Lots of business owners skip a crucial step to ensure the success of their companies – writing a business plan. This detailed overview of your company and its future is commonly overlooked - often because it’s a lot of work. However, it’s some of the most valuable work you can do when starting up a business, which is why everyone from banks to venture capital companies require detailed business plans before they will even consider your business. The process of creating the plan and thinking things through has helped many business owners learn what it takes to be successful.

Some questions that a well-designed plan will answer:

• What does your particular industry look like right now and what will it
  look like in the future?
• What markets are you competing in – what will they be 5 years down the
  road?
• What specific competition will you be up against? What are their strengths
  and weaknesses?
• What products or services do you offer? Will they remain constant?
• What value (not features) do you provide to your customers?
• What long-term advantages do you have over the competition?
• How will you maintain them?
• How big and profitable will your business become?
• If youÂ’re using the plan to borrow money or attract investors: How much
  will you need & why?
• What action steps will you need to take to have your plan succeed?
• What will happen to the business when you retire or after your death?

Too often, business owners as so busy working “in” their business that they overlook the necessity to work “on the business”. A business plan helps you do this. How can you improve the odds of success? Planning! And the way to start planning is by creating a business plan, and continuing to pull it out, look at it and tweak it as your business grows. So, even if you don’t need to raise capital or borrow money, a plan can help your business significantly.

businessknowhow.com