Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 3: Setting your goals
• Part 2 of 3: Writing a business plan
• Part 3 of 3: Getting help
• Tips

Regardless of your business idea, be it selling jewelry, landscaping or taking care of animals, a business plan is always a good way to demonstrate the idea's potential for success. A simple business plan helps you think through the feasibility of an idea, and is tailored to your goal of writing the plan and the audience that will read it. If you want to start a business or expand an existing business, you can start with a simple business plan that will sharpen your focus and get you started

To step

Part 1 of 3: Setting your goals

1. Determine your main reason (s) for having a business plan. A business plan can serve multiple purposes, and addressing each of these goals may make your business plan longer, more detailed, and more complicated. To start writing a basic business plan, you must first determine your primary goal for writing a plan. There are a number of factors to consider, such as determining the feasibility of starting a business in a particular industry; figuring out your work plan; figuring out how to communicate your company's idea to potential customers; or obtaining financing for your business. This will help you focus your efforts on a simple business plan that answers some of the most pressing questions about your business.
2. Consult your business partners. If you are starting a business as an individual, you may not need to take this step. But if you're working with someone else, you need their input and cooperation to write a business plan that takes everyone's interests into account.
3. Be clear about the unique nature of your business. No two companies are exactly the same, and likewise no two business plans are the same. Understand and know what is unique about your business, from your product or service to your customer base and your approach to marketing. This will help your business stand out and be more attractive to your customers and hopefully be more successful in the long run.
4. Understand what kind of business you are writing the plan for. Are you starting a new business or expanding an existing business? Most of the approach to writing a business plan will be the same for both, but there may be a few crucial differences. With an existing company you get a much clearer picture of the market, sales, marketing and so on. You can include solid supporting evidence in your business plan. In a startup, these elements can be more speculative.
5. Choose the format you want to use. The more fundamental and concise the business plan, the less text you have to write. Instead of long, detailed paragraphs, you can use bullets instead. Some layouts are 1 to 4 pages long, while very detailed plans can be over 50 pages. The shorter, more basic plans immediately hit the heart of your business. These also tend to put things in simple terms, making it easy for the layman to understand. There are all kinds of business plan templates available online.
   • Most business plans consist of a combination of the following components: summary, business description, market analysis, service or product description, marketing approach, financial projections and appendix. As you know better about what could potentially be included in a business plan, you can decide what is relevant to your own business plan.
   • Some business consultants find that most small businesses need a very simple questionnaire, or an 'internal work plan', at the beginning to find out the basics: what is the product or service, who are the customers, what is the timeline of the company and how does the company deal with paying bills and getting bills paid?
6. Find the audience for your business plan. A business plan can be read by any number of people. Often times, a business plan is written for investors and bank employees, who need to quickly and thoroughly understand the nature of your business and your plan. It shows that you have considered important questions such as marketing and financial aspects that will contribute to your ability to repay a loan or make a business profitable for an investor.
   • Investors and bank employees will likely want to see a more formal, professional business plan that reflects careful planning and forecasting. If you are looking for a business partner or other interested party, you can choose to take more account of your business and personal ethos in the business plan. But tend to be on the professional side when putting together your business plan.

