Getting Ready to Go to Market

A business plan is a detailed step-by-step document that explains how you intend to turn your idea into a reality.

The adage, ‘failing to plan means planning to fail’, is very true in a business sense because the absence of plans will mean that we have no guidelines of how we are going to reach our end goal.

A business plan usually includes:

• An executive summary.
• A company description.
• Your market research and potential market size.
• Your competitive analysis.
• A description of your product or service.
• Your marketing and sales strategy.
• A set of business financials and product costings.
• Your organization and management.
• If you are seeking funding, you need to explain your funding request.
• Compile an appendix for official documents.

We will not spend time discussing how to develop your business plan as there are many excellent courses available on Future Learn explaining this concept. Save to say you should have one. We will however spend a more time on marketing your food product.

Developing Objectives

Objectives or goals give you targets to work towards and allow you to measure your achievement against them. You should set goals from the outset and constantly look at these to ensure you are on track.

Firstly, you will need to focus on the product objectives, which must be S.M.A.R.T.

• A clear idea of what your market requires, a specific brief is essential.
• Measurable goals such as the target market, size of market, what percentage of the market you would like to reach and how many people will buy your product.
• To ensure it is achievable, do you have the finance, skills, time etc. to ensure the goal is achievable?
• Is the product relevant for the target audience?
• Can a successful product be delivered in a timely manner? This includes lead time for planning, prototyping, testing, branding, and going to market. Is the amount of time allocated sufficient to meet the goals?

Activity

Browse the FutureLearn platform and find a suitable short course on how to develop a Business Plan. If you feel it is necessary, make a note to join this as your next course to develop your skills further.