Topic 2 Preparation and development of your business
Do you want to start your own business but don’t know where to start? A business plan should be one of your first steps as an entrepreneur because it will help you organize your thoughts and get ready to look for funding, partners, and other resources.
The majority of business advice advises monetizing your passion, but it overlooks two crucial aspects: You need to be good at it and it needs to be profitable. For instance, if you love making soap and want to open a soap shop in your community, where there are already three nearby, it won’t be easy to get a foothold in the market because you’ll be selling the same product as the others.
A detailed business plan is a document that describes a company’s objectives and plans for achieving them over the next three or more years. It provides a road map that will assist you in avoiding roadblocks by helping to define expected profits and obstacles.
Because you already have an articulated overview to offer potential customers when they inquire about your business, the business plan can assist your company in attracting talent and funding. You can quickly learn how others see your business by watching how they react, and you can adjust your strategy if necessary.
Before you write your business plan, what should you do first?
- How much do I want this project to succeed?
- Do I have the willingness to put my own money into something, work long hours without pay, and possibly live this way for years?
- How much money will the business need to start?
- If this endeavor fails, what will happen to me?
- How much revenue will the business make each year? What about five years from now?
- Will the business sell a wide range of goods and services or will it focus on a small market?
- Will the company remain privately owned and independent, or will it eventually be acquired or listed on the stock market?
- When can you anticipate a return on your investment?
- What are the business’s anticipated long-term profits?
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Typically, the business description begins with a brief description of your chosen business, including its current outlook and potential for the future. For instance, is it wholesale, service-oriented, or retail? Is the business a corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship? Who are your customers and who are the principals?
The size, structure, and sales potential of the market will be defined in this section. What are the chances of market expansion? What are the current trends and demographics? Keep in mind the four Ps as you paint a picture of your market: price, promotion, place, and product.
This will help clarify the distinctions between you and your rivals and how you may maintain them. In order to even break into the Dutch market, proper competitive analysis is required.
Take into consideration these three aspects of the business’s design and development:
- Product creation
- Changes in the market
- Organizational growth
