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Learn to: - Design a successful business plan
- Budget for expenses and predict sales
- Understand the opportunities for your business
- Turn your business plan into a reality
Plan for business success with this concise guide If you're starting your first business or looking to brush up your entrepreneurial skills,
Business Planning Essentials For Dummies gives you the key information you need to succeed -- from deciding what your business is really all about to building a long-term vision of where your company will go, and much more!
- Get your feet wet -- identify your strengths and let your plan take flight
- Separate yourself from the pack -- understand your competition and establish your competitive advantage
- Show me the money -- create a start-up budget, calculate costs and plan for expenses
- All about marketing -- define your target market, set sales goals and get a handle on customer service
- Put your plan on paper -- plug in the financials and set milestones for every step of the way
Open the book and find: - How to analyse competitor and industry trends
- Advice on setting business goals
- Help with understanding taxes and loans
- Ways to figure out prices and forecast sales
- Guidance on different financial reports
- Questions to ask before signing off on your plan
- Links to downloadable online resources
List of contents
Introduction 1
Chapter 1: Letting Your Plan Take Flight 7
Chapter 2: Figuring Out What's So Special about You 19
Chapter 3: Sizing Up the Competition 27
Chapter 4: Spotting Opportunities, Dodging Threats 39
Chapter 5: Separating Yourself from Your Business 49
Chapter 6: Budgeting for Start-Up Expenses 65
Chapter 7: Figuring Out Prices and Predicting Sales 77
Chapter 8: Calculating Costs and Gross Profit 91
Chapter 9: Planning for Expenses 107
Chapter 10: Assembling Your Profit & Loss Projection 119
Chapter 11: Developing a Strong Marketing Plan 133
Chapter 12: Pulling Together Your Written Plan 147
Chapter 13: Ten (Almost!) Questions to Ask before You're Done 161
Index 167
About the author
Veechi Curtis is a qualified accountant and consultant who specialises in teaching small businesses about technology and finance. She is the author of several bestselling
For Dummies business titles.
Summary
All the basics you need to design a successful business plan Whether you're starting your first business or you're a serial entrepreneur, you know how important a good business plan is to your business's ultimate success. Bad or non-existent business plans are a primary cause of business failure.
