Welcome to our fourth entry about starting your own ABA Clinic. This time we will be diving into the details regarding the planning for the business and associated finances.
Business Planning
There are many key aspects to planning your business, however many undervalue the naming of their business in the process of developing a roadmap for it. Furthermore the name you pick for your clinic is vital as it indicates to others what you and your clinic are about as well as the types of services it offers. It can also factor into your marketing strategy as a more playful name may attract attention while a more conservative name is more likely to ensure trust. Here are a few other factors to consider:
- Easy to spell and remember
- Unique – you can check your local/regional business registries
- Domain availability – a .com domain is usually best or one that reflects your region.
While you are trying to come up with the perfect name, complete the development of the following items and that name may suddenly appear.
- Clinic Overview – This defines the type of clinic you want to create including the types of services as well as the size, composition, organizational structure and any unique areas that set your business apart from others.
- Mission Statement – The mission statement relays the purpose of your clinic and should be compelling to you and potential investors. It will also speak to the values that you want for the business as well as how you hope to improve the current and future lives of the children and their families.
- Business Objectives – Even if you do not intend to grow your clinic beyond yourself, all enterprises need a basic set of objectives that include short and long-term goals. These goals will change over time and should be revisited yearly.
- Financial Plans – You will need to establish revenue targets, expected expenses and desired profitability. These plans will be aided by your ability to manage cash flows and the creative use of your own funds, loans, outside capital and government grants.
- Unique Selling Position – This is what sets your clinic apart from others. I(t is how you will differentiate from the competition and attract clients. This could be something in your desire to provide customer satisfaction, approach, therapies offered or highlighting what expertise your staff has to offer.
- Your Team and Target Market – We covered these segments in previous posts, so please check them out for more details.
- Community – Think about how your clinic will contribute to the local community and build productive relationships with community groups, schools, social networks and service providers. Participate in community events, offer open-houses, workshops, or working with other organizations to promote your business, as well as contribute to the advancement of autism treatment.
Financial Planning
- Financial Objectives – In order to get your clinic started you will need to establish some financial goals and targets. Having them will be a requirement for discussing any outside funding with investors, banks and getting grants. The plan should encompass revenue targets, expenses, profitability and cash flow.
- Business Model – The above objectives will need to support your desired business model. That is you need to establish where your revenue will come from such as clients’ payments, insurance reimbursements and other sources, as well as your expenses such as rent, salaries and other costs.
- Growth and Development Objectives – Describe the plans you have for growing and developing your business. This will include a set of short and long-term goals such as increasing revenue, service offerings, client capacity, and personnel development.
References
Interested in ABAKiS?
