A business plan is a road map for your company, showing you where it’s going, how it will get there, and what it needs to succeed. It contains all the information you need to begin operating a successful business. A good strategic business plan has five main components: vision, mission statement, goals to reach your vision, competition in the market and how you fit in with them, and strategy on how you’re going to achieve your goals. Let’s take a closer look at each one of these components so that when we start writing our own strategic plan, we’ll know exactly what goes into each section.
1. Vision
A vision is a picture of the future that you want to create. It should be an aspirational description of where your business will be in five years, as well as how it will look and feel. You must think long-term and make sure that your vision aligns with your organization’s purpose (and hopefully its mission too).
We offer two different types of strategic planning services: one for those who don’t have much time or budget for planning but still need some sort of guidance; the other for those who are ready for something more comprehensive.
2. Mission statement
- A mission statement defines the purpose of a company. It should be clear, concise, and succinct.
- When writing your mission statement, you should consider answering the following questions:
- What are we doing?
- Why are we doing it?
- Who are our customers?
- What business benefits do we provide to our customers?
3. Goals to reach your vision
Goals are what you want to achieve on your journey from where you are now to where you want to be. They should be measurable and achievable.
How do you know if a goal is achievable? It will take some thought and analysis, but it’s worth spending the time on this step when developing your business plan because if the goals aren’t achievable, then there’s little point in setting them in the first place!
What about time-bounding? Setting a timeframe for achieving goals helps ensure that you stay focused and don’t get distracted from what really matters: achieving results. For example, “I will increase sales by 10{9f22a6c9ed12e16e5983216e35523626546e516042fd2ddc7e378f3fecf7b312} within one year” or “I will expand into new territory within three years.”
4. Competition in the Market
Your competition is a critical aspect of your market analysis, and a good plan will include an assessment of their strengths and weaknesses and how you’ll be able to compete with them. This includes understanding not only who the competitors are but how they behave in the marketplace (for example, through pricing or product development).
It’s important that you understand how you fit into the competitive landscape; if there are no direct competitors, then it may be difficult for customers to see what makes you unique. Your strategic position should differentiate you from other competitors by addressing customer needs better than others do, offering additional value through superior customer service, or lowering prices. You should also consider how new entrants might impact your market share and whether there are any regulatory changes that could impact your business model (such as changing environmental regulations).
5. Achieve your goals
- Strategy. The strategy describes how you will achieve your goals and objectives. It’s the plan of action that provides direction and guidance to accomplish your vision. The strategy outlines how your company will achieve its vision, mission, and goals by providing:
- A clear sense of direction
- A framework for decision-making
- Guidelines for developing policies and procedures
Important parts of any business plan
A strategic plan is an important part of any business plan. It’s a roadmap that shows where you’re going and how you’ll get there. Goals, visions, and strategies are the three main components of a strategic plan, and they all have to be aligned with each other to ensure success.
Conclusion
In summary, we have talked about the five components of a strategic business plan and why they are important for every entrepreneur to have. The first step is always your vision and mission statement. Then you can think about your goals that will help you reach that vision or mission statement. Next comes the competition in the market and how you fit in here, as well as how we intend on achieving those goals through strategy (or any other approaches). Finally, it’s important to keep these guidelines in mind when developing plans so that they are successful.
