Why and how to prepare a business plan

When going on a trip, what is the first thing that you do? When you decide you want to get married and want everything to be great, what do you do? When you want ends to meet in college and make sure that everything is paid for, what do you do? The answer to all of these is to plan. Plan plan plan plan. Get used to saying that word because it there is a lot of it involved before a business ever becomes a business. We are going to discuss why a business plan is important to have a how to make one. After reading this, you will hopefully understand that not having a business plan is like shooting yourself in the head with a glock at point blank. A business plan is the constitution and a guide to your business.

Having a business plan is extremely important for many reasons. The plan itself keeps the goals and intentions of the business in tact. It keeps things organized and makes it easier to work through potential problems that could arise. When the business is down on paper, it should become a working model that can be tested with hypothetical situations and actual numbers from market analysis. It should give a sense of how well the business will do in its first few years and give a glimpse of its possibilities in the long term. Now that you know why its so darn important, let's talk about how to actually make one.

Making a business plan is time consuming and is tempting to skip out on. Do not do this to yourself. Making a business plan may be hard, but it's better than being stuck in a situation that you can't pull yourself out of later on. Start with the main goal of the business. Figure out where in the market this business will fit. What products are going to be made? How are they going to be made? How much are the materials right now? How are similar businesses doing at the moment? What are some strengths and weaknesses of other companies to look out for? There are tons of questions like these to answer while making up a business plan. Here are some basic things to be sure of in the plan.

1. Know the market
2. Know the product and who buys them
3. How much are materials?
4. What are competitors charging (to make your prices more competitive, yet profitable)?
5. Is the cash flow less than the total revenue? If not, you got problems. Cash flow is money leaving the company. If that turns out to be bigger, you need to really take a new direction.
6. How is the business going to be run? From home, to the office, to employees? There are tons of legalities that need to be worked through with any of these choices. Knowing how to deal with them will make forming the actual business run smooth.

If these things are known in the business plan or at least are listed as priorities, then you're off to a good start. There have been huge volumes written on how to form a business plan. These are just tips of several ice burgs. Do as much reading as possible to learn from the professionals who have experience all of this before and know the secretes to success. Having a business plan will make the future of your small business more certain and less of a gamble if done thoroughly.