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50 Questions Your Business Plan Should Answer

key questions for business planning

S adly, most investors don't read business plans. However, writing one is the only way you will be able to answer the following 50 questions which an investor will ask you:

1. What is the price of your product or service and why?

2. How much capital is required to execute your business plan?

3. How much is the company is worth?

4. What existing products/services does your company provide?

5. What is the use of the proceeds?

6. On a summary basis, what is the historical financial performance of the company (even if, and perhaps particularly if, you have no revenues)?

7. On a summary basis, what is the projected financial performance of the company?

8. What new products/services are being developed and when will they be ready for market?

9. What is the size of the market for your product in dollars?

10. What is the size of the market in terms of units?

11. How has the market for the product/service changed over the past 5 years and why?

12. How do you anticipate it will change going forward?

13. At what rate is the market for your product growing?

14. Is the competition highly concentrated or highly fragmented?

15. What is your distribution channel and why is it the best one?

16. On a broad level, what are the elements of your marketing strategy?

17. What does it cost to generate a lead, and what is the ratio of leads to sales?

18. What funding is being allocated to new product development from the financing and from ongoing operations?

19. How many potential customers have you talked to?

20. What are the gross and margins on your product/service? Why are they superior or inferior to a competitor?

21. What is your assumptions on the bad debt and collection period for outstanding receivables?

22. What are your working capital needs once sales take off and how will these needs be addressed?

23. What will happen to gross and operating margins as sales rise and why?

24. What percentage of your sales are recurring?

25. Who are your top five executives and what is their professional and educational background?

26. What regulatory or legal threats are present?

27. Are there international markets for this product and is the company positioned to take advantage of them?

28. Who is the largest competitor in your industry?

29. What criteria will be used to choose locations for geographic expansion?

30. How will you get this product into mass market distribution channels?

31. Is the product/service patented?

32. Who are your suppliers and or vendors?

33. Do you have more than one for each supplier/vendor of your basic raw materials or services?

34. What are your payment terms with vendors or suppliers?

35. What will cause gross and operating margins to improve as volume increases or decreases?

36. Where is the company located and how many square feet does it lease or own?

37. What is the length of the sales cycle?

38. How did you estimate returns and allowances?

39. How are sales personnel compensated? Incentivized?

40. What, as a percentage of sales, is the industry norm for R&D expenditures?

41. What is the earnings multiple of public companies like yours?

42. What is your immediate marketing objectives?

43. Does the company have a board of directors or advisors?

44. What is the ownership structure of the company? Who else is an owner?

45. How has the company been financed to date? What other financial transactions have occurred in the past?

46. Has the product generated any publicity? Where?

47. How old are the current liabilities on the balance sheet?

48. Who has prepared the historical financial statements and have they been compiled, reviewed or audited?

49. Is there any cyclically in sales?

50. What are the competitive advantages of your products?

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.

David Evanson

David Evanson

David R. Evanson has more than 30 years working in the media, on Wall Street and in media relations. He has worked with investment banks, asset managers, private equity investors and institutional brokers on a variety of marketing and communications challenges. David is also a recognized financial writer, having authored five books on finance and economics, and articles in Barron’s, Forbes, Investment Dealers’ Digest, On Wall Street, Financial Planning and Entrepreneur, among others. David brings to the table a well-developed understanding of the capital markets, investments and corporate finance, and a talent for creating targeted media communications programs for financial services providers.

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How to Write a Business Plan: Step-by-Step Guide + Examples

Determined female African-American entrepreneur scaling a mountain while wearing a large backpack. Represents the journey to starting and growing a business and needing to write a business plan to get there.

Noah Parsons

24 min. read

Updated February 2, 2024

Writing a business plan doesn’t have to be complicated. 

In this step-by-step guide, you’ll learn how to write a business plan that’s detailed enough to impress bankers and potential investors, while giving you the tools to start, run, and grow a successful business.

  • The basics of business planning

If you’re reading this guide, then you already know why you need a business plan . 

You understand that planning helps you: 

  • Raise money
  • Grow strategically
  • Keep your business on the right track 

As you start to write your plan, it’s useful to zoom out and remember what a business plan is .

At its core, a business plan is an overview of the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy: how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

Most business plans also include financial forecasts for the future. These set sales goals, budget for expenses, and predict profits and cash flow. 

A good business plan is much more than just a document that you write once and forget about. It’s also a guide that helps you outline and achieve your goals. 

After completing your plan, you can use it as a management tool to track your progress toward your goals. Updating and adjusting your forecasts and budgets as you go is one of the most important steps you can take to run a healthier, smarter business. 

We’ll dive into how to use your plan later in this article.

There are many different types of plans , but we’ll go over the most common type here, which includes everything you need for an investor-ready plan. However, if you’re just starting out and are looking for something simpler—I recommend starting with a one-page business plan . It’s faster and easier to create. 

It’s also the perfect place to start if you’re just figuring out your idea, or need a simple strategic plan to use inside your business.

Dig deeper : How to write a one-page business plan

What’s your biggest business challenge right now?

  • What to include in your business plan

Executive summary

The executive summary is an overview of your business and your plans. It comes first in your plan and is ideally just one to two pages. Most people write it last because it’s a summary of the complete business plan.

Ideally, the executive summary can act as a stand-alone document that covers the highlights of your detailed plan. 

In fact, it’s common for investors to ask only for the executive summary when evaluating your business. If they like what they see in the executive summary, they’ll often follow up with a request for a complete plan, a pitch presentation , or more in-depth financial forecasts .

Your executive summary should include:

  • A summary of the problem you are solving
  • A description of your product or service
  • An overview of your target market
  • A brief description of your team
  • A summary of your financials
  • Your funding requirements (if you are raising money)

Dig Deeper: How to write an effective executive summary

Products and services description

This is where you describe exactly what you’re selling, and how it solves a problem for your target market. The best way to organize this part of your plan is to start by describing the problem that exists for your customers. After that, you can describe how you plan to solve that problem with your product or service. 

This is usually called a problem and solution statement .

To truly showcase the value of your products and services, you need to craft a compelling narrative around your offerings. How will your product or service transform your customers’ lives or jobs? A strong narrative will draw in your readers.

This is also the part of the business plan to discuss any competitive advantages you may have, like specific intellectual property or patents that protect your product. If you have any initial sales, contracts, or other evidence that your product or service is likely to sell, include that information as well. It will show that your idea has traction , which can help convince readers that your plan has a high chance of success.

Market analysis

Your target market is a description of the type of people that you plan to sell to. You might even have multiple target markets, depending on your business. 

A market analysis is the part of your plan where you bring together all of the information you know about your target market. Basically, it’s a thorough description of who your customers are and why they need what you’re selling. You’ll also include information about the growth of your market and your industry .

Try to be as specific as possible when you describe your market. 

Include information such as age, income level, and location—these are what’s called “demographics.” If you can, also describe your market’s interests and habits as they relate to your business—these are “psychographics.” 

Related: Target market examples

Essentially, you want to include any knowledge you have about your customers that is relevant to how your product or service is right for them. With a solid target market, it will be easier to create a sales and marketing plan that will reach your customers. That’s because you know who they are, what they like to do, and the best ways to reach them.

Next, provide any additional information you have about your market. 

What is the size of your market ? Is the market growing or shrinking? Ideally, you’ll want to demonstrate that your market is growing over time, and also explain how your business is positioned to take advantage of any expected changes in your industry.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write a market analysis

Competitive analysis

Part of defining your business opportunity is determining what your competitive advantage is. To do this effectively, you need to know as much about your competitors as your target customers. 

Every business has some form of competition. If you don’t think you have competitors, then explore what alternatives there are in the market for your product or service. 

For example: In the early years of cars, their main competition was horses. For social media, the early competition was reading books, watching TV, and talking on the phone.

A good competitive analysis fully lays out the competitive landscape and then explains how your business is different. Maybe your products are better made, or cheaper, or your customer service is superior. Maybe your competitive advantage is your location – a wide variety of factors can ultimately give you an advantage.

Dig Deeper: How to write a competitive analysis for your business plan

Marketing and sales plan

The marketing and sales plan covers how you will position your product or service in the market, the marketing channels and messaging you will use, and your sales tactics. 

The best place to start with a marketing plan is with a positioning statement . 

This explains how your business fits into the overall market, and how you will explain the advantages of your product or service to customers. You’ll use the information from your competitive analysis to help you with your positioning. 

For example: You might position your company as the premium, most expensive but the highest quality option in the market. Or your positioning might focus on being locally owned and that shoppers support the local economy by buying your products.

Once you understand your positioning, you’ll bring this together with the information about your target market to create your marketing strategy . 

This is how you plan to communicate your message to potential customers. Depending on who your customers are and how they purchase products like yours, you might use many different strategies, from social media advertising to creating a podcast. Your marketing plan is all about how your customers discover who you are and why they should consider your products and services. 

While your marketing plan is about reaching your customers—your sales plan will describe the actual sales process once a customer has decided that they’re interested in what you have to offer. 

If your business requires salespeople and a long sales process, describe that in this section. If your customers can “self-serve” and just make purchases quickly on your website, describe that process. 

A good sales plan picks up where your marketing plan leaves off. The marketing plan brings customers in the door and the sales plan is how you close the deal.

Together, these specific plans paint a picture of how you will connect with your target audience, and how you will turn them into paying customers.

Dig deeper: What to include in your sales and marketing plan

Business operations

The operations section describes the necessary requirements for your business to run smoothly. It’s where you talk about how your business works and what day-to-day operations look like. 

