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How to figure out your business

By Becky McCray

Have you taken time to really figure out your business? Most of us tend to spend our time working in our business, rolling with what is thrown at us. But you can radically improve your business by spending time working on it. The first step is to really define the business you are building.

Let’s take a cue from the traditional business plan by writing a business summary.

1. Describe your basic business.

  • Explain your products and services. 
  • What makes you unique? 

2. Identify the market(s).

  • Describe the market for each revenue stream.
  • How will you reach that market?

3. Set your financial strategy.

  • Explain your pricing structure.
  • What are your financial goals?

If you’ll actually put in the effort to write this out, you’ll be a huge step ahead of most small business startups. Really. It helps to focus your attention on areas you might be ignoring. Zane Safrit put it this way: What is the question you aren’t asking yourself?

Next time, we’ll talk about converting those financial goals into real world activities.

[Photo of my desk, from my Flickr.] 

This article is part of the Small Biz 100, a series of 100 practical hands-on posts for small business people and solo entrepreneurs, whether in a small town, the big city, or in between. If you have questions you’d like us to address in this series, leave a comment or send us an email at becky@smallbizsurvival.com. This is a community project!

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  • About the Author
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About Becky McCray

Becky started Small Biz Survival in 2006 to share rural business and community building stories and ideas with other small town business people. She and her husband have a small cattle ranch and are lifelong entrepreneurs. Becky is an international speaker on small business and rural topics.
  • Zoom Towns: attracting and supporting remote workers in rural small towns - December 10, 2020
  • In an economic crisis, spend your brainpower before your dollars - November 25, 2020
  • Video: How to fill empty car dealership buildings for the holidays - November 6, 2020
  • How has 2020 changed the challenges rural small towns face? Tell us here - October 20, 2020
  • The Idea Friendly Method to surviving a business crisis - October 6, 2020
  • Join me for the Rural Renewal Symposium online Oct 13 - September 26, 2020
  • Cheap placemaking idea: instant murals - September 11, 2020
  • Refilling the rural business pipeline - July 7, 2020
  • Huge vacant buildings: grants to renovate? - June 9, 2020
  • Economic self defense for small towns  - June 7, 2020

September 8, 2008 Filed Under: entrepreneurship, planning, Small Biz 100

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Comments

  1. Carl Natale says

    September 8, 2008 at 1:33 pm

    Good post Becky. I’m not a fan of forms and bureaucracy but things like this and “idea resumes” help me focus on goals. Just having to write it out challenges my assumptions and helps me communicate to other people.

  2. Becky McCray says

    September 9, 2008 at 5:12 am

    Thank you, Carl. That’s exactly what I was trying for.

  3. Anonymous says

    July 17, 2009 at 8:30 am

    Great! I liked the article. i have done this before i went through this article. but sometimes we need to read such things to know that whether we are on the right track or not.

    great work Becky.

  4. Becky McCray says

    July 17, 2009 at 12:16 pm

    Sounds like you are on the right track. Thanks.

Trackbacks

  1. Talking business at BlogWorld Expo says:
    April 16, 2013 at 4:50 am

    […] do you do that? Well, first you need to figure out your business. Then you’ll need to figure out your revenue goals. Make it through those two exercises, and […]

  2. How to figure out your revenue goals says:
    April 17, 2013 at 2:01 am

    […] you figure out your business, it’s time to set some goals for making money. The problem is that no one shows you how to do […]

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