A commercial real estate agent needs a plan. In that way you can build your systems and focus on the things that need to be done.

It is interesting to note that many ordinary or new agents struggle with the entire job structure for some time until they find something that works for them. The longer they struggle the greater the frustration in getting clients and listings. They need a plan.

In this market you need quality clients and good listings. It is the good listings that will bring you better inquiry and over time that will help you with market share and completed transactions.

It is worthwhile remembering that the industry is based on relationships. Grow your relationships at every opportunity. Your relationships and your listings should feature in your plan.

So if the commercial real estate market is a bit difficult for you, or you think things can or should be better, it is time to look at your personal business plan. Here are some ideas to help you.

1. Determine where you are right now when it comes to listings, clients, market share, and knowledge. If you have any shortcomings with these things, then the gaps need to be filled with better processes and or knowledge. Practice in our industry is a good thing. That is practice in prospecting, pitching, listing, and negotiating.
2. Look around your market to determine the things that you are up against and also those things that are opportunities for you. Make sure that the market has enough growth and vibrancy to allow you to grow your income and market share.
3. What are your competitors doing? Are they any good at what they do? Can you be better than them? Your answers will help you set some priorities in your business planning.
4. Relationships and knowledge in our industry are quite important. You must have good relationships with prospects and clients, and you should have a solid base of knowledge when it comes to the local area and doing the deals. Our clients and prospects don’t like to be an ‘experiment’ in property marketing; they need to see that they have chosen a top agent that really knows how to deal with the challenges of the property. Put your clients and your prospects into your plan.
5. Determine where you are now when it comes to effectiveness and getting to the things that really matter. If you are not in control of your working day then a plan will not give you traction. Set your rules of ‘control’ and put your plan into it. Do not let others disrupt your focus and actions. Their plan or their priorities are of no benefit to you (unless they employ you).

It should be said that the critical part of planning in commercial real estate agency is in taking action. Without taking action a plan is useless. Things only start to change when you create the action that you need and you build that action into a ‘habit’.

You want to write a business plan for your product but you don’t know where to start. Inside you’ll learn how to make a simple one sheet business plan.

Go get a piece of paper and a pen or better yet, print this article out.

1. What is Your Product or Service

This is your business idea or the product you want to sell. You can sell cakes, mow lawns, sell crocheted hats, or pillowcase dresses, it doesn’t matter what it is, just write your ideas down.

How does your product or service differ from what is already out there?

Assignment:

Go to a store and find a product. How many choices do you have? Which one do you choose? Why?

Some choose because of personal experience with the product, some choose based on packaging or on an advertisement. Others choose based on how it will make them look to their friends or it inflates their ego making them feel good about themselves.

Service products like mowing lawns are different. You need to do what you advertise, do it well, do it on time, and be reliable. Go the extra mile – maybe you can offer one free mowing if the account is paid-in-full for the month.

2. Name Your Business

The name of your business and/or product should be unique, memorable, and easy to pronounce. For example, in America we pronounce Adidas as Uh-deed-ahs while in Germany where the company is pronounces it Ah-dee-das.

Read 15 more well-known brand names that get mispronounced on Business Insider – businessinsider.com/mispronounce-difficult-to-say-brands-2014-9.

Jason Miles, Author of Craft Business Power and co-owner of Liberty Jane Clothing suggests naming your company a proper name instead of some cute insiders only name.

Can you guess the product of the business names below?

Liberty Jane Clothing vs. Momwithahook

In the first example (Liberty Jane Clothing) you know right away that the product is clothing. The name suggests that Liberty Jane may have something to do with the designs.

In the second example (Momwithahook) it is questionable what the product is. Does this mom sell fishing equipment, hooks, pirate themed merchandise? This is my username online as I enjoy crocheting, use a crochet hook, and am a Mom.

Not knowing this about me and not knowing about the hobby crochet you might be clueless about what exactly I’m offering. A better option might be Sara’s Crochet Patterns. You know who I am and what product I sell.

Assignment:

Take some time to come up with a variety of business names. Make sure it describes what you do and your product without confusing or misleading your customer. Use Jason’s suggestion of adding a proper name, it doesn’t need to be yours but it will help.

3. Target Market or Your Customer

Who wants or needs your product or service? It’s important to get this right so you don’t waste time and money.

Considering your product or service – mowing lawns – who is your customer?

– the elderly

– those incapable of doing it themselves

– busy people

– vacation homes

– houses on the market

Assignment:

Take a sheet of paper and divide into four sections. Label the sections Type, Where, What, and Willing.

Now add the type of people who use your product or service, where you will find them, what is most important to them, and whether they are willing to pay someone for it.

4. Getting the Word Out or Marketing

How will your customers know that you mow lawns? Will you create a website? Will you ask friends and family members? Will flyers be a good way to let people know what you are doing?

Assignment:

Brainstorm ways to market your product. For the mowing lawns example, what would be the most beneficial means of getting the word out?

– Churches

– Clubs

– Schools

– Neighbors

– Friends

– Craigslist

5. How Much Will You Charge or Pricing

In any business profiting is the goal. You need to price your product or service competitively and profitably.

Consider the costs of running your business and shipping if you are selling a product online.

