Compose A Winning Business Plan
Put it on paper so you can put it into action.
By Kylo-Patrick R. Hart
Last month in this column, we showed you how to plan a budget
for your new venture. With the preliminary business decisions made
and your budget information firmly in hand, your next move is to
assemble all of your thoughts and numbers into a formal, written
business plan.
A solid business plan is your road map for success. It charts
where you're planning to go with your business and how you
expect to get there. Sure, there may be an occasional detour along
the way, but by focusing on every aspect of a venture's
operations before getting started, you'll be better prepared to
avoid making costly mistakes.
Many new business owners view business-plan writing as a task
designed to attract investors, but more importantly, it provides a
guidebook for your business so you know what you should be doing,
and how well you're doing it, along the way. Experts agree that
bypassing the business-plan stage is a recipe for disaster.
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As our Starting Smart entrepreneurs have learned, composing a
business plan requires significant amounts of time, patience,
research, writing, editing and re-editing. But the benefits far
outweigh the short-lived pressure and pain. Having risen to the
challenge, they are back this month to share their insights about
preparing a winning plan.
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