Entrepreneur Zest

How To Make A Business Plan

Got a great business idea?  Want to make some money?  Well make sure you get your new venture off to a good start with a top business plan.  Not sure how to write a business plan – well here’s a good place to start…

Using your Business Plan

Many people underestimate the importance of a business plan when it is the most important document that your business will ever produce. Your business plan stands as a set of business goals, the reasons as to why they are believed to be attainable and the plan for reaching these goals.

Your business plan is typically used to focus on financial goals but should also be used to demonstrate background information on your organisation. It should include everything that your business is about with information on how it will appeal to its target market and what makes it different from existing businesses that are within the same market. You should use your business plan to secure finance and as a way of allowing people to evaluate the perspectives of your company.

A good business plans should be used for a variety of purposes. Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking that a business plan is only useful to help them raise money for their business. However, a well written business plan is in invaluable tool to help you run your business as well. By having a viable business plan, not only will you be able to see how your business is progressing, but you will also be able to impart your vision to others. They will be able to see how well you are running your business with respect to your initial goals and make an informed decision about any risks associated with your business.

As some of you may already know, what you put into your business plan is key to it being a well structured guide to your business. Some of things that should be included in your business are:

• Overview of the business you want to start - many leaders/investors make judgments about your business based on this section alone.

• Short description of business opportunity - who you are/ what you plan to sell/offer and to who and why

• Marketing and sales strategy - why you think people will buy what you want to sell

• Management team/personnel - your credentials and people you plan to recruit

• Your operations - premises, production, facilities, management information systems

• Financial forecast - translates everything you have said in previous sections into numbers

Your business plan is your main access to business finance. Without a well developed plan you won't gain the financial help you desire, especially if you are hoping to use the help of a business angel or a venture capitalist.

You should remember that your business plan is a living document; it is something that you will use throughout your business and due to this fact it will need updating on a regular basis. Over time, things will change for your business. In some cases, they will change outside of your direct control. Updating your business plan will allow you to plan appropriately to reflect the dynamic changes occurring outside of your direct control and that could have an impact on your business. You should always be prepared to update your business plan to ensure that you have sufficient contingency plans to deal with external influences that could affect the way you do business.

Remember there is no set content for your business plan, what you put in it should reflect your business.

About The Author

Helen is the web master of Angel Start-ups, home of all your Business Plan needs.

6 Steps to Creating an Effective "Sticky Note" Business Plan

If you're like most creative entrepreneurs, the thought of writing a business plan is not the highest item on your priority list. You'd rather explore new ideas, create products and services, develop a new speech, or work with your clients... than sit down and write a plan.

But, to be successful in business, you need to have a plan in place. The good news is you don't have to write a formal (bank-friendly) business plan to keep your business on track. In fact, until recently, I used my self-made "sticky note business plan" to keep track of my business goals and plans.

The "sticky note business plan" is a simple and fun tool you can use anytime, any place to keep your business pointing in the right direction. Here are a few simple steps to get you started:

1. Gather Your Planning Supplies. Thankfully, you won't need fancy computer software, or heavy reference books to write your plan. All you'll need is a wall, six poster boards, three pads of sticky notes, scotch tape, a note pad, a Sharpie marker and a pen. It'll also help to have a quiet place and a few hours of time to enjoy this process. You may even want to light your favorite candle and play some relaxing music.

2. Lay Out Your Plan. Tape the six poster boards up on the wall. Once the boards are up on the wall, grab your notepad. Sit down for a few minutes and quietly think about the aspects of your business you want to plan. For example: do you need to design a new product or event, do you want to create a marketing plan, do you need a timeline plan for the next 3 years of your business, or is it time to plan the launch of a new service?

Use your notepad to collect all of your ideas and decide on the six main categories you want to include in your plan. Next, write each category on six separate sticky notes using your Sharpie marker. Then, stick one note on the top center of each poster board... so each board is labeled for one of your six topics.

3. Download Your Ideas. Here comes the fun part. Get your pen and sticky notes and begin to write down every single idea that comes to mind for each category. Don't edit or censor any ideas. Simply write them down and stick them on the poster board for that category. Try to stay with one category at a time as best you can. But, if other ideas keep coming to mind, write them down and pop them on the appropriate poster. Let the ideas flow and enjoy the process of getting everything on paper.

4. Organize Your Ideas. So, now that your ideas are on the poster boards, begin to organize them. Look for themes, sequences, and categories of items. Physically move the sticky notes on the poster board to group ideas together. Sometimes I'll organize ideas by timeline, sometimes I'll organize by concept... you can organize them in the way that makes sense to you.

5. Put It All Together. Now, step back and take a look at your whole plan. After going through this process, you may discover some items need to move higher on your priority list; while other ideas may need to be dropped from your plan completely. The right things to do (and the order in which to do them) will surface now that you have the whole plan in place. Next, rearrange the posters so the highest priority plan is at the left side of the wall and the lower priority plan is to the right side of the wall. Finally, transfer your highest priority tasks to your calendar to make sure you begin executing your plan.

6. Keep Going. As you make progress with your plan, continually re-evaluate where you are... and keep moving forward with your projects. Personally, once I complete a concept from one of my poster boards, I remove the sticky notes so I can visually see my progress and all that I'm accomplishing. You may enjoy doing the same thing.

Now that you know how to write your "sticky note business plan", you'll discover it's actually FUN to work on your plan. And, it's a huge asset to your business.

About The Author

Copyright (c) 2008 Christine Kloser

Christine Kloser, author of The Freedom Formula, helps small businesses put soul in their business and money in the bank. If you want to enjoy a purpose-driven business and a soulful life, send for my free Conscious Business Success Kit, which includes my report, How to Avoid the 3 Massive Mistakes Made by Conscious Entrepreneurs and audio, 7 Strategies Entrepreneurial Authors Need to Know Before Writing a Word, at LoveYourLife.com