Business plan help

Where should you start when trying to create a simple business plan either for yourself or to get a bank loan ? If you have a blank piece of paper in front of you and are wondering how to get started then use these resources to begin.

It can seem a daunting process at first but it is such a crucial piece of work to ensure the success of any business. This paper sets out some simple ideas you can undertake to help your business plan development and also where to go online to add to your knowledge.

Why have business plans at all?

By going through the business planning process you'll ensure you understand yourself, your competitors and your customers' needs much, much better. This will enable you to put the right strategies in place to maximise your financial results.

In essence, there are four main reasons for business plans to be developed whether you are thinking of starting a new business or have an existing business that is expanding or needs help achieving more profits in the longer term :

• To provide information about your intentions to you and others
• To persuade a third party to provide resources or assistance
• To help your strategic thinking so you know what you are trying to achieve and how you are going to achieve it
• To set financial targets so you can forecast sales & control costs

How should your plan be constructed ?

There is a basic outline that all banks adhere to and you can find a free template on this website that has all the main elements required and the precise order that is needed. When you are creating your plan you may need to keep the following in mind :

• Keep it concise Generally 20 pages should be good enough to outline your aims and financial projections
• Be realistic
  Don't be agressive with your financial projections. People reading your plan must see that you have done your research and analysis and you understand your business
• Show a path to profitability
  The most important question for anyone investing will be "when do I see a return"
• Show a strong management team
  It is the people in your team who are going to make a success of your company.

Starting off - the basics you need to know

First off have a look to see what your business plan format should look like. This will show you the sections you need to complete. Don't put off starting to write but before you so ask yourself the following questions:

• Who exactly are going to buy your products? - write down a profile
• What need is your product going to satisfy?
• Why will they buy your product and not someone else's?
• What is the demand for this product?
• Who are you competing with?
• What are the prices being charged today - and what are you going to charge?

If you can answer these questions then put together a simple sales projection spreadsheet detailing the volume you are going to sell and the price.

Multiply these together and you'll see your sales totals. Is this enough ?

You'll need to subtract the direct cost of the product you are selling (if you sold just one more tomorrow what costs are involved?)

What's left? Is this enough to cover other day to day expenses such as telephone, rent and advertising ? If not, you need more sales or you need to cut your costs.

Developing your plan

The largest source of free information online is at bplans. This is the daddy of all sites and there is a lot of excellent information.

Another site offering free templates and planning advice is Teneric - business plans for the small business owner.

Both sites provide a good starting point to find out more about how you can develop your business and to start to develop your business plan.

Compiling your plan

There are no sites that have interactive planners online for free.

The choices you have are business planning software or business planning guides and templates.

If you are very confident, most major banks have free business planning software you can use at home (or work). These will allow you to input your data but are unlikely to give you advice on how to develop your business.

Alternatively you can use commercial software.

An alternative cost effective way to write your plan

Software is not a magic bullet although it will help.

It's you who knows most about your business - it should be you who plans

It's probably best then to work your way through step by step business plan guide that draw out what you know and how to get you additional customers.

You can also use sample business plans to see what other successful companies have developed and learn from a professionally written plan.

Business planning is a standard process but the results are different for every business

As discussed above your finished document should be no more than 20 pages, so the writing is the easy part - it's the thinking that will take the time and that's why you need expert guidance and not just software.

This page has basic business plan help for all small businesses starting their business plan writing. All studies I have seen show that companies that have a well developed business plan produce more revenues and profits than those without.

Teneric have negotiated a 15% discount off Business Plan Pro.

You can either purchase the standard version for £84.99 VAT incl (instead of £99.99) or the premier version for £135.15 VAT incl. (instead of £159).

These discounts on business plan pro are exclusive to Teneric.