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 funding — as opposed to a plan-as-you-go approach for running your business, which I describe below — there are predictable contents of a standard business plan outline.
For example, a business plan normally starts with an Executive Summary, which should be concise and interesting. People almost always expect to see sections covering the Company, the Market, the Product, the Management Team, Strategy, Implementation, and Financial Analysis. The precise business plan format can vary.
Is the order important? If you have the main components, the order doesn’t matter that much, but here’s the sequence I suggest for a business plan. I have provided two outlines, one simple and the other more detailed.
Simple business plan outline
- Executive Summary: Write this last. It’s just a page or two of highlights.
- Company Description: Legal establishment, history, start-up plans, etc.
- Product or Service: Describe what you’re selling. Focus on customer benefits.
- Market Analysis: You need to know your market, customer needs, where they are, how to reach them, etc.
- Strategy and Implementation: Be specific. Include management responsibilities with dates and budgets. Make sure you can track results.
- Web Plan Summary: For e-commerce, include discussion of website, development costs, operations, sales and marketing strategies.
- Management Team: Describe the organization and the key management team members.
- Financial Analysis: Make sure to include at the very least your projected Profit and Loss and Cash Flow tables.
Build your plan, then organize it. I don’t recommend developing the plan in the same order you present it as a finished document. For example, although the Executive Summary obviously comes as the first section of a business plan, I recommend writing it after everything else is done. It will appear first, but you write it last.
Standard tables and charts
There are also some business tables and charts that are normally expected in a standard business plan.
Cash flow is the single most important numerical analysis in a plan, and should never be missing. Most plans will also have Sales Forecast and Profit and Loss statements. I believe they should also have separate Personnel listings, projected Balance Sheet, projected Business Ratios, and Market Analysis tables.
I also believe that every plan should include bar charts and pie charts to illustrate the numbers.
Expanded business plan outline
Here’s an expanded full business plan outline, with details you might want to include in your own business plan.
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 (for ongoing companies) or Start-up Plan (for new companies)
2.3 Company Locations and Facilities
3.0 Products and Services
3.1 Product and Service Description
3.2 Competitive Comparison
3.3 Sales Literature
3.4 Sourcing and Fulfillment
3.5 Technology
3.6 Future Products and Services
4.0 Market Analysis Summary
4.1 Market Segmentation
4.2 Target Market Segment Strategy
4.2.1 Market Needs
4.2.2 Market Trends
4.2.3 Market Growth
4.3 Industry Analysis
4.3.1 Industry Participants
4.3.2 Distribution Patterns
4.3.3 Competition and Buying Patterns
4.3.4 Main Competitors
5.0 Strategy and Implementation Summary
5.1 Strategy Pyramids
5.2 Value Proposition
5.3 Competitive Edge
5.4 Marketing Strategy
5.4.1 Positioning Statements
5.4.2 Pricing Strategy
5.4.3 Promotion Strategy
5.4.4 Distribution Patterns
5.4.5 Marketing Programs
5.5 Sales Strategy
5.5.1 Sales Forecast
5.5.2 Sales Programs
5.6 Strategic Alliances
5.7 Milestones
6.0 Web Plan Summary
6.1 Website Marketing Strategy
6.2 Development Requirements
7.0 Management Summary
7.1 Organizational Structure
7.2 Management Team
7.3 Management Team Gaps
7.4 Personnel Plan
8.0 Financial Plan
8.1 Important Assumptions
8.2 Key Financial Indicators
8.3 Break-even Analysis
8.4 Projected Profit and Loss
8.5 Projected Cash Flow
8.6 Projected Balance Sheet
8.7 Business Ratios
8.8 Long-term Plan
Business plan outline advice
Size your business plan to fit your business. Remember that your business plan should be only as big as what you need to run your business. While everybody should have planning to help run a business, not everyone needs to develop a complete formal business plan suitable for submitting to a potential investor, or bank, or venture contest. So don’t include outline points just because they are on a big list somewhere, or on this list, unless you’re developing a standard business plan that you’ll be showing to somebody else who expects a standard business plan.
Consider plan-as-you-go business planning. I’ve done a lot of work on this idea lately, resulting in my new “Plan As You Go” business planning, which is a now a book published by Entrepreneur Press, available through Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, and Borders, and bundled as an eBook with Business Plan Pro. I’ve also added a short video here to the right, illustrating how the outline could be simpler with a new approach.
More business planning resources
Sometimes an outline just isn’t enough to write your business plan. Do you want to view sample business plans from real businesses? Would seeing a business plan template that banks prefer be useful to you? These valuable resources can help:
Sample business plans – Over 500 free sample business plans from various industries
Business plan template – This fill-in-the-blank business plan template is in the format preferred by the SBA and banks
Start a business – An easy to follow six-step process for starting a new business
Business Plan Pro – My company’s step-by-step software makes it fast and easy to create a business plan, regardless of your business planning experience
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It have really helped me a lot, I `m currently busi with starting my own company that will take the world by storm and I really need someone who is not scared to invest on me since I don`t have cash.
what is the first thing you would do to start a business. what are the highlights of making a business plan? im thinking about starting A business.
