Many event planners are always looking at ways to reduce workloads. Especially on tasks that we think will take us away from the overall success of our business. There are many self-employed event planners. And there are many more that thinking about starting an event planning business on their own. At networking events I often ask my colleagues if they”ve taken the time to do a business plan. Quite often the answer is no. And then they”ll look at me and say “oh I know I should do one but I”m just so busy trying to drum up business that I don”t have time”. My advice, for what it”s worth, is that it”s vital to have a business plan. So for anyone starting an event planning business, take a look below at the three reason why you need a business plan.
1) If You”re Looking for Any Type of Financing When Starting an Event Planning Business Then You Need a Business Plan
The first reason is really a no-brainer. If you”re wondering how to start an event planning business and financing is one area that you”re exploring then a business plan is a must. Unless you”re borrowing money from your mom or dad you need one. Investors want to know that you have an idea of how to start a business. One area that a lot of entrepreneurs are guilty of is presenting a financial picture that will become very hard to achieve. Good investors can spot this right away. Of course you want your event planning business to be a success. Investors, when deciding whether or not to finance startup businesses will often look for the entrepreneur”s ability to anticipate growth challenges along the way. And it”s how you address those challenges that may become the deciding factor for whether or not you”re granted financing.
2) An Event Planning Business Plan Helps You Set Realistic Goals
Without a plan you”re quite literally taking a stab in the dark at growth. Item such as a business names and where to get business cards, while important, need to be prioritized and maybe shouldn”t be at the top of the list. By developing a business plan you”re helping yourself set realistic targets towards the growth plan that you envision. By sitting down and working out your goals you”re also thinking about how you will achieve them. And what steps are required from you and/or your employees to achieve them as well. Like big projects a business plan takes the overall picture and breaks it down into mini steps. Once you develop the steps you can then assign a timeline and determine how long it will take you to achieve your goals.
3) A Business Plan Provides a Review of What Is and Isn”t Working
If you”ve been involved in a startup business before then you probably understand that a lot of your initial targets will not be achieved. And if you”re wondering how to start your own event planning business then a business plan will help you prioritize. If you didn”t do a business plan it could become very easy to be overwhelmed when revenues didn”t materialize when you thought that they would. As a matter fact without a strategic plan you may not even know when revenues should”ve come in in the first place. With the business plan however you will be able to do periodic reviews to determine where you are in relation to your targets. And by having a business plan completed you”ll also know where you are veering off course. Your reaction time will increase greatly. After all as a leader of a company it”s your job to recognize areas that are under performing and address them before they become a burden to the company.
A business plan for event planning is a smart move. There are many resources available to help you map out good, thorough business plan. I believe it”s crucial for any business to have an understanding of what their goals are and how they”re going to go about achieving those goals. Without a plan in place your ability to react will be delayed (that is if you”re even able to understand where the problems are in the first place). No matter what the size of your business is treat it like a Fortune 500 company.
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