RESEARCH COMPONENT—THE BUSINESS PLAN
- Use correct, formal English; avoid copying from outside sources.
- Minimum length = 1,500 words (yes, this is short for a business plan).
- Follow the textbook guidance, but you are quite free to be creative.
- Consider who (in real life) might actually read this.
- Write it as a planning guide, to keep yourself on track.
- Write it in a way to convince someone to loan you money.
The goal of a Business Plan Part is to write a specified segment of the business plan in paragraph form and then get feedback from your fellow classmates about how to improve it.
You may then use that feedback in your final draft, as part of your actual Business Plan. Note that your Business Plan will include more information than these three parts, taken together. Nevertheless, the three parts will add important material and will help you complete the full plan in good form.
Business Plan Part 1(Due on January 23) : Business Mission.
- Define your business, state its mission, and explain its general strategy.
- For strategy, consider the elements of the focused firm (cf. the posted Strategy Slides).
(Define your business, state its mission, and explain its general strategy. See the posted outline of this part under Course Materials. For strategy, the handout provides simple guidance, but refer to the Strategy Slides under Course Materials for deeper insights into the nature of the focused firm and the other generic strategies. The minimum length for this assignment is quite short (250 words), but write as much as seems to be necessary to convey your idea accurately. There is no penalty for writing a lot. You are the entrepreneur in this scenario, after all. You need to be free with your ideas. You are also free to change your mind about your idea along the way.)
Business Plan Part 2 ( Due on ): Financial Strategy.
- Refer to the textbook for different ways to acquire capital to run the business.
- Consider how your financing plan is likely to change as your business grows.
Business Plan Part 3 (Due on ): Marketing Strategy.
- Determine how you will inform your target market about your product or service. • Consider marketing channels, legitimacy, and how your price fits your strategy.
Use formal language. Consider that this will become a part of an actual Business Plan, which potential investors may read. If you have personal experience in a relevant area (e.g., finance), be sure to mention it. Demonstrate your talent. Then reply to two other students’ commentaries.
Standards
1.There is no need to cite or quote sources in this kind of commentary.
- Above all, ensure that your writing is unique—avoid borrowing verbiage from outside sources.
- Minimum length = 250 words. No minimum for replies, but always add informative value.
ENTREPRENEURSHIP Business Plan Part I:
Business Mission
The first facet of a business that requires definition is the business itself. For the entrepreneur, this should be a straightforward solution to some kind of problem. The solution itself may sometimes entail a degree of complexity, but it should be easy to communicate the solution to others.
Define the business broadly enough to be resilient to changes in the industry landscape. Buggy whip manufacturers, as the famous example goes, have all gone out of business, but suppliers of accessories for transportation remain a steady feature of the industrial landscape.
Define the business broadly. This will form part of your mission statement.
Be ready to define the core product or service more narrowly, as this may have to mutate over time. Your core product or service must appeal to your core market, which you will likewise define narrowly. Thus, a broad business definition and a narrow product or service definition make for a good entrepreneurial idea.
Define the core product or service narrowly. This will inform how to define your market.
Mission Statement
Use your mission statement to achieve focus, while making it clear and actionable to enable partners and employees to support it with their own actions. Write your mission statement as one sentence (in fact, as one sentence fragment, starting with the particle to). Include three parts:
- What is your product or service? This is the business, not the actual core product or service. To provide, support, supply, make available, offer, equip… (reserve generic strategy for #2)
- For whom will you provide the product or service? What is your customer’s motivation? [Category:] …for professionals, families, young people, workers, busy people, achievers… [Motivation:] …who need, want, expect, deserve, desire, prefer, require, could benefit from… Generic strategies (select focused firm, plus cost leader or differentiator—but not both): [Focused firm:] …friendliness, a personal touch, atmosphere, proximity (use your imagination!) [Cost leader:] …value, one-stop shopping, savings, selection, economy, competitive prices… [Differentiator:] …quality, reliability, durability, best materials, authenticity, refinement…
- How do you provide the product or service? What channels or configuration will you use? …by locating near the customer, through third-party vendors, through online sales…
Strategy
Working from the strategy reference in your mission statement, explain why you chose it and how you think it will fit #3. Remember never to mix cost leadership and differentiation elements together. You are a focused firm if you are small, but the choice of the cost leadership or differentiation element is up to you.
SOME USEFUL WEBSITES FOR THIS COURSE
US Small Business Administration …………………………………………………………………………. sba.gov Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE) …………………………………………………………. score.org National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) …………………………………………………. nfib.com
…………………….Answer Preview……………………
Part 1: 346 words
Part 1
Mission, Goals and Objectives
Any business needs to have a mission and a vision statement as well as objectives to achieve. These are the guiding principles of the business. Mission and Vision statements are normally similar however a mission statement expounds on the vision statement.
The Mission Statement
Here at BidPro, we aspire to be the best online based marketing services provider in the market, by providing an efficient, reliable and cost effective channels of selling your goods and services in safe and easy
Part 2: 531 words
Part 2
Financial Strategy
Capital/ Investment Needs
We project with the revenue estimates that we will not require any other financial infusion of funds to aid in the running of this business. As time and revenues increase we anticipate the lowering of some of our operating costs creating potential higher profits. However, during start up, we will each contribute $15,000 each to make a total paid up capital of $30,000. The business will also secure a bank loan of $ 10,000
Part 3: 800 words
Part 3
MARKET STRATEGY
BidPro will be coiled under the four tier marketing mix of pricing, packaging, place and promotion in order to have an easy marketing strategy into new markets as well as manage the competitiveness of the current markets. The four Ps strategies are described as the following.
Pricing
This is how much money the service will earn or will be sold for. Bid pro will be allowing people to market their….