Five,Steps,Effective,Business, DIY Five Steps to An Effective Business Plan

When starting a new work at home business it is very easy to become consumed by it. We spend so much time trying to get the business up and running that we may end up becoming burned out and lose our motivation. There is so much to learn and Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0in

Copyright 2004 Vishal P. RaoYou have an idea for a business. You know what you want tosell, who you can sell it to, and how much you stand to earnfrom it. There's just one more thing you need: a businessplan.Many people dread the idea of preparing a business plan.They think of them as complicated, unnecessary documentsthat exist only to make it more difficult for them to getstarted as an entrepreneur. They are wrong.Business plans are necessary because they help you "see"your business. Instead of just talking in abstract waysabout your "customer base" and your "profit potential," itlets you put those things in writing and in concrete terms.It forces you to think through every aspect of your businessin advance so down the road you don't realize you've made amistake that's cost you your business, your life's savings,and your job.Besides all of that, they are also important tools forgetting other people interested in your business. For one,if you've taken the time to create a business plan, otherswill realize that you are serious about this endeavor andthat it isn't just some pie-in-the-sky dream. A businessplan also shows people that you are a professional and thatyou understand what it takes to start and manage a business.This is all extremely important, particularly if you needany type of outside funding, such as loans or investors.So while the bad news may be that you definitely do need abusiness plan, the good news is that they don't have to becomplicated. The truth is that your plan only needs to coverseven main areas and none of these areas are going torequire you to write a full-length novel. These fivesections are the executive summary, the company overview,the business environment, the company description, and theaction plan. All of those sections may sound complex, butmost of them won't involve information that you don'talready know.Executive SummaryEven though this section will technically be first in yourbusiness plan, you should actually write it last because,just as its name implies, it summarizes the entire contentsof your business plan. Because many readers never bother toget beyond the executive summary, you must make sure that itis comprehensive and well-written.If that sounds difficult, it isn't. Just make sure to readthrough your entire business plan before you start writingthe executive summary. Make a list of information that youthink is the most important or that would really stand outto a reader, and be sure to include all of it in yoursummary.Company OverviewThis section explains the guiding force behind yourbusiness. It gives them a chance to see what you have inmind for the business and how you plan to get there.Generally, the overview does this by providing a missionstatement, goals, and objectives for your business.In a nutshell, a mission statement provides the answers toall of these questions in less than 50 words: What am Iselling? Who am I selling it to? Why am I selling it? Itdoesn't need to be just one sentence, but keep it as briefas possible.Goals and objectives, the other components of the companyoverview, are often confused by first time business planwriters. Remember that goals are things your company wantsto achieve while your objectives are how they plan to getthere.Business EnvironmentThis section will probably require you to do some outsideresearch because it involves information relating to yourindustry, your market, and your competition. You need totake an honest look at the field you are preparing to enterand pay close attention to its structure, its trends, andits barriers to new businesses. Become familiar with themajor competitors in your industry and decide how you willdifferentiate yourself from them. Also, get to know yourpotential customers and what makes them tick. The more youknow about them, the more likely you will be to turn theminto buyers.Company DescriptionAt this point in your business plan, you need to go intodetail about your business. You can't simply define yourcompany in terms of what you sell, but also in terms of whoyou serve, what resources you will use, what types ofemployees you are looking for, what type of distributionmethod you'll utilize, and more. All of this factors combineto create your company.In addition to this, you should also state your company'sUPS (Unique Positioning Statement). This is a one sentencestatement that explains what sets you apart from all of thecompetitors.Action PlanThe last part of your business plan is this section whichoutlines the steps you need to take now in order to makeyour plan work. These should also reflect the goals andobjectives that you've outlined in your company overview.Besides these primary pieces of a business plan, you mayalso need to include a financial section, particularly ifyou plan on using it to get outside funding for yourbusiness. This may take more thought and planning than theother sections because it will require you to make someassumptions about your business's revenue potential. Themost important thing is to base any estimates on realisticexpectations, not optimistic dreams.You may want to visit the following websites for some samples to give you an idea of how things should be formatted and worded:http://www.businessplans.org/businessplans.htmlhttp://www.bplans.com/sp/With some useful models and this helpful information, you'llbe well on your way to completing your effective and professional business plan. Article Tags: Business Plan, Executive Summary