012 Do I Really Need a Business Plan?

Hello there, Small Business owners, entrepreneurs, and community!
Welcome to Episode 12, of Web and BeyondCast. This episode is part
of our new Business Startup Series on Web and BeyondCast, where
we’ll discuss issues specifically related to small business startup
and management issues. To do that, I’ll be bringing on startup
experts from around the world to discuss issues that are pertinent
to startup entrepreneurs. (If you’re reading this in a podcast
directory/app, please visit http://webandbeyondcast.com/012 for
clickable links and the full show notes and transcript of this
cast.) As an SBDC consultant, I hear clients ask the question all
the time, do I really need a business plan? And, the answer is
always the same: yes. But, many resist for all kinds of reasons.
They don't understand what a business plan is and how it's
constructed, they're concerned it's going to take too much time
(instead of simply getting started on it), and they believe it's a
do-it-and-done document you never look at again. All of these
things couldn't be further from the truth, albeit a business plan
will take the time it takes to assemble. Thankfully, there are
SBDCs and experts, like my guest today, who can demystify and help
you with building your startup business plan! If you'd like to
discuss this episode, please click here to leave a comment down
below (this jumps you to the bottom of the post), or feel free to
contact me here about any other questions or comments. In this Cast
Ray Sidney-Smith, Host Robin Suomi, MBA, is an experienced small
business expert and founder of Startup to Growth, LLC.
 Working with clients remotely through video meeting
platforms, she helps clients answer their technical business
planning questions. She also encourages them to dig deeper, dream
bigger, and works with them to create their Success Steps!
 Check out the website for ongoing How to Start a Business and
Business Plan Boot Camp workshops and seminars, as well as 1-1
small business coaching and group coaching, including QuickStart
Mastermind and Growth Mastermind groups. Show Notes Resources we
mention, including links to them will be provided here. Please
listen to the episode for context. NAICS Code Search Tool Best Tool
of the Week Enloop Runner-Up: SBA Business Plan tool Honorable
Mentions: Bplans Liveplan Raw Text Transcript Raw, unedited and
machine-produced text transcript so there may be errors, but you
can search for specific points in the episode to jump to, or to
reference back to at a later date and time, by keywords or key
phrases. Read More Unknown 0:00Welcome to web and beyond cast where
small business comes to learn about marketing and managing on the
web and beyond with your host Ray Sydney Smith. Hello there small
business owners, entrepreneurs and community. Welcome to weapon
beyond cast. This episode is part of a new and hopefully ongoing
series called Business Startup series which will publish about
every five to 10 episodes on web and beyond cast. And this is where
we'll discuss issues specifically related to small business startup
and management issues. Today on this show, we are going to be
talking about and really answering the question Do I really need a
business plan? It's a question that I get all the time and I'm sure
that my guest today on the show gets quite often as well. I have on
the show and I'm pleased to have on the show my colleague and
friend Robin Sumi owner and founder of startup to growth, LLC, a
small business coaching, mentoring and educational firm. I know
Robin, originally from her time as executive director of Loudon
Small Business Development Unknown 1:00center where she spent over
nine years helping thousands of small businesses through seminars
one on one counseling and business planning classes. She's also
been an adjunct professor at Northern Virginia Community College
teaching entrepreneurship and small business management and
Introduction to Business courses.