Launching a business of your own is a great step forward for your personal and professional development. However, doing so without a concrete business plan will often end in failure due to a general lack of planning.
According to Forbes, over 70% of startups fail due to premature scaling, with additional 70% realizing that their products/services are not unique enough to compete. To avoid these issues, you should manage your business with a solid plan to back your ideas and turn them into reality. Let’s take a look at how you can do just that.
1. Decide on Your Startup’s Purpose
As with any business, your startup should have a clear purpose for existing in the first place. For example, Microsoft’s goal early on was “to put a computer on every desk and in every home”.
This has helped its founder, Bill Gates, to focus his startup’s development on solving a single, pressing global issue. Settle on the purpose of your startup before moving forward with writing the business plan outline.
2. Define a Long-Term Vision
The next step in the startup business plan writing process should be to outline your brand’s long-term vision. This is the natural evolution of your startup’s purpose and relates to “how” you will achieve its original purpose.
You can use Lets Grade It to check your startup’s vision for plagiarism and ensure that it is original to avoid copyright issues later on. Following the example of Microsoft, their vision is as follows: “to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential”.
3. Explore Your Target Markets
Knowing your target audience is half of what will make your startup grow organically. After all, you will need access to a clientele who is interested in your products/services in order to generate revenue.
Before you launch your startup, you should research your local market and those which you intend to penetrate. Look for competitors, major brands, influencers, and other elements which you can learn from for your own business. Be proactive rather than reactive to avoid early issues with your startup.
4. Break Down Your Business Model
Once you’ve gathered enough information about your audience and have a clear long-term goal in mind, you should write about your business model. Depending on the type of business you are about to launch (eCommerce, SaaS, outsourcing, etc.), your pricing and monetization will differ.
A good rule of thumb is to check out your competitions’ pricing and match it from day one. A writing tool that can write my essay online can help you edit and format your business model for better legibility. Make sure to take local taxation and business upkeep expenses into account when setting your monetization model to maximize the startup’s profits from day one.
5. Prototype Your Product/Service
With a business model in place, you should prototype your product or service to gauge its viability for monetization and future development. A prototype will allow you to attract financial backers and investors who may identify with your startup’s vision and business model.
Likewise, it will help you spot potential bottlenecks in the initial business plan and allow you to fix them before going public. Create a demo product for internal purposes and take your time to stress-test it in various scenarios. Make sure to take note of its production expenses in relation to the monetization plan you set up previously. Once you’re satisfied with the prototype’s performance, reach out to potential investors and prepare for mass production in order to have stock ready for shipping.
Building Solid Startup Foundations
Writing a startup business plan is all about research of your target audience and competition. For better or worse, your startup will be one of many on the open market. It is crucial that you differentiate your business from others in as many ways as possible to ensure its successful growth.
Start with a clear goal and vision, and then move on to business model and production planning. The right backers will also approach your startup with offers of financial support – be open to discussion and your business will thrive as a result.
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Bio: Mark Blackwood is a professional writer, content editor, and business development advisor. He is passionate about creative writing and digital publishing. Mark is constantly working on new articles, opinion pieces, and case studies in the fields of digital marketing, online sales, and business development, among others. In his spare time, Mark is a reader and a fan of pop culture.