Before the economy went south and the stock market crashed off the face of the earth, starting a successful business was hard. With individuals and businesses cutting spending, the situation has gotten worse. Today more than ever is a difficult time to start a successful business.
It has never been more important than today to have a plan for your business. When people hear the words “Business Plan”, there is emotional confusion present in their facial expressions. Many people are petrified at the thought that they need to sit down and write a business plan.
Believe it or not, it’s not that bad (once you know what to put in one). Whether you’re just starting out or have an existing business, you’ll want to make sure you have a business plan in place. Every business plan will start with these things:
A mission statement is a written statement that defines the purpose of a company. It will include things like the goals of the organization and a general direction for the company. Typically, mission statements are only a few sentences long. They are meant to be clear, concise, and to the point.
Description of the companies: what will be their legal structure (corporation, LLC, partnership, etc.)? What is the history of the company (when and where did they start operating)? What are your startup plans, when and where will your business operate?
Your customer: who are you trying to market your products to? What is your niche market (you will need to define it, this is critical)? It’s easy to say you want to sell to everyone, but you need to refine your market based on specific demographics. It can be by age (25 to 40), sex (female), homeowners (yes), parents 5 to 12 years old (yes), living in a certain part of the country (Atlanta). Okay, you get the idea, you may not have these restrictions or you may have more, it’s your business, so define what it’s going to be.
Your Products: Once you’ve defined your customer, it’s time to make sure the product matches them. If you’re selling senior housing and marketing it to the 20-40 age group instead of the 55+ age group, you’re wasting your money and you’ll probably be out of business soon.
This list is by no means exhaustive. There are entire books written on the subject, go to your local library or bookstore and look up some of them.
Profit TIPS based on strategies:- The bottom line here should be that you need a plan, and you need it sooner rather than later.
Robert J Roy
money man