Depending on how your business is structured, your operations plan may include elements of the business like:

  • Supply chain management
  • Manufacturing processes
  • Equipment and technology
  • Distribution

Some businesses distribute their products and reach their customers through large retailers like Amazon.com, Walmart, Target, and grocery store chains. 

These businesses should review how this part of their business works. The plan should discuss the logistics and costs of getting products onto store shelves and any potential hurdles the business may have to overcome.

If your business is much simpler than this, that’s OK. This section of your business plan can be either extremely short or more detailed, depending on the type of business you are building.

For businesses selling services, such as physical therapy or online software, you can use this section to describe the technology you’ll leverage, what goes into your service, and who you will partner with to deliver your services.

Dig Deeper: Learn how to write the operations chapter of your plan

Key milestones and metrics

Although it’s not required to complete your business plan, mapping out key business milestones and the metrics can be incredibly useful for measuring your success.

Good milestones clearly lay out the parameters of the task and set expectations for their execution. You’ll want to include:

  • A description of each task
  • The proposed due date
  • Who is responsible for each task

If you have a budget, you can include projected costs to hit each milestone. You don’t need extensive project planning in this section—just list key milestones you want to hit and when you plan to hit them. This is your overall business roadmap. 

Possible milestones might be:

  • Website launch date
  • Store or office opening date
  • First significant sales
  • Break even date
  • Business licenses and approvals

You should also discuss the key numbers you will track to determine your success. Some common metrics worth tracking include:

  • Conversion rates
  • Customer acquisition costs
  • Profit per customer
  • Repeat purchases

It’s perfectly fine to start with just a few metrics and grow the number you are tracking over time. You also may find that some metrics simply aren’t relevant to your business and can narrow down what you’re tracking.

Dig Deeper: How to use milestones in your business plan

Organization and management team

Investors don’t just look for great ideas—they want to find great teams. Use this chapter to describe your current team and who you need to hire . You should also provide a quick overview of your location and history if you’re already up and running.

Briefly highlight the relevant experiences of each key team member in the company. It’s important to make the case for why yours is the right team to turn an idea into a reality. 

Do they have the right industry experience and background? Have members of the team had entrepreneurial successes before? 

If you still need to hire key team members, that’s OK. Just note those gaps in this section.

Your company overview should also include a summary of your company’s current business structure . The most common business structures include:

  • Sole proprietor
  • Partnership

Be sure to provide an overview of how the business is owned as well. Does each business partner own an equal portion of the business? How is ownership divided? 

Potential lenders and investors will want to know the structure of the business before they will consider a loan or investment.

Dig Deeper: How to write about your company structure and team

Financial plan

Last, but certainly not least, is your financial plan chapter. 

Entrepreneurs often find this section the most daunting. But, business financials for most startups are less complicated than you think, and a business degree is certainly not required to build a solid financial forecast. 

A typical financial forecast in a business plan includes the following:

  • Sales forecast : An estimate of the sales expected over a given period. You’ll break down your forecast into the key revenue streams that you expect to have.
  • Expense budget : Your planned spending such as personnel costs , marketing expenses, and taxes.
  • Profit & Loss : Brings together your sales and expenses and helps you calculate planned profits.
  • Cash Flow : Shows how cash moves into and out of your business. It can predict how much cash you’ll have on hand at any given point in the future.
  • Balance Sheet : A list of the assets, liabilities, and equity in your company. In short, it provides an overview of the financial health of your business. 

A strong business plan will include a description of assumptions about the future, and potential risks that could impact the financial plan. Including those will be especially important if you’re writing a business plan to pursue a loan or other investment.

Dig Deeper: How to create financial forecasts and budgets

This is the place for additional data, charts, or other information that supports your plan.

Including an appendix can significantly enhance the credibility of your plan by showing readers that you’ve thoroughly considered the details of your business idea, and are backing your ideas up with solid data.

Just remember that the information in the appendix is meant to be supplementary. Your business plan should stand on its own, even if the reader skips this section.

Dig Deeper : What to include in your business plan appendix

Optional: Business plan cover page

Adding a business plan cover page can make your plan, and by extension your business, seem more professional in the eyes of potential investors, lenders, and partners. It serves as the introduction to your document and provides necessary contact information for stakeholders to reference.

Your cover page should be simple and include:

  • Company logo
  • Business name
  • Value proposition (optional)
  • Business plan title
  • Completion and/or update date
  • Address and contact information
  • Confidentiality statement

Just remember, the cover page is optional. If you decide to include it, keep it very simple and only spend a short amount of time putting it together.

Dig Deeper: How to create a business plan cover page

How to use AI to help write your business plan

Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT can speed up the business plan writing process and help you think through concepts like market segmentation and competition. These tools are especially useful for taking ideas that you provide and converting them into polished text for your business plan.

The best way to use AI for your business plan is to leverage it as a collaborator , not a replacement for human creative thinking and ingenuity. 

AI can come up with lots of ideas and act as a brainstorming partner. It’s up to you to filter through those ideas and figure out which ones are realistic enough to resonate with your customers. 

There are pros and cons of using AI to help with your business plan . So, spend some time understanding how it can be most helpful before just outsourcing the job to AI.

Learn more: How to collaborate with AI on your business plan

  • Writing tips and strategies

To help streamline the business plan writing process, here are a few tips and key questions to answer to make sure you get the most out of your plan and avoid common mistakes .  

Determine why you are writing a business plan

Knowing why you are writing a business plan will determine your approach to your planning project. 

For example: If you are writing a business plan for yourself, or just to use inside your own business , you can probably skip the section about your team and organizational structure. 

If you’re raising money, you’ll want to spend more time explaining why you’re looking to raise the funds and exactly how you will use them.

Regardless of how you intend to use your business plan , think about why you are writing and what you’re trying to get out of the process before you begin.

Keep things concise

Probably the most important tip is to keep your business plan short and simple. There are no prizes for long business plans . The longer your plan is, the less likely people are to read it. 

So focus on trimming things down to the essentials your readers need to know. Skip the extended, wordy descriptions and instead focus on creating a plan that is easy to read —using bullets and short sentences whenever possible.

Have someone review your business plan

Writing a business plan in a vacuum is never a good idea. Sometimes it’s helpful to zoom out and check if your plan makes sense to someone else. You also want to make sure that it’s easy to read and understand.

Don’t wait until your plan is “done” to get a second look. Start sharing your plan early, and find out from readers what questions your plan leaves unanswered. This early review cycle will help you spot shortcomings in your plan and address them quickly, rather than finding out about them right before you present your plan to a lender or investor.

If you need a more detailed review, you may want to explore hiring a professional plan writer to thoroughly examine it.

Use a free business plan template and business plan examples to get started

Knowing what information you need to cover in a business plan sometimes isn’t quite enough. If you’re struggling to get started or need additional guidance, it may be worth using a business plan template. 

If you’re looking for a free downloadable business plan template to get you started, download the template used by more than 1 million businesses. 

Or, if you just want to see what a completed business plan looks like, check out our library of over 550 free business plan examples . 

We even have a growing list of industry business planning guides with tips for what to focus on depending on your business type.

Common pitfalls and how to avoid them

It’s easy to make mistakes when you’re writing your business plan. Some entrepreneurs get sucked into the writing and research process, and don’t focus enough on actually getting their business started. 

Here are a few common mistakes and how to avoid them:

Not talking to your customers : This is one of the most common mistakes. It’s easy to assume that your product or service is something that people want. Before you invest too much in your business and too much in the planning process, make sure you talk to your prospective customers and have a good understanding of their needs.

  • Overly optimistic sales and profit forecasts: By nature, entrepreneurs are optimistic about the future. But it’s good to temper that optimism a little when you’re planning, and make sure your forecasts are grounded in reality. 
  • Spending too much time planning: Yes, planning is crucial. But you also need to get out and talk to customers, build prototypes of your product and figure out if there’s a market for your idea. Make sure to balance planning with building.
  • Not revising the plan: Planning is useful, but nothing ever goes exactly as planned. As you learn more about what’s working and what’s not—revise your plan, your budgets, and your revenue forecast. Doing so will provide a more realistic picture of where your business is going, and what your financial needs will be moving forward.
  • Not using the plan to manage your business: A good business plan is a management tool. Don’t just write it and put it on the shelf to collect dust – use it to track your progress and help you reach your goals.
  • Presenting your business plan

The planning process forces you to think through every aspect of your business and answer questions that you may not have thought of. That’s the real benefit of writing a business plan – the knowledge you gain about your business that you may not have been able to discover otherwise.

With all of this knowledge, you’re well prepared to convert your business plan into a pitch presentation to present your ideas. 

A pitch presentation is a summary of your plan, just hitting the highlights and key points. It’s the best way to present your business plan to investors and team members.

Dig Deeper: Learn what key slides should be included in your pitch deck

Use your business plan to manage your business

One of the biggest benefits of planning is that it gives you a tool to manage your business better. With a revenue forecast, expense budget, and projected cash flow, you know your targets and where you are headed.

And yet, nothing ever goes exactly as planned – it’s the nature of business.

That’s where using your plan as a management tool comes in. The key to leveraging it for your business is to review it periodically and compare your forecasts and projections to your actual results.

Start by setting up a regular time to review the plan – a monthly review is a good starting point. During this review, answer questions like:

  • Did you meet your sales goals?
  • Is spending following your budget?
  • Has anything gone differently than what you expected?

