One thing no one really mentions much about starting your own online business is how stressful it is. Everyone seems to think that it isn’t just because you can set your own hours, make money while you sleep, and have your favorite PJs as your dress code.
The truth is… there is actually a lot of stress involved.
But isn’t adding more stress to your life the last thing you want to do to now that you’ve decided to finally leave your day job? Isn’t that why you took the leap to build your own business in the first place?
You’re looking for freedom from your awful boss, nasty coworkers, and the limitations of a fixed salary. But if you’re trading all that in for a different kind of stress, what have you really gained
If you haven’t actually kissed your cubicle goodbye yet, be sure you first build a solid foundation to release the number of potential stressors as you build your own business—and I don’t just mean business-wise.
Nothing stresses us out quite like worrying about money. Whether you’re concerned about those college tuition bills you’ll be facing in a few years, or worse, not sure how you’re going to make the rent, it’s easy to lose your business mojo.
As a new business owner, you certainly don’t want money trouble casting a shadow over your entrepreneurial dream. In order to save time and grow your business a quickly as possible, you’ll need to be able to invest in yourself, even if it’s just a couple hundred dollars to start out with.
Before you turn in your resignation, set aside some cash in case of a rainy day. Aim for at least three months of living expenses but more is definitely better.
Hopefully, you won’t need it but having some cash on hand will definitely relieve the pressure of having a new business that’s not earning its keep—yet.
Make Sure Your Family is on Board
Money troubles are bad, but there may be one thing that’s worse: an unsupportive (or downright hostile) spouse, member of the family, or even a friend.
And as any entrepreneur will tell you, not everyone understands the drive to be a business owner. In fact, most people find it pretty scary to step away from the security of a regular paycheck to chase after a dream.
If that sounds like your spouse or someone in your circle, try not to take it personally. They’re not making a statement about your ability. More than likely, they’re just worried about what the future holds.
Do your best to understand where they’re coming from, and be sure to clearly explain your ideas, why you are confident it will work, and how you plan to cover the start-up expenses and manage the risk.
If they’re still not on board, consider starting slow, with a part-time business while still working your day job. That will give you the opportunity to prove your idea is workable, and might just help your spouse get as excited about it as you are.
I’ve seen many bloggers and business owners in this exact situation. It sucks to have to prove yourself, but your family is just trying to look out for you. There’s always a chance of pushback with anything risky.
Take Time for YOU
No matter what’s going on with your money, your spouse, or your business, you always need to take care of yourself first. Be sure to schedule some “you” time.
No one can work all the time, regardless of how driven you are. And no one can stay healthy while maintaining a nonstop schedule.
Go for a walk, hit the gym, get a pedicure or just binge on your favorite brainless television show.
The point is simply to take time away from your desk to rest and rejuvenate. Without it, you’ll soon find yourself overwhelmed and stressed, even if you truly love your new business.
Recap: Make your transition to entrepreneurship stress-free
Follow these three tips to go from 9-5er to business owner without worry:
Create a financial safety net
Get support from friends and family
Remember to take time for you
It will definitely be tough and you may still experience some sleepless nights, but the freedom you gain once your business starts taking off will be well worth the work.
Do you own a blog that you make money with (or wish you were)?
Do you sell your services to others online?
Do you want to cash in on selling digital products?
All of these things are considered home businesses (or at least if home is wherever your laptop is). But most people make the mistake of not treating these things like a business.
Which means that they never really take the time to write out an actual business plan.
Maybe it seems “too real” for a call business like yours. Or you simply have no idea that it’s a thing let alone where to begin with one.
Or maybe your business started as an accident. If you got this far without a business plan, then that means you don’t really need one, right?
Wrong. 100% wrong!
Especially if you want to grow. And let’s be honest, who doesn’t want their business to grow?
It’s a big mistake to skip this crucial step in creating a business, as a business plan can greatly increase your chances of success.
Even if you’ve already started your business, it’s never too late to create a plan. You should review and modify your business plan as your business grows, anyway (once or twice a year works fine).
Are you convinced yet? If so, you can step over to my post on how to create a simplified business plan. This will make the writing process easier for your first business plan.
