The thing you have to remember about business plans is that each business structure will require different planning elements. Its because of this that there is no exact “one size fits all” business planning outline that will work for every business.
However, a general outline will help a potential business owner take a “snap shot” of what a business plan should look like. Just remember that a successful business plan will capture all the important information regardless of its placement in the plan. Here is a basic outline that I generally use for my clients:
Section #1
Introduction / Executive Summary
Page 1
Section #2
Management Plan
2.1 Ownership Structure
2.2 Management Team
Page 2
Section #3
Assessing the Market
3.1 Definition of the Industry
3.2 Industry Overview
3.3 Key Trends and Characteristics of the Industry
3.4 Local Market Demographics and Target Markets
3.5 Market Summary
3.6 SWOT Analysis
3.7 Competitive Analysis
Page 4
Section #4
Marketing Plan
4.1 Key Services and Products
4.2 Pricing Strategies
4.3 Distribution
4.4 Promotional Plan
Page 10
Section #5
Operational Plan
5.1 General Operating Procedures and Facility
5.2 Operational Workflow
5.3 Human Resource Requirements
5.4 Insurance Requirements
5.5 Government Requirements
5.6 Working Capital Requirements
5.7 Capital Requirements
5.8 Inventory Requirements
Page 13
Section #6
Financial Plan
6.1 Costs and Financing
6.2 Financial Projections and Notes to Financial Projections
Page 18
Attachments
#1 Resument of Owner
#2 Proof of Commercial Financing
#3 Proof of Equity
#4 Inventory and Equipment Quotes
#5 Lease Agreement
#6 Funding Application
#7 Letter of Agreement
Please remember this is a basic outline and depending on the type of business, it may have more or less planning elements.
To view this outline in .pdf format, please click here. If you want to edit and use this outline you can download it in word format – please click here and save to your desktop.
To see how this outline works in a complete business plan, please go to our samples section here.
Alright, let’s get started…Simply click on the following links for step by step instructions and complete examples:
Business Description and Company Information