Business Planning: Marketing, Feasibility, and Funding
Marketing Plan
The marketing plan provides information on the marketing of the product or service.
Product Policy
Define the product or service being marketed. Consider the number and types of variants, quantity, brand, packaging, design, innovative aspects, and the phase of the product's lifecycle. These features should be compared with the products or services offered by competitors.
Communication Policy
Specify how the product or service will be announced. Describe the most appropriate means (Internet, local press, leaflets, etc.) and actions (advertising and sales promotion) through which the product will be promoted. Advertising aims to promote products or services, while sales promotion involves activities that support marketing and sales to stimulate purchase by potential customers.
Distribution Policy
Indicate how the product will reach the customer. Specify if the sale will be direct or indirect. If indirect, detail the distribution channels (wholesale, retail, or both) through which the product or service will reach the customer. The role of intermediaries (agents, distributors, representatives, etc.) can be critical and assist distribution tasks.
Price Policy
Indicate the price at which the product will be sold. Detail the most appropriate pricing strategy for the company to set the price of the product or service.
Viability Study
A feasibility study of a business project analyzes both internal data and the company's external environment. This study determines the desirability of creating the company. The following aspects are analyzed:
- Legal Feasibility: Ensuring compliance with regulatory and legal obligations in all fields.
- Commercial Viability: Determining the potential sale of the product and its development within the market.
- Economic Viability: Checking if the company's activity will generate profits.
- Financial Viability: Planning the company's investment and its financing.
- Environmental Sustainability: Verifying that environmental regulations are respected, ensuring the preservation of the environment.
- Technological Feasibility: Checking if the technology is adequate to ensure quality production.
External Funding Sources
These are sources of funding external to the company's core operations:
- Factoring: A short-term financing operation where companies transfer all or part of their collection rights (bills of exchange, invoices, etc.) before maturity to a specialized financial institution called a "factoring entity." This entity advances the cost, charging an interest rate and a commission, and is responsible for collecting the debts. The factoring company rigorously selects the client's customers to minimize the risk of non-payment.
- Renting: Entities transfer the use of property in exchange for a rental fee paid by the user company. The renting company retains ownership of the asset transferred.
- Advances (or Account or Advance Payments Negotiated with Customers): A form of short-term funding from customers. Customers place an order with the production company and advance some money for the order. The producing company uses this money to fund production until completion.
Short-Term Funding Sources
The company can obtain short-term financing with or without the aid of financial institutions:
- With Institutions: Effects discount, credit policy, loans less than 1 year, factoring.
- Without Institutions: Funding through suppliers, customers, and public administrations (commercial loans, advances or customer accounts, pre-financing of exports by the government).
The methods involving financial institutions typically incur costs.
Long-Term Funding Sources
These sources finance the acquisition of fixed assets or provide capital for extended periods:
- Renting and leasing (to finance the acquisition of fixed assets)
- Loans over 1 year
- Expansion of social capital
- Reserves
- Depreciation
- Commercial loans over 1 year