Forecasting for your business

Successful companies don’t just make spontaneous decisions because they feel like it. They use their business plan to stay on target and focus. Part of that is using business forecasts to plot their future finances. Forecasting the future of a business is essential in understanding where it’s headed and whether or not current marketing strategies are working.

A business forecast estimates and predicts the business’s financial health for up to five years. With revenue, sales, cash flow and costs. This article will discuss how you can forecast and plan your future marketing activities by using growth analysis software.

Why use business forecasts?

Companies typically rely on business forecasts to get a clearer picture of their financial trajectory, but forecasting can be helpful in understanding your strengths and weaknesses across the board and all areas of your business.

For example if your company sells more products during holidays than any other season, then including that holiday uptick in monthly forecasts would be wise planning; without anticipated seasonal variations in advance there may not be enough inventory for every customer who wants them! Forecasting also includes extrapolating past.

However, no business plan can predict the future with absolute certainty. These forecasts are predictions and designed to help you guide your business moving forward.

What business forecast CAN do:

• Review the seasonal ups and downs of your industry and plan accordingly.
• Set realistic sales goals and look at growth strategy bugets.
• Adjust the timelines needed for accounts receivable and payable
• Strategize to close the gaps in your cash flow to ensure you’re always growing and never slowing down.
• Create budgets on a quarterly, and annual basis
• Determine if you need a line of credit, term loan, bridge loans, etc.
• Improve sales and marketing strategy for business success

5 types of business forecasting

The five most common types of business forecasting include :

1. Internal forecasting:
This is a process that helps your business forecast sales and marketing strategy. It’s based on anticipating customer needs and wants, and also what the competition will do. You can use this to look at inventory levels, staffing requirements or even industry trends.

2. External forecasting:
This type of forecasts research markets outside of your company in order to predict how they’ll shift for factors like competitive prices or economic conditions over time.

3. Market segmentation forecasting:
Businesses use this when trying to determine their customers’ future demands by grouping them into segments such as geographic location, demographics, age range etc. For example if you’re selling skincare products then geographical locations would include North America vs Europe vs Asia-Pacific etc..

4. Cash flow forecasting 
is used to look at the company’s future cash flow by taking into account its operating costs and revenue. You can use cash flow forecasting to develop a plan for the company’s future. These are usually necessary also to make assumptions about your potential customers and their payment behavior.

5. Sales forecasting 
I’d say sales forcasting is also risk management. This is a top-down estimate of the amount of sales or revenue that your business expects to generate during a specific period. Predictions about future sales can help small business owners figure out which inventory to order, whether they want to prepare for a slow period, make hiring descisions and how profitable their venture is.

Some businesses use sales process management software to inform and predict the success of their sales processes, which is beneficial for marketing or retail stores that are going through a new product launch, have seasonal promotions coming up, or who need more information about what customers want – all before they start an inventory order.

Sales forecasting is often necessary to make assumptions about your potential customers and payment behavior because it helps small business owners know how much inventory they will need on hand at any given time so there isn’t excess warehousing space.

How to create a proper business forecast

Forecasting in business can be challenging without a set methodology to follow. However, here are the general steps you can take to initiate forecasts:

1. Pick the forecast type and set a timeline

A short-term cash forecast can be a useful tool for any business concerned about meeting money needs in the next quarter. Ongoing projects, long term forecasting, and strategic planning are also tools to consider as part of your financial health.

One way to think about year-over-year revenue growth is as a medium-term sales forecast. For instance, if you are trying to acquire a new investor or bank loan for your company in the long term, then perhaps a market forecast would be most appropriate.

2. Bring together all the data needed

Regardless of your company’s size, every forecast needs a point to focus on. For example, if you are forecasting short-term sales revenues and the question is “What will our revenue look like in the next month?”

One central question determines the type of data you need to collect, including how much information is needed for this particular report. 

3. State your business assumptions

One of the most important aspects about business forecasting is making assumptions. Assumptions are often thought of to be complete guesses, but this may not always be the case in forecasting. We can’t know the future, but we can make informed estimates.Your assumptions guide your data collection and testing, determining what you deem as the most valuable information.

4. Start with the forecasting method and tools 

There are two forecasting methods: qualitative and quantitative.

Qualitative forecasting is based on the opinions of experts or managers. It is a subjective forecasting method and often includes instinctive guesses, feelings, emotions, and intuition. Gathering data for qualitative forecasting is done by questioning experts, managers, customers and asking for their predictions. This may invove consulting your accountant as well.

Quantitative forecasting can be a time-consuming process, but it provides the most accurate estimations. It s based on numbers and statistical analysis, data cih is often collected and analysed. This method combines data from qualitative forecasts with statistics to provide an estimate of what will happen in the future.

The first step in forecasting is inputting all of the relevant data into a spreadsheet such as sales, revenue targets, market share projections and so on. By filling out this information with numbers from previous months or quarters, it gives an indication of what might happen over the course of time.

There are many tools that can help with this quantitative method. One of the simplest type of forecasting is called time series forecasting, based on data from the past. Regression models includes a sequence of steps to arrive at an estimate for the future.

5. Analyse and review forecasts compared to real results 

Forecasting is an ongoing process for businesses. The final step in this process is to review your forecasts and compare them to what actually happened in the business. Revising your forecasting process after each forecast will give you a more accurate prediction next time. It makes sure that the exceptions and influences are taken into account.

Make sure you take note of the data points you used, as well as any outside factors that might have influenced your results. 

Strategic use of forecasting is a part of business success.

Use business forecasts to help you make better marketing and finance decisions for your small business. A solid forecast can inform your finance, marketing plans, and business strategies. 

Related: Budgeting vs Forecasting