The business plan should be an essential part of your start up enterprise. Depending on whether or not you are going for external funding will determine how detailed this process should be. If you are building a business from scratch as a single person venture and funding everything with you own money, then parts of this outline will only require a cursory view. However, a person without a plan is a person without a framework from which to operate and grow their business from a simple start-up to a large enterprise. Writing the business plan will help you to organize your thoughts and outline the steps required to fulfill your dream.
Every successful business plan should include something about each of the following areas, as these topics are what comprise the essentials of a good business plan. This is especially true if your are going to seek venture capital or other sources of outside funds as many people will want to view your business plan before investing.
Executive Summary
The most important part of your business plan is the executive summary. This provides a brief and concise overview of your business. This section talks about where your company is at the moment and where you want it to go. This is the first part of the business plan that the reader looks at. That means the executive summary either grabs their attention and makes them want to read more or makes them discard it and forget about it. The executive summary should include both a mission statement and an explanation about why this business will be successful.
Market Analysis
The market analysis section should contain information about the market that your business is in. This would include a description of the industry, the outlook for the future, target market information, market test results, and an evaluation of the competition the business will face.
Company Description
This section of the business plan should include a view of how the different parts of the business fit together. This is not a detailed description but rather a higher level view of the company which will include any expertise and specific areas of the business where you will have a competitive advantage.
Organization & Management
This part covers the organizational structure, the ownership, and the profiles of your management team. This is basically a description of who does what, their background, and what role do they fill in your company.
Marketing & Sales Strategies
This section of the business plan covers the marketing and sales strategies for your business. For an online business this will include any or all of the following methods – SEO, niche marketing, PPC, CPM, email, CPA, affiliates sales, video advertising, television, radio, direct mail, buying traffic, buying leads, and viral marketing.
Service or Product Line
This section describes the product line or service that you have to offer, The product line is not a huge list of items but rather a general description about your product line or service and how it will fulfill the needs of your customer base and why they will be willing to pay for it.
Funding Request
This section will include the request for the amount of money you will need to start this business. This will include a current funding requirement plus your future funding needs over the next five years. This will also outline how you will use the funds you receive to grow and nurture your business plus any long term financial strategies than can impact your request for funds.
Financials
This part of the business plan will contain a balance sheet, and income statement, and a cash flow analysis of your business for the next 5 years. Included in these statements are the assumptions used to develop your forecast of the financial success of the business. Prospective investors or lenders want to know how you are going to achieve success financially and whether or not your assumptions are valid.
Appendix
The appendix is extra information that should be supplied on an as-needed basis. For example, this may include detailed information that you would have to supply to lending institutions in order to secure a loan.