When I start mentoring a new VA, the first thing we talk about is the business plan.
I am never surprised to hear that someone doesn’t have their business plan done. So many VAs just start their business by looking for clients and hoping to sign them.
Writing a business plan is an essential part of any small business. It helps you to clarify everything about your business, and if you don’t have one yet you should look at sitting down and just doing it.
A business plan will help you:
- plan what you are going to do
- realize how you are going to do it
- set goals and achieve them
You don’t have to put together a complex business plan – especially if it’s your first time – but by putting pen to paper and actually writing things down, you will find clarity about what your business looks like, and you will be able to make adjustments where necessary – and your strategy for everything you do will become easier, because you have the plan to back up your decisions.
A simple business plan should include: Executive Summary, Business Overview, Products and Services, Market and Sales Analysis, Management Plan, Competitive Analysis, Financial Plan
Executive Summary: this is your front page – and it summarizes the other parts of your plan into concise language. It’s typically written last, after the other pieces are complete. Try to use one to two clear sentences to summarize each section of your business plan here.
Business Overview: detail everything about your business setup – how it’s organized, where you are located, things like legal structure and your mission statement. This is a detailed description of how your business is set up and generally what your offer to your clients.
Products and Services: this is a comprehensive view of every service you offer and how you have it set up in your business. So, what you charge for the service, if you have any overhead or expenses, setup costs, that type of thing. Be as detailed as possible here, and make sure you include everything. You also need to detail your features and benefits for each service in this section. It will go a long way to show you where your strengths are, and where you may need to make some changes.
Market and Sales Analysis: this section expands on the Products and Services section, and details who you are going to be marketing and selling to. You need to indicate who you are going to market to and where you are going to find them. Be sure to include your promotional strategy and budget in this section.
Management Plan: you want to be clear about who is working with you in your business, and how their help affects you – whether that’s financial impact or through support or professional services. Indicate who is responsible for what, and how everything fits together. Policies are a good idea for all partners, especially if there are expenses involved.
Competitive Analysis: a most often avoided section, in my experience. You need to find out who your actual competition is in your field, and determine what makes you different from them – in what ways are you better? In what ways are they better, and how can you surpass that? Knowing your competition doesn’t have to be competitive in nature – but you do need to look at who is doing things right and how you can strive to plan for success in your business.
Financial Plan: ah, the money. Here’s the part that means so much. Take your products and services and really do the math. Figure out how many clients you need, how much revenue you need, how much your expenses will be – use the information in the other sections of your business plan to really figure this out. It will make or break your success (and it’s often very eye opening!).
By setting up a simple business plan, you will often uncover things that you haven’t thought about – and it’s a good way to be sure you are covering all the bases regarding your business strategies.
Set it up, and refer to it often. Change it as you need to keep it current. It’s an invaluable tool for any successful business owner.
You can find many business plan templates on the Internet – just pick one and get started! Or, if you want support getting your business plan in place, email me at tracey@yourvamentor.com. I’d be happy to talk with you about how I can help!
I’d love to hear your comments on this article!