If you still don’t really get why this is so important, keep reading. I’m going to drop 5 reasons why every business, especially yours, needs to put a business plan into writing.
Directions for the future
A business plan maps out your future. If you’ve decided you’re ready to start a business, your first step should be to write out your plans for that business. This includes what you want to do and where you see your business going in the future.
You’ve probably heard the saying, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” That”s also true when it comes to your business.
While you may see some success while just winging it in the beginning, it comes faster and easier with planning. The more planning you do, the greater success you will see in the future.
Business financing
Online businesses are the cheapest to start, but depending on what your business is, you may need some extra capital as you grow. Especially if work with physical products or need to pay employees or contractors.
If you decide to take your home business to the next level, a business plan can help you secure financing. A financial institution will want to see, in writing, the reasons that they should loan you money.
Simply walking in and telling them why you know you’ll be a success isn’t good enough.
However, if you can hand a lender a document that states…
your business idea,
your business goals,
a list of steps you plan to take in order to reach your goals, and
your estimated earnings,
…you will be seen as a professional and the lender will take you more seriously.
A plan of action
Your business plan will also help you determine what actions you need to take to move forward with your business. An action plan consists of the steps you plan on taking in order to achieve your business goals.
This is another task that people usually sidestep. Instead of “just kind of knowing” or “having the ideas in your head”, you should take the time to put them on paper.
The reason this part of your business plan is so important is because it literally walks you from point A to point B.
While your business plan serves a map, your action plan is the turn-by-turn GPS directions.
A plan for learning
Your business plan will also help you figure out what you don’t know you need yet. It forces you to think about all the necessary things to create a successful business. This means you have to find a way to deal with the things you don’t know, too.
For example, let’s say you have no clue how you’re going to market your products and services. You should first plan to figure out what options are available for marketing and then learn how to use them for your business.
Will you hire someone? As a solopreneur you probably won’t, at least not right away, so you’ll have to learn how to do these things yourself.
Your business plan will show you what you need to learn and when you need to learn it. You can purchase courses that will actually make a big impact on your business at the right time.
This keeps you from spending money on something that may be good to have but isn’t quite right for where you currently are in business.
A business plan and a comfort plan
Having the support of your spouse, other family members, and your friends can really motivate you and help you find success.
There’s nothing worse than having an idea and then not having the people who you thought would support you on board. It may be easy to ignore your friends, but an unsupportive spouse can really hurt—both your feelings and your chances of success.
Having a business plan can help your spouse realize your business idea is more than just a hobby, especially if your spouse is skeptical. They can see that you’re serious and might become more helpful and more encouraging.
You’ll be able to make decisions based on your plan, which is useful when you want to make an investment. It won’t be an impulse buy; it’s something that directly fits into your business plan.
When you have a clear reason and plan for a purchase, your spouse is more likely to be on board.
Recap: 5 Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan
Here are those 5 reasons why business planning is necessary for you, even as a solopreneur:
Gives directions for the future
Creates a financial plan
Creates a plan of action
And a plan for learning
Shows others that you’re serious
It may not be the sexiest thing you do for your business, but it is the most necessary. Whether you’re a blogger, freelancer, or just plan to promote affiliate products, having a plan will increase your chances of building a successful online business.
Or if you prefer some step-by-step guidance, you can check out the Success Mindset Business Planner. This will guide you through the process of creating a goal-based success plan for a business that supports your dream life.
Either way, like many small business owners, you probably feel overwhelmed just by the idea of creating a business plan. Fortunately, as solopreneurs or small team businesses, it doesn’t have to be as hard as our brains are telling us.
(Or as complicated as Business 101 made it seem, in my case.)
I’ve made 2020 my year to get more intentional with my business and reviewing my business plan has been the first step. Reviewing your plan each year is a must since it should grow as your business grows.
Before, I had a less formal plan, so this year I wanted something a bit more structured. I wanted to stop struggling with deadlines and have an idea of what I wanted to do for every month so I could get way ahead of those deadlines.
But before I tell you that, let me show you how you can ease into business planning by using just one page.
