Business Plan FormatsFree Business Planning Program - Business Plan FormatsA lot of startup business owners feel intimidated when it comes to writing a business plan. Part of that intimidation comes from the feeling of not knowing the basic business plan formats. In the next few paragraphs, you will see the most commonly used formats for writing a business plan so you won’t have to worry about writing your own. This basic skill is extremely important for entrepreneurs because the business plan is the number one document that investors and third party companies look at when they analyze your company. They will judge the stability and profitability of your company based on what you write on your plan. The
first thing you need to write is the Executive Summary. This usually
contains a
paragraph or two, and it gives the readers an overview of your company,
your
industry, and the products and services you offer. Most business plan
formats
contain an executive summary, and the objective of this section is to
simply introduce
the reader to your company and give them an idea of what you can
provide to the
marketplace. You don’t have to write specific details
about your company within the Executive Summary, because you would want
to save
the important corporate information for the next part, which is the
Company
Description. This part tells more about the background of your company,
startup
history, legal establishment, track record, vision and mission, etc. It
is
important to communicate the good image of your company here. Next, talk about your products or
services. You don’t have to detail every product or service in your
line
(although some business plan formats find this necessary). Just state
what
category or industry your products fall into, or what kind of items you
manufacture. Feel free to include products that you intend to
manufacture or
distribute in the future, so that the reader will know that you are a
growing
company with lots of potential. The next part, Market Analysis, gives
the reader a clear idea of your target market and your ideal consumers.
Your
customer profile must be specific and your products or services must
directly
appeal to identifiable groups of people. It may be necessary to support
this
section with real time market statistics, such as number of households
who
exist within your area. You may also include some geographical
targeting data,
and also describe the behavior of your target consumers. Another
approach to
this is to simply state who your target customers are, indicate their
needs and
wants, and state how you plan to reach those people and fulfill their
needs. In standard business plan formats, the
next part would usually be Strategy and Implementation. This section
carefully
outlines management responsibilities and goals. Strategic action steps
must be
provided to achieve those goals, and there must be a set timeframe for
the
achievement of each objective. This can be accomplished by creating a
simple
data table with fields such as Goal or Objective, Position of Personnel
Responsible, Strategic Action Steps, Timeframe for Completion, and
Budget
Needed. For advanced business plan formats, it may be necessary to
include more
details than the ones already mentioned. In the next part, you need to outline
the details of your Management Team. Here, you state the key management
roles
in your organization and indicate their unique responsibilities. Yes,
this
means you have to show the organizational structure of your firm, but
you also
have to tell the reader about the role of each management position in
achieving
your company objectives. Simple business plan formats usually end with financial analysis, where you give the readers an overview of the financial stability of your firm. Standard financial statements such as the most recent Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Cashflow, and Statement of Changes In shareholders Equity, need to be included here. Financial ratios such as profitability and liquidity should also be included here so that the readers will be able to assess the strengths and weaknesses of your organization. Related Sessions - Business Plan Formats Session 1 - How to Plan a Business Session 2 - Making a Business Plan Session 3 - Marketing Business Plans Session 4 - Example Business Plan Session 5 - Fress Business Plan TemplatesSession 6 - Examples of Business Plans
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Outstanding Leaders
consider themselves a work in progress Dr Franklin C. Ashby
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