3 Things Your Business Plan Must Have
Businesses of every type, including event industry entrepreneurs, need a business plan. Don’t think you can skip by on this important step because you offer a service instead of a physical product. Every business can benefit from a business plan.
First Step, Focus.
When you create a business plan it’s important to focus on the reasons for the business: Who do you want to serve? What do you want to provide? When do you want to start? Where will you set up shop? Why do you want to start such an endeavor? How will you meld all these things together to create a prosperous business?
These are the primary reasons why you’re going into business and they should always be at the forefront of your mind when making decisions.
Something else to focus on is your big dream or your Big Hairy Audacious Goal (BHAG). How much money do you want to make over the next 5 years? Do you want to sell multiple products or have several locations? Everyone’s big dream will be different but you should write it down as part of the plan.
Resource Recommendation for this step in Module 1: Reconnect with Your Why of the EventPreneur Roadmap.
Second Step, A Plan.
Think of your business plan as a mountain. Your mission statement is at the base of the mountain while your big dream is at the peak. Everything in between is what you need to plan and these steps should also be incorporated into a business plan.
What products do you want to create? How often do you want to produce a product? How can you implement some passive income or affiliate income into your business? Are there any speaking engagements or online summit opportunities that will expand your reach and your followers? What can you add to your sales funnel for those not yet ready to commit to coaching?
Resource recommendation for this step is Marketing Made Simple by Donald Miller.
Third Step, Action Steps.
This is where your planning steps are broken down into smaller, actionable steps. Instead of just saying I want to write a book, break the process down further. How much time can you dedicate each day to writing? Do you want to self-publish or find a publisher? Will you need to hire an editor and someone to design the cover? These are actionable steps that can easily be crossed off your to do list once completed.
Don’t be thrown off here. We’re not saying to plan 5 years’ worth of action steps at one time. The idea is to plan 90days to a year at a time, keeping your focus in mind, so that the action steps become a pathway or a blueprint to your big dreams.
A great book recommendation to help you write your plan, consider Verne Harnish’s book Scaling Up. It’s a book that is on most entrepreneurs bookshelves!
