Subject: Starting a Business � What is a Business Plan?

> So you\’ve decided to start your own business - congratulations! It\’s a
> huge leap from letting someone else take care of taxes, accounting,
> payroll, inventory, and/or a myriad of other activities necessary to run a
> business. However, running your own business has its advantages, too.
> You get to be your own boss, set your own hours and days to work, and are
> responsible for your own success. It can be a great way to free yourself
> from the tedium of 9-5 and work at doing what you love, but you have to
> begin by asking a few questions:
>
> 1. Are you doing what you love, or just doing something you�?Tre good at?
> A desire to get away from the regular working world can be a good
> motivation to work for yourself, but you have to be excited to get up in
> the morning to do what it is you have chosen to do for a living.
>
> 2. What is it you are planning to do? What niche is it going to fill? Is
> there a need for what you can provide? Will the market bear another
> entry?
>
> 3. What technical skills or talents do you have? Just being able to do
> something may not be marketable enough to convince customers or financiers
> that you are a good financial investment.
>
> 4. Who are your competitors in your chosen profession and how are you
> going to do it better? Why should customers come to you? What do you
> have to offer that no one else does?
>
> Once you are satisfied with the answers to these questions, it is time for
> the decision of what kind of business structure you will use. Will you be
> a sole proprietor, responsible for every facet and the penultimate
> authority as to how to run the business? Will you enter in with a
> partner, the better to share the cost and workload, but also the profits
> and the business decisions? Perhaps the decision will be made to
> incorporate, with its financial safeguards but more complex and costly
> structure? At this stage, legal advice is recommended, if only so that
> you fully understand the advantages and disadvantages of your chosen
> structuring plan. Many lawyers will provide a free or reduced-rate
> primary consultation, though often not more than an hour. When the
> structure is finalized, a name for the business should be decided upon, if
> not already having been done so in advance. It should be easy to
> remember, avoid initials and single letters (B & L & R, Inc. will be
> difficult
> to remember for customers) and try to say something about the business
> (Bob�?Ts House of Hobbies is easier to remember and spell).
>
> Next, a business plan is a vital step in laying out all these topics and
> proposals in a standardized format. A good business plan serves as a
> formal statement of the new company�?Ts goals, financing, structure and
> legal considerations. It acts as a �?oresume�?� to prospective investors
> and is the primary documentation they will use to evaluate whether or not
> your business will be worth investing into. It also provides the
> proprietor(s) with a chance to see the workings of the new business in
> black and white. A basic business plan should at the least contain a
> balance sheet, income statement and statement of cash flow, as well as a
> proposed financial budget for the first year, or as long a period as
> necessary if a year is impractical.
>
> So with these quick tips, plan for success, and good luck in your chosen
> endeavor!
>
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>
Article by: imzee