Industry Analysis Section of Your business plan
Writing a Business Plan for your next entrepreneurial endeavor is crucial. You will need sufficient capital and a guide to keep you on track. One important part of any business plan is to size up the Industry and attempt to figure out your pecking order and specialty niches for your best chances of profitability. Having written more business plans than I care to admit and having read hundreds of others, it always amazed me how easy it was to attempt to "wing it" when it came to the Industry Analysis section. You know read a trade journal and look at a graph put it into Microsoft Excel and shove it into the business plan. If you have done this or are tempted to, you are not alone. But let me warn you that the Industry Analysis section is crucial. As a serial entrepreneur I have had some great successes and victories in the market place and of course as Babe Ruth will tell you, some strike outs also. You must know the truth and understand the trends of your Industry to properly position yourself for the stage win. This is why Lance Armstrong has a whole team to cover for him as he rides into the record books. You must know your competition, the course and have a clear strategy to be successful in business and it all starts with your business plan. Now then without sounding like an academic, which I am not, nor do I posses a fancy diploma or have the letters MBA next to my name; let me show you a sample of an Industry Analysis. I want you to win, so copy this article and slightly modify the sample below to fit your particular business model while covering paragraph by paragraph in your own work exactly the state of your Industry Sector. Identify the trends and niches which are currently being exploited, as well as those things you are worried about and/or know will be your challenges. Take a red pen and write in the margins and then when you think you are ready and have collected the data online and read every single thing you can find on your industry, then take all your notes and formulate your own Industry Analysis, as it is one of the most essential elements of your business plan. This sample is for a mobile car wash business of a franchise company and it is a simple business, your industry may be more complicated, but this serves as a good example for you to get started. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Industry Analysis: Trends As more and more people are buying or leasing cars for three to five years, which cost $30,000 or more, they have to maintain them. After all, why would you lease a brand new beautiful Lexus or BMW to keep up with the Jones', if you are not going to keep it washed. The automobile is a status symbol in California now more than ever. It is so important to people that they will mortgage their house in order to own the car they want. In California there are over 25 million vehicles. That's 1.2 cars, boats, trailers, trucks, R.V.'s, motorcycles, etc. for every man, woman and child. A car wash truck can wash 100 cars a day, 700 cars per week. Seven hundred cars per week is less than 2% of the average population of 40,000 for a California city. That percent of market penetration is two out of one hundred people. Obviously, at least one out of every ten people would like to have their cars washed on a weekly basis. That would be ten percent market penetration or 4,000 vehicles per week or six car wash trucks per area. This is achievable. Position for Growth With personal services on the rise and community owned businesses (mom and pop shops) making a strong comeback, this is a perfect time to open a mobile car wash business. There is also a growing trend of two bread winner families, creating less personal time. During recession periods, our crews will be less affected than other competitors because we go to where people have jobs. These people have money. People eventually have to get their cars washed and we are already there. Many fixed site car wash customers switch to a mobile service to save the extra one to two dollars because our prices are consistently lower. During recessions people hold on to their cars longer and have to keep them up as they are not able to buy a new car as often. During an economic expansion more customers sign up for monthly services and fleet sales double. Due to our lower overhead and efficiency our business, like McDonald's, is reoccurring. Cars get dirty every week, just like people keep getting hungry. Our society is filled with credit card users. Our business plan calls for one-third of all generated sales to come from these customers. Fifty-five percent of all monies borrowed in the United States are done so by credit card. The number has increased for ten years and now with everyone using credit cards on the Internet in virtual stores this trend will continue over the next decade. Customers are able to order car wash services through our web site http://www.carwashguys.com. Check it out sometime. This is another service that is provided for by our franchisor. Our site is easily found on most major search engines such as Google, MSN and Yahoo. "Lance Winslow" - If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs
Related News
|
 |
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: The Best Incentives are Free
This article relates to the Recognition competency, commonly evaluated in employee satisfaction surveys. It tells the story of how the performance of one team was affected when the powerful motivator of daily praise and recognition disappeared. This competency also explores what type of behavior is appreciated and rewarded within your organization. Studies show that employees who receive regular recognition and praise are more likely to increase their individual productivity levels, increase engagement with their colleagues, and stay longer at the organization. Evaluating this competency can be especially useful if your organization is experiencing low productivity levels or ineffective teamwork.
Three Professional Services Resolutions for 2005
With client expectations higher than ever before, and the gradual industry recovery ahead, consulting firms will need to focus more than ever on carefully identifying and serving the right clients.
Quality Staffing: Stop Placing the Wrong People in the Wrong Jobs
You can possibly teach a turkey to climb a tree ? but it is a lot easier to hire a squirrel. Quality staffing means selecting the right people with the right skills for the right jobs and at the right time. A good hire can take the weight of the world off your shoulders. A poor one can eat up your time and energy and weaken an entire team. So, why do so many leaders place so many people in so many wrong places? Here are five key reasons.
Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Ideas for Everyday Training
This article relates to the Training competency, commonly evaluated in employee satisfaction surveys. It tells the story of a group of team leaders who worked together to find ways to use information sharing and communication to provide valuable employee training. A Gallup poll conducted in 1998 reported that eight out of 10 employees said they would be more likely to stay with their present employer if they were offered more or better training. Specifically, the questions included in this competency are written to measure the adequacy, availability, content of training, and satisfaction with the delivery of training within your organization.
Drafting an Employee Manual Sample Outline
One of the hardest things I had discovered running my company was drafting an Employee Manual. Also added to the stress was the fact that if you made a mistake someone could sue you and you might lose all your hard work and money that you had earned thru blood, sweat and tears as an entrepreneur. You will need an employee manual for your company to protect yourself; but where do you start?
Turbo-Charge Your Rollout with ERM
Employees are the often-neglected stakeholders in the success or failure of a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) initiative. But employees don't always resist new ways of doing business. If you factor in relationship management practices that engage people in the change process, you can circumvent significant resistance and actually speed up implementation.
Management Team Section of Business Plans
Writing an award winning business plan is a great skill, but rather than winning any awards you need to get funded. In order to be funded the bank, venture capital firm or even family members need to be sure they will either be paid back or receive their required return on investment. To succeed in business you need a quality management team one, which can move you thru the rough waters of start-up and control the ship as you sail away from the competition.
When Business Becomes A Battlefield
"We have to be careful it's like a minefield out there"
"I like to lob the odd grenade into the meeting to shake things up"
"You have to watch your back all the time with her"
"We need to attack whilst they are in a weak position"
"There was blood all over the carpet after he had finished with them"
Six Honest Business Friends - They Guide Me In All I Do
SIX "HONEST BUSINESS FRIENDS" - THEY GUIDE ME IN ALL I DO
Virtual Assistance: A Money Saving Opportunity For Employers
What is a Virtual Assistant? A Virtual Assistant is a highly skilled, independent entrepreneur who provides business services in a remote or virtual environment. Some have used terms like telecommuter or working from home.
Quick Tip - Effective Meetings Have SMART Goals
The first step in planning an agenda is to identify the goals for the meeting.
Properly done, goals have five S M A R T characteristics. They are:
7 Essential Elements To Every Organizational Change
[This article is based on excerpts from the special report "Overcoming Resistance to Change" by Dr. Mike Beitler.]
Effective Meetings - Quick Survey
Here's an easy quiz to check the health of your meetings.
Tales From the Corporate Frontlines: Team Dynamics and Communication
This article relates to the Team Dynamics competency, which evaluates interpersonal communication, cooperation, and productivity between members of a single team, group, or department within your organization. In today's marketplace, in order for organizations to operate efficiently, it is essential that they understand how to create and utilize effective work teams at all levels of the organization. When well managed, teams improve productivity, innovation, and the likelihood of success. Ineffective teams lead to frustration and the loss of time and productivity. Evaluating this competency can be very useful if your organization is experiencing missed deadlines or low productivity levels.
Business & Family Safety and Health Rating
For good reason, practically every endeavor in life is rated. I've seen ratings on who or what's #1 in business, industry, NFL, NBA, MLB, person of the century, athlete of the century, technology, restaurants, university, neighborhoods, travel destination, best looking, best movie, best book, etc. It doesn't stop. In fact, there are multiple ratings for the same #1 spot because of varying value systems. Of course, each of us has our independent rating to see if it's in agreement with the masses, the experts, or promotional efforts.
Project Heroes
Project heroes. We've all heard of them. Some of us have even seen them. A project is in jeopardy. This guy (or gal) comes out of nowhere, analyzes the situation, tells you exactly what the problem is, and then goes on to fix it before you can even update your project plan!
You Cant Afford the Luxury of Disengaged Employees
In today's business environment with increases in staff reductions and rapidly changing roles and responsibilities, it is crucial that all of your team members be fully engaged in the tasks at hand. According to a Gallup survey, 350 billion dollars are lost each year in American companies due to disengaged employees. How then do you minimize the impact of this costly problem within your organization? Below are key strategies to help you grow your people toward peak performance and enable you to produce quantum results with your team.
Sarbanes Oxley 404 Compliance - How Nov. 15, 2004 Deadline Affects You
Fast Relief for Sarbanes Oxley Section 404 Compliance
A Leadership Screw Driver: The 90 Day Improvement Plan
I was talking with first-line supervisors in a utility company about how to deal with poor performing employees.
Hiring for Success
Hiring someone new to work in your business is one of the most critical decisions a business owner makes, although it is not always given the justice it deserves. If a position is vacant, or additional staff are needed, recruitment decisions are often driven by the pressure to get someone in quickly, rather than waiting for the best person to fill the job. Lack of proper and systematic recruitment process can also result in a high cost to the business.
|
