Are you planning to start a business? Apart from capital, make sure you already have a mature business plan.
Why is that? Because a business will not always run smoothly.
Various kinds of obstacles can be obstacles that must be conquered.
With proper business feasibility guidelines , the risk of loss can be minimized and it is easier to find solutions to every problem.
Before discussing more deeply what is included in business planning material, let’s first understand what it means.
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Definition of Business Planning
In an economic sense, business planning is a function of management related to strategies, regulations, policies, procedures as well as programs to run a type of business.
One example of a business planning component is the vision and mission of a business. Besides that, there are still business goals and strategies to achieve the goals of the business itself.
Business planning is one of the important points to do so that a business can be developed.
Because of this planning, an entrepreneur can more easily set the expected short and long term targets.
With careful planning, you will be able to achieve a number of things such as:
- Increased chances of success for new ventures
- Business operational activities can be determined more smoothly
- Resources are easier to identify and combine to achieve maximum results
- Business operational standards in each segment are more controlled
Then, what is the purpose of business planning? Here is a brief explanation.
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Purpose of Business Planning
Business planning is done with several main objectives. These objectives include:
1. Action Plan
The first purpose of planning in a business is an action plan. Where the intended action is more to problem solving or steps to find a solution.
In every business, there will always be obstacles that are interrelated with one another.
Therefore a business plan is needed, to be able to sort out each part of the problem so that it can be classified so that it is easier to solve.
2. Road Map
There is planning in a business, the goal is to keep the focus of the business maintained.
This is in accordance with the components of the planning itself, namely the vision and mission.
Planning becomes a road map, which keeps business operations on track.
Thus the objectives of the business will be more easily realized and the vision and mission of the business can be understood and conveyed to all parties involved.
3. Sales Materials
The purpose of further business planning is to serve as material to support sales activities.
Careful planning can have a significant effect on sales.
Good sales, can be used as an illustration of the business prospects in the future.
From there you can convince investors about the potential of the business you are running.
5 Steps to Thorough Business Planning
After understanding the meaning, aims and objectives, we now study the steps of business planning. A business plan must be carefully prepared so that your business can grow.
You can follow the steps below to be able to make a good and mature business plan, so that the business can run as expected.
1. Make a Business Description
The first thing that is important for you to do before building a business is to make a plan or description regarding the description of the business that will be run.
The function of the business description will be to provide related information, goals, vision, mission and ideas related to your business to all parties involved.
With a business description, it is hoped that the business can be accepted by all parties and can develop as expected.
2. Develop a Marketing Strategy
The next planning step is to develop the right marketing strategy. The goal is for your product to be well received by the public.
It’s like being on the battlefield, to survive in business competition we must have a marketing strategy. Starting from the analysis of competitive advantage and also its drawbacks.
From there you can create products that are at least of the same quality but are able to meet competitors’ deficiencies. This will be a plus point for your product in the eyes of consumers.
3. Market Analysis
Having a strategy without analyzing the market will certainly not give the expected results. By analyzing the market, you can find out what consumers want, like and need.
Based on these three points, you can present a product that is the answer for consumers. That way, the product will be easier to accept and can be adjusted to the segmentation that you have targeted.
4. Application to the Production Process and Monitoring
After carrying out the three steps above, then you can apply it to the production process.
Using the three previous planning points as a reference, it is possible to launch quality products that are easily accepted by the public.
The planning step does not stop with product launching. You still have to monitor the products that have been distributed which you can manage easily using the goods inventory application .
This step is necessary to evaluate the product in relation to market response.
From this monitoring you will see how well received your product is, what are its flaws and what makes consumers buy it.
5. Capital Estimation and Operational Management
The business plan covers all aspects from before the business operates to post-production. If in the previous point we focused on business foundations to survive in competition, now is the time to calculate the required capital.
When you already have a mature business plan like the four previous steps, don’t forget to calculate the estimated capital required. If over budget, then a few changes must be made.
Examples such as when choosing to produce themselves or use external services. Don’t forget to calculate the opportunity cost and thoroughly compare all options to minimize losses.
Do not insist on looking for additional capital without taking into account the company’s profit and loss. Avoid debt or operating expenses that exceed income.
In the early days, your business should be able to achieve goals by generating profits. That way there will be additional capital for development according to plan.
Furthermore, apply operational management such as establishing standard operational procedures , which are able to provide maximum performance. Both from human resources, raw materials, production processes to distribution.
The quality of human resources will affect the work effectiveness of both the production and distribution processes. Therefore, good human resource management is needed . Meanwhile, raw materials affect the quality of the products produced.
The distribution process up to the consumer can be monitored easily through the distribution application.
If you have carried out the five steps above, then the business is ready to start running. But make sure you really understand the planning steps above.
That way it will be easier to survive in the midst of business competition and achieve profits according to your business goals. Business development is also easier to realize because everything has been carefully planned.
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Planning in a business will help entrepreneurs to be able to produce products that are accepted by society. Besides that, it can also survive in the midst of challenging business competition.
With planning, all forms of problems will be more easily solved. Risks can also be minimized and the resulting profits can be increased.
So, always do business planning carefully before you start a new business. Because competitors will always try to find loopholes to be superior and only with planning can you anticipate that.