Hi Mitchell,
The Small Business Administration has a great tool for people who are preparing to open their own businesses. The Small Business Planner can be found at: http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/index.html
It has a great step by step guide on how to prepare for and open a business as well as additional tips on writing your business plan.
Thanks for this information. The information and the sample plans really continue to boost my energy and excitment over starting my new business venture.
Tracy,
That’s great. We love to hear about someone excited about Entrepreneurship!
Good luck to you and your new business!
I’m going to join HSBC young entrepreneur Award and they require a outline limited to 1000 words. If I use your outline model, it will be so long, won’t it ?
Thank God I found what I was looking for
how to do business plan for spectacles and eyeware company?
—-
This is a question we get quite a lot Ashwini. “How do you write a plan for __specific type of business___”
We have created the bplans.com website as a resource for people to get the information they need to write their business plans or help in the course of their business.
We don’t write business plans here. We aren’t a consulting company. We write business planning software that walks you through writing your business plan step by step and helps you with the process of planning your business.
On the bplans website you can find resources that will help you in creating a business plan for an eyeware company, but most likely, you won’t find a sample plan for that exactly. You’ll find the tools to write that plan yourself.
I hope this was helpful, and good luck in your venture!
I am seventeen years old and I have a business idea. I am working on forming my business plan. I need someone to financially support me. If you would like more information please email me at regan-joy @ hotmail. com I realize that this may be a long shot but I also know that without faith no one would be successful. If I don’t ask for assistance and just assume that no one will help I may miss out on something great.
thank you so much for this.
Im only 16 but I had to make a business outline for english.
THANK YOU!!!
Very good guide i’m doing a business plan course and I found it very helpful I am useing it and its helping a lot very greatful for your site.
Regards and best wishes for the future from Malta
THE BUSINESS PLAN SAMPLES GAVE ME A CLEAR UNDERSTANDING OF THE PRINCIPLES NEEDED IN ORDER TO PREPARE MY BUSINESS PLAN FOR A HALFWAY HOUSE & DRUG REHABILITATION PROGRAM THAT I PLAN TO START. THANKS!
Thanks for briefing on business plans.Learned something from you.Surely i will visit again for more information
Hello.
My namew is Irineu and i am from Cape Verde Islands. i am trying to write a business plan for my final project course in Salkburg Austria and i am also try to make it realBack home. my idea is based on a Bed and Breakfast. . very smal with 8 rooms. can please someone send me some ideas about how to create this.
Thank you for your outline, it really helpful for me. But I have a query that where should I locate SWOT analysis?
Best Regard,
what are the contents of a business plan
Oy,
If you do a search on the bplans.com website for SWOT you’ll find several articles on the subject.
SWOT
Hope that helps!
‘Chelle Parmele
Palo Alto Software
Rey,
You can search on the bplans.com website for some examples of complete business plans.
Sample Business Plans
Hope that helps!
‘Chelle Parmele
Palo Alto Software
I think Careful planning is fundamental to success. The Small Business Planner includes information and resources that will help you at any stage of the business lifecycle.
Thank you for your assistance it has really made my work easier.I wish there were avenues for people to send in their questions on the subjectfor help as to how to prepare a business plan of a specific nature.
Thanks a great deal for your guidelines on writing business plans. This site is 100 times better and educative compared to other publications.
I would be grateful if you could send me a copy or draft of any real life small/medium size business plan for any income generating business in the retail industry.
Thanks.
RAJABU-Business student-netherlands
what is your business? i May be interested in investing money with you if its worth while!
There are several resources, some even here on this website.
You can locate the Expert Advice tab at the top of the page or by doing another Google search for forum’s designed to assist people looking for specific help.
There are also consultants you could look into, like Masterplans.
Very helpful thanks…
I’m in preparation of a Business Plan for a small scale enterprise for a financial company catering financial products and services.
Any creative and innovative ideas are encouraged for my creation of Business Plan.
Hi Daniel,
Our plan is to stablish profitable development consultancy firm to be based in Ethiopia. We are a pool of professionals from multi-disciplinary team and trying to invest our collective capital in the ever-growing consultancy industry in development field. If you are intersted in joining our team as a consultant, you are welcome.
you can contact me at: shambelgemechu@yahoo.com
My instructor gave me an assignmment to prepare a bussines plan after his lecture. It was not easy for me to do the assignment.So,I started to search in the web-site if i would get help.I’m lucky I got it; it is yours’.Thank you!
I want to have samples; so would you please send it tom through my e-mail address.
I just started an LLC and my biggest hang-up in writing my business plan is my financial forecast. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
this was the worst thing i ever bought never again
Hi you all.
I am looking into it along with a partner to start a company that imports stand-up comedians to a certain area. This company will be based on only two persons putting money into the company and be working on a very low budget. I have been looking over the sample plans but none of them seem to fit to what I am looking at. Is there anybody out there who could point me in the right direction on how to make my business plan for such a small agency? It would be great if you knew of a good template that I could go by. Any help would be great.
Thanks and good luck to you all out there.
Samson,
There are many free sample business plans available here at bplans.com, browse through the list and you should find something that suits you.
