how do i write a simple business plan?

Question

from kerry's friend nina xxxx

Answer 1

1. A simple business plan should not exceed 30 single sided pages.
2. First principal: Tailor make it for the right audience.
3. Second principal: Keep it light and an interesting read.
4. Do have an orderly annexure to support claims and findings upon request by the intended audience.
5. Above portion reserved for bulk financial analysis.
6. Full disclosure and honesty required if prospective VCs and angels are sought.

Approach the local federal trade commissions, business ventures and angels for a guide book on current and relevant requirements. State specific and statutory undertakings may require disclosures not otherwise required of in other states.


Key points to note:

- Executive Summary
Present business of the company;
Its history;
Future direction;
Future prospects;
Why potential VCs and investors should take note.

- Highlights
Potential pit falls;
Anchor points to keep the company as a going concern;
Salient points to increase the company’s performance over the short and medium term;
With brevity, key financial indicators supporting statements;
With brevity, key Non-financial indicators supporting statements;
All the above statements to be supported in the Analysis.

- Objectives
Where the company is headed;
How it is going to achieve its goals;
Why it perceives these as its objectives;
Potential pit falls.

- Mission
Company’s mission statement taken from the annual report and any other credo deemed relevant in structuring and directing the Company.

- Keys to Success
With brevity,
Requirements to keep the company as a going concern;
Key financial indicators supported by Analysis;
Non-Key financial indicators supported by Analysis;
Requirements to necessitate additional funding.

- Company Summary
With brevity,
Where management intends to take the business with Operations and how it intends to do this based on anchor points to ground the company.

- Analysis
Relevant and comparatives to the industry
Financial statement analysis;
Balance sheet, Income statement, SCE, Cashflow history, trends, projections, key ratios
Such as notional winding up, liquidity, acid tests, etc.

- Services
Relevant and comparatives to the industry
Operations with cashflow budgeting;
Working capital requirements.

The following with similar details and relevant comparatives, stating deviances from the accounting standards of the country and restating amounts to comply with the place of trade, such as FRS compliance (not needed but provides comparatives):
- Market Analysis Summary
- Strategy and Implementation Summary
- Management Summary
- Financial Plan

Answer 2

why not try this short course which you can do from home:

Starting a Small Business & Business Planning
This course is an excellent place to start if you are considering starting your own business. It covers multiple areas including; legal structures, the product or service, health & safety, the market place, market research, marketing and advertising, e-commerce, funding, financial forecasting and breaking even.
During this course a business plan will be produced, therefore a business idea is needed. This course can then lead directly into self employment.

contact details for the provider can be found on the webpage below...

Answer 3

A simple business plan goes as follows:

Mission Statement
Operating Statement
Profit & Loss Statement
Competition Statement
Managment Statement

This is a simple business plan.

Answer 4

Here are some resources that can help you write your business plan:

- SBA Business Plan Basics http://www.sba.gov/starting_business/planning/basic.html
- PowerHomeBiz.com Creating a Business Plan section http://www.powerhomebiz.com/startup/businessplan.htm
- Entrepreneur.com Writing a Business Plan section http://www.entrepreneur.com/bizplan/0,7253,,00.html

You may also want to review some sample business plans to see how it actually looks like:

- Bplans.com http://www.bplans.com/sp/businessplans.cfm
- MOOT Corp Business Plan competition winners
http://www.businessplans.org/businessplans.html
- VFinance - View hundreds of real business plans in pdf format. http://www.vfinance.com/home.asp?bps=1&ToolPage=bps_main.asp
- Business Owners Toolkit Sample business plans and information on how to create a plan. http://www.toolkit.cch.com/tools/buspln_m.asp
- PlanWare Planning software and information. http://www.planware.org/
- Virtual Business Plan Walk through the design of a business plan. http://www.bizplanit.com/vplan.html
-SBA Business Planning Guide http://www.sba.gov/starting_business/planning/basic.html
- Small Business Advancement Center http://www.sbaer.uca.edu/business_plan/businessPlan.pdf
- Sample Business Plan General planning guide created by the Canadian Business Service Center. http://www.cbsc.org/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=CBSC_FE/display&c=GuideFactSheet&cid
- Business Plans Index - A subject guide to sample business plans and profiles for specific business types from Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. http://216.183.184.20/subject/business/bplansindex.html

Some recommended books are :

- Business Plans Kit for Dummies
- The Complete Book of Business Plans : Simple Steps to Writing a Powerful Business Plan
- Writing Business Plans That Get Results : A Step-By-Step Guide
- Business Plans For Dummies®
- Your First Business Plan : A Simple Question and Answer Format Designed to Help You Write Your Own Plan

Hope that the above resources help