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Mantra, Mission Statement, or Vision

(Note: this is an excerpt from The Plan-As-You-Go Business Plan, by Tim Berry.)
People seem to like getting into the mission statement, but I’m not sure it’s always such a good idea. There’s also the possibility of doing your mantra instead, and then some people talk about a vision statement, and of course there are [...]

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A Standard Business Plan Outline

What information needs to be in your business plan? What is the order of information that will make the most sense to lenders and investors? You can answer these questions with the business plan outlines provided below.
What are the standard elements of a business plan? If you do need a standard business plan to seek [...]

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Writing a Mission Statement

Your mission statement is an opportunity to define your business at the most basic level. It should tell your company story and ideals in less than 30 seconds: who your company is, what you do, what you stand for, and why you do it.
Do you want to make a profit, or is it enough to [...]

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Writing an Executive Summary

The executive summary section of a business plan is a summary of the highlights of your business plan. Even though the topic appears first in the printed document, most business plan developers leave the writing of the executive summary until the end. This summary is the doorway to the rest of the plan. Get it [...]

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Do You Need Funding?

Most businesses need financing. Cash flow is different from profits, so profits don’t guarantee money in the bank. There’s financing needed to manage starting costs, inventory, waiting to get paid, and other factors. Much of that is what we lump together as “working capital.”
Most people think of financing as debt, borrowed money. In this context [...]

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The Financials

Expert opinions may vary, but in general there are some standard analyses that a business plan ought to have, regardless of specifics. You can find detailed discussions of each of these online in Hurdle: The Book on Business Planning, but let’s discuss here what probably ought to be included in a business plan.

Cash flow is [...]

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Milestones Make Your Business Plan a Real Plan

Milestones
The Milestones table is one of the most important in your business plan. It sets the plan into practical, concrete terms, with real budgets, deadlines, and management responsibilities. It helps you focus as you are writing your business plan, and then, the Milestones table and plan-vs.-actual management analysis helps you implement your plan as you [...]

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The Business You’re In

When you are starting a business and writing the business plan you need to know about your industry and business environment. You also need to explain the type of business you’re in. You’ll be expected to explain the general state of your industry and the nature of the business, especially if your plan is going [...]

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What You Sell

A complete business plan describes what you sell: either products, services, or both. This part of the plan is mainly description. Sometimes it will include tables that provide more details, such as a bill of materials or detailed price lists. More frequently, however, this section is mainly text. It normally appears in the plan, after [...]

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Start with an Initial Assessment

Start your business plan with a quick assessment. Even for an ongoing business, take the time to step away from the business and look at the basics. Do your business numbers make sense? One of my business school professors used to refer to this process as finding out “is there a there there?”
Objectives
Objectives are business [...]

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