Small Business Coaching On Business Planning For "The Rest Of Us"

By Allison Babb

Business planning for small business owners is always a dreaded topic and always feels overwhelming or restrictive for entrepreneurs. As you may know, my focus as a small business coach is to the self-employed; primarily solo entrepreneurs and those with very small businesses.

That's where we need business planning "for the rest of us." There are a lot of books and instructions out there on business planning and it's often overkill for solo entrepreneurs. For the rest of us with solo businesses who are not seeking enormous startup loans, business planning can be kept to one page, and then you quickly move into action to get your business up and running.

For the rest of us, with home offices, zero employees and no plans to hire full time staff or purchase/lease a building any time soon, here are a few helpful planning tips to help you achieve your business goals:

TWO TIPS FOR BEGINNERS

Skillset: For beginners, do you have the talent to create the business you desire? That is, you should have some level of talent, skills and expertise in the business you are setting up. Define what that is so that it is crystal clear to you. If not, then I would recommend studying the industry and getting some expertise before you start a business.

Viability: For beginners, and for those who can't seem to get the business off the ground, there are several questions to ask yourself on whether the business you have chosen to start is a viable one.

Is someone else already doing this and making money in this area (if not you're an inventor vs a business owner and that's a totally different ballgame). Are people already paying money to have your type of product or service? Is it needed? How many potential customers are there? Can (or will) your target market pay the prices you charge? And there are other questions as well.

AND FOR THOSE ALREADY IN BUSINESS

And if you have already started a business, some areas to ensure your success are...

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WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR E-ZINE OR WEB SITE? You can, as long as you include this complete blurb with it: Allison Babb is an author, speaker and Small Business Coach to solo entrepreneurs. Allison publishes the "Small Business Success" weekly Ezine on how to create a steady stream of clients for your small business at: www.GreatSmallBusinessAdvice.com

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