Write A Business Plan

why you need a business plan.

As entrepreneurs, we often have creative ideas that we’re certain will help us make money. Unfortunately, what most don’t realize is that without a clear, concise plan and actionable steps as to how you’re going to bring your ideas to life, they could end up being a costly hobby rather than a profitable business.

Your ideas and goals need in-depth research into their viability, and solid action plans as to how you are going to achieve them. This will help you to minimize the risk of failure and figure out if there is actually a market for your idea before investing any money or time into it.

So how do we move from idea into a thriving business?

we Write a business plan.

Which is exactly what we will be going over in this article.

The Importance of a good Business Plan.

Having a well-researched business plan will go a long way. It will provide you with the essential tools that you need to effectively start, grow and manage your business. Associate a business plan with the blueprints that architects design when building houses. Your business plan will serve much the same purpose in your business. It will help you identify what you want to sell, who you should to sell it to, how you should sell it, where you should sell it, and what you should sell it for, among other key items.

Let’s go through some key steps that a few industry experts suggest you take.

Determine your purpose.

According to Alan Williams, co-author of “The 31 Practices”, you need to take time to identify with your businesses core values and purpose so that you’ve got a clear starting point.

Build your vision.

You need a clear vision of what you want to accomplish as a business. Come up with 3 to 5 key strategies that will help you to achieve this.

Clarify your business model.

Your business plan should include financial projections. “Start by answering ‘what if’s’. If I sell this product at this price, and this is how much it will cost me to get clients, how much profit will I make? When you’re done building and testing the business model, you can go back and write a business plan.” advises Alex Muller, CEO of GPShopper.

Work out your business name and business structure.

The way your business is structured legally will play an important role in how you will be able to conduct your business activities. In addition, ensuring you have checked to see if your name is legally available for use is vital. Should you make use of a name that legally belongs to another entity, it could end up in not only an expensive rebranding exercise, but an additionally expensive lawsuit by the entity the name belongs to.

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Road-test your business idea.

Make sure that there actually is a market for your business idea before you waste valuable time and resources on a business plan.

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How to write your Business Plan.

Peter Hull, a contributing writer at Forbes Entrepreneurs and a serial entrepreneur who has over 25+ years experience in launching successful companies, offers these 5 tips that will help you write to write a brilliant business plan:

Get rid of the fluff.

Fluff gets you nowhere and wastes space. Be as concise as possible and remove any filler language.

Be realistic.

You should be honest with yourself in your business plan, which is why it’s very important to consider challenges and opportunities.

Show you are conservative.

Show examples as to how you are going to be conservative in your approach and projections when writing your business plan.

Visuals are good.

Whenever possible, and without overdoing it, use visuals in your business plan. Graphs, charts, and images can help bring your concept to life.

Be creative.

Include a creative element in your business plan so that it your concept will stand out and grab someone’s attention.

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The Key Components of a well written Business Plan.

Preparation Is Key. If you have “skimmed” over the previous sections of this article to get here, backtrack and take your time reading the above tips so that you can write a better business plan.

Executive Summary.

This is a summary, or an overview, of your business plan highlighting all your content and goals. This should ideally be 1 – 2 pages long, but no greater than 3 or 4.

Company Overview.

Here’s where you provide more information about your company, its mission, the markets you intend to serve, and what makes you different from other businesses.

Products and Services.

This is where you go into detail about the products/ services you plan to offer and how your product/ service will solve a problem or fill a need for your market. It should also indicate the product/ services life-cycle.

market analysis.

Before launching, it is essential that you research your target market thoroughly. When researching, include items such as who your target market is, your industry, your competitors, and customer trends.

Market Sales and Strategy.

How do you plan on marketing your products/ services? What is your sales strategy? How do you intend on securing your slice of the market?

Organizations and Management.

This describes how your business will function on an ongoing basis, and which structure will be for your business. It will also describe the background of your managers and executives and how they will help you achieve your business goals.

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Financial Projections.

This is always at the back of the business plan. If you’re wanting to secure funding from investors (even if they’re friends or family), they will love this section as it gives them something to hold your business accountable to. It will include your projected income statement, cash flow statement, balance sheet and capital expenditure.

Appendix.

A completely optional section that should not be included in the body of your business plan, and should only be provided on an as-needed basis. It will include items such as your key managers’ curriculum vitae, product images, letters of reference, details of market studies and any other relevant legal and/or supporting documents.

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In Conclusion.

If you have take anything away from this article, I hope that it is the impact that planning can have on the success of your business. While planning is a critical element in business, it goes hand-in-hand with persistence, skill, making connections, and tons of hard work.

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