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These are three options to be selected individually or
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Expert opinions in marketing and production
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This is more of a question than a comment. The business plan outline is very helpful, but … it’s usually conceived for those who want to start a new business. My question is for advice on what to do with a business plan for revitalizing a dormant business in the tourist industry in Indonesia. Here are the particulars: an Indonesian firm owns two big river boats that used to take tourists (mostly from Europe and Japan) on river explorations. That has stopped because of financial mismanagement. I now have the opportunity to revive this business, but it needs investment for rehabilitating the boats, reviving the market, adjusting what is and can be offered to tourists, etc. I have no own capital, but the expertise to run something like this. It needs investment which can be in the form of direct investment or a loan from a bank. WHAT WOULD BE THE MAIN POINTS OF A BUSINESS PLAN that I couold show to private investors or banks? I can be reached at dschaareman@yahoo.com
I want to start a bussines of PPE supplier and general labour broker. I would like to have a good bussines plan which will lead me to successful company, I am presently working as technician
i found your information helpful to my project work and would like to see a sample of a business plan.
i liked how it is given but i will be glad enough if some one mails me a sample business plan on rohitb_imdr@yahoo.co.in
The outline is completely customizable in business plan pro. You can add topics, delete topics, rename topics and move topics.
You might also find some of our resources on writing a business plan for a competition to be helpful. Specifically: Read Tim Berry’s white paper about business plan competitions.
Thank you for your question.
Jake Weatherly
Palo Alto Software
Customer Care
We do have a complete list of the 500 sample plans available within our sample business plan library. You can do a keyword search for your type of business from this link. This will let you know if there is a sample plan similar to what you are trying to create available for your reference.
What is important is that Business Plan Pro will work to develop your own plan for your specific business, and it includes all 500 sample plans as a source for inspiration.
Here’s a similar plan that might work: Custom Printed T-Shirts Business Plan
Thank you for your question.
Jake Weatherly
Palo Alto Software
Director or Customer Experience
We have a whole library of complete sample plans and each plan has its own unique business plan outline.
Jake Weatherly
Palo Alto Software
Director of Customer Experience
business plan is a guiding principal to the entrepreneur because it explains the journey of the organisation from the day of start and how it will carry on with its activities.
with the recent competition organisational running needs to be systematic and this can be done with help of the business plan.
in order for the organisation to succeed,its like some body traveling and he needs vehcle for traveling and so applies to entrepreneur he needs the vehicle which is the business plan
please this is good but i would like to enquire of what business plan is recquired for an NGO and can i have a sample
print 2 copies
Regan, in everything that you say do and think… Seek God. He put that idea in you before you knew who you were. He set it to bubble deep down in your belly where you feel that you must get it out. You see it just as if it were right in front of you and you were getting it done, today. I’m glad you’ve come to find that you have been impregnated with a gift, a treasure, and potential. However Regan, you must carry it the full term or you will abort. Be anxious for nothing, but in EVERYTHING, with prayer and supplication let your request be made kknown unto God. Then will you have peace and understanding in that special something within. Wait and SEEK GOD. Have faith and be blessed.
Congratulations.
Hello Daniel.
I am currently in the process of writing a business plan myself for a marketing and distribution company. If you are interested, my email is ae_inc45@yahoo.com.
Hi, excellent article about business plans, I’m currently starting a new business and writing the business plan is one of the starting points for me to secure investment. Also the fact that you say that you don’t necessarily need to follow the structure reassures me, as I won’t be needing to but felt a little unsure about doing so.
Thanks again!
Hello Danker,
Calculating the value of your business is vital if you are trying to find investors, apply for a loan, or sell your business to a potential buyer. The Premier Edition of Business Plan Pro includes detailed valuation tools that can help you determine a solid business valuation and create a professional investment offering. Showcase the true value of your business with more advanced spreadsheets that describe the sources and uses of cash for any new or existing business.
Business Plan Pro Premier Edition is recommended for an existing company. The premier edition has advanced financials and can can forecast out up to ten years and in detail for up to two years. Make sure you maximize the full value of your business by using this option, which is only available in the Premier Edition.
Hope that helps!
Casi Deatherage
Palo Alto Software
Customer Care
This is good but i would like to see more samples to help me construct mine a little better…
I am a painter and have been in the painting business for about twenty years. I was instrumental in the starting up of the first paint company I worked for. The steps were very basic and we made a lot money…. The tools of the traid were purchased and we advertised our serviceses by canvesing neighborhoods and leaving our business cards. Now I would like to start this buissness for myself and I neeed to know how to write an effective business plan and/or a proposal to acquire more funds to start up. I have purchased some of my equipment and a van, however, I still have some very cost oriented obsticals to overcome and I need some help. Anyone who has been in this business knows that the painting business is very lucrative and can be rewarding on many levles. I am not only good at what I do, I also like it. Is there really help out there for the minority start-up businessman?
Im starting my own buisness, but right now I dont have
the capital to fund my project.
it will be a beauty supply based buisness and the
area I found to run it will be perfect for this project
it has other buisnesses being built in this area,
and the customer potential is great.
bam!!1!