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Welcome. My name is Lee Matthews. In this video, I’m going to explain why a Business
Plan is important and, using my Business Plan’s Table of Contents,
I’m going to highlight some of the information that needs to be included. Let’s get started.
So why is a Business Plan Important? Well, there are two basic reasons.
The first is Guidance and the second is Documentation.
If your business is struggling, a Business Plan is especially important.
It will keep you on-point — it will keep you centered on those activities that are designed to make your business prosper.
We’re all aware that one of the primary advantages of operating a home-based business is the tax deductions that are available.
You have to prove that you qualify for every deduction that’s claimed.
You’ll do that during an IRS audit. Your Business Plan, if written correctly, will document that you have
“for-profit” intent and are following the procedures that you’ve set to make it so.
When operating a business, it’s “the norm” to develop it using a pre-defined methodology with set income goals and growth metrics.
A Business Plan is a decision-making tool. Although a Business Plan can’t guarantee success,
it greatly reduces the odds of failure!
A good business plan also has the advantage of making a home-based business credible from an IRS auditor’s point of view.
Now let’s now take a look at what a Business Plan should contain.
We’ll use my Network Marketing home-based Business Plan as an example. Immediately after the non-disclosure agreement,
the Executive Summary should present your Business Objectives, your Mission
and your Keys to Success in a concise manner.
The Executive Summary
is often considered the most important section of a business plan. This section briefly explains where your company is, where you want
to take it and why your business idea will be successful.
The next section is the Company Summary. Here you’ll provide details about your company’s owners
and you’ll highlight your company history and its current operations.
Basically, the Company Summary provides a high-level look at how all of the different elements of your business fit together —
including information about the nature of your business and the factors that you feel will make your business successful and profitable. Next,
you provide explicit details about the Products and Services that your Business provides
Be sure to emphasize the benefits to your current and potential customers —
focus on why your particular product or service
will fill a need or solve a problem.
The Market Analysis Summary
consists of three elements — market segmentation, market segment strategy
and industry analysis. The purpose for segmenting a market is to allow your marketing and sales program to focus on the subset of
prospects that are "most likely" to purchase your offering. If done properly
this helps insure the highest return for your marketing and sales expenditures —
that information is detailed in the market segment strategy part of your Market Analysis Summary.
Your Target Market Segment Strategy
is defined by the customer needs that create the market, the structural forces that govern operations within the market
and the attractiveness of the market based on profit-potential. The Industry Analysis portion of your Business Plan’s Market Analysis Summary
requires a great deal of research
because it provides the foundation for your Marketing Strategy. Almost all home-based businesses these days are Internet based. The
web is constantly evolving and your Web Plan Summary must delineate exactly how your
business will keep pace. The Strategy and Implementation Summary Section
is the heart of your Business Plan. Assessing your business’ strengths, weaknesses, market opportunities and threats
via a SWOT analysis provides powerful insight into the actual and potential issues
that can affect your business. The SWOT analysis is a useful tool in developing your business goals and marketing strategy.
Be sure to explain why your business has a Competitive Edge over the competition. Keep in mind
that the statement must present, in concrete terms, a distinct advantage
that others can’t easily replicate. State your competitive advantage succinctly and memorize it. It will help you when talking
to others about your business — you’ll be able to state what you’re best at and why. Your Marketing Strategy is very important.
Most folks assume that marketing and sales mean the same thing —
that’s not true. In fact, marketing refers to much wider issues.
Marketing involves strategic planning,
market research, branding,
advertising and promotion, customer engagement, customer service
and it even extends to the acquisition and development of new businesses.
A sale, on the other hand, is an activity within marketing — it refers to the methods and processes of communicating with your prospect
and having them complete a sales transaction which turns them
into a customer.
The Marketing Strategy section of your Business Plan describes who your customers are
and how you’ll get word to them
about the goods and services you offer. The Modality Section
explains the methods that will be used to connect with your target audience. The Training
Section explains how your marketing team members will be trained
to go about marketing your goods and services.
Now, at this point, I’d like to go ahead and let you see exactly what’s in my Network Marketing Business Plan. I know you’ll see
value in what I have to offer. You’ll see every page of my Business Plan. Having done that, you’ll understand how you’ll be able to use this
Business Plan as the basis for creating one of your own.
Now what I’m going to do is display a random, half-page view of each page of my Business Plan.
To provide context, before the half-page is displayed, I’ll highlight the applicable line from the Table of Contents.
There is a lot of content and I want you to be able to examine every page — so feel free to pause this video
whenever you feel necessary.
Let’s begin…