Why Do You Need A Business Plan?

A business plan is an essential tool for any start-up entrepreneur. It is like a map or guide that shows you where you are at the moment and where you are going. Its unique feature, however, is the fact that you chart the course yourself.

A good business plan includes:

a description of products and services;
a competitive analysis, a marketing plan;
a management plan, and a financial plan.

It will provide you-and potential investors or lenders-with a clear understanding of your objectives, strategies, and financial viability and could mark a difference between survival and failure.

In planning your journey to success, you can anticipate the environment that you will face, the hurdles along the way, how much money you will need at each stage of the journey, the measures you will take to overcome the challenges and the contingency plans you will need.

Altogether it should save you time and money, enable you to react more swiftly to the unexpected, help you solve problems and take advantage of new opportunities.

In a nutshell, a business plan charts your course of action towards the establishment and growth of your company. It is a document that maps out all crucial areas of your business and how you would address the concerns within each area. It serves more purposes than you may realize. You will need a business plan to:

present to a lender to raise funding for a new business;
raise funding for an existing business; or
plan for the future of your business.