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What should be in your business plan?
Creating a business plan is a key part of starting any business venture. Even if you’ll never use it in this format for attracting investors and raising capital, it can be vital for helping all entrepreneurs to ask and think through essential questions.
Nowadays business plans are used as an internal roadmap for the execution of the company since pitch decks have taken over when it comes to fundraising required materials.
Don’t skip this part of the process. Though, do not let it become a distraction and slow you down from creating an actual business either.
There are many variations of business plans today. A few minutes on Google will provide plenty of free business plan template options.

Executive Summary
This is the most critical part of your business planning. If you never flesh out a full business plan, make sure you create a fantastic executive summary. This brings together all of the key elements of your plan and will often be the make or break document which decides whether commercial lenders or investors will have any interest in seeing the rest of your documentation or pursuing a relationship with you.

Company Description
This section provides a further overview of your company now.
Include:
· The company purpose, mission and vision
· Company formation information
· Who the founders are
· Location and geographical markets served or where you have a presence
· Current status and stage of business
· Any notable achievements so far

Products & Services
List what products and services your company has been formed to create. How are you solving the main problem and are serving the community with your business?
Include:
· Definition of the core product or service
· Development stage
· Screenshots or diagrams
· Current pricing
· Past test results
· Anticipated future products and services you hope to develop and roll out

Marketing Plan
This is another section which is an absolute must-have, even if you never develop a fully-fledged business plan in its entirety. This holds key information that all financiers and potential investors are going to want to know. Even if you hope to just get away with using a pitch deck to raise the capital you need.
This is also a vital guide for yourself as a founder, and for your growing team as to what needs to be done and how.
Every minute invested in this section can pay great dividends over the longer term.
Include:
· Competition and market research
· SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats)
· Target market research (total market size and total addressable market (TAM))
· Brand and product positioning
· Elevator pitches and tag-lines
· Target customer personas and profiles
· Results of any testing conducted so far
· Marketing channels to be used
· Marketing budget
· Estimates of cost per action (CPAs)

Operational Plan
This is your opportunity to organize and demonstrate your understanding of this industry and business.
Include:
· Facilities and space needed
· Technology needs
· Equipment needs
· Supply chain management
· Logistics and distribution plans
· Order and fulfillment processes
· Quality control checks
· Legal and accounting needs

Management & Organization
This section of your business plan will help you to identify your own needs, and demonstrate to investors and other licensing bodies and agencies that you have the team to get this job done. It basically shows your management and industry experience and who will do what.
Include:
· Founders and executive team
· Any owners and shareholders
· Board of directors
· Consultants and special advisors
· Key team members and department heads

Financial Plan
Provide an honest snapshot of where you are and where you reasonably hope to go, providing you secure the funding you need.
Include:
· Current balance sheet
· Past 2 years’ financials if applicable
· Financial projections for 12 months, and annually through year 5
· Break even analysis
· Cash flow projections
· Income and expenses
In this section you may also be including startup cost and capitalization requirements, or funding and loan requests.
Startup costs should be thorough, have some additional cushion built in, and focus on development of physical product or intellectual property and growth. Not what you want to pay yourself as a salary.
If fundraising, be sure to include a repayment schedule for any loans, use of funds, runway to follow up fundraising rounds, and the milestones you expect to achieve by then.

Appendices
Include all other information, references and required documentation here.
This will typically include:
· Articles of incorporation or registrations
· Resumes of founders and key team members
· Copies of insurances
· Licenses
· Trademarks and patent registrations
· Contracts
· Appraisals
· Deeper research data or links to references

Stay Flexible
Just like your first attempt at coding a website, practicing your pitch, or riding a bike, it’s not going to be perfect. Do your best. Get outside input from an expert. Just don’t wait until you think your business plan is perfectly polished and cannot possible go any further in depth. Otherwise, chances are you will have missed your window of opportunity by a long way.
It is also crucial to understand that nothing in this document is set in stone. Pretty much everything will absolutely change over time. Roles will change, marketing will change, financial projections will change, and your product and service menu can change.
Things change rapidly overnight and for this reason you need to adapt quickly to the market and change whatever is required.
This is a great guide and exercise. It’s a gateway to getting to the next step. Get it done, start taking action and stay flexible.

