How to Make a Proper Industry Analysis for Your Business Plan:
At some point in your academic career, you have received a GPA – or a grade point average…
In elementary and middle school, it was likely just a letter grade such as a “B”, but then when you reached high school and college it was an actual numerical GPA – such as a 3.25 or that 4.0 everybody so desperately wants to be able to claim.
And, the reason that everybody wants that 4.0 is because it represents the overall analysis of your academic career. It represents all those presentations you gave, those quizzes you took, and those finals you thought you might never get through…
Well, just like there is an analysis of your academic career done in school, there has to be an analysis done for your business plan as well.
As most, if not all, business owners are already aware, a key aspect of your business plan is an industry analysis – or a market analysis.
This industry analysis or market analysis is what allows you to effectively determine the demographic you are targeting and adds support to your claim that they are your targeted demographic.
So, now you likely see why it is so valuable, but you might still be finding yourself wondering how to make one…
Well, before you start pulling your hair out and Googling everything under the sun, stop by the site Gedlynk for some information on marketing automation and keep reading for some helpful tips from me:
Dig up all the facts
Of course, to properly prepare any type of report or analysis, you need to get the facts first. So, before you do anything else you should start by researching the key questions you are trying to answer.
For example: What does are the barriers I am facing in my market?
Once you identify all the facts relative to your market, you are ready to move onto the next step…
Bring out the creativity hat
Now that you know what stands in your way and who you are trying to reach, it is time to get creative…
You should begin determining how you will overcome those barriers and how you will ultimately reach that audience. It might be a monetary barrier, a market-related barrier, or even a technological barrier.
But, a proper industry analysis in your business plan should have the two basic aspects: the problem and the solution – in other words, the barriers and how to climb over them.
Become the customer
One of the easiest – and most effective – ways to determine just what it is that your customers are looking for is to become the customer yourself. For just a moment, put yourself in their shoes and consider just what it is you would want – what you would want to see, what options would be most important to you, etc.
Then, implement that into your market analysis.
Tie it all together
A business plan should be cohesive – the market analysis or industry analysis included. So, once you have pulled together all the various aspects of your target audience and methods for targeting them, it is vital that you tie this back to the rest of your business plan.
Do you remember how I just said that you need to have the problem and the solution?
Well, this ties into that – ideally, your product and your business plan should be solving that problem.
My Final Advice
Don’t get overwhelmed and don’t try to leave this part out.
Every good business plan contains an industry analysis – so, just do your research, be the customer, and it should all fall into place.
As an entrepreneur, what tips would you give to someone working on their industry analysis? Share your tips with us in the comments.
