Starting a business can be exciting as you invest all your energy and resources into making your dream of working for yourself a reality. It is best you compare the cost of utilities to obtain the best result for your startup.
However, it is more challenging than you would hope. You must take some essential steps to ensure your business plan is water-tight and investor-ready.
Let’s start by discussing what a business plan is.
What is a Business Plan?
This document highlights the company’s goals and ambitions while outlining the methods, amount of financing, and timeline for how long it will take for your business to achieve these goals.
It will also include a mission statement highlighting the product or service you sell or hope to provide.
A business plan will follow an ordered list of sections the entrepreneur has to plan to ensure the business is on the right track. Below, we will discuss each section in depth.
Step-By-Step Guideline
These are the steps that must be completed as part of your business plan.
Executive Summary
It will include a summary of the business’s important details, such as its name, address, key employees, business background, and the list of goods or services it offers.
In this section, you should also answer the vision and mission of the business and include the company’s long and short-term goals. The summary can be a little short. A standard for this section is 1-2 pages; it should be the first thing your investors see.
Description of Business
In this section, describe the type of business you are in and what your company does. Use this section to go into detail about your business. Highlight your target market, competitors, and how your business will differ from existing ones.
Market Analysis
In this section, you should know your target market and how to attract them to your business. Highlight opportunities your business will take to ensure they meet their target market needs by supplying the product or service the customers want.
You need to know your customers’ values to succeed in this area.
Competitive Analysis
You need to be able to identify your competition and highlight their competitiveness to your business, such as product features or pricing. In this section, you should be able to answer who your competition is, what they do best, and your business’s unique value proposition.
Description of Organizational Management
This section highlights the different management levels in the business and the critical team roles that your business will have. You can also include an organizational chart including all stakeholders if there is more than one to show everyone’s contribution to the company. You can also list the roles and responsibilities of the team members.
Description of Product or Services
It is the part of the business plan where you highlight the product or service description. You can also describe the difference between your product and the ones of your competition. Include the price you will charge for the product or services. Also, highlight the resources needed to make your products or offer your services.
If there are any promotional or marketing plans, then include them in this section as well.
Image by Vlada Karpovich on Pexels
Marketing Plan
You must explain your marketing plan or strategy for your product or service. It should answer these questions:
- Who is your target market?
- What sources will you use to reach your target market?
- What are the resources to reach it? If you have access to the needed resources, what is your rough estimation of your budget and timeline?
Sales Strategy
You need to document your sales strategy as part of your business plan. In this section, you must write down the methods you will take to achieve these goals and your success metrics.
It can answer the following questions:
- What tactics and tools will you use to achieve these goals?
- List the potential obstacles and how you will overcome them.
- What is your sales strategy?
- How long will it be before you reach your desired sales and profit?
- What are your business metrics for success?
Funding Details
It is an important section, especially for those looking to get investors for their business. You should be able to answer these basic questions.
How much capital does the business currently have, and how much would you need?
How will your team grow (by providing training, onboarding, etc.)?
What are the business’s personal constraints and needs (regarding office space, needing equipment, etc.)?
Financial Projections
Investors need to see to ensure their investors will generate a steady income.
You should highlight when your business will generate a profit and how your business will maintain the profits going forward.
Conclusion
As you set up your business plan, ensure you check out how much you’ll pay for your utilities so that you can be aware of how much your energy usage will cost you and can plan ahead to minimize business expenses.
