Step 1) Have a VISION for your Small Business. What exactly do you want to do? What is the specific niche or demographic do you want to go after? The vision should be focused, clear, concise, and very specific. Without a clear vision for your small business, you’ll be shooting hither and thither. You need to spend a good deal of time and deep thought creating a clear vision for your small business. Large businesses–and if you become a large business–have the luxury of marketing themselves to many demographics. Think of how many demographics Coca Cola markets to. You, on the other hand, as a small business owner, need to go after one or two very specific niches in order to be successful. That brings us to step 2.

Step 2) Create MONTHLY FINANCIAL OBJECTIVES. How much money do you need to make in January? in February? In all subsequent months of the year in order to make your investment worth your while? These need to be realistic financial objectives based upon marketing objectives. Have a goal with each marketing strategy you undertake and track your goals to see if they come to fruition. If not, modify the means of achieving the goals. Don’t be a pie-in-the-sky dreamer who thinks that their 15 flyers in local grocery stores is going to bring in $10,000 in revenue in the month of December for example. Entrepreneurialism is for realists–not idealists. That brings us to step 3.

Step 3) Detail your MONTHLY EXPENSES. What will your expenses be in January? in February? in all subsequent months of the year? These expenses needs to be as detailed and as accurate as possible. Set up different categories and subcategories for each expense. That brings us to step 4.

Step 4) Be ACCOUNTABLE to your business plan for the whole year, especially to your monthly and yearly revenue as well as your expenses. Modifying your marketing strategy is understandable if it’s not hitting your goals after 3 months; however, your yearly financial goals need to remain consistent. We’re in small business to provide a good service and make a good living so, by all means, don’t sacrifice one for the other.

I’m a professional business book how to writer. I meet with a lot of professionals in different industries to research and write the how to books. One thing remains the same: all owners advise writing and keeping to business plans. Business plans keep you grounded and accountable, enough said.

One of the biggest myths of entrepreneurship is that there is a one-size-fits-all structure for writing a business plan. Business plan books and software may provide you with a formalized structure, but it’s up to you to make heads-or-tails of which of those aspects apply to your business. Do you need to fill out all of the details? What if you don’t know the answers or if many sections don’t seem to apply to your business?

Business Planning Fundamentals

If you aren’t looking for investors or funding, consider writing up an informal business plan and modifying it as you go. When you first start out, you will need to do some planning to evaluate whether you have a solid business ideal that will become profitable in the near future. Some of the questions to ask include:

Is there a market for your products and services? Which types of customers and clients are most likely to buy what your company offers? How will you differentiate your company from your competitors? Why should prospects do business with you over all other options out there? How much revenue can you bring in next month, in six months, in a year? What are your startup costs? What are your initial monthly expenses? Do you have or can you get the appropriate resources (money, technology, equipment, expertise) to start your business? Will you need to hire partners, employees, vendors, or contractors to help you? What will their job functions be? Who will be responsible for day-to-day business tasks?

Why You Need a Written Business Plan

If you are starting a sole proprietorship, initially, you will handle everything yourself. It’s up to you to keep track of all the details, deadlines, and financials so your company can thrive, so having a written business plan that includes each of those sections can help you keep everything organized.

If you find yourself saying, “But I’m too busy getting things done to plan,” then it’s time to put some time aside to sit down and create a plan. If you are always putting out day-to-day fires and dealing with emergencies, you can easily lose focus on the big picture – where you want your company to be long-term. A plan will keep you moving in the right direction, help you focus on the most important tasks that make the biggest impact on your business, and get you to your destination much faster.

As your business grows and evolves, things can become more complicated. If you hire employees or need to apply for a business loan, you will need to share your business information with outsiders who don’t know the company as well as you do. At that point, you may find it helpful to create a more formal document that anyone can pick up and understand what your company does and how well it is doing. You will probably need to expand your business plan to include information such as an analysis of the market, industry and your financial projections and descriptions of your company, management team, and operation logistics.

However, don’t fall into the mindset that you need a completed, formal business plan before you start your business. The only time a business plan is complete is when the company is dead. Your business plan should be a living document that grows with you, so start with what you need and build it out as you need it.

Owning a business today means a life full of planning-planning for the products you are going to carry, planning the marketing programs you are going to run-planning the store hours and staffing, but do you plan for the biggest thing of all?

What type of sales planning do you do for your business? Do you have a sales plan that everyone in the store knows about and is geared up to achieve?

If you do not plan, the question begs, why do you not plan for your store?

In today’s market, there are sophisticated sales planning tools catering to retailers of every size, shape and product category. While these high tech systems can be expensive, the paybacks that retailers see more than cover the cost of the software. The slightest shift to change a sales plan based on actual results can lead to millions of dollars in inventory savings and staffing savings.

Many large retailers today know that a lack of planning can cost much more than just lost profits–it can lead to a lack of competitive advantage and a loss of market share.

Today’s independent retailers are slower to understand this same phenomenon. The results are proven by turnover statistics and increased profits alike—small independent retailers can achieve the same type of rewards- with just as big a percentage of savings to the bottom line by starting with a much smaller and simpler planning process.

The key is to get started and to put down in some way- a plan by day, by month, and total it to a year plan for the store–

So why plan? Whether you are a big store with a planning system, or a small store with a piece of column filled paper, by planning the sales you wish to achieve, you will do the following:

o Allow for you, as a business owner, to sit back and review the strategic plans and goals for your store. This will have both short term and long term positive effects.

o Set up a system built to achieve your monthly expenses and cash flow requirements.

o Create an ongoing business tool that can be used to help effectively plan inventory levels for the store on monthly basis.

o Set up an ongoing communication tool for your sales associates to understand the store sales goals and create a sense of team responsibility to achieve the results

o Set up an objective process for employees to be reviewed and evaluated

The list above are just SOME of the reasons to start sales planning for your business. Whatever your reasons, whatever your plans for your business are, start planning today to maximize the sales and profits your business can have!