Last week our founding attorney, Sarah E Holmes, Esq., was featured as a panelist in connection with Temple University's Small Business Development Center event.

Sarah and the other panelists discussed the challenges entrepreneurs face, how business ownership has changed over the last few years, and what trends entrepreneurs should be aware of for the future.

Some of Sarah's thoughts:

upcoming business trends: blockchain, artificial intelligence will be hot areas for entrepreneurship in the now and in the next few years;

upcoming business challenges: 2020 will be an election year and possibly a recession: business owners should be prepared for some instability later next year

If you're interest in legal help for your business, reach out to our firm for help.

We see a lot of potential clients who are very resistant to creating a business plan. Many times, especially a single member business owner, doesn't see the value in creating a business plan. After all, if you're not going to a bank to raise funding, why bother taking the time to create a plan?

This is a big mistake for a lot of reasons. 

Below are our Top 5 Reasons To Create a Business Plan, Even If You're A Sole Owner:

1) know where you want to go:  a lot of objections we hear revolve around, "business plans are just a guess, I have no idea how much business I'll do." Yes, that's true, but if you have no established target, how can you possibly know where to aim? Knowing where you want to go is half the battle.

2) is your pricing sound? The financial portion of the business plan is one that people frequently refuse to address, or are simply in denial about. If you aren't able to do the financial projections, how do you know if your pricing makes sense? Projections can be a very sobering moment where you might realize the business model you anticipated just won't work.

3) who is your ideal client?  If you haven't thought about who your ideal clients or customers are, how will you find them to sell your goods or services? Thinking carefully through exactly who you are marketing to will greatly inform your plan and HOW you will get to your goal.

4) how much money do you need? This is one that is often overlooked by business owners. For some reason, people detach the impact on their personal life. Let's face it, we all need money to live. How much do you need to live the life you want, not just the life you're willing to accept? That should dictate how much money your business needs to net every month. Don't forget to add in income taxes, those can take a big chunk out of what you think you'll take home.

5) what is your big vision? In the beginning, it's easy to get stuck in thinking small, after all, you just need to get your business off the ground. However, in the beginning it's important to plan for where you'll need to go. Will your business require staff? Larger office or production space? Plan early for the bigger leaps later.

These are just a few reasons to create a business plan.  We help business owners with business plan and review in our legal strategy sessions.  We've found that the most successful business owners are those who plan, and not just at the beginning, but on an annual basis.

We're running a special on business planning sessions if you book by 11/30. We'll take $100 off (full price $350) for any sessions booked for December.  

​Reach out to our office to book a session today.