Meet the Blog’s Host
Rolfe Larson provides consulting and training in areas such as strategic planning, market research, feasibility analysis, business planning, marketing, and implementation strategies.[Read more ...]
Market Research
Why Complaints Are Gifts
Let’s face it; it’s no fun when someone complains. Some people, the saying goes, just like to complain. Best to give them what they want and send them away, right? Not really. Complaints can provide such valuable market feedback that you’ll want to include strategies in your business plan for dealing with them. Most of [...]
Business Plan in A Weekend?
There’s been a fair amount of interest lately in how to write your business plan quickly, say in a weekend. The most well-known is called Startup Weekend, which promises to turn strangers into teams with a completed business plan in an intensive 54-hour weekend marathon. Is this a good idea? There’s also a new book, [...]
Why So Many Startups Fail
US Bureau of Labor Statistics research indicates that almost 60% of businesses shut down within the first four years of operation. Why? Most fail for one of these reasons.
Value Chain Your Way To Profitability
Ultimately, success in business depends on finding your competitive advantage, which is to say that which makes you superior to your competitors and is perceived as valuable by your customers. One approach for figuring that out is through value chain analysis, as developed by Michael Porter. The value chain is a sequence of activities that [...]
Pricing Strategies (Part 2)
Last week’s blog described the information you need to develop a pricing strategy. Today we’ll talk about several kinds of pricing strategies that are commonly utilized.
Pricing Strategies (Part 1)
Figuring out how to price your products or services is often very challenging, especially for a new venture. Yet you need a pricing strategy for your business plan, to determine your break-even point and profitability, and of course to launch your business. Here are some tips on how to make that decision:
Plans for Business-to-Business Ventures
While many entrepreneurs tend to think first of selling products or services to consumers, far larger markets exist in selling to other companies. Those sales, known as business to business, or B2B, roughly account for ten times the sales directly to consumers. So if you are undecided about what kind of business to launch, and [...]
Competitive Analysis
Since every business has competitors, every business plan needs competitive analysis – also known as competitive intelligence. Direct competitors provide more or less similar products or services, such as coffee shops. Indirect or generic competitors provide different things, but customers will often choose between them. For example, nearby restaurants may offer different eating options, but compete [...]
Business Plan Competitions
One way to develop and test your plan is to submit it to a business plan competition. These competitions are mostly associated with business schools. Most offer winners consulting assistance and in many cases seed money. But here’s the catch: in most cases, only students can apply and competition can be stiff. But check out [...]
Ten Common Startup Mistakes
To err is human. To do the same thing repeatedly and expect different results is insanity. And to learn from the mistakes of others is a good way to improve your odds. Here are ten major mistakes, inspired by a recent Wall Street Journal article (link below): 1. Going it Alone. Forget the solo entrepreneur [...]
