The Business Builder

New Year's Resolution - a Business Plan!

by Linda Rink, President of RINK Consulting

It's the beginning of January, and I just finished writing my business plan for 2009. I closed out the 2008 budget and developed my 2009 budget. As a consultant, my business is fairly uncomplicated, so why do I do this?

Many people - even companies -- think they don't need a plan, or perhaps feel overwhelmed by the prospect of sitting down and developing it. They are doing just fine without one, thank you! Or -- the plan is in their head, why write it down?

Here are three important reasons to have a written annual plan:

Do you have a short-term and long-term vision for your business? Is it articulated in writing? If not, then how are you going to focus your efforts throughout the year to make it happen?
We all have limited resources. You want to spend your time and energy where you get the biggest return - and that takes some thought and planning. I am not saying, don't take advantage of opportunities as they happen throughout the year. But always have a benchmark (i.e., your business plan) by which to assess them.
How do you judge success? If you don't have a plan, how do you know if you had a successful year?

You may be surprised to hear that a business plan need not be lengthy or complicated. A short, focused plan is better than none at all.

These 6 action steps will give you a basic plan:

Write down a description of your business. (This can be similar to your elevator speech.) This is what you're all about, so keep it in mind throughout the year to help you focus.

Write down your goals for the next year. They should be a mix of financial and strategic goals. Some examples are:
- Grow revenues by xx%.
- Increase client base by xx%.
- Grow profitability by xx%.
- Diversify into at least one new area. (e.g., new target group of customers)
- Add one or more new services to offer customers.
- Take one educational seminar/attend a professional conference to update
Review where your marketing and administrative money was spent the previous year. Are you satisfied with the results? Where was your money best spent?
Review your revenue sources / client list from the previous year. Which ones were most profitable? Most aligned with your goals for the business?

Repeat for next year the activities you are happy with; set aside budget dollars accordingly.
How do you want to grow in 2009? (Refer back to your list of goals.) What will you do to get there?

Formulate a game plan for doing your homework (e.g. research), and set a deadline for completion.
Set aside budget dollars to fund both the research and later marketing tactics.

Note that this is not a full-fledged business plan. It is not suitable, for example, for presentation to potential investors. Rather, it is a "bare bones" plan for those of you who don't normally operate from a plan.

I promise you, just doing this written exercise will give you value: clarity, focus, hopefully some energy and enthusiasm going into 2009. These days, we all can use that, agreed?

So if you don't have a Business Plan, add this task to your New Year's Resolutions!