Don’t even think about starting your webhosting business without a business plan. This is step 1A… I say 1A, because you’ve probably already decided to do start haven’t you? That was step 1. So now the “real fun” starts.
Overview of a Business Plan
First, what is a business plan? It is a written description all of the financial, operational and managerial aspects of starting and running a business. Notice the words I bolded – “written description” … you MUST write it down. Having it in your head does not count. A simple test for it being well written is if you handed it to a person with a reasonable knowledge of business (not necessarily this business but business in general), could they take that plan and implement it. That’s not to say they will have the technical, managerial and/or marketing expertise to do so, but they will be able to identify those needs precisely enough to seek those who do and oversee their functions.
Why write a business? According to Paul Fagan, managing director of ActionCOACH, if you don’t have a business plan there is an 80% chance your new company will not survive the first 5 years. That’s not very optimisitic. If you don’t want your new dream job to turn into a nightmare (and it can quickly), you need to plan.
Who is the business plan for? First it’s for YOU! Next it’s for the bank, investors, etc. and other involved parties. It is primarily an internal document that guides the operation of the company. It is a playbook… it should be able to tell the players (you and your team) what to do next to get to goal X.
When do you write the business plan? I can’t stress this enough… you should have a well defined written business plan in place BEFORE you start your business. This is a must if you want to give it every opportunity to grow. That is not to say that if you are already open for business and you don’t have one, you shouldn’t write it. You should! It should become a top priority – right up there with taking care of customers.
How do you write a business plan? Well… this was part 1… I can’t put everything into part 1 can I? We’re going to move on to part 2 next with what the components of a business plan include, and then each successive part will detail each section of a plan. I’m doing this on purpose (not only to make you come back), but I want you to think about what you’re doing and not throw together something just to be able to say you have one.
Coming soon: Part 2 — Essential Components of a Business Plan
|
About: Robert: Robert Porter holds MCSE, A+, Net+, Security+, and multiple CIW certifications. He has been in the hosting industry for more than a decade and is founder of Lagniappe Internet L.L.C., a privately owned, completely debt free, hosting company based out of New Orleans. Robert's background includes 25+ years in programming, databases, networking and systems administration. |