Now that you see whether you’re meeting your goals or are off track, you can make adjustments and set new targets. 

Maybe you’re exceeding your sales goals and should set new, more aggressive goals. In that case, maybe you should also explore more spending or hiring more employees. 

Or maybe expenses are rising faster than you projected. If that’s the case, you would need to look at where you can cut costs.

A plan, and a method for comparing your plan to your actual results , is the tool you need to steer your business toward success.

Learn More: How to run a regular plan review

Free business plan templates and examples

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How to write a business plan FAQ

What is a business plan?

A document that describes your business , the products and services you sell, and the customers that you sell to. It explains your business strategy, how you’re going to build and grow your business, what your marketing strategy is, and who your competitors are.

What are the benefits of a business plan?

A business plan helps you understand where you want to go with your business and what it will take to get there. It reduces your overall risk, helps you uncover your business’s potential, attracts investors, and identifies areas for growth.

Having a business plan ultimately makes you more confident as a business owner and more likely to succeed for a longer period of time.

What are the 7 steps of a business plan?

The seven steps to writing a business plan include:

  • Write a brief executive summary
  • Describe your products and services.
  • Conduct market research and compile data into a cohesive market analysis.
  • Describe your marketing and sales strategy.
  • Outline your organizational structure and management team.
  • Develop financial projections for sales, revenue, and cash flow.
  • Add any additional documents to your appendix.

What are the 5 most common business plan mistakes?

There are plenty of mistakes that can be made when writing a business plan. However, these are the 5 most common that you should do your best to avoid:

  • 1. Not taking the planning process seriously.
  • Having unrealistic financial projections or incomplete financial information.
  • Inconsistent information or simple mistakes.
  • Failing to establish a sound business model.
  • Not having a defined purpose for your business plan.

What questions should be answered in a business plan?

Writing a business plan is all about asking yourself questions about your business and being able to answer them through the planning process. You’ll likely be asking dozens and dozens of questions for each section of your plan.

However, these are the key questions you should ask and answer with your business plan:

  • How will your business make money?
  • Is there a need for your product or service?
  • Who are your customers?
  • How are you different from the competition?
  • How will you reach your customers?
  • How will you measure success?

How long should a business plan be?

The length of your business plan fully depends on what you intend to do with it. From the SBA and traditional lender point of view, a business plan needs to be whatever length necessary to fully explain your business. This means that you prove the viability of your business, show that you understand the market, and have a detailed strategy in place.

If you intend to use your business plan for internal management purposes, you don’t necessarily need a full 25-50 page business plan. Instead, you can start with a one-page plan to get all of the necessary information in place.

What are the different types of business plans?

While all business plans cover similar categories, the style and function fully depend on how you intend to use your plan. Here are a few common business plan types worth considering.

Traditional business plan: The tried-and-true traditional business plan is a formal document meant to be used when applying for funding or pitching to investors. This type of business plan follows the outline above and can be anywhere from 10-50 pages depending on the amount of detail included, the complexity of your business, and what you include in your appendix.

Business model canvas: The business model canvas is a one-page template designed to demystify the business planning process. It removes the need for a traditional, copy-heavy business plan, in favor of a single-page outline that can help you and outside parties better explore your business idea.

One-page business plan: This format is a simplified version of the traditional plan that focuses on the core aspects of your business. You’ll typically stick with bullet points and single sentences. It’s most useful for those exploring ideas, needing to validate their business model, or who need an internal plan to help them run and manage their business.

Lean Plan: The Lean Plan is less of a specific document type and more of a methodology. It takes the simplicity and styling of the one-page business plan and turns it into a process for you to continuously plan, test, review, refine, and take action based on performance. It’s faster, keeps your plan concise, and ensures that your plan is always up-to-date.

What’s the difference between a business plan and a strategic plan?

A business plan covers the “who” and “what” of your business. It explains what your business is doing right now and how it functions. The strategic plan explores long-term goals and explains “how” the business will get there. It encourages you to look more intently toward the future and how you will achieve your vision.

However, when approached correctly, your business plan can actually function as a strategic plan as well. If kept lean, you can define your business, outline strategic steps, and track ongoing operations all with a single plan.

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Content Author: Noah Parsons

Noah is the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan. He started his career at Yahoo! and then helped start the user review site Epinions.com. From there he started a software distribution business in the UK before coming to Palo Alto Software to run the marketing and product teams.

key questions for business planning

Table of Contents

  • Use AI to help write your plan
  • Common planning mistakes
  • Manage with your business plan
  • Templates and examples

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135 Business Plan Questions

Embarking on the business journey of your dreams begins with a robust business plan. This plan is not just a document—it’s the roadmap to your success, painting a clear picture of where you’re headed and how you plan to get there.

Whether you’re a seasoned entrepreneur or a hopeful startup pioneer, the questions I’ve compiled are designed as your compass, guiding you through the intricate landscape of business strategy.

From your executive summary to the details of your financial projections, each question serves to dig deep into the essence of your vision, solidifying your plan with precision and care.

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

  • What is the core mission of your business?
  • How would you describe your company’s business model in simple terms?
  • What unique problem does your business solve for its customers?
  • What are the short-term and long-term goals of the company?
  • Who are the intended clients or customers of your business?
  • What is the vision statement for your business?
  • Who are the founders and key team members, and what are their roles?
  • How does your company set itself apart from the competition?
  • What are the main achievements or milestones of your business to date?
  • What key opportunities do you see in the market?
  • How much funding are you seeking, and how will it be used?
  • What are the main products or services your company offers?
  • What is the current stage of your business (concept, start-up, growth)?
  • How do you see your company evolving in the next five years?
  • Can you summarize the financial outlook and projections for your company?

Company Description Considerations

  • What is the legal structure of your business (e.g., sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation)?
  • How did the idea for the business originate, and how has it been developed?
  • Who are the target customers, and why will they choose your business?
  • What are the key elements of your business’s operations?
  • What are the specific advantages of your location or facilities, if any?
  • How does your company’s history and background set it up for success?
  • What business sector or industry does your company fall under?
  • How does your company contribute to the economy and community?
  • What partnerships or collaborations are essential to your business?
  • What are the core values and culture of your company?
  • How does your business respond to changes in the market?
  • What relevant certifications, licenses, or permits does your business hold?
  • What are the main risks and challenges your business faces?
  • What role does sustainability play in your company’s operations?
  • How does diversity and inclusion manifest in your company?

Market Analysis

  • Who is your primary target market, and what are their defining characteristics?
  • How large is the target market, and what is its projected growth?
  • What are the trends and themes currently shaping your target market?
  • Who are your top competitors, and what are their strengths and weaknesses?
  • What is your market share, or what market share do you project to capture?
  • How do your target customers make their purchasing decisions?
  • What factors influence the demand for your products or services?
  • What barriers to entry exist in your market, and how can they be overcome?
  • How does pricing play a role in your market position?
  • What is your value proposition to customers in comparison to competitors?
  • How might technology impact your market in the future?
  • What are the legal or regulatory factors affecting your market?
  • How have external factors like the economy affected your market historically?
  • How does geography affect your market and business model?
  • What are the risks associated with your target market?

Organization and Management Structure

  • Who comprises the leadership team, and what are their backgrounds?
  • What is the organizational structure of your business?
  • How will your management team help achieve the business’s goals?
  • What gaps exist in your current team, and how do you plan to fill them?
  • What are the roles and responsibilities of your management team members?
  • How does the management structure align with your business strategy?
  • How does your team make decisions and communicate internally?
  • What systems are in place for performance management and accountability?
  • What is your plan for recruiting and retaining skilled employees?
  • How do you approach leadership development and training?
  • How does the current team’s expertise align with the business goals?
  • What are the board of directors’ roles, if applicable?
  • How do you plan to create a productive company culture?
  • What external advisors or consultants does the business use, and why?
  • How have you planned for succession in key management roles?

Service or Product Line Inquiry

  • What are the main products or services your business offers?
  • How do these products or services fulfill customer needs?
  • What is unique about your products or services?
  • How does product/service quality compare to competitors?
  • What is the lifecycle of your products or services?
  • How is your product or service produced or delivered?
  • Are there any patents, copyrights, or trademarks involved?
  • What research and development activities are you pursuing?
  • How do you plan to expand your product or service range?
  • What customer feedback have you received about your product or service?
  • How does your product or service adapt to changes in the market?
  • What is the pricing strategy for your products or services?
  • How does your product or service contribute to your brand image?
  • What are the future plans for developing your product or service?
  • How do warranty or guarantee terms play into your offering?

Marketing and Sales Strategies

  • What marketing channels will you use to reach your target audience?
  • How will you position your company within the market?
  • What promotional strategies will you utilize to attract customers?
  • What is your sales forecast for the first year and beyond?
  • How will you set sales targets and measure success?
  • What sales tactics will you employ to enhance customer acquisition?
  • How will your marketing and sales strategies evolve as the business grows?
  • What is your approach to online and social media marketing?
  • What customer relationship management processes will you put in place?
  • How do you plan to establish your brand identity?
  • What partnerships or sponsorships will you leverage to enhance marketing?
  • What are your strategies for repeat business and customer loyalty?
  • What is your process for tracking marketing ROI?
  • How do customer service and support fit into your sales strategy?
  • How does your marketing strategy cater to different customer segments?

