How To Write A Business Plan?
If you are starting up a business, then you need a business plan. You will struggle without one. A business plan will help to give direction to your company. It will also help to secure funding (if you need any). Writing a business plan is not going to be easy. In fact, it is dreadfully difficult. However, if you get this right, then the rest of your business will just fall into place. On this page, we are going to talk about the various ‘sections’ that you will be able to find in a business plan. This will help when it comes to the writing process.
Executive Summary
You may want to think of this as a ‘summary’ of your company. It talks a little bit about what can be found in the business plan. This includes the goals for your company, and just a general overview of what the company will actually offer.
Company Description
Here you will talk about your company. What will you sell? If you are entering an industry which is packed to the brim with competitors, then you need to talk about how you are planning to stand out from everybody else. You will want to cap off this section of your business plan by talking about the markets you are looking to target with your products or services.
Market Analysis
Talk about the competition in the market that you are entering. Show that you have carried out your market research. What are the chances of your product selling? Is there anything in the industry which could stop your plans coming to fruition? How are you going to overcome these challenges?
Business Organization
Talk about the management structure for your company. Who is responsible for the various departments?
Services or Products
This is where you go into depth on the products and the services that you are offering. Talk about the lifespan of your products. Do you expect repeat customers? What are the benefits that your customers will get from your specific product? Is there a particular price pint you are looking to target? Everything about your product or service needs to go in this section.
Marketing and Sales
This section is where you start to talk about how you are planning on marketing your product or service. You will have already talked about the markets you are looking to target, but this section will go into depth on how you are planning on reaching those markets. You will also want to go into depth on how you are going to make that final sale. Do you have any idea about your sales funnel?
Funding Request
This section is only important if you are looking to obtain funding for your company. Talk about how much money you are looking to obtain and how you are going to be spending it.
Financial Projections
Your final section is going to talk about your projected finances. This is very important, even if you are not looking to obtain funding. This section will provide you with a sort of ‘check’ for your company. You will be able to check whether your company is on target to reach its projected financials. Have goals for a year, two years, five years, and ten years. Most investors will look for this.
Remember, this is just a very brief guide on how to write a business plan. You could easily write a whole book on producing the perfect plan. However, hopefully knowing the sections that you have to include in every plan will give you a good nudge in the right direction and trigger a few ideas.