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I Know My Business And Don’t Need A Loan – So Why Do I Need A Business Plan?
| Guest post by: Lee Lister |
Article Overview: You have a smooth running business and aren’t looking for a loan – so business plans are only for banks surely? Not really they are for you the business first and foremost. Why?
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Free Download - What Type of Business Should I Start? By Lee Lister |
I Know My Business And Don’t Need A Loan – So Why Do I Need A Business Plan?
You have a smooth running business and aren’t looking for a
loan – so business plans are only for
banks surely? Not really they are for
you the business first and foremost. Why?
Well first of all you need to spend some time checking
through your business and talking to your key employees just to check that your
business is running as smoothly and efficiently as possible. Business planning is a good discipline to
ensure that you business is as you think it is.
Start with your business vision, financial and marketing
strategies. You do have them don’t
you?
Your business vision is where you want your business to be,
how you want it perceived and is what gets you out of bed each day to face the
daily grind.
Your financial strategy is how you will spend and utilise
your capital, how you will manage your cash flow and what level of profits you
are expecting.
Your marketing strategy is what you are selling, to whom,
when at what cost and in what format.
You are starting to see how important your business plan is
to your business.
Now look at your business goals – are you still heading for
them or have they changed a bit and you need to rethink where your company is
going and what it is doing?
Now go down a few levels and start to look at your products
and services – are you selling them at the correct price and the correct mix
for your expected market? Is there a gap
that you can fill with another product? Is
there a product that is not performing as well a it should?
Next look at your company structure. Is your manufacturing, selling and fulfilment
process as efficient as possible? Do you
have the right staff at the correct place and are they trained?
Lastly look at your financials. Do you have enough capital and cash flow to
do what you want to do and keep your company afloat? Are your staff, fulfilment and manufacturing
costs about right?
All of the above items are in a good , sound business
plan. So write your plan and keep
updating it on a regular basis.
Good luck.
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Contribution
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About the Author: Lee Lister RSS for Lee's articles - Visit Lee's website From an early age she began an unparalleled journey through business consulting that continues to span across the UK, USA, Europe and Asia. She has consulted for a considerable number of companies all over the world. Specialising in business change management, start up consultancy and trouble shooting. Lee's experience in marketing and internet marketing is also keenly sought after. She is a prolific published writer of books, ebooks and articles and can easily be found on major search engine and Amazon. Her books include: FastTrack Bid Management, Proposal Writing For Smaller Businesses, How Much Does It Cost To Start A Business, Entrepreneur's Apprentice and a series of Start My New Business books that do as they say in the title! Her major web sites are: Click here to visit Lee's website   Entrepreneurs Want To Successfully Sell Your Bottled Water Entrepreneurs How To Start A New Catering Business The 10 Mistakes That Failing Entrepreneurs Make Entrepreneurs Is It A Window Of Opportunity Or A Brick Wall Designing Your New Business Setting Up A Design Business |
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