What are the advantages of a mission statement?

The biggest advantage of a GOOD mission statement is that it clearly states what your business or group does! This way, when anyone asks or when someone on the team starts to lose track, you can point them to the mission statement.

Another advantage comes from creating the mission statement itself. Unless you are in business by yourself, the mission is created usually by gathering people to talk about what kind of business to start and what the people want the business to do. The act of creating a mission statement helps people talk about exactly these things, and (hopefully) helps generate a positive regard for the business the group is about to undertake.