If you have ever studied without a working plan embedded in your brain, or if you have ever decided to work upon a project hastily, you must know how the results vary from when we abide by a plan. Thus, when chores as small as a project require a well-thought-out plan, then it is only fair to say that starting a business without a proper plan would only lead to failure.
Becoming an entrepreneur with access to luxuries of life, an over-the-top lifestyle and the freedom to work for ourselves often seems possible to us by merely thinking of an idea, entailing investments for that idea, and implementing it. But it is so much more than that. It requires putting our vision into a well-defined plan covering all the factors and possibilities.
A proper plan includes, but is not limited to, the company’s mission statement, description of its working, market and competitor analysis, product/service description, marketing strategy, staffing needs, sales strategy, funding requirements, funding sources, and financial projections.
Table of Contents
7 REASONS A BUSINESS PLAN IS INTEGRAL
1. Ease in Getting Funds
A business with a clear plan of action and complete transparency in its future financial projections, costs, and requirements gives the investors a sense of security of their fundings than a mere business idea without clarity of present or future. It becomes easier to earn trust and answer any questions related to our business. A good business plan covers and answers any doubt an investor might have.
2. Understanding Competitors
Carrying out thorough research while preparing the plan will make us learn about the competitors in our line of industry, their history, their accomplishments, their strengths and weaknesses, and their strategies to win over customers. This knowledge will give us access to the tricks and tips to get an edge over our competitors and learn from other firms’ mistakes and experiences. A plan would provide our brand standing in the market.
3. The clarity in Financing Feasibility
Making a plan would answer crucial questions such as:
- How much initial funds are required?
- How many recurring expenses are there?
- Is it feasible to start this business with our budget?
- What are the expansion scopes, and how much would they cost?
- Will the profits justify the costs incurred?
, a plan would answer these questions, thus saving money in case our business would have deemed impractical in the financial sense. It would also define our need for finances and specify which sources would be the best fit for our business.
4. Staff Composition
A comprehensive plan would ease out the recruitment process and accuracy in financial projection by informing the workforce required, work done by every person, salary paid to every person, skill-set needed for the staff, and defining the work culture of the business.
5. Enhances Self-Esteem
It is rightly said that planning what is to be done in advance increases efficiency tenfold. When we have a set plan in mind, it acts as a safety net if things go wrong. This is because it consists of all precautions and steps to be taken in case of contingency. Thus, having a plan increases our confidence in ourselves and our business. As a result, we would be able to make decisions with greater ease and less confusion.
6. Customer-Centric Approach
We are required to research the consumers of the product/service that our business would deal in. It would help us understand the audience for our deliverables, their preferences, their likes, and their dislikes. A plan would enable us to see from a consumer’s point of view and learn practical ways to approach them and get their attention. A customer is considered God-like in any business as they can make or break the business. Analyzing them would give us an upper edge over the firms that use a product-centric approach.
7. Risk Reduction
An obvious outcome of having a plan is that it reduces risk. Going through several factors before taking dangerous leaps of faith would minimize the risk profile of the business. Drafting a plan would require us to consider several options, be it products to deal in, services to offer, where to invest, and much more. Some business opportunities provide greater scope and profitability than others. A plan would have shown us the right choice.
Business Plan Software
Since everyone themselves is capable of forming a business plan, one might ask Why do you need business plan software? The preparation of a business plan might not suit everyone’s interest if they suffer from a time or cash crunch to conduct thorough research on various factors. Artificial Intelligence becomes a savior here.
There are many Business Plan Softwares available online, that allows the user to create a business plan easily by choosing from built-in business plan templates for small businesses.
The user would be provided a business plan and pitch deck containing all the essentials from cover pages and infographics to better understand the business’s financial forecasting according to original data specific to the industries. The samples are the plans initially made by entrepreneurs years ago. In addition, step-by-step guidance in making the business plan would also be available to ensure that the plan is made with the utmost professionalism, appealing to investors and maintaining originality.
Summary
Thus, we can conclude that failure to plan is synonymous with planning for failure. One must be fully aware of their future actions if they aspire to be a successful businessman. We must have plans carved into our minds not just for business but for life in general. It would help us become practical, organized, open-minded, prepared, and confident in all our doings.
