Creating a business plan is not an easy task, but one of the toughest challenges in it that should match with the perspective of you, your investors, and your audience. Here are the six questions every business plan should answer.
1. What is the competitive advantage?
If your field is uncommon, then this question may not seem to you to be too critical. But if your business is among the competitive companies, then you have to pay attention to whether you have valuable intellectual property which can act as a barrier for the entry of competitors in your business like patents, trademarks, trade secrets, or copyrights.
It attributes to a variety of factors, including cost structures, quality of product offerings, branding of your business, distribution network, and customer service.
Your business plan must have the solution to how your products and services are more efficient than competitors.
2. Is your business in a growth market?
Investors would be interested in your plan only if they foresee the growth of your business. If your business is profitable for them, they will invest in it quickly. Your business plan must include a market growth strategy.
If the competitors are many, then your business plan must answer how your business will grow through this diversification. You have to sell new products in new markets, and this strategy can be risky if you didn’t do market research in detail. So, it should contain all this information.
3. Will, the customer pay for it?
One of the most critical questions is, will the customers pay for your business?
Figure out what people are willing to pay. The WTP increases only if the customers are satisfied with the product of your company, its price, its quality, and customer choices. You can only convince them after achieving these factors.
4. Is the product innovative?
Your business plan must center around a new turn on already existing technology, are your services delivered in a new way? After being innovative, what advantages is it providing to customers and your business? What if the idea is not competitive enough and many people already have it, then you have to look at your team if it can provide you success at all times.
Do they inspire you, collaborate with other team members, and their marketplace? It must be unique and compelling to the customer, does it provide more value to the customer than anything else in the market. Analyze the opportunities of innovation in the market and include it in the business plan.
5. How will the business be staffed?
There are multiple sections in business, like production, sales, and finance. Establish the roles for the ones who are mature enough and understand the responsibility on their shoulders. Various parts must be assigned at first if necessary and filled the business with the right people at the right time as it grows.
Business success revolves around collaboration and success, and they won’t be able to do all by themselves. It also shows one’s ability to accept limitations, the ability to focus on strengths, and to encourage others to bring in them the vision of their goals.
6. Are the plans realistic?
Your business plan must reveal the reality of your business and must tell about its sales, expenses, and must plot the bottom line as the business grows. Mark your progress in the first, second, third, and fourth-year, and if it is always achieving its heights, then your business is viable; otherwise, change your plans.
You have to be very clear about your business plan and how much money your business is going to make in the future before approaching investors, your potential customers.
