Imagine flying into a strange city, renting a car and trying
to find your way around without a map. You might eventually
reach your destination, but not without making some detours
along the way.
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This is exactly what you're doing in your business if you
don't have a business plan. It's your road map to business
success, and without one, you're in danger of missing the
on-ramp.
To take the map analogy a little further: Your plan can be as
simple as a hand-drawn map getting you from A to B, or an Atlas
with detailed listings of all the points of interest along the
way.
The point is, if you are thinking of starting your own
business, taking the time to create a plan will help you to
focus on the issues necessary for your success. And if your
venture is already in operation, the plan can keep you focused
and remind you of what's important when you find yourself
getting sidetracked.
A good business plan:
- Defines Your Venture
- Describes your products and/or
services, depicts your market, and details how you plan to do it
(get your product to the market). Also pinpoints where you plan
to do business (and why) and profiles the skills and experience
key management (that's you!) brings to the table.
- Surveys the Business Environment
- Shows how your
business fits within the existing marketplace. Identifies your
market's needs and how you will fill them. Describes how you
will be different (i.e., better) than competing businesses
serving the same market or how you will be creating a new
market.
- Estimates Your Financials
- Specifies your fixed costs
and other expenses, lists assets and funding sources, projects
revenues and cash flow and points out your risks.
Writing your business plan is meant to be thought-provoking,
but it need not be difficult -- even if you also need it to
obtain funding (and if you are planning to get a loan or grant,
you *will* have to present a professionally written plan).
Fortunately, there are several sources -- both offline and on
the Web -- to help guide you through the process:
Books: My favorites are "Mompreneurs," by Ellen H.
Parlapiano and Patricia Cobe and "The Stay-at-Home Mom's
Guide to Making Money," by Liz Folger. You can find both at
your local library or bookstore or order from your favorite
online book site. (Don't let the focus on mothers prevent you
from checking these out; both offer solid home business advice
regardless of your parental status. Both include detailed
worksheets that guide you through much of the process).
Online: The folks who market Business Plan Pro software have
a free mini-version of their product, which prompts you through
the steps of creating a simple plan:
http://www.bplans.com
A terrific tool to help you work out those pesky financial
estimates can be found here:
http://www.ideacafe.com/getmoney/fgr_budget.html
Don't forget the U.S. government's best small business
friend, the SBA. They offer an online tutorial on the subject:
http://www.sba.gov/classroom/bplan914.html
Finally, both the SBA and SCORE are dedicated to helping new
entrepreneurs get a leg up on their journey. They sponsor free
and low-cost seminars on every aspect of small business
start-ups. To see what's being offered in your part of the
country, click below:
http://www.sba.gov/calendar
Hopefully, your entrepreneurial journey will be an adventure
lasting many successful years, giving you plenty of opportunity
to check your "roadmap" to see if you're making your
marks and revise your itinerary as needed. Just as maps are
reissued as new roads are built and rivers change course, your
business plan is a living, breathing document reflecting changes
in the environment around you. Refer to often it along the way
and you won't get left behind!
About the Author:
Donna Schwartz Mills is the Editor/Webmaster of the
ParentPreneur Club http://www.parentpreneurclub.com
,
"where those who are doing the most important job of all
hang their hats."
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