Supporting Documentation

You must include any documents that lend support to statements made in the body of your company’s business plan. The following is a list of some items for your consideration. Please be aware that this list is not complete and may vary depending on the stage of development of your business.

1. Resumes

2. Credit information, include in Appendix

3. Quotes or Estimates

4. Letters of Intent from prospective customers

5. Letters of Support from credible people who know you

6. Leases or Buy/Sell Agreements

7. Legal Documents relevant to the business

8. Census/Demographic data

Summary

The completed business plan should be bound. For internal purposes, three-ring binders work well. Additions and changes can easily be placed in the binders. For the business plan that is to be circulated to a lender and/or investor, many types of appropriate folders and binders can be purchased at office supply stores.

Once the business plan is completed, it should become an operational tool to measure the success of the business. This plan should be updated as milestones are reached. Often companies will spend enormous time, energy and financial resources to complete this arduous task just for the purpose of obtaining additional capital. The companies that shelve the business plan after its completion and presentation to lenders lose out on the real value of this useful tool in the growth and development of small and large businesses.

Part III: Taking Action

As with any program, a big part of putting your credibility together is committing to taking action to do it. Maybe this guide has been just what you needed to take that next step and start getting your own kit together. If so, then I’m glad I’ve helped fill that void for you and now, you just need to do it. Consider the value of not assembling a credibility kit vs. the perceived benefit of doing nothing and that should be plenty of motivation (if you need any) to get you going.

Are you one of those readers who feels you need more than just having read through this guide to help get your own credibility kit put together? What you need to do right now is think about what else might be holding you back. I mention this simply because many investors choose to do very little (or even nothing) to document their credibility for two simple reasons. Time is one reason and the other is what I like to call ‘writer’s block’. Let me spend a moment elaborating on each.

Time is one of those enigmatic commodities that, on one hand is so very precious, yet on the other seems so limiting at times. Personally, when it comes to your credibility and the kit that will help support it, I don’t buy the argument that you just don’t have the time to do this. It’s just too important! If you legitimately feel you don’t have the time to do anything that is important, then you simply find someone who can do it for you. There just can’t be excuses made regarding time if you aren’t willing to take steps to account for those things you personally don’t have the time to do.

Maybe you are among the many out there who cringe when your child asks you for help with a theme paper they are writing or feel you have trouble enough organizing the garage, much less an important document that will give you professional credibility. I get it and recognize that many of you, however accomplished you may be at talking to clients on the phone, struggle a bit more when it comes to written documents. For many real estate investors, things like cover letters, business plans, and credibility kits can be quite painstaking (or at least very time consuming) and, if this sounds familiar, then you’re certainly not alone

Concluding Remarks

Well, we’ve reached the end of the guide on credibility kit development, but this is only really the beginning, isn’t it? The real question is ‘What are you going to go do now?’ I’d certainly like to think that this guide has been helpful to you in both illustrating how a credibility kit can and will help your business, and in lighting a fire under you to take action and do something about it.

Don’t forget why you are doing this. It’s not for posterity or to have something that looks good sitting on the shelf in your office. The credibility kit is designed for distribution, to be handed out or presented to lenders, prospective partners, colleagues, and especially would be private lenders who need to see that you aren’t just an idea, but rather a tangible business that operates with the necessary seriousness that points to a business that has their act together.

Maybe time is a significant limitation; at least in the way you look at things. Perhaps you are the primary “call center” for your business right now and you are focusing on doing deals, which is great. Perhaps you are among the host of investors who are presently doing this part-time, while still maintaining a primary means of employment. In either case, the importance of the credibility kit is equally essential.

In closing, I hope you have found this guide helpful. My goal has been to increase awareness of the importance of a credibility kit and also increase the number of investors who are out there successfully using them to build their own businesses. I wish you the very best in success.

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