Why Business Plans Fail and Why Projects Fail

Why Business Plans Fail and Why Projects Fail

By Kate McFarlin

Thousands of business plans are created every year and only a small fraction of these businesses will succeed. While these business plans may contain solid ideas, they fail for specific reasons and their creators are forced back to the drawing board. The same is true of projects within a company. Big plans are drawn up, ideas are conceived, but when it comes to the real world application of making the project work, it falls apart. If you understand some common reasons why business plans fail and why projects fail, you can be prepared to face these issues and surmount them.

Unachievable Goals and Aspirations

Setting high goals and having the best of intentions of making a business plan or a project work doesn’t always turn out well in the real world. While it is important to have lofty goals, the path to achieving these goals needs to be realistic and attainable. It is one thing to want to sell a million gadgets; it is quite another to market those gadgets to the public and have them actually sell. In order to have a business plan or a project succeed, it is necessary to have achievable goals and aspirations that can be met, ideally within the first year or first few months of operation. If you have a lofty goal, that doesn’t mean you have to scrap your plan – just that you need to set attainable goals along the way and be realistic with your planning.

Lack of Market Research

Market research is a vital part of starting a new business or project. If you don’t fully understand the competition and the current situation of your marketplace, you don’t have enough information to go forward. Before a business plan is drawn up or a project is begun, thorough market research needs to take place and the results need to be viewed realistically. If your niche is saturated, then you need to come up with a plan that will set your business or project apart and help it succeed. Otherwise, your voice will simply be drowned out in the crowd or never heard because there just isn’t a market for it.

Productivity and Motivation Issues

Entrepreneurs are known for their ambition and their drive to succeed. It is these two points that can turn someone without a cent to their name into a multi-millionaire. But along the way determination to succeed, and the ability to stay motivated even when the tide is turned against you, are vital to success in the business world. This motivation needs to extend to employees of your business or members of your team on a project. If they are not productive and motivated, the best idea in the world will not succeed.

Improper Budgeting

Lack of real world budgeting is another important reason why business plans fail and why projects fail. You won’t always be able to go to the bank for another loan to get your business or project off the ground. Eventually, your funding may dry up if you cannot get your idea going in the right direction. Research needs to be conducted ahead of time on the approximate cost of starting a business or a project and keeping it running through the first year and through growing pains. Funding sources need to be found ahead of time and eventualities need to be planned for before you get in too deep.

Need help in developing a plan for your business, getting things done or ensuring that you are tracking your success correctly? Contact us for this and other Business Consultancy services at 1-876-345-1397 or visit our website at www.strategywithmichelle.com