Everybody has a
business plan in mind but still do not have an idea to proceed. This article is
about how to plan and create a successful small business.
Being dictated,
fed up with long and frustrating commutes at work creates a mentality of having
their business these days. Many people want the freedom of being their own boss
of their own company and create their own team and working hours.
Leaving a full
time career is a risky prospect. There are two kinds of people attitude.
Leaving a full time employment with a regular income and other benefits like
PF, pension, share saves are always risky and people dare to take risk leaning
all these befits and thereby they keep their business plan as a mere idea lifelong.
On the other hand people are willing to take the risk and see it they the best
out of it.
As a common
mentality, one used to think of the nice and creative things of their business
ideas like logo, brand name etc. But one should remember that this is not the
fundamental need for a business and should stop spending more time in it.
Naming your business idea is more of an important aspect and one should take an
extra care that the chosen name should align to targeted sector. Gimmick names
based in website domains and trends are to be totally avoided.
Now coming to
the most important factor is that the INVESTMENT. This is the most essential
part of any business plan. It is always advisable to have a low start up cost
as we can always buy or rent the necessary equipments and materials in the near
future.
Following are the order in which the business
check sheet is to be prepared.
1.Mission statement
It comprises of a one to three line paragraph of your business
principles and objectives. It is important
that you mention the unique selling point of your business.
2.Executive summary
This part will help investors to look into your business plan. This
will be a one to two page summary of your business.
3.Product/ service offered
Always give a neat description of your product being sold.
4.Target market
Always present your primary and secondary research and mention how
your target market benefits from the services offered.
5.Marketing plan
The most important marketing plan of any business is advertising and
promotions. It is necessary to have a market plan as to how show how you will
tap the target market.
6.Competitor analysis
Prepare a complete industry and competitor analysis that includes
all stakeholders of your business. It is important that you include all governmental
and regulatory agencies.
7.Financial statements
A careful play with numbers. Each numeric means something in your
balance sheet. It must complete and accurate. Your balance sheet must balance
at the end of every period. Your income
statement must settle to your cash flow statement, which settles to your
balance sheet. To back up your projections, you must have supporting schedules
(e.g., depreciation and amortization schedules). If building your own financial
model is difficult seek for qualified professional for more help.
Always use realistic projections. Always analyze how quickly you’ll
achieve positive cash flow. Investors do vary in their standards, but wish to
see positive cash flow within the first year of operation, particularly if this
if your first venture. In estimating the growth of your business, you will make
certain assumptions, and this should be based on thorough industry research
combined with a strategy for how you’ll compete.
Know your business, for accurate projections. If you’ve built an
accurate and realistic model, but still project negative cash flow for more
than 12 months, then it is time to rethink business model.
8.Background of company principals
Include complete professional backgrounds of all employees of your
business. Emphasize on how their
backgrounds prepared them to take on the challenge on running your new startup. Also, if your employee’s business background
is from a different industry, you can also emphasize on how this can be an advantage.
9.Your offering
Present the level of investment to be seeked and the purpose of
usage of these funds. If you’re selling business units, state the individual
price per unit.
10.Seek professional help
Once you are done with your business plan seek a professional like Certified
Public Accountant (CPA) or Lawyer, banker or insurance broker for more help. This
will help you identify to catch details, errors or omissions you’ve made. They
will also help you to give more viability on your project.
The next and the most
important aspect of any business is marketing. This can be done through many ways like direct
marketing in the form of leaflets, the internet via a website, advertisement in
the newspaper or websites, exhibitions, trade fairs, advertisement in the
yellow pages and social media.
It
is most important to realize that mistakes come along the way. Think positive when
this happens and not to beat ourselves up. This will be a learning experience. Have
a strong trust in yourself. Any business will go through a rocky period; this
is when we need to be strong. The more work we put in, the more will be
rewarded.
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