Funding Request Fundamentals

  • How much total funding is required to reach your business objectives?
  • What specific purposes will the funding be used for?
  • What is your proposed timeline for the utilization of funds?
  • What types of funding (e.g., equity, loan) are you pursuing?
  • How will investors or lenders get a return on their investment?
  • What is the current financial position of the business?
  • How much equity are you willing to exchange for investment?
  • What are the key financial milestones that the funding will help achieve?
  • What are the terms you’re seeking for any loans?
  • How do you plan to manage cash flow and ensure financial stability?
  • What collateral, if any, are you offering to back up your funding request?
  • How does the funding impact your business’s financial projections?
  • What is the exit strategy for investors?
  • How will additional funding influence your strategic business decisions?
  • What contingencies do you have in place if you don’t secure the expected funding?

Financial Projections and Feasibility

  • What are your financial forecasts for the next three to five years?
  • How did you arrive at your revenue and expense estimates?
  • What are the key assumptions underlying your financial projections?
  • What are the projected cash flow statements for the next few years?
  • What is your break-even analysis showing?
  • What are your strategies for maintaining a healthy profit margin?
  • How do you plan to monitor and manage financial risks?
  • What is your approach to pricing and cost control?
  • How will you balance reinvestment in the business with profitability?
  • What financial metrics will you use to gauge business performance?
  • How will you handle unexpected financial shortfalls or emergencies?
  • What is your strategy for financial record-keeping and accounting?
  • How do customer payment terms and cycles affect your cash flow?
  • What financial software or tools do you use for projections?
  • How will financial trends and economic conditions potentially impact your projections?

Appendix and Supporting Documents

  • What supporting documents will you include in the appendix?
  • How will these documents reinforce your business plan’s credibility?
  • What resumes or biographies of your team members will you present?
  • What legal documents are relevant to include (e.g., licenses, permits)?
  • How can we access extensive market studies mentioned in the plan?
  • What are your key technical product specifications or service descriptions?
  • How do your financial statements and accounting documents get audited?
  • What testimonials or case studies from customers can you showcase?
  • What press coverage or media mentions has your business received?
  • Can you provide industry endorsements or expert opinions?
  • How will technology prototypes or demos be made available for review?
  • What are your policies and procedures manuals like?
  • How do your charts, graphs, and tables support your plan’s data?
  • What correspondence or contracts with suppliers/partners are appropriate to include?
  • How does your intellectual property documentation reflect on your business’s value?

Frequently Asked Questions

Can i write a business plan myself, or should i hire a professional.

Writing a business plan yourself is possible, especially with the aid of specific questions that cover all business aspects. However, hiring a professional can provide expertise and a polished result, particularly if you seek significant funding.

How often should I update my business plan?

Regular updates are crucial—annually at minimum or more often if your business is rapidly changing. This keeps your business plan relevant and useful as a dynamic, guiding document.

What’s the most critical part of a business plan?

While all sections are important, the Executive Summary is critical as it’s often the first (and sometimes only) part read by potential investors or partners. Clear and compelling financial projections are also vital for potential funders.

Final Thoughts

As your blueprint comes together, remember that the strength of your business plan lies in its details and its ability to represent the vision and practicalities of your enterprise honestly.

The questions outlined will challenge you to think critically, anticipate future hurdles, and prepare for success. With these comprehensive inquiries as your cornerstone, you can turn your business from a dream into an actionable, thriving reality.

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Business Plan Questionnaire

Business Plan Questionnaire

Successful business plans clearly explain a company’s business model, objectives, strategies, and competitive advantages. Use our business plan questionnaire below for a list of the questions you should answer in each section of your business plan to ensure clarity and understanding of your business’s hopes and mission. 

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here

What Questions Should Be Asked in a Business Plan?

The business plan questionnaire can help you with how to write your business plan . It will give you a concrete set of directions for the future and allow you to further examine and learn about the market you are entering. Be sure to provide answers to the following questions in each key section of your business plan.

Executive Summary Questions

executive summary

You may ask yourself:

  • What is the issue your business is addressing?
  • How are you solving it?
  • What are your business’s strengths?
  • Why should an investor be interested in your business?

Company Analysis Questions

written company analysis

Ask yourself the following:

  • What is your business’ mission?
  • What is your history?
  • What are some of your past achievements?
  • What is your business’ legal structure?
  • Where is your business located?
  • Why did you start the business?
  • How do you measure your business success?

Industry Analysis Questions

discuss industry growth and concerns

Include the answers to the following questions:

  • What is the size of the market?
  • What are the characteristics of the market: growth trends, units sold, employment? 
  • What factors are influencing growth or decline in the market?
  • Are there any barriers to entering the market? 
  • Are there any government regulations that affect the market? 

    Finish Your Business Plan Today!

Customer analysis questions.

target high-quality customers

Be sure to include the following in your analysis:

  • What is the size of the target customer market?
  • Where are these prospective customers located?
  • What are their desires and needs, and how will your business meet those needs?
  • In descriptive terms, who is your target market? (what motivates them to purchase, what influences their purchasing decisions) 
  • Why will your target customers seek out your business?
  • What trends/purchasing shifts could occur in the market?
  • How will you monitor customer satisfaction? (e.g., surveys, reviews, etc.)

Competitive Analysis Questions

understand their weaknesses to help your company succeed

First, simply focus on your competition and what they are up to.

Address the following:

  • Who are your direct competitors? (e.g., other businesses in your genre) What percentage of market share do they occupy?
  • Who are your indirect competitors? (e.g., other companies that may not be specified in your business’s genre, but provide similar results to that of your business) 
  • What are your competitors’ strengths and weaknesses?
  • What are their products and pricing like?

Then, look into your business’ competitive advantage to describe how your business will be better.

  • Will you offer more or better features?
  • Will you ensure better results for your users?
  • Will you offer better pricing?
  • Will your customer service be more efficient?
  • Will you offer a better overall customer experience?

Marketing Plan Questions

advertising strategy for your organization

A complete plan will include the following marketing plan sections:

  • How will you communicate to your target customers about your product or service?
  • Why are you choosing these specific avenues (e.g., website, Social Media, etc.)?
  • What materials do you have or need, and what will be the cost of this?
  • What do you plan to spend on marketing per prospect and per client?
  • How will you retain existing customers?
  • How will your business attract publicity?
  • What media will you target?
  • How will your product or service be delivered to the market?
  • How might future changes impact your marketing?
  • How will you price your product relative to others in the market to be competitive yet profitable?
  • What type of payment will you accept?
  • Overall, how will your marketing strategy be effective to your target customers?

Operations Plan Questions

operations process for your organization

Consider the following:

  • What equipment is needed, and what is the cost?
  • What are your hours of operation and number of shifts?
  • How many employees will you have?
  • What are the skill sets required when looking to hire new employees?
  • What are your practices for scheduling, managing, and hiring personnel?
  • What are the processes you will use to produce and sell your product or service?
  • What is your purchasing process?
  • How will finished goods be distributed?
  • How will quality be measured and improved over time?
  • What will your procedures to keep track of inventory look like?

Management Team Questions

keep things simple until you have more clients

In this section, answer the following:

  • Who are your founding members and what is their background?
  • Who are your support team members and what are their responsibilities? (include position title, person’s name, and role)
  • Do you offer any ownership options to attract key management?
  • Do you have any Board of Directors?
  • Do you have any outside consultants that will work with your business as it grows?
  • What is your business’ organizational structure? 

Financial Plan Questions

finance projections for the future

Your financial plan should include:

  • Profit & Loss statement 
  • Cash flow statement
  • Balance sheet
  • Sales volume forecast
  • Personnel plan
  • Break-even analysis

Here, you must gather data and convey just how much money your business will need and how much income you will earn, as well as when your business will be profitable. 

Be sure to consider the following:

  • How were your numbers calculated?
  • Why are the salaries and office expenses you have calculated reasonable to your business?
  • Why are your expense estimates realistic?
  • How have you budgeted for unexpected costs?
  • Is there any debt the business currently has?
  • What is the amount of equity the owners and stockholders have? 
  • What is your annual interest expense?
  • What is the percentage of sales issued for returns? 
  • What is your average daily inventory value?
  • Are you using a fixed or variable inventory method?
  • What is the limit on your line of credit and the average interest rate?
  • What is your minimum checking account balance to have at all times?

Your financial plan should prove that you are informed and knowledgeable on the numbers around your business. It should prove that you are aware of all potential unexpected costs or other out-of-the-blue setbacks. 

Appendix Questions

provide the data to support your plan

Appendices may be anywhere from just a few pages to a hundred or more.

Your appendix can include:

  • Resumes of key management, blurbs on other management members
  • Job descriptions/titles
  • Copies of any agreements having bearing on the business plan
  • Copies of licenses
  • Personal and business tax returns (if applying for a loan)
  • Marketing materials 
  • Photos or sketches of the building, property, equipment, products 
  • Industry studies or other information supporting industry trends
  • Summaries of secondary market studies

Business Plan Questionnaire Conclusion

The above sample survey questionnaire for a business plan should be a guide for you to use as an outline and checklist of items that will need to be addressed in your company’s business plan. Growthink’s fill in the blank business plan includes each of these key elements and more to help your business succeed.

How to Finish Your Business Plan in 1 Day!

Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your business plan?

With Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template you can finish your plan in just 8 hours or less!

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

Business Plan Template & Guide for Small Businesses

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Copyright © 2023 SCORE Association, SCORE.org

Funded, in part, through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration. All opinions, and/or recommendations expressed herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the SBA.