How to Create a One-Page Business Plan
Unless you’re looking for major financial funding from a bank or other loan institutions, a simple business plan that includes answers to the following questions will be perfect for your small business purposes.
Where am I now with my business?
Where do I want to be with my business?
If you see your deadlines in front of you as you work your business, you’ll be more likely to meet them. Break this answer down into a timeline to make it easier, using 6 months, 1 year, 5 years, 10 years, or whatever times work for your particular business.
And then bam! Your simple, one-page business plan is done. You’re that much more organized than you were before you started.
But you don’t have to stop there. Maybe you saw how easy that was and now you want to get a bit more detailed with your plan. Keep reading to discover how you can expand your business plan into something a bit more in-depth without feeling overwhelmed.
You can still make your business planning easy by devoting no more than one page to each of the following sections.
Page 1 – Overview
Include your vision (possibilities) for your business, the purpose (why you started your business) of creating the business, and the mission (what you plan to achieve) of the business.
Page 2 – Business Information
Here is where you include information about yourself including name, business name and entity, address, and phone number. As online entrepreneurs, while you may not have a physical address, you can include your website address, email, or even the PO Box for your email list.
You’ll also want to summarize your business objectives on this page. List your goals and how you plan to reach them. This includes what you’ll do to create a profit and what tools and resources you plan to use to do so.
Page 3 – Target Market & Customers
Int his section of your business plan, you want to focus on your target market. You want to clearly define who they are and why they need you.
Answer the following questions in this section of your plan:
Your target market – Who are they? Where are they? How many?
What do you need to know about them? Why do they need your service?
Is the market for what they need growing?
Give specifics about growth and spending habits. Do as much research on your market as you can and put it in this section, including any barriers or hard to overcome issues.
Page 4 – Competition
Who are your competitors? What makes you different and the same as those competitors?
How are you competing with them? With price, quality, etc? How will your market feel about you compared to your competitors?
Next, consider your USP—Unique Selling Point. What makes your business different from your competitors? How does your personal experience make your product or service unique?
Page 5 – Finances
Most businesses will apply for a business loan to cover startup costs, but as online entrepreneurs, our startup costs are low enough that we can pay for them without a loan. If you do want to go for a loan, that’s up to you, but I’ll be writing this section for the many of us who will be starting our business on our own.
Consider what will cost to run your website, your email list, your shopping cart, and any other necessities and include them in your business plan. This will help you understand how much you need to make or invest on a monthly or yearly basis.
You might also want to create budgets for certain areas of your business. So hosting costs could be one budgeting area, while advertising, outsourcing, and marketing could be some others. Budgets are great because they force you to spend the money you have set aside for each area on those specific things.
Even if you can only afford $10 or $20 on extras outside of hosting costs, that’s a lot better than nothing. You can always save that money for a larger purchase as well.
Page 6 – Marketing
This is a bit like your competition section because you’ll want to discuss how you’ll market your business products or services.
What social media will you use? Will you manage it yourself or hire someone else? How will you handle scheduling?
How will you set up your email list? What discounts or freebies will you offer to entice people to sign up for that list?
What holidays are most relevant to your business and how will you market your product in conjunction with those holidays?
Will you use affiliate partners? How much will you split with them and which products will you offer to affiliate?
All of this should in the marketing section of your business plan. This will likely be a meaty section since marketing is the most important thing you can do for your business, so it’s okay if you can’t fit it all on one page!
Recap: Simple Business Plan Outlines for Solopreneurs
Try the 1-page plan: Answer where you are now, where you want to be, and set the necessary goals to get there. This is an excellent way to start if the idea of a business plan scares you.
Create an in-depth plan: Dedicate pages to each part of your business plan. Include
Your business overview (what it is and what you hope to achieve),
Important information about your business,
Your target market (demographics as well as what they need),
Who your competition is and how you differ from them,
How you plan to finance your business expenses, and
How you’ll market your business
No matter which method you use to create your business plan, be sure you’re answering each question to make it efficient for its purpose. Whether it’s for you or someone else, the ultimate goal of a business plan is to keep you on track and focused and working toward growth.
