“Direction is a so much more important than speed, Many are
going nowhere fast.” It is almost impossible to steer a ship to its destination
without a rudder. Similarly, in business, it is impossible to achieve the
desired results without a well-defined business plan.
If you are planning to start a business venture or trying to
run your existing start-up efficiently, then it is very important for you to
know how to write a business plan. With the markets becoming more competitive
survival of new entrants has become more difficult. Despite having great ideas
most businesses fail and very few turn profitable. There can be various reasons
for so many businesses to fail. Poor execution, inability to connect with your
customers and lack of industry knowledge can be a few of them. But one of the
key reasons is the lack of proper research and planning.
A well-written business plan can help you set proper
milestones with realistic timelines and ensure the success of your venture.
Below we have compiled a list of pointers that can guide you
to write an effective business plan. These tips will guide you to the path to
take make your business flourish.
Tip 1 – Define your vision:
When you start a business you need to have a clear vision of
what you want to achieve through this venture and what would be your guiding
principles. Once you get caught up in your daily task you might start to lose
track of your amazing ideas and objectives. Writing down your vision and
brilliant ideas will ensure you stay on the right track.
A well-defined vision will also help your colleagues to
resonate with the same idea and plan the daily tasks accordingly.
Tip 2 – Set your goals and objectives:
While taking targets always remember, It’s better to set a
higher goal and miss than to set a lower goal and achieve. Having a challenging
target will require you to be more efficient and effective.
Make sure you have clearly defined your short term goals (to
be achieved in 12 months) & long term goals (to be achieved over the period
of 3 to 5 years). To do your goal setting effectively you need to decide your
long term goals first and accordingly set the short term goals after every 12
months to align it with your long term objectives.
You also need to clearly set out all your targets like the
revenue you wish to generate, products you want to add, areas and regions you
wish to expand to, the manpower required to achieve your targets & (the
most important thing) way of generating passive income for your business.
Tip 3 – Explain the importance of your product or service:
In this competitive market, the customers are spoilt for
choice and you need to have a very convincing ultimate selling proposition
(USP) to get your product/service moving. You need to effectively address the
problem that your product/service is solving for your customers.
You need to design your product/service to make it stand out
and be more attractive for the customers. While writing a business plan you
just need to highlight the extras that your business is offering to convince a
prospective customer.
Tip 4 – Know your Industry:
While writing a business plan you need to thoroughly
understand your industry which involves studying various aspects of your
industry. Here I have highlighted a few key aspects to be studied which are
applicable to all industries.
Market
There is a huge probability that there will be a lot of
similar businesses in the market already. To run a business successfully you
need to know the demand and supply ratio of your product/service. Although it
is possible for more than one player to survive in the market doing your
homework will help you devise an effective strategy for growth and
sustainability. Plus you can identify the shortcomings of your competition and
provide a better solution to your customers.
Customer behavior
Understanding the preferences of your customers and
analyzing how they make their purchase decisions will make your product/service
more valuable to your customers.
Also, if you understand the needs of your clients thoroughly
you will be able to provide more personalized service or alter your
product/service to custom fit the requirements of your customer base. This will
help you develop a niche in your market.
Analysis of
Competition
It is important to know your market demographics. Having a
good understanding of the demand and supply situation will help you make
informed decisions in your business. Knowing how many competitors you have,
what’s their product line, what strategies they are using will further increase
your chances of having a successful business. This information is vital if you
are planning to survive in the marketplace with them.
Tip 5 – Planning for a crisis:
While planning a start-up it is also very important to plan
for any sort of eventualities and difficulties you might face. It always best
to be aware and ready for all sorts of situations, it helps you tackle them
with ease.
Once you have successfully written a business plan it will
help you identify your first step and get started. Once you have taken the
first step then its all about putting in the work and getting customers for
yourself.
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