Snapchat found their business model, what about you? If you’re starting a business and don’t have a business model laid out, you’ll need one. A business plan is way more than just crunching some numbers. It’s a tool for understanding how your business is put together. You can use it to help monitor progress, help hold yourself accountable and of course – control your business’s fate.
If you haven’t heard, Snapchat could be teaming up with Amazon within the near future. In a recent Android update for Snapchat, there was a hidden code that hints at a future update that could include a collaboration with Amazon.
The feature reported, will be able to identify objects that the camera is pointed at. Then providing users a link to Amazon to purchase the products shown. One line of code contains a prompt that would supposedly appear to users saying: “Press and hold to identify object, song, barcode and more!” Amazon referral links are an extremely viable way to make money for some businesses, this could be a completely new revenue stream for Snapchat.
Does Your Business Have a Business Model?
As a small business, writing out your business plan forces you to review everything at once. Including your value proposition, marketing assumptions, operations plan, financial plan and staffing plan. You’ll end up spotting connections you otherwise would’ve missed.
Example: If your marketing plan projects 12,000 customers by year the end of year two and your staffing plan provides for two 3 sales people, that forces you to ask yourself: How can 3 people generate 12,000 customers?
When you’re the founder, the only person holding you accountable for those results on a daily basis is you. Your plan becomes a baseline for monitoring your business’s progress. When you write, “We expect 3 sales people to generate 12,000 customers by the end of year two,” it becomes your sales force’s goal. Once laid out, the target becomes performance goals.
Snapchat doubled its revenues in 2017, this year the company is taking bigger steps in their business model. You’ll use your business model for so much more-for managing yourself, for operating the business and for recruiting. Before deciding to skip your planning phase, consider all the implications and what they mean for your business’s future success.
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