman in Solwezi to establish her business favorably the way an Australian will. It has an obligation to contract a Zambian owned business in Maamba over a Chinese owned business. It has an obligation to employ a returning Zambian student from the United Kingdom over an unqualified South African.

Sometimes, there is a stereotype that Zambian who come back have money—actually they don’t. Many of them worked hard in their host countries to acquire the little they had. Thank God at least many times they were recognized and appreciated for their hard work. Saving money was not so easy because of the demands that come with living in a foreign country. Therefore, when they come home they equally need to be empowered by giving them opportunities to get loans and establish businesses if they are to be self-employed. The Citizens Economic Empowerment Fund is a great initiative, however many Zambians don’t even know there is such a fund let alone how to access it. The application papers are unavailable and have to be bought at high prices. The application paper itself is complex with financial jargon for a graduate even. How will this help empower Zambians?

As I sit on my computer and put these thoughts to paper, I wonder of how things will be different for me a year from now. Will I find a job—just any job? Will my business pick after accessing that loan? I wonder about the blind lady on the fly over bridge on Church Road or the crippled lady across from Central Park. How will their lives change a year from now? Will their luck to have a meal continue to be in the hands of passer-bys in these tough times? Or should it be in the hands of the government? I wonder.

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State of our roads in Lusaka


Related to country: Zambia
Translations available in: English (original) | French | Spanish | Italian | German | Portuguese | Swedish | Russian | Dutch | Arabic

Just the other day as I passed on Independence Avenue before the fly over bridge headed into town, I saw workers digging a diversion for the huge puddle of water that accumulates yearly on that part of town. The question that always goes in my mind when I see such things is-- why does the local government have to wait for the rains to come to take action? Don’t they know that at this time of the year it rains in Lusaka and that Independence Avenue floods around Kamwala?

It is such incompetence, lack of planning and direction of our leaders that perpetually drags our country steps backwards. What is actually shocking is that there is money available for such repairs on major city roads. However, the bureaucracy in local governments and their backward thinking continue to jeopardize the lives of many Zambians who use these roads. Don’t you know that it is costly for us as a nation to continue losing innocent lives as a result of poor roads in Lusaka? It is costly for us as a nation when motorists spend more time on the road than on work. It is costly for us as a nation when motorists have to take their vehicles to the garage before they get to the office.

On the other hand, however, we the Lusakans are to blame for negligence that is continuously exhibited by the local authorities since we all behave the same. I see this phenomenon all over the city. Despite the fact that the rains came very late this way, we waited until it actually started raining to fill the potholes in front of our yards. No wonder it is difficult for us to take the local authorities to task because we actually don’t see anything wrong. We need to inculcate a planning culture in all of us. We need to look at the calendar remember our geography lessons about seasons and plan accordingly. You never know we could teach the local government something when they see us working on our roads and yards in September?


By the way, have the local government ever thought about curbing the increasingly traffic problems that the City of Lusaka is facing? In some of the cities I lived in the United States, I noticed that the local government was always proactive in planning and implementing programs to solve future traffic problems. They had projections on the population growth as a result they also developed more housing and roads. Sometimes they developed projects that deliberately diverted traffic from using certain roads so as to reduce traffic. These projects were ten or fifteen year forecasts. They were always many years ahead. Now that’s what planning is. Can our local government in Lusaka learn from this? Absolutely!

Since our local government is so busy with other things—who knows what? I hereby give my services to them. I will highlight a few suggestions for them that I think they should undertake. This will not only save lives of many Lusakans but also make more money for the city.

1. Rush Hour Tolls on Independence, Church, and Great East Roads: With tolls introduced on these roads during rush hours it will see the reduction of vehicles using them. With a fee of say K20,000 per car ( Install paying booths around the fly over bridges towards town) how much money can the authorities raise in a year do the math?
2. Introduce and Encourage Motorcycles and bicycles: This will significantly reduce traffic, fuel costs, and good for our environment. Who says we cant go green in Africa?
3. Make the railway line to Chilenje a Pavement: This means people can walk, jog, and cycle to town which will create less congestion on the main roads— no motorized vehicles.
4. Connect the Chilanga to Lusaka International Airport with a Toll Expressway: This will mean you do not have to go through the city to go north, east or west. Plus heavy goods vehicles can use this.

These ideas will definitely put a new face to the city and we are all bound to smile. The question though is whether our authorities are capable of coming up with such ideas or better let alone implement them? What do you think readers? Any other ideas?

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