2.
Re: Business plan question.. Jun 6, 2008 12:24 PM
In general Business Plans should consist of the following:
Executive Summary
Market Opportunity
Vision, Mission, & Objectives
Management
Business Strategy
Competition
Risk
Financial Plan
Capital Requirements
Summary
How complex and comprehensive your plan should be depends on what you plan to use it for. This generally falls into 3 categories:
1. Internal Planning (for forming the business and start-up operations)
2. Internal Planning and presentation to close contacts that might want to invest in their business.
3. Internal Planning, close contacts presentation and presentation to experienced investors and/or sources of funding for the business.
Business plans can range from 10 pages to 50+. Simpler business plans (really more of an extended Executive Summary) are usually 10 pages or so and would primarily be used for internal planning purposes. Those type plans are less complex. Plans for presentation to funding sources and/or investor-ready business plans designed for professional investor presentation are longer and much more comprehensive (they have to be to cover all of the aspects of your business that an investor or funding source is going to want to know about).
There are a lot of resources you can find online to help you with your business planning. Here is one free source that might be of some immediate help to you:
http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/i
ndex.html.
I hope that helps; good luck with your business.
Dennis Lowery
Adducent, Inc.