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8 Tough Questions to Ask About Your Company’s Strategy

  • Paul Leinwand
  • Matthias Bäumler

key questions for business planning

Most companies don’t have the answers.

Many leadership teams struggle to connect strategy and execution. What can companies do to build a culture of accountability and transparency throughout their organizations? The authors suggest three tactics: First, give executives time to step away from their day-to-day urgencies in order to discuss and debate important strategic questions openly. Next, involve a larger part of the organization in a discussion around how the company is doing on both strategy and execution. Finally, get the board more involved. Senior leaders owe their shareholders, customers, and employees clear answers about why they exist and what they are doing every day to fulfill that purpose.

Companies often fail to address the tough questions about strategy and execution: Are we really clear, as a leadership team, about how we choose to create value in the marketplace? Can we articulate the few things the organization needs to do better than anyone else in order to deliver on that value proposition? Are we investing in those areas, and do they fit with most of the products and services we sell?

key questions for business planning

  • Paul Leinwand is a principal at PwC U.S., a global managing director at Strategy&, and an adjunct professor at Northwestern’s Kellogg School. He is a coauthor, with Mahadeva Matt Mani, of Beyond Digital: How Great Leaders Transform Their Organizations and Shape the Future (HBR Press, 2022).
  • Matthias Bäumler is an advisor to executives in resource and process industries for Strategy&, PwC’s strategy consulting business. He is a Managing Director with PwC Strategy& Germany and leads the firm’s Chemicals business as well as Enterprise Strategy in Europe, Middle East and Africa. He has co-authored a number of publications, including Strategy&’s Future of Chemicals series.

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Key 2024 Strategy Planning Questions

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One of the great things about being a market research agency is that we get a front row seat to our clients’ business planning processes. We’re connecting with them at critical junctures in their strategic planning and helping guide their paths forward.

And, as typically happens, the year-end season is just one of those critical junctures. It’s a time to reflect on what went well, what went not so well, and what didn’t even get off the ground. And, perhaps more importantly, it’s a time to start arranging how to kick things into high gear in the new year.

We’ll share with you some of strategic questions that keep coming up again and again across as we connect with our clients for their 2024 planning. And, we’ll fill you in on how we’ve suggested they start answering them.

Typical 2024 Strategy Planning Questions

Our work spans across industries, from sectors as far flung as UX consultancies and personal injury law practices to consumer games and apparel. Yet in spite of how different these sectors are, and how different their target customer bases are too, we keep hearing the same sets of strategic questions.

Question #1: What Is The Right Way To Prioritize Our Product Roadmap?

This question comes from savvy product teams that know they need to prioritize the features, products, or services they put resources towards in the new year. They’re often deciding between product elements that help with retention and customer delight versus those that could support new customer acquisition. Or, figuring out how to do the right mix of both.

How To Answer This Question:

At its core, this is a question about product and feature concepts . And, more specifically, about the ideas that will have the strongest resonance with existing or prospective customer groups. We typically suggest one of two ways to address this question:

– Product Concept Testing : This approach requires gathering data from the right customer group to take a pulse on what ideas have the greatest appeal and relevance. It usually includes sharing product or feature ideas and then gathering feedback on those ideas. It’s a great way to quickly benchmark ideas against each other to see what yields the most excitement or interest.

– Feature Prioritization Studies : Sometimes it’s less about broad sweeping concept ideas and more about nitty gritty feature details. When that’s the case, we suggest a product feature prioritization study . This survey-based approach is a specialized way of requiring respondents to select their most and least preferred features. By requiring respondents to make real trade-offs, teams get a clean read on features that are “must haves” versus “nice to haves.”

Question #2: Who Else Could Buy Our Product?

Businesses that increase their addressable market increase their revenue potential as well. After all, it means increasing the size of the “pie” they could go after and opening up new market opportunities in the process.  This question mostly comes from an established organization. Sometimes, it’s because they need to sustain strong growth trends. In other cases, it’s because they need to boost growth after a long lag.

While not always possible, sometimes the same product meets multiple customer segments’ needs. However, organizations need to pinpoint what those segments are to then assess if they are viable targets. This leads us to frequently suggest two approaches:

– Buyer Persona Research : Our clients usually have some hunches about who could buy their products. But, they need to validate those hunches. For this, we suggest buyer persona research. This type of research, often done initially via interviews, lets us connect with different potential customers. In doing so, we learn their pain points, category and product engagement, customer journey process, and roles in the buyer journey. This gives us clear insight into who is a viable target and why.

– Product Concept Study : We could also start answering this question via a product concept study. However, unlike the approach we described above, this time we would test just one product. But, we test it with different audiences. This approach lets us see if anything rises to the top with some audiences while sinking with others.

Question #3: How Do We Really Stay Differentiated From the Competition?

Both new category entrants and established players struggle with staying fresh and current. But, as categories get crowded, it gets harder and harder to really stand out from the pack. Forward-looking business leaders across marketing, sales, product, and strategy frequently have this question looming in the back of their minds.

This question often begs two exploration areas. The first is understanding what competitors bring to the market. The natural follow up is determining how to create differentiation given what’s in the market. We usually use one of two approaches, if not both, to dig into these areas.

– Competitive Audit Research : It’s always valuable to get a lay of the land with competitive audit or landscape research . This covers exploring a wide set of dynamics across competitors including features, pricing, marketing, positioning, and customer journey experiences. It provides an apples-to-apples comparison to benchmark what the market is doing, and where you can create a singular position.

– Product Concept / Feature Studies : We won’t harp on this again. But, let’s always remember that testing new features with the market, and then building them, is a solid way to keep advancing and offering newness to the market. And, when the strategic issue is about differentiation, we make sure to include questions that help us understand just that.

Question #4: What Is The Best Way To Spend Our Marketing Budget?

This question tends to come from organizations with solid proofs of concept. They have an in-market product and an existing customer base. With solid market validation, they want to drive customer acquisition. But, they have limited resources to do so. This leads them to wonder about the best ways to allocate their funds.

This question really comes down to go to market planning and channel marketing. Our clients must understand where customers spend their time or go to learn about a product category. With this intel in hand, they’ll know where to focus their resources. We typically take one of two paths to evaluate this:

– Exploratory Interviews : When we really have very few ideas going in, we suggest asking. Spending the time to talk one-on-one with clients is key. By asking them about conferences, events, newsletters, influencers, or other places where they spend their time or do work-related activities, we hone in on channels our clients should consider.

– Marketing Channel Surveys : The flip side of this is when we have initial ideas but want more certainty. For this, we suggest go-to-market surveys. You can quickly test several different channels across may customers and easily identify where they spend their time.

Question #5: What Is The Right Way To Talk About What We Do?

This question tends to come up when organizations are in flux. Sometimes, it’s an early stage startup still assessing product-market fit. Other times its a more established organization reformulating its value propositions and customer targeting. Essentially, they need to know how best to present themselves to get customers excited and ready to buy.

At its core, this question centers on product or brand positioning. This is because good positioning homes in on the value propositions, benefits, and customer targeting that yield strong market resonance and drive customer acquisition. We often suggest a one-two punch approach to address this question.

  • Customer Segmentation : Start off with customer segmentation . Whether done via surveys or interviews, segmentation studies identify which types of customers in a given market are the right target. And, implicitly, they help bring clarity to who is not a customer.
  • Brand Positioning Research : With the right target customer, you can now see what type of positioning works. Consider running a brand positioning survey , a process of showing different target customers different positioning options. This lets organizations compare and contrast options and isolate the one with the greatest resonance.

Prioritizing 2024 Strategy Planning Questions

The list of strategic questions above is no small feat to answer. In fact, most organizations can’t explore all of these questions at any given time. They simply do not have the resources.

How then, do you prioritize what to tackle? We always say follow the data! Consider these metrics…

  • YoY new customer growth is declining ….This likely means it’s time to start looking at new customer segments to build your addressable market or explore if competitors are taking away potential customers.
  • The “competitor” tag is appearing more often as a reason for losing deals …It’s time to understand how to better differentiate yourself to win more business and grow revenue. Start with an audit to get a better lay of the land.
  • Customer churn rate is increasing …This generally means the initial product promise was attractive, but it didn’t deliver enough value. Consider buyer persona research to identify underlying needs and where the product falls short.
  • Low Close Rates or Trial-To-Customer Conversion Rates …The product or brand promise was likely not quite right. Look at your positioning to see how to adjust it.

In essence, use your business data to guide your 2024 strategy planning. And, if you haven’t made a point of collecting historical benchmarks , now’s the time.

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How Early Adopters of Gen AI Are Gaining Efficiencies

February 20, 2024 • 10 min read.

Enterprises are seeing gains from generative AI in productivity and strategic planning, according to speakers at a recent Wharton conference.

key questions for business planning

Generative AI can affect managerial decision-making in “a transformative way” by boosting value generation, according to Prasanna (Sonny) Tambe , Wharton professor of operations, information and decisions. Tambe is also faculty co-director of AI at Wharton , which fosters AI activities across the University of Pennsylvania. He was speaking at a conference hosted jointly by Wharton’s Mack Institute for Innovation Management and AI at Wharton in November 2023, titled “ Driving Innovation with Generative AI: Strategies and Execution. ”

Its unique strengths in translation, summation, and content generation are especially useful in processing unstructured data. Some 80% of all new data in enterprises is unstructured, he noted, citing research firm Gartner . Very little of that unstructured data that resides in places like emails “is used effectively at the point of decision making,” he noted. “[With gen AI], we have a real opportunity” to garner new insights from all the information that resides in emails, team communication platforms like Slack, and agile project management tools like Jira, he said.

