Angela had heard it so often that it sounded like a mantra: Write your business plan!

The business itself was not an issue. It was going to be a business featuring her handmade butterfly inspired caftans. Her creativity was inspired by the spectacular Monarch butterflies that settled in her home town every year. She had the colors and designs ready. Now she needed to open her business.

That was the first thing that stopped her. What kind of planning did she need to do before opening her business? What licenses did she need? What taxes would she have to pay? Who were her clients going to be? What kind of profit could she make? Where could she go to get information? She got dizzy thinking about it. She was an artist, not an entrepreneur!

SCRIBBLES AND NOTES

So she sat down to write her business plan. She figured costs and taxes and leases and employees and advertising, working through a series of worksheets, step by step. She busted a few pencils, but never got near a computer. She even went to her local banks and met with two different bankers. And when she finished, she had an amazing discovery: she didn’t even want a real store to start out. She wanted to start out on the internet. She figured that the international potential of millions of customers, plus the low overhead of an internet business, made it a better option than opening her own brick and mortar store.

So that is exactly what she did. That was nearly two years ago, and she has done very nicely.

THE FORMAL PLAN

But now she is writing a second plan for her business. Now she needs to expand and hire seamstresses, probably contract workers. And so many people have asked if they could come by her store that she now needs a store/workshop. She is really looking forward to the store as a way of working directly with some of her clients.

But now she needs financing, so she is writing a new plan for her business.

Rightfully, Angela knew that the plan that she created for herself just will not do for bankers. The one she wrote for herself was very analytical, with lots of options explored and lots of worksheets. Now that her direction is in place, and a successful track record backs her up, the business plan she is writing is of a very different sort. This one is a sales presentation for the banker. She is even putting lots of photos of her designs.

Angela instinctively knows what many entrepreneurs struggle with: The business plan that you do for yourself is NOT the business plan that you can use for funding.

APPLES AND ORANGES ARE BOTH ROUND, AREN’T THEY?

This sounds so very basic, but many entrepreneurs simply miss the mark. For example, in the business plan you do for yourself, you want to list out all the competitors that you might have, and compare your own business to theirs. Some of them, truthfully, might even be better than your company. But in a business plan for financing, the object is different. Here you acknowledge that there is competition, but the focus is on your business with your clientele base.

Or in your own business plan you may list that you have money in a credit card that you can pull if necessary. But bankers don’t want to hear about that: it is poor business to use your credit card to finance your business.

The two types of business plans are a different mind set, a totally different approach. One you pick right off the tree, and the other you wrap into a fresh hot tart.

WHY, O WHY, O WHY O?

So your first job is to answer the question: Why am I writing this business plan? Am I investigating a business, and looking for the best options? Or am I writing this for a banker/investor?

Once you’ve got the answer to that question, the rest falls into place.

… PUTTING ON THE RITZ

Once you have your scribbles and notes, getting everything together for the formal plan is much easier. You know where to look, what information is valid and what is not, and you probably have a track record behind you that you can flaunt a bit.

VARIATIONS ON A THEME

Sometimes entrepreneurs will look for microloans, or approach Aunt Lizzie for a loan, or do any number of other things that need a more refined business plan. That is great. Just target the business plan to the intended audience, and you will hit all the right notes.

As most small business owners are usually on a shoe-string budget, cost is often at the forefront of their minds when making decisions concerning their business strategy needs.

As a result, a majority of them resort to writing their business plans themselves not considering the required expertise. The business owners end up consuming lots of time (as much as 400 hours per plan) and energy on the development process to an extent of eroding its worth, and limiting its perceived value.

Aside from the possibility of getting a custom, high quality professional plan developed at an affordable rate, below are many other valuable factors that most business owners neglect when considering to outsource the services of a business consultant.

Time Required

As already mentioned, many small business owners take on the business plan development exercise themselves as they automatically presume that it is expensive to hire a professional to handle the task. While you may save on costs, you will lose time that would have been better spent on more strategic business objectives such as management and networking.

If you look at how long it takes you to prepare the plan and compare that to the amount of time taken by a professional to do the same, – a professional consultant can develop your plan in as little as 40 hours – you will almost certainly realize that your time could be better used somewhere else. This could result into more revenue for the business.

Do you Possess the Necessary Skills?

There’s a skill to developing business plans; and logically, the more one does it the better they get. Instead of spending time going through the learning curve of business plan writing, allow a professional consultant to develop one for you. These professionals can most certainly do the job faster and with less difficulty because they have industry insights and business experiences that you may be lacking in-house.

Based on their experiences, these consultants also know what aspects of your business to focus on that will increase your chances of success. This not only offers much more convenience; but also gives you an opportunity to tap the writer’s knowledge.

Outsourcing to the Right Consultant

It’s imperative that you take your time when selecting a business plan writer and find the one that is a good fit for your business goals and objectives. One issue to take into consideration is their qualifications. An MBA (Master of Business Administration) and CPA (Certified Public Accountants) are just examples of essential qualifications to look out for.

You should also check for past client testimonials. There are several ways of getting this information. One way is by directly contacting the consultant’s past clients to get a feel of what it is like to work with them; or if hiring through an online marketplace, by visiting the consultant’s profile page. Looking up the consultants on the various search engines and social media can also give some of their details.

To avoid picking the wrong candidate, interview several consultants before you commit to one. Find out details like how long it will take to complete the business plan, their engagement fees, development methodology, etc.

Lastly, where possible, have a contract signed by both parties, detailing the deliverable and terms of engagement.

Whether you decide to outsource or not, it’s important to look beyond the cost aspect and consider the above factors as well.

Before you officially “open the doors” of your e-business, you need to create a business plan. Turn your business idea into a plan that will help you succeed (or you may find while going through this process that it is better to scrap the idea and come up with something better).

