audience to get a better idea of how often they might patronize her store.     I shall leave the decision to you as to whether Antoinette decides to proceed with her plans or decides to go back to work for a salary. After all, its much the same sort of difficult choice you may have to make about your own business. Chapter 10: Selling Your Business Plan     A. How to Ask for the Money You Need     Once your business plan has been polished to perfection, youre ready to use it as part of your campaign to get financing. If you havent done so already, you must decide where youd ideally like to get the money you need. You should know whether you prefer to get financing from a lender or an investor. (This is discussed in Chapter 4.)     Before you call people and make appointments, give some thought to a few preliminaries. Like it or not, youre now a salesperson. Your task is to sell your plan. Dont let this discourage you, even if your experience with selling has been negative. There are all sorts of good ways to sell things, most of which depend on a good product and an honest, straightforward presentation. I cant tell you exactly how to sell yourself and your plan, but I can make a number of suggestions.     1. Write a Telephone Pitch     Since some of your preliminary selling will be done over the telephone, youll want to be prepared. Write a short statement of what youre doing and why. Simply list your two or three major reasons for entering or expanding this particular business. Then write down how much money you need and how much youll pay the lenders or investors for using their money.     2. Telephone for Appointments     Avoid lengthy telephone discussions when making the call; you simply want to set up a personal appointment to discuss all the details and ask for the money. If youre not sure what to say, read the sample telephone script below. You can adapt it to suit your style and needs.     "Hello, Jack? This is Antoinette. How are you today? Hows the family? Say, Jack, the reason Im calling is that I have a great idea for a new business and Id like to meet with you and show you my business plan to see what you think of it.     "Can we get together next Thursday morning in your office? Oh, youd like to hear a little more about my ideas before we meet." (Antoinette briefly explains why she wants to open her business-she can read her list of reasons if shes nervous.) "Well Jack, Im glad to hear that you like my ideas. "     (Before she discusses the loan she wants, she asks Jack for an appointment. If she can personally meet with him, she will wait until then to discuss money.)     "What about next Thursday? Oh, how much money do I need? I need a good-sized loan that I can pay back in three years. So we can get together next Thursday morning in your office? Good. Ill see you at 10:00 in the morning. Bye, Jack."