Those insights will be helpful in a variety of ways, such as more accurately predicting delivery times for say, software development projects, Tambe said. In recent work, he and his research colleagues found “enormous potential” in one specific use case, where they processed raw patent texts and gained more accurate “blue-ocean” insights than was previously possible. They brought a superior understanding of “where firms are innovating, and where there’s room for an entry-level firm to innovate,” he added.

“With generative AI, one important use case is to take these millions of documents in any context and try to boil them down into a small set of factors that managers can understand,” Tambe said. “Generative AI tools can be used to create intuitive answers to questions, and the technology is better at representing ideas in a way that’s intuitive for people to understand.”

“Generative AI tools can be used to create intuitive answers to questions, and the technology is better at representing ideas in a way that’s intuitive for people to understand.” — Prasanna (Sonny) Tambe

For enterprises, gen AI’s power in providing personalized learning will “fundamentally allow people to learn on their own terms, and meet them where they are,” said Scott Snyder , a senior fellow at the Mack Institute and chief digital officer at EVERSANA, a provider of commercialization services to the life sciences industry. He shared those perspectives as he moderated a conference panel that delved into how businesses can leverage large language models (LLMs) using their proprietary data for training and fine-tuning commercial and open-source foundation models.

”As a digital leader, you’re always looking for the burning platform, and we had it handed to us with the pandemic,” Snyder said. “It forced us all to operate completely differently as companies. All of a sudden we were distributed virtual companies.”

“I see gen AI as the same kind of burning platform,” Snyder noted. “In fact, it’s caught the attention of executives like nothing I’ve ever seen. Eighty percent of executives surveyed now say this will impact their company and industries significantly, but only about 50% think they have the capabilities to fully realize its potential ; 92% of Fortune 500 companies are doing something or building something with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Now everybody is a data scientist in some ways.”

Gains in Strategic Planning and Customer Service

Gen AI can help enterprises become more efficient strategic planning in new ways. Gen AI’s ability to process millions of text documents also helps identify “actionable factors” for organizations, Tambe noted. For instance, it could help companies analyze competition dynamics in their industries and plan on allocating their resources and investing, said he said. Or, it could find uses in performance reviews and instilling corporate culture.

“If you want to take 30,000 performance reviews every year over 10 years and boil it down to a small number of factors that people most care about at your company, such as culture or fairness, what are those few things?” he asked. “How can you boil information from say, thousands of customer service conversations, down into an actionable number of factors? Gen AI can help us distill all that data and represent it back to decision-makers in a way that they can start to act on it.”

Enterprise-level learning is another area where gen AI has big promise. Chris Callison-Burch , professor of computer and information science at the University of Pennsylvania said, “These pre-trained models can do amazing work with learning.” As it happens, his research areas include natural language processing, from where sprung large language models.

Callison-Burch pointed in particular to a feature called RAG, or ”retrieval augmented generation,” which allows users to post web queries to retrieve information and summarize it. Enterprises could also use that tool to upload their internal documents and index them for retrieval via semantic search. “Those are super exciting,” he said.

“[Gen AI] is about marrying the AI and the humans, and the companies that figure out how to unlock that are going to get there the fastest.” — Scott Snyder

A Measured Adoption Curve

Businesses are not rushing in to use gen AI, and their adoption curve is dictated by the risk sensitivity of their activities, among other factors. Avi Patel , chief marketing officer and chief data scientist at Fulton Bank, said companies are experimenting with gen AI, but at a measured pace. “Companies should stay current with gen AI and learn what works and what doesn’t work for them.”

In especially tightly regulated industries, companies will try out gen AI based on the risk sensitivity of their activities, Patel continued. For instance, they might begin by experimenting with gen AI in relatively lower-risk tasks such as document summarization, which would enable their teams to be more effective in their daily jobs, he said. One concern would be the risk of sensitive documents getting leaked out in the process of summarization with third-party tools, he explained.

Other early adopters of gen AI are focusing initially on activities with low complexity, such as Automation Anywhere, which provides automation services to businesses. Tejasvi Devaru , vice president of business applications and data at the firm, is encouraged by some early success with gen AI. His firm had rolled out more than 20 use cases in the six months prior to the conference. In one case involving robotic process automation in the customer service area, his firm was able to automate 60% to 65% of workflows, which freed up the team to focus on escalated emails and provide better customer service. That amounted to savings of nearly 10,000 hours, he said.

In another instance, Devaru’s team tapped GPT to extract specific information from purchase orders to ensure accuracy between sales orders and customer purchase orders. It allowed them to extract “structured information from unstructured documents such as purchase orders,” he said, noting that it was challenging to sift through product information and other details for more than 20,000 purchase contracts with each customer having a different format. Traditional methods were too expensive or time consuming. Devaru’s team is using GPT to process information for about 80% of the purchase contracts, which happen to be relatively less complex. But that shift to GPT is already making a big impact in improving cash flows by about $850,000, he said.

Automation Anywhere is counting gains also in its customer service “deflection rate,” which is a measure of customer support requests that are resolved through self-service mechanisms like chatbots and tutorials, without human intervention. “Right now we have a 30% deflection rate, and we want to increase that to 60%,” Devaru said.

One big challenge for users of gen AI is its so-called “hallucination” problem, where inadequately trained data can produce output that is inaccurate or biased, and does not match real-world settings. “It becomes a problem if you want to solve a business case that requires higher accuracy, and having a human-in-the loop in these scenarios is useful,” said Devaru.

“Companies should stay current with gen AI and learn what works and what doesn’t work for them.” — Avi Patel

Early Questions Facing Gen AI Users

Businesses that want to use gen AI will necessarily have to make some choices based on their specific requirements, Devaru noted. One is to pick the technology that works for them from among the roughly 17,000 large language models that currently exist; ChatGPT is only one of those. “We need to think about what the business use case is and which language model to use for that,” he said. Some, like Google’s Bard, are especially useful in dealing with security threats, while others like OpenAI Ada are good at summarizing documents, he added.

Another question for business users is to decide whether they should use a public model like ChatGPT that is on the cloud versus using an in-house model. Even if a company were to use a public model, it could incorporate security features such as ensuring that its proprietary data is not used by its gen AI provider to train language models, or anonymizing its information before sending it to the gen AI provider, Devaru said.

As companies get more and more comfortable with gen AI and begin to see tangible gains, they would use the technology for higher-level or more sensitive activities. “[For now], companies are likely to think about very, very low-risk items,” Patel said. “But the biggest impact will be when companies use their tabular data and the power of context learning in large language models to understand risks relating to customers, or their likelihood of purchasing the next product,” he added.

Another gen AI feature that Devaru is excited about is the ability to translate from conversation or text to SQL (structured query language), which allows access to databases. “The use case that we are thinking about is exposing a conversational user interface to our leaders where they could get responses to questions like ‘What’s our sales data for the last quarter? Or what are our biggest deals in a quarter? How is it trending?’” he said. “That’s the power we want to unlock.”

Snyder, whose company EVERSANA is in the life sciences industry, sees even bigger possibilities ahead. “There are so many that I get excited about, like giving a voice back to people that have lost it because you can now generate it from their previous history and conversations. Or sight,” he said.

“Ultimately, I think of AI not as artificial intelligence, but augmented intelligence,” Snyder said. “It’s about marrying the AI and the humans, and the companies that figure out how to unlock that are going to get there the fastest.”

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7 Marketing Questions Teams are Asking in 2024 (+Data & Insights)

Published: February 23, 2024

In 2024, marketers have a lot on their minds. With the rapid adoption of AI, significant changes in the search landscape, and an uncertain economy ahead, knowing how to lead your team to success seems daunting.

person considers marketing questions for 2024

When I’m in these situations, I take a deep breath and go for a walk to clear my head. Once I have a steady mind, I start by asking myself questions that can help guide my marketing efforts.

Knowing the customer, assessing user preferences, and knowing what to measure drive our field. The right marketing questions can help you find these essential answers.

So, let’s dive into seven essential marketing questions to guide your marketing soul-searching this year.

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How can you measure your customer experience?

How do users perceive your company, which competitor do users prefer and why, why do certain pages have high bounce rates, how has your customer experience changed over time, is the omnichannel experience consistent, what content performs best on social media.

25% of marketers planned to use interviews for the first time in 2023. The HubSpot team also found that 50% used video formats on TikTok, Reels, YouTube Shorts, and more to keep up with the demand for fast, bite-sized content.

In my experience, I dabbled in a bit of everything. LinkedIn posts, social media ads, direct mail, you name it.

What’s the common thread here?

Innovation. As Beth Comstock wisely notes, “Marketing's job is never done. It's about perpetual motion. We must continue to innovate every day.”

For instance, I dedicate an hour of my day (Monday to Friday) to brainstorming. Is anything working well? Is something not looking so hot?

So, while you might focus on metrics to measure your customer experience, don’t forget to pinpoint what’s resonating already. That’s what marketing is all about, at its core: connection.

If you want to understand, leverage, or optimize how you interact with customers, take a look at the touchpoints that shape the customer journey. Everything from the initial engagement to post-purchase.

This gives you feedback that includes surveys, social media listening, and interactions. You get a better idea of what your customers like and dislike.

It’s this collection of data and constant tinkering that'll help you measure the customer experience.

It’s all about improving over and over, so don’t be afraid to adjust your strategy, take advantage of insights, and match your marketing to your audience.

