How simple or complex your business plan will be will depend of course on the size of your business and the level of detail required by the target audience. The business plan outline proposed below is a comprehensive one that provides a full template. You can simplify/modify this to suit the requirement…
Recommended Business Plan Outline
1.0 Executive Summary
1.1 Objectives
1.2 Mission
1.3 Keys to Success
2.0 Company Summary
2.1 Company Ownership
2.2 Company History (existing company) or Start-up Plan
2.3 Company Locations, Offices and Facilities
3.0 Products and Services
3.1 Product and Service Description
3.2 Unique Value Proposition
3.2 Competitive Comparison
3.3 Sourcing and Fulfillment
3.4 Technology
4.0 Market Analysis Summary
4.1 Market Segmentation
4.2.Market Growth
4.3 Main Competitors
5.0 Strategy and Implementation Summary
5.1 Marketing Strategy
5.2 Sales Strategy
5.3 Customer Care Strategy
5.4 Alliances and Partnerships
5.5 Milestones
6.0 Management Summary
6.1 Organizational Structure
6.2 Management Team
7.0 Financial Plan
7.1 Important Assumptions
7.2 Break-even Analysis
7.4 Projected Profit and Loss
7.5 Projected Cash Flow
7.6 Projected Balance Sheet
7.7 Business Ratios
7.8 Longer-term Plan
8.0 Appendix
This can include some additional detailed information like company profile or previous years annual report etc.
Note that your plan should not be just text and numbers. Using some simple but appealing charts like pie charts or bar graphs can have a positive impact and reduce clutter.
Don’t be intimidated by the number of topics in the plan. Your business plan is not going to be judged by its size but by the clarity of your plan’s structure and presentation.
Leave a Reply