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Hub You - Developing a Solid Business Plan - Part II
Betwixt and Between - Staying Put or Movin' On
It’s fun to imagine dramatic change to your career where everything is different and exciting. A bigger challenge may be to alter your job situation right where you are. To consider whether to stay in your current role, reposition at your company, or move on to a new job, here are the points to consider:Stay Where You Are* Because your current job isn’t a negative on all fronts, assess what is working and what’s not. Take a short period of time to do this—a weekend might be enough, but don’t short-change yourself during this thoughtful writing process. Gauge how important your concerns are. Certain complaints, like a difficult boss, though commonly the #1 reason people change jobs, can change with help from a counselor or coach. If t
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It’s fun to imagine dramatic change to your career where everything is different and exciting. A bigger challenge may be to alter your job situation right where you are. To consider whether to stay in your current role, reposition at your company, or move on to a new job, here are the points to consider:Stay Where You Are* Because your current job isn’t a negative on all fronts, assess what is working and what’s not. Take a short period of time to do this—a weekend might be enough, but don’t short-change yourself during this thoughtful writing process. Gauge how important your concerns are. Certain complaints, like a difficult boss, though commonly the #1 reason people change jobs, can change with help from a counselor or coach. If t
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like? The Secret to 100% Success With Your Marketing
There’s a secret to marketing, which is so simple, yet so effective once you learn it and apply it, you’ll be amazed at the great results you can produce. This secret will prevent you from failing with your marketing pieces.Before I go on, lets start with establishing common ground to begin with.My definition of marketing is… communicating with potential customers in emotionally beneficial terms.To me, the medium or method of marketing communication doesn’t matter. You can use this principle I am about to reveal to you with direct mail, newspaper advertising, website marketing, TV advertising, radio or brochures.Here’s the secret… Find out exactly what people want to buy (emotionally) then offer it to them, with their emotion
In Part I we addressed the writing of your retail business plan, including describing and delineating specific areas relating to the creation and implementation of your storefront business. In this article, we'll consider a basic outline for your document.
The most important aspect of any business plan is that it's clearly written and organized. Although you will be asked questions regarding your venture, they should not be queries based on anything that is unclear or confusing in the document. As an example, if you believe you've defined your potential clientele and a few people review the plan and a majority of them ask you who you've determined will be your customer base, then you probably want to rewrite that section of your plan.
Questions related to your business plan should be based on interest in the project and not confusion over the document. Before presenting your plan to a potential financial source, you should have three people, whose judgment you trust and who will provide you with feedback, read it.
This plan is a sales document that you will need to know inside out and be prepared to present, expand upon and defend. Here are some of the essential categories that you'll want to include in your plan.
Introduction:
- Describe your business by defining the concept of your venture and the purpose of your company.
- Does your establishment/business have a catchphrase?
- Describe the image of your business.
- Delineate the type of business you'll be creating—partnership, sole trader, limited partnership, co-operative, etc.
- Present the objectives of your retail establishment.
Product:
- Define exactly what you will be selling and why.
- Compare your product to competitor's goods and explain what sets it apart from similar wares.
- Additionally, address where it fits in the marketplace—high-end and expensive, moderately priced, or inexpensive? Will there be a range of products in terms of pricing?
The Market:
- Describe your potential customer base.
- Is there potential for continued growth in this segment of the population?
- Why would they want to buy your goods?
- Discuss potential competition and how you will contend with it.
- In what way will the city, community and location be conducive to the success of your business?
Marketing Plan:
- Consider your product and what aspects make it attractive to customers.
- How will you draw customers to your establishment?
- Will you offer special promotions?
- How will you focus your marketing to get the most value from the money spend?
- What types of media will you utilize?
Personnel:
- How many people will you need to hire in order to successfully run your business?
- Define each if their jobs in relationship to the running of the business.
- How many hours will your employees work? Will you be using full-time, part-time or both types of employees?
- Do your employees need to be experts in the product and will they need prior sales experience?
Operation:
- This is where you specifically describe how your business will function.
- Include storefront and behind the scenes operations.
