The importance of proper business planning
5 tips prior to starting your new business
Starting a new business isn’t a walk in the park. Sometimes your “brilliant business idea” can be so mind-blowing that it can subtly masquerade the hard part of doing business. Implementation of your business idea is usually the hardest part. It’s easy to get ahead of yourself, envisioning quick adoption of your product, crazy market sales, fast brand awareness, recognition after aggressive marketing, and other ‘picture-perfect’ “realities” you’ve conceived of your new business.
To successfully launch a business, you need to consider creating a checklist that evaluates your business plan and the viability of your business idea. A start-up checklist is a progress report that monitors the progression of your business from point A to point B. Point A is that brilliant idea you’ve conceived of your new business while Point B is the state when the business is secure, established, well-received, and now making money.
Proper planning prevents poor performance – right? So, here are the five things to cross out on your startup checklist before starting a new business
How Feasible Is Your Business Idea?
The best way to evaluate how viable your ‘brilliant business idea’ is, is by taking yourself as the customer and answering a few questions like; how will this product or service solve my problem? Why should I buy from this company? Do I need to check reviews from satisfied customers before making my purchase decision? Do they offer quality products at an affordable price?
Is The Business Plan Ready?
In anything you do in life, it’s always good to have a plan. Many entrepreneurs have heard of the importance of a business plan, but I can bet that 87% of them don’t have a business plan. Odds are, you already have a business idea, and you’ve heard of a business plan, but you’re still probably among the 87%.
A business plan should be the foundation of your startup. Business planning is the key to unlock your business success. Unarguably, a business plan is the vehicle that’ll drive your business from its point A to point B.
Writing a good business plan does not only help business owners to focus on the specific steps necessary for their business ideas to succeed, but it also helps them to achieve both their short-term and long-term objectives. So, prepare a business plan that outlines: the mission and vision of your business, product description, business value proposition, target market research & analysis, marketing plan, competitor’s analysis, SWOT analysis, and your financial projections.
Do You Have Enough Capital & Financial Backing?
Now that you’ve written your business plan and willing to take the next step in bringing your business idea to reality.
Have you considered if there’s the need to seek more funds? Once you get over the initial excitement of having a complete business plan, it’s time to dig deep and make prior preparations to ensure your new business doesn’t fall off the face of the earth due to lack of financing.
It’s the wish of every business to survive off its cash flow without the need for injecting finances from external sources once the company is officially up and running. However, things aren’t always that smooth and easy for all startup owners, hence the reason why some needs extra financial backing.
If you need financial backing and funding, you might need to approach; banks, angel investors, family members, or get a co-founder, you can even resort to using venture capitalist with a reasonable equity share proposition.
Your business plan is the passport that can get you the funding you need since you’ll have to produce it to whoever is willing to fund your new business.
Have You Worked On Your Business Branding?
You’d want to leave a defined value proposition and paint a vivid picture of your business in the subconscious of your target market – right? Having high brand equity in the market is a function of strong branding. Brand equity is the premium value that’s derived from a customer’s perception of a brand name rather than from the product or service the business brand offers. You can create brand equity for your new product/service by making them memorable, easily recognizable, and superior in quality and reliability.
Your business name, business logo, and your unique brand color constitute of your brand identity. Your business name is your brand’s identity in the ever-so-competitive market. When choosing a business name and logo, choose a name and logo that can easily etch in the memory of your target audiences for a long time. You can hire professional business strategists and graphics designer to handle this part for you if you wish.
Do You Have A Functional Website Yet?
Now that you’ve checked business plan, finances and business branding off your checklist, it’s time to create an online presence to showcase your new business to the world! It doesn’t matter if you own a brick-and-mortar business, a business enterprise or an online store; every business needs a functional website. It’s crucial to invest in having a professional website as well as creating promotional materials for your new business. If you want to enjoy the benefit of brand equity, don’t settle for the fire-brigade or cookie-cutter approach when it comes to creating your official business website.
You can get a responsive website without breaking the bank. Get in touch with us to provide you a functional website at an affordable price.
Conclusion
Starting up a new business is often a learn-as-you-go process. We’re all human; we’re prone to making mistakes. If you don’t make mistakes, you’ll never know what to abstain from and what to concentrate more on. So, expect to make mistakes, be open-minded and make smart business decisions, look for opportunities and seize them, and above all, have fun!
If you’ve done all the things listed above, the final step is to wait until the time is right for you to pull the trigger. Go forth and succeed!
