INTRODUCTION
As a HME startup owner, don’t forget to create your operational and strategic plans. You can also use this template as a guide or template for your own business plan.
OPPORTUNITY
Opportunity is the reason why you are starting your business. It has to be something that you’re passionate about, but it also needs to be something that you can do. The opportunity should also be something you can make money from and grow into a bigger business.
It’s important for me to mention here, however, that not every idea will fit these criteria perfectly. If an idea doesn’t meet all of those requirements, then feel free to keep brainstorming until one comes along that does!
MARKETING ANALYSIS
The market analysis section is where you will learn all about your target audience, their needs and wants buying habits and patterns.
Understanding the market is one of the most important steps to take before starting a business. This section will provide you with insight into how your target audience thinks, acts and shops so that you can develop a product or service that best fits their needs.
The following topics will be covered:
- Understanding the Market
- Understanding Your Target Audience (Patient Segmentation)
Need Analysis –
Step 1: Describe the target patient population and the service environment.
Step 2: Identify users and uses of the need analysis.
Step 3: Identify needs.
Step 4: Assess the importance of the needs. - Demographic Analysis (Age Groups) & Psychographic Analysis (Personality Traits)
SALES STRATEGY
To get your HME startup up and running, you’ll need to implement a sales strategy that meets your budget. Sales strategies can be broken down into five key components:
- Target market:
Who are you selling to? Are you targeting patients, doctors, or both? - Customers:
Which customers will you be selling directly to and how many of them are there? - Sales channels:
What channels will you use for distribution and how much does each channel cost? - Sales team:
How many people do you need on the sales team? Do any members of the team have special skills that make them stand out from others in terms of experience or expertise? - Sales strategy:
What tactics will be used during each stage of the sales process (prospecting, qualification, closing) and why were these chosen over other options available today such as cold calling or email campaigns instead of direct mail pieces sent out regularly every month like clockwork!
FEASIBILITY/VIABILITY STUDY
- A feasibility study is a formal study that determines whether or not a business idea is viable.
- The process of conducting a feasibility study will help you determine whether or not your business idea is viable.
- It’s important to note that while you may have great ideas, they may not be feasible in the real world. Conducting a feasibility study will help identify which risks are involved with starting up your business and how those risks can be reduced.
- Additionally, the goal of any feasibility study is for it to provide accurate information about whether or not it is possible for your company to succeed. If there are multiple solutions for solving a problem, then one solution may work better than another depending on factors like location (e.g., urban vs rural), demographics (e-health care provider), and culture( consumer products).
COMPETITION AND DIFFERENTIAL ADVANTAGE
This section will cover the following:
- Competitors and Differentiators
- Value Proposition
- Customer Journey Map, Market Map, and Business Model Canvas (the framework used in this document)
- People, Resources & Funding
COMPETITIVE STRATEGY
To be successful, you need to know your competition. To do so, you must have a clear understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors. It is also important to know their market share and their marketing strategy. Are they targeting patients directly or distributors? Do they sell through multiple channels or focus on one? What are the pricing strategies? Are they selling online or in brick-and-mortar stores? How are they selling (by telephone, email, direct mail)? This information is essential for developing a strategy that will put you ahead of the rest in terms of sales volume and profitability.
REGULATIONS PERTINENT TO THE BUSINESS
In the following section of this document, you’ll find a list of regulations that apply to your business. However, it’s important to keep in mind that there are many other possible regulations that may apply to your company or product. You should make sure to check with an attorney if:
- Your business is regulated by federal agencies such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Department Of Health), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office Of The Inspector General (OIG) and others;
- Your industry is heavily regulated;
- Your state has specific laws regarding how businesses can operate within its borders;
- Your local community has certain ordinances on how certain businesses must operate within their borders;
- If there are any special rules or regulations that affect your patient’s ability to use the product or service that you provide.
BUSINESS ENTITY DESIGNATION
The business entity designation determines the legal structure of your business. The most common forms are sole proprietors, partnerships, and corporations.
A sole proprietorship is a business owned by one person with no legal distinction between the owner and the company or organization. A partnership is similar to a sole proprietorship but can have multiple owners who share ownership in proportion to their investment in it. A limited liability company (LLC) is similar to a corporation except that its profits pass through to its members who report them on their personal tax returns; LLCs do not pay taxes themselves as corporations do. A nonprofit corporation must be organized as such under state law and may be exempt from paying federal income taxes if they meet certain requirements specified by IRS Code Section 501(c)(3). For example churches, charities, educational institutions and other types of organizations qualify for this status as long as they provide services related primarily to religion/education/charity rather than commercial interests (e.g., making money). Nonprofit corporations may also operate for profit within certain limits prescribed by state law
FINANCE PLAN and PROFITABILITY ANALYSIS
You need to know how much money you will need to get started, what your monthly expenses will be, and how much money you will make.
You’ll also want to know what your break-even point is: that is, how much money do you have to make before the business becomes profitable?
As a HME startup owner, don’t forget to create your Operational, Strategic, Tactical and Contingency Plans.
The operational plan is the day-to-day activity of your business. It covers everything from hiring to accounting to marketing. This is the first plan you need because it sets the tone for all other plans moving forward. If this isn’t in place or isn’t written correctly (or if you don’t have one at all), then nothing else will work for long-term success!
The strategic plan is where you decide what direction your company will take over time based on its strengths and weaknesses as well as external factors like competition or technology advancement trends impacting your industry sector specifically (eCommerce sales numbers should be used here). You should update this annually at minimum with new information available every quarter so that changes aren’t too drastic when they occur unexpectedly later down the road…and they always do happen unexpectedly!
Next comes tactical planning which outlines specific steps needed to achieve goals laid out within an annual strategic plan during each three-month period starting January through March 2023 (for example). These steps include everything related directly only within those three months including staffing decisions made early enough so everyone knows exactly what work needs doing before year end arrives again at midnight December 31st, 2023 without fail!”
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, we hope you have found this article useful and helpful. It is our sincere wish that it will serve as a guide and inspiration for you to create your own HME startup plans, which in turn will help make your company successful. Remember, there is no formula for success – just an endless supply of hard work!
