Writing a business plan is a detailed process that is both educational and revealing. For existing companies it is an opportunity to re-evaluate profit margins and focus on successful areas of the business while cutting out the areas that are losing money. For business plans involving new companies it is an opportunity to really dig in and understand the industry and evaluate whether your brand new business will be successful before you make a large investment.
Although up to 44% of new businesses survive 4 years or more the success of any new business is proper planning and projection, access to capital and good business management.
Here are the top 5 tips for creating a killer business plan that is sure to impress:
1) Do Your Own Research
Creating a solid business plan is the very first step in knowing your industry and understanding how to be successful in your chosen field. Part of developing a plan should be to evaluate the competition , refine your business strategy and beginto understand if your value proposition meets a tangible need in the marketplace. Walking through the steps of development for a business plan is an invaluable process that will help to solidify whether or not your business can survive the market trends. Don’t pay someone else to do your research for you or it may end up costing you morethan you think.
2) Consider Your Audience
Business plans are created for numerous reasons. Is it for presenting to aboard for project approval? Will it be to submit for funding? Is it simply to re-evaluatethe business for profitability? Each of these avenues will necessitate changes to the plan format and style you choose to use throughout the document. If you are trying to obtain funding then you will have to have verydetailed cost and ROI projections that are realistic and measurable. If you are making a presentation to a board or non-profit it is assured that you will need to include a focus on involvement in the community and impact (either positive or negative) to the current business. Keep your audience in mind as you create your business plan to ensure you focus on the important topics and leave no questions unanswered.
3) Use Quality Reference Material
It is vital to use a good mix of research material in your plan document. The web is great for the latest news but is not nearly as highly regarded as printed documents. Be sure to use a good mix of reputable website research along with well known facts and industry statistics most often found in printed books. Industry publications and industry magazines are an excellent way to get themost current news and trends in a reliable place. Always include references from industry publications as well to raise the standard yourplan and build credibility in your research. Always make sure to cite your research or any quotes you may use. This will alsobuild credibility while making sure you are not infringing on any protected or copyrighted content you use. To easily cite your reference sources there is an web-based tool that you can use to enter in your info and get back the properlyformatted entry for a works cited page. It makes the process a breeze: http://www.easybib.com/.
4) Business Plan Example
Now that you have countless articles and notes, industry insight and information and statistics it is time to combine it all together in a formatthat will highlight the data you have compiled. Finding business plan examples can be a challenge as every business plan is different (see point #2 above), however you can develop your own based on a compilation of the differentareas or topics you want to cover. If you want a business plan template that is already formatted with sample headings and the different categories already built for you, try using the plan layout from a site like http://www.business-plan-examples.com. This website offers a real business plan in Word format for quickly substituting information and headings. In addition the source file comes with a break-even analysis template in Excel as well as a 1 year Pro-Forma template in Excel with the formulas included for easily updating and projecting costs for the year. This is a large time saver and an easy solution to quickly get your business plan document underway without starting from scratch.
5) Talk To Industry Experts
Lastly, once you have organized your information reach out to some industry experts like local college professors, trade show organizers, or even your local Chamber of Commerce for some insight on your plan. It always helps to get a second opinion on the document before making the finalpresentation. Having one or more individuals look over the the document will shed light on areas that may be lacking orconfirm that the plan is ready to present.
Don’t get distracted spending too much time figuring out the Works Cited, Table of Contents or general plan formatting. Use thetemplates or resources that are readily available to you and spend the time focusing where you should, on the research and presentation of your business idea.