As your business grows don’t forget to update your plan to grow with it as well! Revisit your plan once or twice a year.
At the end of every year, most businesses take time to review how well they’ve done in the past year and look towards the future. They review their business and marketing plan and make changes when necessary.
Have you taken stock of your business goals? Have you created a marketing plan that prepares to you achieve those goals?
One of the most important tasks you can do during this evaluation is to plan your marketing and promotions for the new year.
Even if you’re just starting to get serious about your business in the middle of the year, creating a marketing plan for the next 12 months is beneficial. You can always review and edit it at the end of the year so you can start fresh in January.
The important thing is that whatever time it is during the year, you work on getting started now. So here we go!
Creating a marketing plan months ahead of time is the best way to help take your business to the next level. It will serve as a road map of what you need to do and when. If you’re working with other people, such as colleagues or joint venture partners, it keeps everyone on the same page.
It also helps you manage your 4 main marketing areas:
Your website or blog (content marketing)
Email marketing
Social media marketing
Special sales and promotions, including important events like product creation and launch
These work together to drive traffic, generate leads (get subscribers) and make sales.
Promote Your Products
Before you start thinking about how you’re going to market, it’s helpful to know what products you have currently available. You should also use this time to get an idea of what you’ll create in the future.
It’s important to pencil in all the key dates related to your launches in your marketing plan. This helps you make sure nothing gets missed or left until the last minute.
Product creation and launches should be the most important points of your promotional calendar. Research what your target audience wants and needs and build a product around it.
You should also schedule in time to promote products you’ve already created. You don’t have to constantly create new products, just keep promoting the ones you already have.
Build your email list around your products as well, so you can let them know when the products are launching. This will help them sell well right out of the gate.
Create Content Around Your Marketing Plan
Your marketing plan should also include what content you’ll create. All marketing is content marketing. It’s just a question of the format of the content.
Imagine you have a fabric and notions brick-and-mortar store, but want to drive traffic to your physical store and also get customers online.
You create helpful content about quilting, making your own clothes, fun holiday crafts to give as gifts, and so on. This gets local customers to come in and online customers to buy. You could even put together reasonably-priced kits with everything they would need for each project to encourage sales.
For international customers who may not wish to pay a lot for shipping and handling, you can sell digital products, such as patterns, video lessons and so on. All of your content would be the context for making a sale.
Other content marketing methods
Email marketing also requires content and provides a context for making a sale. Send an email with information similar to what’s on your site and include a link to buy a product related to the content.
Social media marketing can drive traffic to your site and subscribers to your email list. Once they’re on your list, they can receive your content and amazing offers.
Use special promotions
Your offers will also include your special promotions—events where you offer a discount or bundle to increase the value of your initial offer. There are three main reasons you may decide to have a special promotion:
Launch a new product
Create a seasonal or holiday-related promotion
Stimulate sales during a slow period
We’ve already gone over launching, so let’s look at seasonal promotions and handling slow periods.
Seasonal and holiday-related promotions are always a good excuse for a special promotion or sale within your marketing plan. They mark an occasion and it’s easy to tie in your products and services.
Returning to our fabric store example, you might create an American flag quilt potholder pattern kit to sell for the 4th of July. Or you can use the pattern as a free download to get people to subscribe to your list. Announce the special promotion on social media and perhaps even run an ad about it on Facebook or Pinterest.
The 12 Days of Christmas is another very popular promotional opportunity, with 12 days of sales items if you wish. This can be the perfect way to stimulate sales during a time when prospective customers might be focusing on gift shopping, or ignoring you because their money is earmarked for other things.
You can promote the usefulness of the item as a gift, a bargain, or something people really need that they haven’t treated themselves to yet, but could make all the difference in their lives.
Start planning for holidays early
Some holidays are fixed, like the Fourth of July or Christmas Day on the 25th of December or Kwanzaa on the 26th. Others fall on different days each year, such as Easter, Thanksgiving, Chanukah, and so on.
Top marketers and magazines will tell you that Christmas starts in July or August—that’s how far they plan ahead with the help of their calendar.