Summary
Creating a business plan remains a valuable part of launching any new business venture. Formats and business plan templates may have evolved, and new documents like pitch decks are becoming even more important.
Though without going through this process many entrepreneurs will find they have huge gaps in their ideas and may fall short when it comes to fielding questions from serious investors. Using this template you will cover most of the bases and will be able to take the next steps with confidence.

FOR MORE DEPTH AND INSIGHT REACH ME AT https://web./millionaireanonymous

Overview
I think running a billboard ad service is such a cool thing. Typically billboard advertising companies purchase or rent small lots of land to erect billboards that are used to display ads for their customers. Other types of outdoor billboard advertising include signage on public benches and buses. These businesses also buy billboards from other companies and resell the advertising space for a higher price. They perform a valuable community service by enabling property owners to earn income by leasing an unused portion of their land to provide advertising space for businesses.

Is this business right for me?
This is a great business for you if you enjoy making mutually beneficial connections between landowners and entrepreneurs. Billboard advertising business owners play an important role in increasing the visibility and success of businesses. Those who prefer to perform a wide variety of duties in a number of different work environments both indoor and outdoor, thrive exceptionally well in this business. However it requires that you have a keen eye for spotting points with present or future market value.

A typical day in my business.
• Meeting with business owners, real estate developers, graphic designers and advertisers
• Researching local zoning laws to determine the best potential sites
• Measuring land and billboard space
• Negotiating land use contracts and prices for advertising
• Overseeing the safe construction of regular and electronic billboards
• Conducting inspections, performing maintenance and making necessary repairs
• Bookkeeping and accounting

My target market.
Customers are business owners who want to increase public awareness of their goods, services, and locations. Clients may also be landowners seeking to make a profit by allowing advertising displays on their property by leasing a portion of it to your company.

How my business makes money.
A billboard advertising business makes money by selling outdoor advertising space on billboards, benches, or vehicles. Many also make money by selling their leases and permits to competitors for a profit. Prices can range from $300 (₦110000) to $10, 000 (₦3,650,000) or more, depending upon the location, the degree of visibility, and the amount of traffic it receives. Generally, the money you make from this is based on your city and the scale you wish to run at.

My business’ growth potential.
Billboard advertising is a growth industry and there are many franchise opportunities available. Some provide extensive training, mentoring and ongoing support.

Skills and experiences that will help me build a successful business.
• Communication and interpersonal skills for building strong business relationships and negotiating leasing contracts and advertising prices
• Accounting skills for budgeting, accounts receivable and accounts payable
• Computer skills for maintaining a website with information about your services and locations. There are classes available for learning these skills.
• Graphic design skills for creating customized billboard advertising for customers. These skills can be acquired through classes as well.

Costs involved in starting my business.
The cost of constructing a billboard can range from $500 (₦182,500) to $30,000 (₦10,950,000) which often requires financing from banks or, more often, an outdoor leasing company. In some states and cities, a license is required, the average cost of which is approximately $200 (₦70,000) per year maybe more or less. To find out the requirements of your city, you can inquire at the Internal Revenue Office. You’ll need to purchase zoning maps and a measuring device designed to measure long distances. A vehicle is also necessary for traveling to and from sites to gather measurements and perform regular maintenance.

Promoting & marketing my business.
One of the best ways to promote your billboard advertising business is by keeping abreast of new developments within the industry and the creative ways in which competitors are using them. Creating a blog on your website that features a profile of a different local business each month is a good way to demonstrate your knowledge of and dedication to the community. Advertisers love to take advantage of holidays to offer their customers great sales promotions and savings. Sending out pre-holiday promotion offers of your own is a good way to maintain consistent contact with existing customers as well as develop new business relationships.

How to keep customers coming back
When prospecting for new customers, it’s important to have a portfolio that illustrates your best work as well as statistics demonstrating the correlation between billboard advertising in a specific location and an increase in sales figures as a result. Creating a loyalty program that offers savings for long-term contracts is a great way to ensure a steady stream of income while you cultivate new prospects.

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Overview
Are you looking at opening up a clothing boutique? Well, A clothing boutique is generally much smaller than a regular clothing retailer, and it creates a more intimate environment. You attract customers who are looking for very specific styles and kinds of clothing with your boutique. Since many customers stick to their own styles, it is likely that satisfied customers will return to your business. It is important to form relationships with these regular customers, as their recommendations and satisfaction can contribute to your boutique's success.