Putting a business plan together may seem like a daunting task. I will take you step by step through the process of creating a business plan, making the process a little easier for you. Putting a business plan together will include completing a market analysis, a competitive analysis, an advertising plan, pricing, branding, a sales strategy, and much more. This article will go over some of the basics.

You will want to consider marketing, financing, your target market, distribution of your product, finding out who your competition is, etc. In addition to considering these factors, you will want to set realistic goals for your small business.

Ask yourself the following questions: What is the purpose of your e-business? To make money, right? That’s one purpose. What are some others? Perhaps you have created or found a product that the world just can’t live without and you want to share it. Maybe you offer a service that will help others. You might have a hobby that you want to turn into a profession. Write down your purpose, whatever it is.

After you know what your purpose is, answer the following questions:
– Why am I committing my time and resources to this endeavor?
– How will I be helping others?
– What needs will this business meet?
– How will I be helping myself (owner), or ourselves (owners)?
– What “greater good” will be served with this business?

Once you have answered these questions, you can form your company’s mission statement. Your mission statement identifies your company. Keep your mission statement to a few sentences. You can adjust your mission statement as your company grows and changes, but the core values included in your mission statement should remain the same.

What is your Company’s Purpose?
What is the purpose of your e-business? To make money, right? That’s one purpose. What are some others? Perhaps you have created or found a product that the world just can’t live without and you want to share it. Maybe you offer a service that will help others. You might have a hobby that you want to turn into a profession. Write down your purpose, whatever it is.

After you know what your purpose is, answer the following questions:
– Why am I committing my time and resources to this endeavor?
– How will I be helping others?
– What needs will this business meet?
– How will I be helping myself (owner), or ourselves (owners)?
– What “greater good” will be served with this business?

Once you have answered these questions, you can form your company’s mission statement. Your mission statement identifies your company. Keep your mission statement to a few sentences. You can adjust your mission statement as your company grows and changes, but the core values included in your mission statement should remain the same.

Preparing to Launch Your Online Business-Strengths and Weaknesses

As you go through the process of planning your online business, you may not have the answer to every question we ask. Don’t worry if you don’t have all of the answers now, because that is the whole point of doing this plan-to help you find and discover the areas that might sneak up and get you in the future.

Having gone through the process of putting this plan in place, however, you will be better prepared to face unexpected turns and situations. Answer the questions you can and think about the ones you can’t. There are a lot of details that will come together as you go through this process.

Part of making your online business successful is knowing your strengths and your weaknesses, along with the (potential) strengths and weaknesses of your company. What are you good at? What is your company good at?

– What are the strengths of your products? Price? Selection? Variety? Quality? Brand association?
– What are the strengths of you and your partners or team?
– What are your strengths with respect to reaching customers and telling them about your product?
– What are your leadership or organizational strengths?
– What is the vision of your company and how is that a strength?

The answers to the above questions may be the reasons you want to start an online business in the first place. You must also look at your weaknesses. Good business owners strive to identify areas of weakness so they can turn them around and make them areas of strength. It’s better for you to discover weaknesses than your competitors or customers to discover them for you!

– How will the business run from start to finish?
– Do we need to hire people?
– Where will our products come from?
– How will we get the word out about our company?
– Do we have enough money to survive the start-up phase?
– Do we have a good system in place to track orders and make sure our customers are happy?

Preparing to Launch Your Online Business…Make Opportunities & Prepare for Unfortunate Circumstances

Successful online businesses take advantage of opportunities, whether they be changes in customer tastes or preferences, unmet market needs, or market niches that have never been addressed. What opportunities do you see that make you excited about your online business opportunity? Before you start an online business, consider:

– Do you see an unmet need?
– Is this a frustration you have experienced yourself?
– Is there a common feeling that something is missing among people you know or have talked to?
– Have there been changes economically, politically, or otherwise that have set a good stage for your online business?
– Now it’s time to play devil’s advocate and imagine what elements or factors could potentially harm your online business. It is important to identify such things that could adversely affect your business in order to prepare for such circumstances. Preparation is sometimes the best defense. Consider:

How will competition affect you?
Are you able to meet anticipated demand?
What if UPS goes on strike?
Is your business seasonal, and will that adversely affect your cash flow?

If you plan on starting an online business, consider writing down your business description and strategy. By now you know your company’s purpose and your strengths and weaknesses. Use that information as you work out your business strategy.

The key element in your business description is to address how your business will meet the needs of your customers. In other words, how are you uniquely positioned to get your needed product to the right people and make money in the process?

Now let’s discuss the strategy behind your business. Consider:
– What type of business are you (retail, manufacturing, consulting, etc.)?
– Will you need employees?
– Where is your business located?
– What are your hours of operation?
– How do you plan to make money?
– What costs will be involved?
– How much money do you need to start, and how will that money be spent?

Now is the time to tout you and your team. Your confidence, enthusiasm, and vision are incredibly important to the success of your business, and to gain the confidence of investors. They are ultimately investing in YOU, so sell yourself and your team!

Consider:
Who are your team members, managers, or partners? What is their level of education? Do you or they have any experience in similar ventures or businesses? Are you particularly passionate about your products? Why? Who will be in charge of what? Who has final decision-making authority?

Every business can potentially be faced with challenges. What risks might you face in your business, and how will you be prepared to face them? Consider:

Have you in the past, or are you currently facing litigation? Do you have access to an attorney? Do you have adequate insurance coverage for your business? Who is in charge of record keeping, and how are those records stored and protected? Do you use an accountant?

Once you have a plan for your online business, you need a website. When conceiving your website, before you think about colors, pictures, or even format, take into consideration the answers to the questions above and come up with the purpose of your website. That will make your web design process a lot easier.