“Direction is so much more important than speed, Many are going nowhere fast.” It is almost impossible to steer a ship to its destination without a rudder. Similarly, in business, it is impossible to achieve the desired results without a well-defined business plan.

If you are planning to start a business venture or trying to run your existing start-up efficiently, then it is very important for you to know how to write a business plan. With the markets becoming more competitive survival of new entrants has become more difficult. Despite having great ideas most businesses fail and very few turn profitable. There can be various reasons for so many businesses to fail. Poor execution, inability to connect with your customers and lack of industry knowledge can be a few of them. But one of the key reasons is the lack of proper research and planning.

A well-written business plan can help you set proper milestones with realistic timelines and ensure the success of your venture.

Below we have compiled a list of pointers that can guide you to write an effective business plan. These tips will guide you to the path to take make your business flourish.

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Tip 1 – Define your vision:

When you start a business you need to have a clear vision of what you want to achieve through this venture and what would be your guiding principles. Once you get caught up in your daily task you might start to lose track of your amazing ideas and objectives. Writing down your vision and brilliant ideas will ensure you stay on the right track.

A well-defined vision will also help your colleagues to resonate with the same idea and plan the daily tasks accordingly.

Tip 2 – Set your goals and objectives:

While taking targets always remember, It’s better to set a higher goal and miss than to set a lower goal and achieve. Having a challenging target will require you to be more efficient and effective.

Make sure you have clearly defined your short term goals (to be achieved in 12 months) & long term goals (to be achieved over the period of 3 to 5 years). To do your goal setting effectively you need to decide your long term goals first and accordingly set the short term goals after every 12 months to align it with your long term objectives.

You also need to clearly set out all your targets like the revenue you wish to generate, products you want to add, areas and regions you wish to expand to, the manpower required to achieve your targets & (the most important thing) way of generating passive income for your business.

Tip 3 – Explain the importance of your product or service:

In this competitive market, the customers are spoilt for choice and you need to have a very convincing ultimate selling proposition (USP) to get your product/service moving. You need to effectively address the problem that your product/service is solving for your customers.

You need to design your product/service to make it stand out and be more attractive for the customers. While writing a business plan you just need to highlight the extras that your business is offering to convince a prospective customer.

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Tip 4 – Know your Industry:

While writing a business plan you need to thoroughly understand your industry which involves studying various aspects of your industry. Here I have highlighted a few key aspects to be studied which are applicable to all industries.

Market

There is a huge probability that there will be a lot of similar businesses in the market already. To run a business successfully you need to know the demand and supply ratio of your product/service. Although it is possible for more than one player to survive in the market doing your homework will help you devise an effective strategy for growth and sustainability. Plus you can identify the shortcomings of your competition and provide a better solution to your customers.

Customer behavior

Understanding the preferences of your customers and analyzing how they make their purchase decisions will make your product/service more valuable to your customers.

Also, if you understand the needs of your clients thoroughly you will be able to provide more personalized service or alter your product/service to custom fit the requirements of your customer base. This will help you develop a niche in your market.

It is important to know your market demographics. Having a good understanding of the demand and supply situation will help you make informed decisions in your business. Knowing how many competitors you have, what’s their product line, what strategies they are using will further increase your chances of having a successful business. This information is vital if you are planning to survive in the marketplace with them.

Tip 5 – Planning for a crisis:

While planning a start-up it is also very important to plan for any sort of eventualities and difficulties you might face. It always best to be aware and ready for all sorts of situations, it helps you tackle them with ease.

Once you have successfully written a business plan it will help you identify your first step and get started. Once you have taken the first step then its all about putting in the work and getting customers for yourself.

Bonus Tip – Persistence:

Don’t give up!

Hard work always pays off and the rest we believe you already have it in you.

So go ahead and change the world!