To help you create a marketing plan for the holidays, you can create and download free PDF calendars to print out from timeanddate.com. You can toggle the various choices, such as including all US holidays.
Print out 1 copy of the calendar for each marketing initiative, such as the editorial content for your blog, email marketing mailings, and product launches. Then start penciling in your ideas.
Dealing with Slow Periods
Every business is going to hit a slow patch from time to time. If the summer is dragging on with barely any sales, it’s time for some extra marketing to maintain a decent level of sales and profits.
Using the fabric store again, you could think of 12 weeks of projects that kids can do while they are on summer vacation. You could also market these as useful gifts to give to others. You’re promoting your products by getting parents to teach their kids the power of giving.
It may take some time and creativity to come up with winning ideas, but your marketing plan will keep you on track. This will make it easier to do everything at the right time and in the right order.
Build on Your Successes
Another reason to revisit your marketing plan at the end of the year is to evaluate your best promotions. Look back at the ones that generated the most income and plan to recycle them during the next year.
You can even copy and use the same content you used before. Set the dates and queue them up in your blog or email marketing platform and you’re ready to go.
Make Use of Affiliate Products in Your Marketing Plan
If you don’t have a product of your own to sell yet, that’s perfectly okay! You can start working on creating your first product while you’re promoting affiliate products. With your own product, you can keep 100% of the profits for yourself.
One way to test your product idea is to find a similar product and promote it to your audience. If it goes well, consider developing a similar product of an even higher quality and your own ideas (but don’t steal, of course!).
Even if you do already have your own products, adding affiliate products is a great way to create a new income stream. You can easily become an affiliate for products related to your niche that your audience will find useful and you don’t even have to worry about shipping or supporting the products. Yay!
Popular choices for affiliate marketers are Amazon and affiliate networks like ShareASale or Awin. You can earn a commission anytime someone purchases through your specially-coded links.
Keep adding promotions to make sure you have a full calendar. Affiliate programs usually have a newsletter sent to keep you up-to-date with current promotions. Use this information about special offers, flash sales, and forthcoming holiday sales to get ahead of other affiliates who may not be paying attention.
Share a calendar with your own affiliates
If you have affiliates yourself or are trying to get more, an affiliate calendar will show you’re prepared and have everything well-organized. The calendar can help you make sure your supporting material for your affiliates is all ready in time for the holidays or for your next product launch.
Your calendar can also be an invaluable selling point if you want to get joint venture partnerships. This is an agreement in which two partners cross-promote and split the profits. JV partnerships usually have a higher split than regular affiliates, such as 60/40 or 50/50.
For example, you email a special offer from them to your list and they email an offer from you to their list. With both of you marketing your newly launched product, for example, you could double your chances of success.
Track Your Promotions
You should also keep track of traffic to your content and pay attention to which channel is generating the most sign-ups or sales. This can be useful for the next time you release a product. If you notice a video is generating a lot of sales, you may want to put more effort into creating video content for the next product.
You can also share this content with your affiliates and JVs so they can share them with their own audience.
For example, most affiliate software allows people to create links directly to any page on your website (this is called deeplinking). This means any of your affiliates could share an affiliate-enabled link that leads to a blog post rather than directly to a sales page.
So let’s say you have that video from before embedded in a blog post. You can ask your affiliates to help you drive traffic to this post through a deeplink because it’s converting well. They’ll love this, too, because it means more commissions for them.
Recap: Create a Marketing Plan to Promote Your Business Throughout the Year
Creating a marketing plan, either on paper or digitally, is one of the best things you can do for your online business.
After reading through this post, you should have a good idea of why! It’s an easy way to plan and promote both new and existing products and services and recycle the most successful marketing campaigns you’ve launched.
Don’t forget to:
Create a plan and set your goals ahead of time
Use both your own products and affiliate products
Take advantage of seasonal events and holidays
Build on success and recycle successful marketing campaigns
Create a promotion calendar
Share your promotions and successful content with your affiliates
Set your business goals for the new year and start planning so you can take action to accomplish those goals or even exceed them! For some extra help with creating your own marketing plan, check out my 12-month Cash Flow Marketing Planner.
