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4 Things You Should Consider About Business Plans

Ms. Bels
Business & Finance, Feature, The Connect, The Receipt

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As an entrepreneur or partner in a start-up company, it is highly suggested that you develop a business plan.  This plan is like the Bible for your business. In it details the overall snapshot of your company: it’s leaders, mission, marketing plan, financial outlook, etc. All of these things are contained in the business plan and are often revised as time goes on.

 

While only a few people take a stab at drafting their own business plan document, there are many individuals who hire a consultant. When hiring consultants, however, it can become costly. Additionally, some business owners believe not taking part in the writing process may leave the owner lost and unaware of key components about his or her business.

 

The author of the business plan software Business Plan Pro, offered some great advice on business plan development.

 

So here is my advice about hiring a business plan writer, consultant or coach:

  • The best business plan is one you do yourself. Hiring out is threatened by the fact that good business plans in real business use last a few weeks at best. Business planning is about regular review and revision.

  • Consider hiring somebody from the outside only if you have the budget for it. It is conceivable that you don’t want to do it yourself and your time is better applied to other business functions. Cheap business plan writing strikes me as about as good an idea as cheap surgery, cheap dentistry, or discount sushi.

  • If you do hire somebody, look for a relationship more like coaching than consulting. Hire somebody who shares expertise and experience, makes suggestions, but doesn’t do the task so you don’t have to.

  • Don’t believe ever that having a business plan written is any good for more than a few short weeks. Business plans get old and useless very quickly. If you don’t have one you can keep alive, then you don’t have one at all.

 

The key is for business owners to know their company inside and out. This is very important when applying for small business loans, meetings with potential investors, and so on.