A business plan is a written document of your business’s future, a good small business plan defines exactly what you intend to achieve, and more importantly, how you plan to achieve.

The following business plan guide has been provided by GE Consult.

Overall Considerations before Writing a Business Plan

1. Language must be brief, written in layman’s terms.
2. Each section must stand on its own, precisely define and satisfy its objective.
3. All facts and numbers are to be evidently supported with charts and graphs.

Before Writing Your Business Plan

1. How long should my business plan be?
2. Who needs a business plan?
3. Why should I write a business plan?
4. Determine your goals and objectives.
5. Outline your financing needs.

Executive Summary

This is a very important page. Within the overall outline of the business plan, the executive summary will follow the title page. The summary should tell the reader what you want.

Business Description

The business description usually begins with a short description of the industry. When describing the industry, discuss the present outlook as well as future possibilities. Information on all markets within the industry shall be provided, including new products or developments that will benefit or adversely affect your business.

Market Strategies

Market strategies are the result of a thorough market analysis, they are all about target market defined so that the company can be positioned to foster competitive edge.

Competitive Analysis

The purpose of the competitive analysis is to determine the strengths and weaknesses of the rivalry within your market, market strategies that will provide you with a distinct advantage, that entry barriers can be developed in order to prevent competition from entering the market, and weaknesses that can be exploited within the product life cycle.

Operational Plan

The operational plan is designed to describe just how the business functions on a regular basis, such plan will highlight the supply chain and logistics, the tasks assigned to each division within the company, and capital and expense requirements related to the operations of the business.

Financial Components

Financial data serves as the back-bone of your business plan, financial assumptions and projections should be laid.