Why do I need a Business Plan?
Every business needs a plan, you need to know where you are going and how you are going to get there. Without a plan you are going to get lost. Of course your Bank will want to see a business plan before it will open you an account. You also need to review your plan on a regular basis to ensure you are still on target or to check that if your target has moved.
What do I Charge for My Services?
This is a constant question, are you charging too much. You need to do some research in the charges in your locality. It often does not pay to undercut the opposition by a lot as people may not trust you to do a good job if you are the cheapest by far. Similarly you should not exceed the local charges as people will think you are too expensive. You also need to think about the amount you need to earn and the number of clients you will be seeing.
Where do I see my clients?
Do you set up in your own clinic, use your own home or rent a room in another clinic? The cost of setting up your own clinic is generally very expensive and you need to fill it all the time in order to get some return on your investment. It is generally easier to use some rooms at first, especially if you can get one where you only pay for the time you use the room. A room in your home may also be difficult to set up, you need to think about possibility of rates and permission for change of use, disabled access and other health and safety aspects. However, this depends on amount of use you make, just an office in the home is fine.
Income and expenditure.
You need to work out a set of possible income and expenditure for each month for the next year as a part of your business plan. You can claim for some heating, lighting and rent for you home office against your income, but you can only claim for a limited amount part of the house before you run into difficulties.
Sole Trader
You also need to think about what sort of business to set up. The easiest method is to be a Sole Trader, this makes your accounting easier. However, your tax code is what it is and you will pay tax at your personal rate for your income.
Limited Company
This is your other option, it is a little harder to set up. You must use an accountant and the accounts are a little more difficult to organise. However, there are benefits in tax relief, as the Company pays corperation tax and you can claim certain expenses against that. Corporation tax is generally less than your personal tax.