Branding Strategy for Start-Ups
Our strategic planning team has developed a business planning guide specifically for small business start-ups to assist in the development of a cohesive and effective branding strategy. This article identifies the critical steps in the strategic planning process. Many small business owners think that strategic planning is just for blue-chip companies. They couldn’t be more wrong. When starting a business, entrepreneurs often get so wrapped up in the functional details of their business that they fail to develop a strategic plan for their enterprise.
Strategic Planning for Entrepreneurs
When thinking about strategic planning we advise small business professionals to take a page from the big players. It’s important to consider foundational factors and the application for your new business. You should be able to answer the following questions:
What makes my organization great and what factors influence the competitive dynamic of my marketplace?
Why is it that having great high-quality products and competitive prices no longer guarantees competitive advantage? What does my firm need to do to gain and maintain a sustainable advantage?
How did once dominant firms fall from their lofty positions of industry dominance? How can my start-up avoid this path?
What are the characteristics of high-performance organizations -- irrespective of industry -- that enable them to consistently outperform others in their market? How can I apply these principles to my start-up?
What are the warning signals of strategic decline and performance, and can these declines be predicted and avoided?
Sustainable Competitive Advantage for Your New Business
For a start-up to launch, growth and thrive it is essential that you identify the external environmental shifts that necessitate internal organization modification. Think about what is happening in your business environment and how your firm succeeds in this environment.
Key elements include environmental scanning and fully understanding the impact of external forces on your small business and the implications for your core firm competencies. Competitive advantage for your start-up (the value created by your firm that exceeds your cost of creating it relative to competitors) is not sufficient for long term success.
Our strategic planning consultants suggest you work to build a sustainable competitive advantage. The key elements of long-term sustainable advantage for your start-up are rooted in capabilities that are:
Rare – Only the firm possesses, unique
Unique – Skill based and people intensive, honed tightly to your customer needs
Socially Complex – Dependent on coordinated action, difficult to replicate
The more rare, unique and socially complex your start-up capabilities -- the more sustainable your competitive advantage.
If you would like a step-by-step business plan action plan for developing a business plan for your new venture, check-out this recent article. Strategic Planning for Small Business.
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