Products/Services and Industry Profile
In this section you will describe your products or services, the industry profile, and how your business fits into this industry.
A. Products and/or Services
- Describe in detail the types of products or services you will sell in your business, including the features. Include everything your first-time reader needs to know to understand what your business offers.
- Describe the benefits of your products or services to the customer. For each feature, there is a benefit to the customer - what your product or service will do for or give to your customers.
- Summarize the ways your business and the products or services offered are uniquely different from what is currently available in your trade area, including how your products or services compare to the competition.
- Tell the reader about the stage of development of your business - is it a concept, in the start-up phase or a mature existing business. Then explain the way your product is produced, purchased and delivered, or how the service work is conducted.
- Review your plans for adding additional products or services. What are they and when do you plan to add them?
B. Industry Profile
In this section you will describe your industry and how your business will fit into it.
- Describe your industry including the current size in terms of dollar sales and/or number of businesses or customers, whether large or small firms dominate the industry, and how the industry has developed or grown.
- Summarize how products or services are currently bought, sold, delivered, and packaged in your industry. What are the current sales costs and profit margins and are they expected to change in the future. How is the industry as a whole changing and is it growing or declining?
- Provide a brief history of your business' development, and then describe how you see your business fitting into the industry. Will your business be like most of the others in the industry or different?
(Used with permission from the NxLeveL Start-up and Entrepreneurs Workbooks. For more in depth information and personalized assistance, we recommend taking the NxLeveL course offered through the Idaho SBDC.)
|