Writing a business plan is a must when you want to write a business plan. This document will be your reference throughout your steps (banks, business angels, financial partners, etc.). It must therefore be neat, solid, and well built. The business plan is a key that will allow you to demonstrate that your project is viable, organized, and capable of taking you far. In addition, it will be helpful to others and you because you have included your forecast, your marketing strategy, your operation, your resources, and all the elements necessary for the life of a company.
Start writing your business plan?
Unfortunately, there is no such thing for those looking for a ready-to-fill template.
Two sections should be included in your business plan.
- an editorial part (where you explain your strategy, working documents, the market, the competition, etc.)
- an accounting part (where you will present the figures and the accounting documents that will be presented to the partners)
The editorial part of your business plan
Here are the essential points to include in your business plan – the editorial part:
Presentation
This part of your business plan contains an introduction to you (and your partner if you have one). Your philosophy of life, professional background, training, references, motivation, history of your project (anecdote, highlighting a deficiency in the offer), etc.
If you have a complete CV to present, you can quickly summarize it in this part. Nothing prevents you from including it as an appendix as well.
Your project
When writing your business plan, you are still at the project stage. First, you will have to convince your interlocutor that you have carefully studied your project and its parameters. Once the generalities have been passed (nature, datasheet of your future company, your visibility, etc.), the next step is presenting your project itself.
Your product or your service
Describe your product or service in this part. Highlight your advantages, your strength, and how you stand out from your competition. Also, indicate how your product or service will position itself in the market. In this part, you can also present your market research and highlight how your product or service will meet a specific need.
Your marketing strategy
In this part, you will be able to outline your marketing strategy. Do not hesitate to structure your action plan. You can present schedules, tables, graphs, or even diagrams. Visual elements are necessary, even essential. Because they will be beneficial to you throughout your business career, but most importantly, they will be practical to present to partners.
List all the advertising you want to include in your strategy (web, paper, inserts, catalogs, etc.).
Your commercial resources
Detail here the commercial means that you will deploy to make yourself known to your target:
- product policy: on what aspect will you communicate?
- Pricing policy: what is the psychological price of your product (or the average basket price)?
- Distribution policy: what distribution channels have you chosen?
- Communication policy: what advertising means will you use?
Your location
Wheather, you want to sell products in a store or services in an agency, you must estimate the necessary surface where you intend to set up. If you already have premises, consider attaching the contract or promise indicating the exact coordinates of your premises in this section.
If you offer products or services on the internet, estimate the costs of making the site (address, structure, content, blog, social networks, etc.). Do not forget that the visibility of a website is quite a long time. Unless you have chosen to settle in a particular area (a niche), you will need to consider a specific budget for SEO and editorial.
Your means of production
In this part, you will be able to explain to your interlocutor how you plan to work :
- Who are your suppliers or subcontractors?
- What are your human resources (do you plan to hire on creation, qualifications, profession, job market, etc.)?
- What are your production tools? Your equipment or your ideas (patents, licenses)?
The budget part of your business plan
The second part of your business plan requires accounting skills. Indeed, the encrypted part is as important as the presentation part. If you have the skills to complete the tables, do not hesitate. Otherwise, contact an accountant who can guide you in carrying out the costed study. The chartered accountant is an essential partner for a company.
You should know that the chartered accountant is the only professional authorized to validate the mandatory annual balance sheets. You can hire an accountant to enter and keep the accounts, but the expert will still have to check the work done to edit your balance sheet and your tax return.
The chartered accountant is not mandatory but highly recommended for a business plan study. It brings extra weight to the seriousness of carrying out your business plan.
I am writing a business plan
If you think that writing your business plan is not your priority, you comment an error. Your interlocutors will read it. It is therefore essential to leave a document that is pleasant to read. Concise, error-free, explained, and easy to remember.
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