8. Which way I ought to go from here Year 1 - 2 Year 3 - 4 Year 5… Getting established, finding and keeping customers; developing products and services. Consolidation – finding and keeping competent staff, delegating, controlling the business Attracting investors, diversifying, competing with much bigger firms in the market. It’s a different market…
10. Steps to a business plan What are you planning? Define external market conditions, competition and market positioning Define the current status of the business Project costs, revenues, cash flow Define your core objectives Refine the strategies into working plans Identify risks and opportunities Develop a strategy for limiting risks and exploiting opportunities Define your business activities. Develop a strategy for achieving the core objectives Final plans
A business plan now can save time and stress later. Too many businesses make business plans only when they have to. Unless a bank or investors want to look at a business plan, there isn’t likely to be a plan written. The busier you are, the more you need to plan. If you are always putting out fires, you should build fire breaks or a sprinkler system. You can lose the whole forest for too much attention to the individual trees.
Helps you understand the things that support you and the things that stand in your way
This exercise provides a quick and painless start to the business planning process by asking you a series of questions about your business, your goals and your future plans. The end result is a streamlined and brief business plan that you can use as-is or as a starting point for a more traditional business plan. Time Required: 2-3 Hours
The executive summary introduces your business strategy and probably is the most important section for lending institutions. If you can't persuade a loan officer in the first two or three pages that you've got a viable business proposal, you're going to leave empty-handed. Important as a communication tool for employees and potential customers who need to understand -- and get behind -- your ideas.
Objectives of the business into the future Objectives of the Business Plan;
You must show that you have done the market research to justify the projections made in your business plan. It must demonstrate that there is a viable market and that you can beat the competition in the market for sales.
The plan depends on the human elements around it, particularly the process of commitment and involvement A business plan will be hard to implement unless it is simple, specific, realistic and complete. Even if it is all these things, a good plan will need someone to follow up and check on it.