Do I really need an urgent care business plan?

You’re fired up about starting an urgent care center. So why slow down and risk losing momentum just to put together an urgent care startup business plan?

Here are four simple reasons: Money, organization, clarity, and accountability. The urgent care industry is growing increasingly crowded. That means you need to ensure your center will stand out to draw in patients and live up to quality expectations. Here’s how crafting a business plan early in the process can help:

Money

In most cases, you will need a formal business plan and pro forma financial package to show potential investors. Bank loan officers won’t give your idea a second glance unless you present an accompanying business plan document. The process of developing this plan should also help iron out kinks and confirm the math you’ve done to ensure a successful startup rollout.

Organization

There are a LOT of steps in urgent care startup – or expansion. Putting your overall plan down on paper will help keep you organized as you move through the months-long process of site selection, market analysis, development, and staffing.

Clarity

This document should provide the big-picture plans for your urgent care startup or expansion. Make sure to outline the long-range goals and don’t get bogged down in nitty-gritty details. Your business plan needs to be a living document, since changes will have to be made as you progress, but think of this as your roadmap to the final destination: urgent care success.

Accountability

The business plan doesn’t just outline your plans for others to see, it’s a great guide to remind yourself throughout the process what you’re trying to achieve and what needs to get done. The message in your plan should be concise and achievable—something you can live up to and build upon. Include benchmarks in the document to track your efforts and successes.

In some ways, the business plan is all about the “rigor of the exercise.” As an urgent care entrepreneur you must learn the processes of the industry, which requires making assumptions and testing assumptions.  It’s a whole lot easier (and less expensive) to test your business approach in a written document before putting it into physical practice. Remember: If a business doesn’t work on paper, it won’t work in reality.