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Re-Launch Your Business

If you plan on re-opening your business after you return from deployment, it is important that you have a plan for the re-opening built into your overall deployment plan. Doing so ahead of time will reduce your anxiety while you are away, prepare you to implement your re-open plan from the moment you return, and will allow you to bring on someone who can begin implementing your re-launch plan before you even return home if you choose.

Your plan to re-open your business should include a timeline for action, similar to your pre-deployment timeline in reverse. It should include, at minimum, the following elements:

- Whether you will bring on any employees before you return to begin re-establishing your business and getting the re-launch procedures in place, and how soon you will do that prior to your expected return home.

- When you will notify employees, investors, clients, and other key stakeholders of your return and your intent to re-open your business.

- When and where you will market the re-opening of your business.

- The advanced notice required to renew or reapply for things such as subscriptions and insurance.

- When you will begin accepting inventory and supplies and how long it will take until you have enough inventory to resume business.

- Whether you will launch your business in phases, and how soon after returning you will re-open your business fulltime.

In addition to the timeline, your re-launch plan should include a marketing plan to announce the re-opening of your business. Your marketing plan should take into account your budget for the marketing, your customer market, the method by which you can most effectively reach your target market, and the frequency with which you should advertise. A great deal of this information should be in your original marketing plan, but you may need to update it and it may need to be modified for the re-opening. For more information about writing a marketing plan, visit www.veteranscorp.org/Public/KnowingYourMarket.aspx.

Here is a tool to simplify collaborating with employees, partners and customers to plan your re-launch:

In order to re-open your business, you will need to have a cash reserve stored before you deploy. How much cash you need depends on a lot of factors, but you should estimate anywhere from 2-6 months of costs. For more information about determining your month costs, visit www.veteranscorp.org/Files/ExpenseWorksheets.pdf.

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