If you have an entrepreneurial spirit, you may have a never-ending stream of new ideas for businesses, products, or services. Having the ability to develop new concepts that drive business outcomes and solve problems is a valuable skill for any leader and is essential for driving business growth.
However, putting your ideas into practice is often the hard part of “starting up” any new concept. After all, it doesn’t matter how good your idea is if you can’t execute it, and the key to successful execution is planning. Creating a business plan requires discipline, attention, and organization, all of which are crucial to putting your new idea into flight.
One of the most common reasons entrepreneurs turn to business consultants is to help put the wheels in motion on new business concepts. We believe that by drafting a plan, breaking down your goal into actionable items, and building a timeline for success, you can turn any idea into reality. It isn’t always easy, but the good news is that there are many tools on the market that can help inspire your intrapreneurial efforts and organize your business plan.
Building a business plan is step one. Below we’ll discuss why you need one and share all the benefits of using business planning tools to get started.
The Importance Of A Business Plan
Creating and documenting a formal business plan forces you to think about the steps, time, and resources required to make your concept a success. By thinking out each component, you can prove that your idea is viable. A business plan also helps you reduce risks, establish goals, and secure alignment with stakeholders. At the end of the day, a thorough business plan helps improve your chances of success.
At a minimum, your business plan should contain an executive summary, company or product description, market analysis, organization, and financial projections. However, the actual details of your plan will vary depending on what you’re trying to achieve.
How Business Planning Software Can Help
When building a business plan, you don’t have to start from scratch. There are some fantastic business planning tools on the market that can improve the way you plan for your new business or product, enable collaboration, and streamline tasks. Here are a few ways business planning software can help:
- Cloud-Based Tools Enable Collaboration
Some business planning tools allow for cloud-based collaboration so you can share documents, plans, task lists, and project concepts across individuals and teams regardless of location. This is especially helpful if your new concept requires input from others in your organization. - You Can Take Advantage Of Templates
While no business plan is exactly the same, business planning tools often offer a library of templates to help you get started down the right path. With a wide range of options, you can select a template that matches the look and feel you want. You’ll choose the one that contains the information you want and then you can customize it to meet your specialized needs. - Visualizing Concepts Help You Tell Your Story
Business planning tools such as The Business Model Canvas by Strategyzer allow you to not only create a business plan but turn it into a visually appealing story. The flexibility of this visualization tool allows you to design, create, challenge, and pivot your business concept over time. By being able to communicate your concept in a visually appealing way and make quick changes, you’ll be able to easily communicate your ideas with teammates and stakeholders. - Automation Saves Time
Developing a good business plan takes time and energy, and this is where we see a lot of entrepreneurs lose steam. Business planning software saves you time by helping to automate and streamline many of the tasks associated with business planning. - Task Management Keeps You Track
Some business planning software is equipped with task management tools, so you can easily get a handle on your to-do lists and break your business objectives down into smaller goals. With certain platforms, such as GANTTPRO, you can create and assign tasks and set deadlines.
Planning is a critical part of business growth, and with a wide range of business planning tools on the market, it’s never been easier. However, a business coach can still help you connect the dots. If you’re looking for a business consultant to support your upcoming business, product, or service launch, contact us at Lilly Consulting Group today.
