Answering the Tough Ones

Posted by chriskuhn on Jun 12, 2010 in Blog, Promotional Writing, Uncategorized | 0 comments

Last week, I raised the important question ‘who are you – your brand and your business?’ and smacked you around a little bit if you had not yet drafted even an informal business plan and company description.

I promised you Part 2 was on its way… the toughest part of all, those hard questions that you’ve simply GOT to be able to answer about your business.

So what are they and are you prepared to answer them? Now’s the time to get those responses ready.

I already mentioned some key questions last time around as a preview, but here’s a more comprehensive list (a hearty list of 25 good ones!) to get you started, reflecting the kinds of information you need to know to understand your business and marketplace and help others fully realize your value, too.

1. Who needs you?
2. What do you know about your customers?
3. What value do you offer the client?
4. Are you a problem-solver?
5. Do you fill a void in the marketplace?
6. What are your products and services?
7. Who is your competition?
8. What do you know about your competition and the products/services they offer?
9. How do you differ from the competition?
10. How will you reach out to the marketplace?
11. What are your core messages about doing business with you?
12. What’s your marketing budget?
13. How do you want your business or brand to be perceived by the community?
14. Will you need suppliers?
15. Does your business require inventory?
16. Will you need employees?
17. How large do you want to grow in 1 year? 5 years? 10 years?
18. Will you need distributors?
19. What is your production turnaround and price point?
20. How long is your sales process and what steps does it involve?
21. How will customers obtain your products/services?
22. By what values will you operate?
23. How will you measure your business success?
24. How frequently will you evaluate your business’s current course?
25. What means will you implement to gauge customer satisfaction?