To successfully open and run a business, professionals use a business plan to define the market, competition, funding, expenses and expected profits. In the process of creating a business plan, students learn to anticipate various expenses, including start-up fees, payroll, taxes and insurance. They also examine the competition, location and research they need for a product or service. Using real-world scenarios, they create a business plan that shows the potential success or failure of a company.
For a company to remain successful, it relies on the satisfaction of its employees and customers. A business student will perform an evaluation of the levels of satisfaction by gaining a thorough understanding of the company's mission statement, product or service and business model. The students will create a list of questions that will determine the level of satisfaction and will contact customers or employees to acquire their feedback, analyze the results and present them to a client. The client will then use the data collected to implement changes or change policies.
Every company is identified by a set of logos, phrases, colors or symbols unique to them. This branding is accomplished through the creation of advertising material, stationery, jingles, websites, product packaging and slogans that help customers identify a company. A college business student will need a clear understanding of the company's purpose, product or service to work on creating a company brand. With this understanding, a team will create various types of material that carry a theme that ultimately symbolizes the company and its products.
When a company creates a new product or offers a new service, a marketing proposal serves many purposes. It identifies a need and a market for the need and creates a way of presenting the product or service to the public. A company may also need to update its image, to bring it more in line with a trend or appeal to a new customer base. A college business project to create a marketing proposal for one of these purposes will approach the marketing and promotion of the product or service based on the customer they are seeking. Students need good knowledge of the population the marketing aims to serve to successfully market the product or service.