Writing Your Essential Business Plan

By Author: Carolyn Clayton
Total Articles: 174
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So you have chosen your desired business, you have found the perfect location and you have decided exactly what you want from your new venture. Sounds like you are part way to making your dream of owning your own business into a reality. So what's next? Your formal statement and set of business goals of course.

I am indeed referring to your business plan; the most important document you will produce to do with your business. Your business plan will record everything that you are planning to achieve with your business and how you intend to do this. It acts as your decision making tool and should be realistic in terms of what you are going to do with your business.

There is no fixed content to a business plan; you don't have a list of what has to be placed within your plan. The content and format of your business plan is determined by your business goals and the audience to which you are writing your business plan for as well as your target market for your business. Your plan will also draw on a wide range of knowledge from many different places such as finance, human resource management, intellectual property management, ...
... supply chain, operations and marketing.

Your business plan, as well as setting the guide for your business, is also used to secure the external funding for your business. The way in which this is done depends on the type of funding that you are hoping for. If you want debt finance, for example in the form of a bank loan, then within your business plan you must demonstrate how you are planning to re-pay this loan to show that your business has the ability to re-pay the loan. If you are hoping to secure equity finance then your business plan needs to explain why current resources, upcoming growth opportunities and sustainable competitive advantage will lead to a high valuation.

In order to attain any form of business start-up finance you will need to have a well thought out and structured business plan. This is due to the fact your business plan will demonstrate to a potential investor or lender whether your venture has the potential to succeed. They will want structured and realistic evidence that you can make your business work. Without this a lender or investor will not give you the start-up finance your business needs to succeed as they won't want to take the risk.

Your business plan will need to show the strategy, marketing and financial forecast of your business. Your strategy being why and how your plan will work and your marketing being the process by which your business will decide what it wants to sell, to who and when and how.

One way in which you should produce your business plan is in certain stages such as starting with the most vital part of your plan; your executive summary. This is an overview of your business. Many lenders and investors make judgements based purely on this aspect of your business plan.

Finally it should be noted that your business plan is also on going. It is a working plan that can be added to throughout your business; keeping everything that you do well documented.