Business Strategy

Business Strategy defines how you are going to get to where your business is going. There are a few elements that influence your strategies.

Business Vision

Your vision is a picture of how you see your business when you have completed it. Is it a local business? How many people will you employ? How many clients are you serving? What is your turnover? What is your profit? 

Usually the vision is a broad statement to motivate you and your team. It is  broken down into goals that help to measure how you are performing to get closer to your vision. 

Most successful business people have a very clear vision. 

Business Mission

The mission of a business is about what it delivers to your clients. How does your business make a difference in peoples' lives? Sometimes the mission extends beyond your immediate clients to other stakeholders (such as your suppliers or the general community).

Business Values

Another important factor are the underlying values that guide your behavior. For me it is often easy to write down values. But when I look at my behavior, it does not always match.

Business Strategy

There is not really one strategy. Instead a business has strategies in each field of the business. It is essential that they work together and complement each other.

On the highest level, your business strategy tells you and your team how to reach your vision and how to fulfill your mission while being truthful to your values.

This collection of strategies is from a specialists that influenced my home based business. Sometimes you will find strategies that might oppose each other. And both teachers will present them as the best and only way.

I think that there is no one best strategy. It always depends on your overall vision and your values. 

If you are uncertain about what to do next, an outside view can quickly get you on the right track. Home Based Business Coaching develops that clarity.

To learn more on Success according to Sun Tzu and the Art of Strategy check out the site from Osama El-Kadi.

Business Tactics

Sometimes it might be useful to implement something for short-term results (to boost sales or reduce expenses). That is called business tactics. And what might be a business strategy for someone else might just be a tactic for you. The difference is in how you use it.

Target Market

The target market defines who your clients are. It is best to find a group of people 

• with the same problem (the one your business solves)
• the willingness and ability to solve it (they want your solution and have the money to afford it)
• that are easily accessible (either geographically or with similar interests, so that you can target your marketing effectively)

In addition, it is useful to describe your perfect client in as much detail as possible. That helps to communicate in a personal way in your marketing materials.

Market research tests whether there are enough potential clients. The perfect home based business idea is researched without pre-conceived ideas. But usually I have an idea for a solution. Then I narrow down that idea through market research.

Finding a Solution

Once you know what your target market wants, you can start on the solution. A mistake that cost me dearly was to design a solution without detailed market research.

The better your relationship with your target market is, the better your are able to understand their needs and wants and can design or find the perfect solutions. 

Most solutions already exist. I used to be disappointed about that, until I realized 

• it saves me time and money in the development
• I can repackage them to appeal to a new market
• I can combine two or more existing solutions to a new solution

Being an affiliate, drop shipping, network marketing are just some of the possibilities to market existing solutions.

There are 5 steps I take to find successful business ideas.

Implementing Systems for Efficiency

"Systems stifle me, I need flexibility!" 

That's what one of my clients kept telling me. And it was about 2 years, before he understood that the opposite is true: systems simplify the operations of a business and give the freedom to react flexibly.

Why? A system is nothing but capturing the best way to do something. That way, no one has to think about how to do something, instead all can focus on reaching the business vision.

It does take time initially. Suddenly you are forced to clarify why you do something in a specific way. Writing it down brings that clarity, especially if someone else has to understand the instructions.

But often better ways are found that save time in the future.

Marketing

"Marketing is getting people to knock on your door, sales is knocking on people's doors."

If advertising is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear marketing, please re-consider. Leads are important, but they are not everything.

We are so bombarded by advertising and selling all day long that most people have developed an effective shield against it. Whenever something sounds like a sale, we ignore it. 

Unless something offers a solution to a current problem. 

When you think about your own buying behavior, you might notice that you buy from people (or brands) you trust and like. 

So basically marketing is about building relationships. The hardest part is the initial contact. But that is what most businesses focus on. Nurturing your existing client relationships is often much more profitable.

One of the most effective marketing strategies is the Internet. Read about a Internet Based Home Business.

Sales

We have all experienced the hard-sell. I always shy away from it.

What works for me is to help people make the right decision for them. That might lose me some sales, but it builds trusting long-term relationships. I also get to know my clients and their wants more intimately. Get information on a home based sales business.

Analyzing Profits

I have had many clients (especially natural health practitioners) who told me: "I am not in it for the money." Usually that was the result they got: no money.

I want to maximize the profit I make (while honoring my values of course). To do that, I analyze what goes into the business: time, money and energy (how easy and enjoyable something is or how hard and frustrating) and look at what the financial results are. 

By eliminating the things that are less profitable and adding things that are more profitable, I make the best use of my resources.

Many marketers offer affordable home based business opportunities. I do not think that is a good idea. That easily leads to scams. Maybe not intentionally, but in the results.

When your business hits hard times the only way out is drastic action. Mark Joyner teaches in the 7 Day Business Turnaround how to get back to a profitable home based business.

Leverage

Every person can only do so much. By using other people's time and skill or other people's money results can greatly increase. 

Leverage is probably the most exciting business strategy. But, it only works when all other areas are under control. 

To get leverage for your ideas, a team is ideal. If you cannot find a local team, ask your question in the Home Based Business Hub to get input.

Conclusion

When starting a home based business, it is ideal to think about your business strategy for each of these areas. It is not necessary to work out every detail, just to have a general idea of how everything fits together. 

Writing that down as a business plan give more clarity and focus.

Once your home based  business is running, it is best to revisit each area and improve the business strategy on an ongoing basis.