- A daily, weekly and monthly schedule describing important operational elements is helpful.
- Schedules might include maintenance, restocking of inventory, billing cycles, display development and changeover, etc.
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like? eBiz Blitz - Business-in-a-Site Dynamics for Real Folks
If you build it they will come…Or will they?With technology being what it is, they will come if you build it right. But they might not stick around long enough to make your business worth the effort. So what do you do with a website that isn’t accomplishing anything?You make your website work with effective marketing techniques and ploys, and you make your website work from the inside out with valuable content, services, and products that REAL people such as yourself can use. Forget the gimmicks and groveling, just put up a site that says what you want it to say and get the job done from the beginning with effective marketing that brands your business successful.1. Marketing your product effectively means getting your name ouould be based on interest in the project and not confusion over the document. Before presenting your plan to a potential financial source, you should have three people, whose judgment you trust and who will provide you with feedback, read it.This plan is a sales document that you will need to know inside out and be prepared to present, expand upon and defend. Here are some of the essential categories that you'll want to include in your plan.
Introduction:
- Describe your business by defining the concept of your venture and the purpose of your company.
- Does your establishment/business have a catchphrase?
- Describe the image of your business.
- Delineate the type of business you'll be creating—partnership, sole trader, limited partnership, co-operative, etc.
- Present the objectives of your retail establishment.
Product:
- Define exactly what you will be selling and why.
- Compare your product to competitor's goods and explain what sets it apart from similar wares.
- Additionally, address where it fits in the marketplace—high-end and expensive, moderately priced, or inexpensive? Will there be a range of products in terms of pricing?
The Market:
- Describe your potential customer base.
- Is there potential for continued growth in this segment of the population?
- Why would they want to buy your goods?
- Discuss potential competition and how you will contend with it.
- In what way will the city, community and location be conducive to the success of your business?
Marketing Plan:
- Consider your product and what aspects make it attractive to customers.
- How will you draw customers to your establishment?
- Will you offer special promotions?
- How will you focus your marketing to get the most value from the money spend?
- What types of media will you utilize?
Personnel:
- How many people will you need to hire in order to successfully run your business?
- Define each if their jobs in relationship to the running of the business.
- How many hours will your employees work? Will you be using full-time, part-time or both types of employees?
- Do your employees need to be experts in the product and will they need prior sales experience?
Operation:
- This is where you specifically describe how your business will function.
- Include storefront and behind the scenes operations.
- A daily, weekly and monthly schedule describing important operational elements is helpful.
- Schedules might include maintenance, restocking of inventory, billing cycles, display development and changeover, etc.
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like? Make Every Call Count
After years of coaching sales and business people in a wide variety of industries, there is one thing that stands out as an important differentiating factor between those that have average success and those that consistently soar. It is not enough to go on appointments, send out fancy packets and pass your card around. You have to be willing to become masterful at using the phone. Phone mastery is an important business skill like any other. No matter how good you already are you can always improve. Review these "quick tips" for making every call count and next time you make some calls you will be more successful.Psyche Yourself Up Do not simply locate the masterful the number and begin to dial. Visualize the result you waour retail establishment.
Product:
- Define exactly what you will be selling and why.
- Compare your product to competitor's goods and explain what sets it apart from similar wares.
- Additionally, address where it fits in the marketplace—high-end and expensive, moderately priced, or inexpensive? Will there be a range of products in terms of pricing?
The Market:
- Describe your potential customer base.
- Is there potential for continued growth in this segment of the population?
- Why would they want to buy your goods?
- Discuss potential competition and how you will contend with it.
- In what way will the city, community and location be conducive to the success of your business?
Marketing Plan:
- Consider your product and what aspects make it attractive to customers.
- How will you draw customers to your establishment?
- Will you offer special promotions?
- How will you focus your marketing to get the most value from the money spend?
- What types of media will you utilize?
Personnel:
- How many people will you need to hire in order to successfully run your business?
- Define each if their jobs in relationship to the running of the business.
- How many hours will your employees work? Will you be using full-time, part-time or both types of employees?
