Writing a business plan can be intimidating. However, it is a necessary step to obtain a business loan for the launch or expansion of a professional practice or a small or medium-sized business. Gaining an understanding of the expectations that the bank, government, or other type of investor has for the content of your business plan can help you get started.
The following is a complete list of the basic components of a business plan focused on securing financing:
- Executive Summary
Mission and vision statements
A mission statement is a single sentence that communicates the core values of the practice or business. Establishes the organization’s raison d’être.
A vision statement is a single statement that communicates business goals for the next 3-5 years in terms of the most appropriate benchmarks, whether market share, reputation, or financials.
Human Resources:
The goals of this section of your business plan are to present the strengths of the core management team, as well as the projected costs of employees:
- Biography of the members of the founding team and relevance
- staff requirements
- Basic strategies to manage teams.
business environment:
A discussion of the business environment in your business plan demonstrates experience and understanding of changing market dynamics:
- Industry Overview
- Position argument
- An analysis of strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
- competitive grid
- barriers to entry
Marketing:
A marketing plan is relevant to a business plan whether it takes into account traditional or non-traditional types of promotional activities:
- consumer experience
- Service description, promotional activity, location, fees
- Central strategies for the practice of the market.
Operations:
Describing your business operations can account for standard, special, or proprietary processes:
- Core strategies for operating the practice.
Finance:
The financial statements included in your business plan should be achievable rather than overly optimistic:
- Detailed 3-year sales projection
- Detailed 3-year profit and loss statement
Risks and conclusion:
Your business plan should identify what risks you believe are inherent in the business and how you expect to manage them. You should detail the main strategies you plan to employ to mitigate risks.
Remember that the goal of your business plan is to communicate why you are a good candidate for this business loan. Ideally, your business plan will have proven experience accompanied by achievable sales projections, key ingredients in developing the perception that your business is a low-risk investment for a bank, government, or other type of investor.