Is this business right for me?
This is a business best suited for those with a real passion for what they sell. Fashionable individuals are a natural fit to help showcase the very products that they sell, while those with a formal education or background in business may experience success more swiftly. And because the job involves selling clothes to those who may be overly critical of their appearance, being a "people person" is a real asset.

A typical day in my business.
Many of the day-to-day activities at a clothing boutique involve interacting with customers. This ranges from greeting them, making small talk, answering their questions, and generally guiding them to clothing and styles that are well-suited for that customer. Other activities involve the clothing itself, such as managing stock, displaying everything in an attractive way, storing and receiving any clothing deliveries, and making sure everything displayed has a price tag. Other activities may include designing and mounting attractive displays and helping to ensure the security of your store.

My target market.
In some ways, one of the most preferred customers is the kind who is indecisive. As opposed to the customers who say they are "just looking" and want to be left alone, the undecided customers are willing to make a purchase but are unsure what it should be. By being genuine and honestly helpful, you can simultaneously secure a sale and a loyal customer relationship. Similarly, so long as they don't distract you from other customers, chatty customers are good because they already feel as if they have a relationship with you. This will promote regular visits, and they are more likely to trust your advice when you recommend a particular outfit.

How my business makes money.
On the most basic level, a clothing boutique makes money by selling clothing and other goods. This involves buying clothes as cheaply as possible and then marking the price up a certain amount in order to create your profit margin. This may mean scouring online sales for great deals or possibly partnering with other boutiques or businesses to order certain items in bulk. However, you may want to be wary of doing this, because selling relatively unique and hard-to-find items is one of the chief attractions of a clothing boutique.

My business’ growth potential.
Overall, the growth potential for a clothing boutique is strong. Recent research indicates that clothes sales in the United States were up by seven percent in 2016. More interestingly, sales of women's plus-sized clothing rose by 17 percent. This would indicate there is great growth potential for smaller clothing boutiques that cater to demographics that are often overlooked by major retailers.

Skills and experiences that will help me build a successful business.
Some of the skills that will help you build your clothing boutique include being organized and self-motivated. You must be comfortable talking with strangers and initiating a friendly relationship with them. The job revolves around sales and marketing, most of which you'll be doing yourself, so skill and experience in those areas are important.
A keen eye for fashion and attention to current fashion trends are also important. These can be easily cultivated by keeping up with fashion magazines and other outlets focusing on fashion.

Costs involved in starting my business.
The exact costs of opening a clothing boutique vary based on your size and location. Some veteran boutique owners recommend not starting with anything less than ₦200,000 ($548) in financing; but for smaller set-ups below that might work. What goes into this cost? It covers acquiring a storefront and setting up utilities. You will also need to pay taxes as you go on and anything else required. You will need to furnish and decorate the interior of your boutique in an interesting way and spend money on professional marketing, ranging from signs to social media promotions and of course, you must buy the clothes themselves, which is a variable cost because the more you order, the more you'll pay. At the same time, however, the greater variety of clothes you have to offer, the more customers you can appeal to, so a healthy starting inventory is good.

Some insider tips to jump start my business.
Keeping abreast of national and international trends means you can sell clothes to those who want to be on the cutting-edge of fashion. Developing and sticking to a particular theme also helps create brand awareness for your customers and sets you apart from other businesses. Finally, to the degree that you can choose your location, try to set up near a busy retail store that sells something other than clothes, allowing you to reap the benefits of their traffic.

Promoting & marketing my business.
There are many ways to promote and market your clothing boutique. These include traditional advertisements such as print, which is helpful to walk-in customers. Catchy store displays are vital in attracting the attention of those walking by your business. Finally, don't underestimate the importance of a solidly-designed website or social media page. Many boutique shoppers are young, and they prefer being able to browse your store and interact with you online, which also lets you encourage them to show off your latest styles in pictures marked with a custom hashtag unique to your store.

How to keep my customers coming back.
One of the classic ways to attract and retain clothing boutique customers is to offer special promotions. These might include offering a free gift or small item with their next purchase, encouraging them to return. You may consider offering semi-regular sales on special kinds of items, which can lure in customers that were on the fence about buying before. Encouraging your customers to register their information with you means you can also keep them in the loop via social media or text.

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