Here are a few things to track that might help you reveal patterns, sentiments, and preferences so you can better understand the areas that need some improvement:

  • Net Promoter Score (NPS).
  • Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT).
  • Customer Effort Score (CES).
  • Customer Lifetime Value (CLV).
  • Churn rate.
  • Retention rate.
  • Support ticket trends.

Tracking and innovating will help you match your marketing efforts with customer expectations and get results.

Pro tip: Continuously refine and align your efforts with customer expectations through innovative marketing strategies and comprehensive data metrics.

Best for: Marketers looking to not only keep up with ever-changing demands and improve the customer experience. It’s also great for marketing teams looking to stay on the cutting edge of innovation.

Over one in five Gen Zers and almost 25% of Millennials have contacted a brand on social media. It could be a persistent problem or a general question, but either way, they used social media to get in touch.

In my experience, customers and prospects alike contact me via Facebook, LinkedIn, and even Instagram sometimes. It's a new age. It used to be all in person, via email, or on video calls.

While this is just a sign of the times we live in (and a smart use of convenient technology), it’s also created a new issue for marketers.

Social media managers now have to route customer service questions to the right people—and if they don’t, it reflects poorly on the brand overall.

Nothing screams “incompetent and disorganized” like painful customer service rerouting.

Or, as the KB Marketing Agency aptly puts it, “Ignoring online marketing is like opening a business but not telling anyone.” It shows how important it is to have a cohesive online presence.

Thanks to data-driven insights, we can understand user perception. An online review, social media mention, and sentiment analysis are all good ways to gauge where a brand stands with users. It’s a good way to know what users think.

Addressing perception challenges involves adhering to the insights of marketing experts like Bozoma Saint John , who says:

“As a marketing and brand advocate, you should be able to take products and services and match them to what's happening in pop culture.”

A brand's story should align with cultural currents to ensure resonance and relevance.

Creating a brand narrative goes beyond selling. Connecting with users authentically goes beyond transactions. Understanding user perception requires a balance of visual appeal, online presence, and cultural trends.

Companies can easily do that with the help of data insights and marketing wisdom.

Data analytics, customer feedback, and surveys help with customer perception. Even something as simple as changing out your products and services to stay relevant can help build long-term customer relationships.

Pro tip: Focus on your customer feedback, have your brand narrative align with what's trending, and always leverage your insights to build genuine and lasting relationships.

Best for: Marketers looking to develop genuine relationships with their audiences and improve brand perception.

key questions for business planning

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It’s no secret: businesses that keep up with the latest marketing trends and tech innovations seem to do better than their competitors. It shows a willingness to learn, adjust, and stay relevant.

The issue is that while 90% plan on using short-term video to increase or maintain their investment, another 56% plan to increase their investment in TikTok.

That might not seem like an issue at first glance, but where’s the human element?

When asked which competitor users prefer and why, Brian Halligan , co-founder of HubSpot, provides a fundamental perspective by asserting, “It's not what you sell that matters as much as how you sell it!”

He’s onto something.

Building on this, Dharmesh Shah , chief technical officer and co-founder of HubSpot, adds a human-centric layer to the discussion.

He points out, “Many companies have forgotten they sell to actual people. Humans care about the entire experience, not just the marketing, sales, or service. To really win in the modern age, you must solve for humans.”

So it’s not enough to tap into the latest and greatest trend. Using the right channels only gets you so far. At the end of the day, you have to have a seamless, engaging sales approach.

There are a lot of factors that make up customer experience, as Shah points out. After all, making customers happy should be your priority.

Positive experiences are more important than products. Making the sales process easier, communicating clearly and transparently, and understanding your customers' needs and preferences are all important.

Being innovative helps, but it also helps businesses stay adaptable. If they can adapt to ever-changing consumer expectations, they’ll be around for a long, long time.

As highlighted by KB Marketing Agency : “Ignoring online marketing is like opening a business but not telling anyone.” This emphasizes the importance of leveraging digital channels to engage with audiences, be visible, and stay relevant.

Businesses can focus on the product and the entire user experience with these insights and advice from industry leaders.

Prioritizing innovation, understanding the human element, and embracing digital visibility can help businesses shape and influence user preferences.

Pro tip: Focus on the customer experience, and stay flexible to adapt to changing consumer expectations in the digital age.

Best for: Marketers looking to stay competitive by emphasizing a seamless, engaging sales approach and understanding the human element in customer interactions.

key questions for business planning

Taking this insight to heart has helped us create better content. Brands should create content that genuinely connects with people, building meaningful connections and reducing the chance of being overlooked.

Experts always stress how important it is to engage and connect authentically. To stay on top of this changing landscape, we‘re going to evolve with them. It’s our goal to not just meet but to exceed expectations.

Pro tip: Improve your customer experience by going all-in on personalized interactions, studying data trends, and aligning outreach with the customers' evolving needs.

Best for: Marketers looking to adapt and enhance their customer experience in response to evolving trends and customer expectations.

Blogs, social media shopping tools, and influencer marketing still held the number one highest ROI spot of any marketing channel . Things like podcasts, virtual events, SMS marketing, SEO, and direct mail did well.

So it’s no wonder that being everywhere possible seems to be, well, smart. But just how hard is it to keep track of everything?

The constant vigilance and adaptability to meet consumer behavior changes? Staying dynamic and responsive?

Amrita Sahasrabudhe 's advice, " take a risk and keep testing, because what works today won't work tomorrow, but what worked yesterday may work again," sums it up nicely. We just need to keep improving.

Customer behavior is always changing because that’s just how humans work. Experimentation and adapting are part of the deal.

Of course, that means there is a silver lining: what worked before might start working again, so be flexible and keep that chin up.

In omnichannel experiences, Joe Chernov 's perspective adds valuable insight: “Good marketing makes the company look smart. Great marketing makes the customer feel smart.”

We should have that mission to empower our customers and create memorable experiences that reflect our brand.

An omnichannel approach is not a goal but a journey. Consistency needs a balance of taking risks, continuous testing, and getting a grip on what's popular with your audience.

It also means being open to changing preferences tomorrow. It's not just about looking smart but making our customers feel smart.

Pro tip: Maintain a consistent omnichannel experience by embracing dynamic marketing strategies, continuous testing, and staying adaptable to changing consumer behavior.

Best for: Marketers looking to establish and maintain a dynamic and customer-centric omnichannel presence.

Odds are you can guess what kind of content performs the best. It’s engaging, it offers a chance to inject some personality, and it’s designed to keep people invested until the end, if all goes well.

Any guesses?

If you said video, you’re right. It was the most popular and effective media format for the fourth year in a row in 2023 . 50% of marketers leveraged it as the cornerstone of their marketing strategy.

It makes sense—it takes both creativity and strategy, which helps when you’re trying to go beyond your standard engagement metrics, creating a community and authentic conversations.

Krystal Wu , social media community manager at HubSpot, encapsulates this approach with her insight:

“Social media marketing is about creating content that brings your audience together as a community and inspires authentic conversations while increasing your brand's awareness.”

Wu's perspective forms the cornerstone of our social media strategy. At our core, we strive to do more than just grab your attention. Active engagement and conversation foster a strong sense of community.

You don't just want to broadcast a message. You want real connections.

When it comes to social media, storytelling is essential. Sam Balter , senior marketing manager of podcasts at HubSpot, emphasizes:

“Nothing sticks in your head better than a story. Stories can express the most complicated ideas in the most digestible ways.”

In other words, a really solid story has a massive impact. Anecdotes, testimonials, or more elaborate storytelling formats are powerful. It's easier to understand complex messages with them, especially with social media scrolling constantly.

Pro tip: Engaging video content and storytelling can help you build relationships with your audience and inspire authentic conversations.

Best for: Social media marketers looking for ways to enhance engagement and build a strong community presence.

Empowering Tomorrow: Final Insights for Marketing Success

Marketing in 2024 is exciting. You‘ve got challenges, like always, but you’ve also got some pretty cool opportunities.

So, while these seven key questions might be food for thought on paper, they can also help you and your marketing team better tackle the year’s hurdles. It's all down to how you see it.

Each one of these questions gives you a key to the door that can help you improve your customer experiences, have better social media storytelling, or even just a deeper understanding that leaves trends in the dust.

After all, you are only successful in marketing if you spark that human connection. This means every insightful data you have is a step closer to an authentic conversation. So, will you use that information to prioritize heartfelt interaction?

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IR-2024-45, Feb. 21, 2024

WASHINGTON — During the busiest time of the tax filing season, the Internal Revenue Service kicked off its 2024 Tax Time Guide series to help remind taxpayers of key items they’ll need to file a 2023 tax return.

As part of its four-part, weekly Tax Time Guide series, the IRS continues to provide new and updated resources to help taxpayers file an accurate tax return. Taxpayers can count on IRS.gov for updated resources and tools along with a special free help page available around the clock. Taxpayers are also encouraged to read Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax (For Individuals) for additional guidance.

Essentials to filing an accurate tax return

The deadline this tax season for filing Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return , or 1040-SR, U.S. Tax Return for Seniors , is April 15, 2024. However, those who live in Maine or Massachusetts will have until April 17, 2024, to file due to official holidays observed in those states.

Taxpayers are advised to wait until they receive all their proper tax documents before filing their tax returns. Filing without all the necessary documents could lead to mistakes and potential delays.