Assignment:

Find out the cost per unit made. To do this you will need to do the following:

– hourly overhead costs

– hourly wage

– total hourly wage = hourly overhead costs + hourly wage

– how long does it take you to produce one item (use toggl.com to time yourself)

– total materials cost (everything that goes into to making your product)

– add an extra 10% for unexpected costs

– total price = time to produce one item + material costs x 10% unexpected costs

Read more on pricing your products on TheDesignTrust.co.UK. You might also find this calculator handy: craftscalculator[dot]com.

Assignment:

Time yourself making your product or completing your service. How long did it take? Determine the cost per unit made for your product. For a service based business, how long does it take to complete the project? Add some extra cushion to this for the unexpected.

6. Determine Your Profit

This is the fun part. To get your profit subtract your expenses from your income.

profit = income (sale price) – expenses (materials cost)

Assignment:

Sit down and find the profit for each product or service you plan to sell.

7. Delivering Your Product or Service (Distribution)

This step could also be done between step 3 and 4. Once you know your target market (who will buy your product) and where they are you need a plan for getting your product to them.

Do you sell locally? Will you deliver? What shipping company will you choose?

Products

Choose a shipping company that is reliable and cost-effective. Start small at first by utilizing the United States Post Office or your Postal Carrier.

Decide whether you will ship internationally. Who will pay the customs fee?

Services

How will your service be rendered? Will you go to your customer or will your customer go to you?

Assignment:

Research various shipping options for your product. Try shipping your item to a friend. How did it arrive? Was it damaged? How long did it take?

Sometimes the cheapest way isn’t always the best way.

Conclusion

You should now have a well thought out business plan. This isn’t acceptable for bank loans but it will guide you in starting your own little side business.

And now I’d like to invite you to read more on business and blogging for small business.

If you are preparing to raise capital from either an investor or a bank, you’re probably writing a business plan. Here are five of the most common mistakes that I have seen as a result of my experience as a corporate-finance consultant:

Submitting the Plan to the Wrong PeopleI have actually heard entrepreneurs say, “I don’t know why I can’t raise any money. I’ve sent my business plan to hundreds of people!” Don’t make this same mistake.

You should first determine that your prospective investor or lender has an interest in your industry and your business. Do this by making a call or sending an introductory letter or e-mail. If you can receive a referral from an accountant, attorney, or banker, that is all the better.

Never, under any circumstances, should you send an unsolicited business plan. These are put at the bottom of the pile, and they are seldom read or given serious consideration. If you determine that your prospect has an interest, send over only the executive summary for review, unless otherwise requested.

Incomplete Executive SummaryThe first thing that all prospective investors and lenders will want to read is your executive summary. This section should be no more than two pages, but three is the absolute maximum. When you write your business plan, the executive summary should be prepared last. (After all, how can you summarize something that has not yet been written?)

The summary should be broken down into five sections, each of which should be no more than one or two paragraphs long. These five sections are:

• The Opportunity: Describe the need that is currently unfilled in the marketplace; if the need is being filled, discuss how it is not being adequately met.
• The Solution: Describe your solution to the problem, and why it is better than what is currently available.
• Management: Describe why you and your team are qualified to deliver the solution that you have proposed.
• Market Size and Share Expectations: Describe how large the market is for your solution, and discuss how much of that market you intend to capture.
• Financing Need and Exit Strategy: Describe how much money you need and what it will be used for, but close with how you intend to provide the investor with an exit strategy.

Weak Management

Either agree to hire full-time executives or bring skilled directors onto the board. If you are searching for funding from angel investors, you might offer executive management positions to those investors who have significant experience in the industry. Venture capitalists, on the other hand, are not likely to invest until the management team is complete.

Unreasonable Financial ProjectionsAll lenders and investors are accustomed to seeing financial projections that go in only one direction — up!

While every business owner and entrepreneur has the best of intentions when preparing a forecast for the next five years, it is seldom realistic to assume that sales will grow by 50-100% each and every year.

It is also not likely that gross and operating profit margins will improve forever.

Your assumptions with respect to working capital turnover, earnings retention, debt/equity mix, and return on invested capital must all be reasonable. If you forecast that your business will return 100% or more on its invested capital during each of the next five years, you are going to have some explaining to do. That does not mean that it is not possible, just that it’s not probable. (See this article on developing solid financial projections [http://www.growthcurveservices.com/articles/persuasive-projections.html].)

Greed!Nothing will ruin a deal faster than greed. If your business is little more than an idea at this point, it is not feasible to value the company at millions of dollars. If your plan is to raise $2 million in exchange for 10% of the business (i.e., a $20 million valuation), you are going to have a tough time attracting the interest of venture capitalists and angel investors.

Spend less time worrying about the valuation today, and instead focus on structuring the transaction so that you can re-acquire a majority ownership interest in the future.

Moreover, don’t be too quick to equate majority ownership with control. You might be able to sell non-voting stock that does not give away control of the business.

Take steps to ensure that you’ve thought about these five points before you submit your business plan, and you’ll almost certainly be a step ahead of others who are competing for funding or financing.

One of the sections that all investors will read first is the discussion on management. If you do not have direct, significant experience in the industry in which you’re trying to start your business, add someone to the management team who makes up for your weakness.