Do you want to increase the chances of your business startup being successful?
The easiest way to simplify the task of writing a business plan is to start with a business plan template.
You’re already investing time and energy into perfecting your business model and planning your business launch. To help build a complete and effective plan, rely on time-tested structures created by entrepreneurs and startups that have come before you.
What should our business plan template for a startup include?
This template is designed to ensure that you have considered all the important aspects of starting a new business. It aims to help new business owners and entrepreneurs consider the full scope of running a business and identify functional areas they may have inadvertently overlooked.
If your goal with a business plan is funding, check with organizations—usually banks or investors—to see if they have business plan templates you can follow to maximize your chances of success.
Our free business plan template includes seven key elements commonly found in the traditional business plan format:
- Executive Summary: The description section of your executive summary will cover your management team, business goals and strategy, and other key information about your brand. You can consider your organization’s mission statement here.
- Market Analysis: A well-researched business plan should also analyze the market you hope to reach with your business idea. This section includes everything from estimated market size to your target markets and competitive advantage. Here it is necessary to conduct a competitive analysis of your industry and pay attention to the strengths and weaknesses of competitors.
- Products and Services: What you sell and the most important features of your products or services. It will also include any intellectual property plans, such as patent or copyright applications. If you are doing market research for new product lines, this will show up in this section of your business plan.
- Marketing Plan: How you intend to market your business and what strategic decisions you have made about your strategy. It also covers the demographics of potential customers and sales plans.
- Logistics and Operations Plan: Everything that needs to happen to turn your raw materials into products and get them into the hands of your customers if you have product manufacturing. For services, this point would look a little different.
- Financial plan: It is important to include a look at your financial projections, including income and expense projections. This section includes templates for three key financial statements: the income statement, the balance sheet, and the cash flow statement. here you can also include a business loan no and what value it will be.
In our business plan template, each section includes an overview of the most important information to cover and guidance on how to approach writing and researching each section.
Example of a simple business plan
The simple business plan format is a shortened version of your more detailed business plan. It’s useful when you’re modifying your business plan for a specific audience, such as investors or new hires.
Also known as a one-page business plan, it includes only the most important information you need to know, such as:
- Company description
- Providers
- Your team
- Customer segments
- Marketing Plan
A good business plan helps you operate successfully
We understand that it’s tempting on your part or sometimes you think it’s a waste of time to prepare a business plan for your startup, but taking the time to prepare a business plan and put your thoughts on paper allows you to anticipate a number of useful things:
- Test your business ideas. Whether you have one business idea or many, business plans can make an idea more tangible, helping you see if it’s really feasible.
- Plan your next phase. Whether your goal is to start a new business or prepare for the expansion of an existing business, a business plan can help you understand what needs to be done and identify gaps.
- Clarify the marketing strategy, objectives and tactics. Writing a business plan can show you the next steps to take the next step in your business. It can also help you narrow down your strategy and identify clear strategies that will help you in your current business.
- Scope of work required. Without a concrete plan, cost overruns and delays are almost certain. A business plan can help you see the full scope of the work you need to do and adjust your investments – time and money – accordingly.
- Hiring and building partnerships. When you need support from business partners, especially in the early stages of your business, a clearly written business plan is one of the best tools you will have at your disposal. A business plan provides insight into your business goals, allowing partners to judge for themselves whether they agree with your vision or not.
- Secured funds. Seeking funding for your business—whether from venture capital or financial institutions—is one of the most common reasons for creating a business plan.
Tips for Creating a successful business plan
There are some high-level strategic guidelines beyond the tips that can help you write an effective, complete plan while minimizing workload.
- If you are writing a business plan for yourself to get clarity about your ideas and your industry in general, you may not need to include the details that you would include in a professional business plan that you want to send to potential investors. Knowing who will read your plan will help you decide how much time to devote to it.
- Present your goals. Understanding the goals of your plan can help you set the right business scope. If your goal is to use the plan as a road map for growth, you may invest more time in it than if your goal is to understand what your new competition is doing in the market.
- Build it step by step. Writing a 10- to 15-page document can turn you off and bore you, so try writing your business plan section by section. Pick a few sections that you feel most confident in and start from there – you could start with the next few sections, for example. Write bulleted notes in each section before you start writing to organize your thoughts and streamline the writing process.
Once you’ve done the strategic work, it’s time to put it into action and write your plan.
Increasing your business planning efforts
Planning is key to the financial success of any type of business, whether you’re a startup, nonprofit, or corporation.
To ensure that your efforts are focused on the most valuable points of your own business planning, such as clarifying your business goals, defining strategy, and understanding your target market and competition, start with a pre-made template.
Frequently asked questions in a business plan template
What is the purpose of the business plan?
The purpose of your business plan is to describe a new or existing business opportunity. It clarifies the business strategy, marketing plan, financial projections, potential suppliers and more information about the company.
How to write a simple business plan?
- Choose a business plan format, such as a traditional or one-page business plan.
- Find a business plan template.
- Read a sample business plan.
- Complete the sections of your business plan template.
What are the 7 sections of a business plan?
- Executive summary
- Company description
- Market Analysis
- Products and services
- Marketing strategy
- Logistics and operational plan
- Financial statements and forecasts
How to write a business plan?
- Summary: Provide a brief overview of your business, products/services, goals, and plans to achieve those goals
- Company Description: Explain the type of business you are in, where you are located and what you offer
- Market Analysis: Research your industry, target market and competitors to gain insight into the opportunities and threats that may affect your business
- Organization and Management: Describe the organizational structure of your business, including management and employees
- Service or Product Line: Explain what products or services you offer, how they are unique, and how they will meet your customers’ needs
- Marketing and Sales: Describe how you plan to market and sell your products/services, advertising and website
- Request for funding: Explain the capital you need to start or expand your business, how you plan to use it and how you plan to pay it back
- Financial Forecasts: Provide a forecast of your expected income and expenses over the next three to five years
- Application: Include any additional information that will support your business plans, such as resumes, leases, contracts, and product samples
We hope this article helps startups and existing businesses. In that digital world, your customers need to find you easily, and we can help with website and online store development, as well as marketing strategies, and competitive analysis for a startup and existing business.