- Do your employees need to be experts in the product and will they need prior sales experience?
Operation:
- This is where you specifically describe how your business will function.
- Include storefront and behind the scenes operations.
- A daily, weekly and monthly schedule describing important operational elements is helpful.
- Schedules might include maintenance, restocking of inventory, billing cycles, display development and changeover, etc.
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like? Job Search Tools You Must Have
Before you begin your job search, you should assemble the right tools.Below is the complete and ideal package of job search tools. If you have the funds for the full meal equipment deal, here's the equipment and supplies you'll need:* A computer – it doesn't have to be fast* Word Processing Software - Microsoft Word is the most universally accepted* Spreadsheet Software - To better track your job search activities* A printer – ink jet is fine, laser is better* An Internet connection - high speed is best (you want to find a job fast, don't you?)* Good, heavy stationary - for your resume ( 25 pound bond paper is best)* Good, heavy envelopes – don't put your expensive looking resume in a ch your product and what aspects make it attractive to customers. - How will you draw customers to your establishment?
- Will you offer special promotions?
- How will you focus your marketing to get the most value from the money spend?
- What types of media will you utilize?
Personnel:
- How many people will you need to hire in order to successfully run your business?
- Define each if their jobs in relationship to the running of the business.
- How many hours will your employees work? Will you be using full-time, part-time or both types of employees?
- Do your employees need to be experts in the product and will they need prior sales experience?
Operation:
- This is where you specifically describe how your business will function.
- Include storefront and behind the scenes operations.
- A daily, weekly and monthly schedule describing important operational elements is helpful.
- Schedules might include maintenance, restocking of inventory, billing cycles, display development and changeover, etc.
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like? Can Your PR Do This?
Can your PR do something positive about the behaviors of those outside audiences that most affect your business, non-profit or association?Can your PR deliver external stakeholder behavior change -- the kind that leads directly to achieving your managerial objectives?Can your PR persuade those important outside folks to your way of thinking, then move them to take actions that help your department, division or subsidiary succeed?Or does the money you spend on public relations pretty much buy personnel mentions in the newspaper and product plugs on radio talk shows?If you want the real thing - the public relations performance described above - start with this reality: people act on their own perception of the/li> - Include storefront and behind the scenes operations.
- A daily, weekly and monthly schedule describing important operational elements is helpful.
- Schedules might include maintenance, restocking of inventory, billing cycles, display development and changeover, etc.
Customer Relations:
- What is your philosophy regarding your customers?
- How will you handle exchanges, customer complaints and returns?
- Will you offer some sort of discount or customer rewards program?
Premises:
- Where is your store located and how will people get to it?
- Is parking available, is the storefront visible and can it be easily found?
- Does it need to be renovated or upgraded?
- Stylistically, what will the outside and inside look like?
- Will it be a pleasant place to shop? In what way?
- Is there room for expansion?
- Is storage available for inventory?
Financial Outline:
- Key financial facts should be presented before going into detail.
- Forecast of Profit and Loss.
- Cash Flow Forecast for you business.
- Describe the Break-Even point for your company.
Summary of Content:
- Use this section to bring the focus back on your specific business.
- Reiterate the value of your product.
- Define once again, in a few words, the image of your company.
- Create a final, positive picture of your venture and its relationship to the community, your customers and the other businesses.
Appendix:
- Include CVs.
- Details relating to the premises.
- Marketing examples, such as ads, brochures and photographs.
- Flow charts, diagrams, examples of the product.
- Anything else that will provide substance to your presentation.
This thumbnail sketch of a retail business plan can serve as a basic template for your use. However, be mindful that this article in no way presents a complete picture of a successful plan. As an example, in order to develop a useful plan, you'll need to know how to determine Profit-Loss, Break-Even Point and Cash Flow. We have not addressed those specific exercises in this piece. Additionally, plans vary according to the specific needs and requirements of each business.
As you prepare this document be sure to do your research and compile your facts carefully. Your business plan is the written foundation for what you hope will lead to your success in the highly competitive world of retail.
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