It’s important for taxpayers to carefully review their documents for any inaccuracies or missing information. If any issues are found, taxpayers should contact the payer immediately to request a correction or confirm that the payer has their current mailing or email address on file.

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Having organized tax records can make the process of preparing a complete and accurate tax return easier and may also help taxpayers identify any overlooked deductions or credits .

Taxpayers who have an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number or ITIN may need to renew it if it has expired and is required for a U.S. federal tax return. If an expiring or expired ITIN is not renewed, the IRS can still accept the tax return, but it may result in processing delays or delays in credits owed.

Changes to credits and deductions for tax year 2023

Standard deduction amount increased. For 2023, the standard deduction amount has been increased for all filers. The amounts are:

  • Single or married filing separately — $13,850.
  • Head of household — $20,800.
  • Married filing jointly or qualifying surviving spouse — $27,700.

Additional child tax credit amount increased. The maximum additional child tax credit amount has increased to $1,600 for each qualifying child.

Child tax credit enhancements. Many changes to the Child tax credit (CTC) that had been implemented by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 have expired.

However, the IRS continues to closely monitor legislation being considered by Congress affecting the Child Tax Credit. The IRS reminds taxpayers eligible for the Child Tax Credit that they should not wait to file their 2023 tax return this filing season. If Congress changes the CTC guidelines, the IRS will automatically make adjustments for those who have already filed so no additional action will be needed by those eligible taxpayers.

Under current law, for tax year 2023, the following currently apply:

  • The enhanced credit allowed for qualifying children under age 6 and children under age 18 has expired. For 2023, the initial amount of the CTC is $2,000 for each qualifying child. The credit amount begins to phase out where AGI income exceeds $200,000 ($400,000 in the case of a joint return). The amount of the CTC that can be claimed as a refundable credit is limited as it was in 2020 except that the maximum ACTC amount for each qualifying child increased to $1,500.
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Changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). The enhancements for taxpayers without a qualifying child implemented by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 will not apply for tax year 2023. To claim the EITC without a qualifying child in 2023, taxpayers must be at least age 25 but under age 65 at the end of 2023. If a taxpayer is married filing a joint return, one spouse must be at least age 25 but under age 65 at the end of 2023.

Taxpayers may find more information on Child tax credits in the Instructions for Schedule 8812 (Form 1040) .

New Clean Vehicle Credit. The credit for new qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicles has changed. This credit is now known as the Clean Vehicle Credit. The maximum amount of the credit and some of the requirements to claim the credit have changed. The credit is reported on Form 8936, Qualified Plug-In Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit , and on Form 1040, Schedule 3.

More information on these and other credit and deduction changes for tax year 2023 may be found in the Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax (For Individuals) , taxpayer guide.

1099-K reporting requirements have not changed for tax year 2023

Following feedback from taxpayers, tax professionals and payment processors, and to reduce taxpayer confusion, the IRS recently released Notice 2023-74 announcing a delay of the new $600 reporting threshold for tax year 2023 on Form 1099-K, Payment Card and Third-Party Network Transactions . The previous reporting thresholds will remain in place for 2023.

The IRS has published a fact sheet with further information to assist taxpayers concerning changes to 1099-K reporting requirements for tax year 2023.

Form 1099-K reporting requirements

Taxpayers who take direct payment by credit, debit or gift cards for selling goods or providing services by customers or clients should get a Form 1099-K from their payment processor or payment settlement entity no matter how many payments they got or how much they were for.

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the payment app or online marketplace is required to send a Form 1099-K. However, they can send a Form 1099-K with lower amounts. Whether or not the taxpayer receives a Form 1099-K, they must still report any income on their tax return.

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Good recordkeeping is key. Be sure to keep good records because it helps when it’s time to file a tax return. It’s a good idea to keep business and personal transactions separate to make it easier to figure out what a taxpayer owes.

For details on what to do if a taxpayer gets a Form 1099-K in error or the information on their form is incorrect, visit IRS.gov/1099k  or find frequently asked questions at Form 1099-K FAQs .

Direct File pilot program provides a new option this year for some

The IRS launched the Direct File pilot program during the 2024 tax season. The pilot will give eligible taxpayers an option to prepare and electronically file their 2023 tax returns, for free, directly with the IRS.

The Direct File pilot program will be offered to eligible taxpayers in 12 pilot states who have relatively simple tax returns reporting only certain types of income and claiming limited credits and deductions. The 12 states currently participating in the Direct File pilot program are Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington state and Wyoming. Taxpayers can check their eligibility at directfile.irs.gov .

The Direct File pilot is currently in the internal testing phase and will be more widely available in mid-March. Taxpayers can get the latest news about the pilot at Direct File pilot news and sign up to be notified when Direct File is open to new users.

Finally, for comprehensive information on all these and other changes for tax year 2023, taxpayers and tax professionals are encouraged to read the Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax (For Individuals) , taxpayer guide, as well as visit other topics of taxpayer interest on IRS.gov.

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5 Critical Questions That Will Lead You to Business Success As the saying goes, we don't always know what we don't know. That can make it hard to come up with the right questions. But not if you start with these five basic inquiries.

By Ray Titus • Feb 19, 2024

Key Takeaways

  • The willingness to ask questions, listen to the answers, and then act fosters a culture of open communication and respect.
  • By engaging in active listening after posing questions, leaders can gain deeper insights and make informed decisions.
  • Encouraging employees to share their thoughts and opinions by asking open-ended questions will enhance their engagement.

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Recently, my company was exploring a business opportunity in Australia . I've been there more than 50 times but found myself puzzled over a real estate term. I could have pretended to understand it so I'd look smart to everyone, but I asked what the term meant – and the answer changed our direction completely.

The experience taught me, once again, that when it comes to business challenges, being willing to ask questions is often the answer you need to succeed. No one is an expert in everything, so questions are an essential part of running any business. By asking questions and then listening to the answers and acting on them, even if you reach a different conclusion than they have, you are telling everyone around you that they are important and you value their opinions.

Related: Considering franchise ownership? Get started now and take this quiz to find your personalized list of franchises that match your lifestyle, interests and budget.

Great salespeople are excellent listeners

The consequence of not asking questions is obvious: failure. When you neglect to seek critical information, you put your project (or your entire business) at risk of failure, and your reputation suffers because you look like a know-it-all who places your own ideas above all else.

Not enough people understand this. Great salespeople are excellent listeners — they hear what the customer wants and then give it to them. Poor salespeople, on the other hand, consistently misread people because they haven't learned how to listen or ask questions — or they're just too busy talking.

It's essential to ask the right questions, but you can't hold back for fear of looking like you don't know anything. Being willing to admit what you don't understand can be more valuable than showing your authority. No one expects me to know all about legal issues or be a technology expert; that's why we have a legal department that hires lawyers and an IT department that hires computer experts. But being honestly curious about areas you're not familiar with will lead you to the answers you need, and if your experts give you clear answers you can understand, you can be more confident you've got the right team in place.

5 Questions that can yield the answers you need

As the saying goes, we don't always know what we don't know. That can make it hard to come up with the right questions . But it's not that hard if you start with these five basic inquiries:

1. What do you think?

You might be surprised how many employees don't think their ideas matter to senior leaders. Asking for a team member's opinion gives them permission to speak up with an honest assessment you might never hear if you don't ask for it.

2. If you were me, what would you do?

This is helpful if you don't know much about the subject being discussed. It's a stronger way of asking "What should I do?" because it requires the employee to put more thought into their answer and to imagine the consequences.

3. Is there something I'm missing here?

If you don't understand an answer or it doesn't make sense, this is a diplomatic way of getting clarity. It gives you the responsibility for understanding rather than making the team members feel they're not explaining things correctly.

4. Who else can I talk to about this?

This gives you the opportunity to expand your resources and relieves the employee of being completely responsible for the answers you need. Don't ask in a way that suggests you're unhappy with their responses, however.

5. Is there a better way to do this?

If you're not satisfied with the answers you've received, this is a positive way of asking for better ones without denigrating the first answer and the person who gave it.

But asking questions is just the first step in seeking the information you need.

Related: How to Ask the Right Question in the Right Way

Stop talking and start listening

I'm not always looking for new information when I ask questions. I'm also seeking to understand my teams' rationale so I can evaluate their decisions. Sometimes I'm just looking to confirm my own thinking.

That's why I believe listening is such an important part of communication ; once you ask the questions, you must listen to the answers and be willing to go deeper – "peeling the onion" with two or three or more queries that will get you where you need to be. I even wrote a short book on the subject; You're Not Listening to Me! Learn to Communicate Better by Improving the Listening Side .

If you go in a different direction, asking intelligent questions and listening thoughtfully to the responses can minimize the team's resistance. When you base your decision on the answers they've given you, and you can explain the decision rationally, they are more likely to feel valued and respected. If someone gets upset or doesn't accept your decision, it may be because you behaved like a prosecutor interrogating them on the witness stand – looking for reasons to reject their ideas without fair consideration.

Not all my questions are directed at my teams. My most productive one is often something I ask myself: What changes would someone else make right away if they were sitting in my seat? It's not always easy to hear the answer, but taking an observer's perspective and trying to see myself as someone else might view me has led to some surprisingly honest appraisals.

Remember, however, that what you ask is not as important as the mere fact that you're asking . It shows you're willing to admit you don't know everything and you trust your team to help you choose the right direction. But it's not just about image; ensuring you understand issues surrounding your business and have accounted for possible problems will make projects more likely to succeed.

Entrepreneur Leadership Network® Contributor

CEO of United Franchise Group

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