Part 2 of 3: Writing a business plan

1. Write simply and clearly. Avoid too much jargon or long-winded explanations. Streamline the writing process to get your point across quickly and concisely. Replace longer words with shorter ones, such as "use" with "use". It's good to use bullets to make it easier to track your business plan.
2. Write the business description and describe your service or product. Describe your business, including how long you have been in business, where you have worked, what your accomplishments have been to date, and what kind of legal entity you are (sole proprietorship, limited liability company, etc.). Describe the service or product you are offering. What is unique about your product or service and why is it important for your customers to offer it?
   • For example, you could write: "Beste Kinderbalk (BK) is a limited liability company registered in the Netherlands that supplies high-quality, healthy bakery products to schools in the Amsterdam region. BK was founded in 2008 and has received several awards. including the best small businesses in Amsterdam and the best muesli bars from the Nutrition Center. Our granola bars are made from natural, locally sourced ingredients and provide healthy nutrition to kids in the city. "
   • You may also want to include the goals of your business so that the reader of your business plan can get a good idea of ​​why you are doing business and what you hope to achieve by running your business. You should definitely include this section if your business is a nonprofit, as a nonprofit is based on mission and vision. This will clarify to lenders or other supporters the goals on the basis of which you operate as a nonprofit.
3. Present your market research and outline your marketing plan. This section describes the industry or market you are operating in and how you plan to deliver your product or service to your customers. How big is the market, in terms of population and in terms of potential sales? You need to have a good argument about how your product or service will truly complement the market and meet a currently unmet need. Talk about the customers you're targeting, describe their demographics and their potential to buy your product or service. Include information about your competitors, both directly and indirectly. Then describe how you plan to promote your product or service, reach your customers, expand your services, and promote your business.
   • For example, you could write, `` The proposed Best Kids Bars market covers the entire public school system in Amsterdam, with 110 schools with a total of 20,000 children, of which about 67% buy lunch at school. '' relationships with customers, competitors, and so on.
4. Discuss unforeseen issues. While you want to stay positive about the potential success of your business, it is good planning to think about the challenges or even failure. Think about how you will respond to problems, such as a decline in the number of customers or the loss of an important supplier. If specific parts of your business plan may not work, what are they and how do you respond and can you overcome these problems?
   • For example, you can write: "We rely on locally sourced ingredients for our muesli bars and our local suppliers depend on good conditions to produce the crops. If the Netherlands faces insufficient rainfall, we may need to expand our supplier list to neighboring countries, but we will prioritize working with suppliers from the Netherlands. "
5. Provide information about the most important people in your company. A good business plan describes not only the business and its services, but also the people who actually run and operate the business. Please describe key stakeholders, their role in the company and their background and suitability to contribute to this venture. Include their resume in the attachment to your business plan. If your business is just you, that's fine. Give yourself a title and write a short biography of your relevant experience that has prepared you for your current business idea.
   • For example, you can write: "CEO Katrien Smit has two decades of experience working for highly regarded baking companies in the Northern Netherlands, graduated from the agricultural university of Wageningen and also has a degree in Environmental Science."
6. Provide a financial picture of your business venture. The financial picture has a number of different components. You must provide an overview of the financial viability of your business through financial projections (expected income, expenses, profit), as well as financing strategies or investment strategies. The financial information you include in a simple business plan does not need to be extensively detailed, but it should provide a good indication of the company's potential financial well-being.
   • Provide figures for income and expenses. To calculate revenue, you base a sales forecast on the pricing of your product or service and the number of customers you plan to serve. Estimate the turnover for the next 3-5 years. You may need to make an educated estimate for this part, as it is difficult to say absolutely for sure how many units you will sell or how many people you will serve. It's best to stay somewhat conservative on this point. Expenses include fixed costs (such as salaries, rent, etc.) and variable costs (such as promotions or advertisements). Consider costs to start the business, run the business, hire and retain staff, pay for advertising, and so on. Also include expenses such as fees, licenses, and taxes. Also consider the assets and liabilities you have; assets can be property or equipment, while liabilities are possible loans you owe because of this business.
   • Include strategies for financing or investment. If you're using your business plan to bring in certain resources, this part is especially important. You need to know exactly how much money you need and how it will be spent. for example, you can write: "Beste Kinderbalk asks for € 25,000 in investment funds to support the expansion of our current kitchen location. € 10,000 will go towards renting additional space at our current location, € 5,000 towards additional equipment (two ovens, supplies), and € 10,000 towards salaries to hire an additional employee to meet the needs of our public school contract in Amsterdam comply.'
7. Add supporting material. Depending on your business and the level of detail in your business plan, you may want to include additional material to support your plan. Some possible materials include: tax returns, balance sheets, cash flow statements, contracts, letters of intent, resumes of key employees, and so on.
8. Write the summary. This section is written last and must not contain more than two pages. If you're drafting a very short business plan, your summary can be just a paragraph, or you can skip it. The summary is essentially an overview of your company, your unique position in the market and a brief description of the services or products to be sold. You also include an overview of your financial projections, including your expected income, profit and expenses for the next five years. If you are looking for funding, you should also briefly describe it, describing the exact amount you need and how it will be deployed.
9. Put everything together. Each of these sections are mini essays that contribute to an overall picture of your business. You need to make it look professional by putting it all together in one document with consistent formatting, section headings, and a table of contents with page numbers. Read it several times and check spelling and grammar. You do not want any mistakes in your plan, because this is bad for the preparation and organization.
   • Don't use more than two fonts in your business plan. Too many fonts can be visual derivatives. Make sure your font size is legible by using an 11 or 12 point font.
10. Take your time. If you are at the point where you are writing a business plan, you are probably excited about your idea. However, you should still take the time at this stage to consider the possibilities and eventualities of your business. Your plan can help you identify problems before you start so you can avoid them. It's also a roadmap you can use to keep you focused and on track. Spending enough time, even on a simple business plan, is time well spent.

Part 3 of 3: Getting help

1. Ask for help setting up your plan. Workshops on writing business plans, making marketing plans and making financial decisions are often organized. Often staffed by volunteer business professionals or former executives, these organizations can also give you valuable advice and feedback on your plan. They may also be able to give you pointers on things that are helpful, such as resources to conduct market research for your business.
2. Get professional advice for specific parts. Some parts of a business plan can be complicated or you may not be familiar with them, such as the financial part or marketing part. Consult someone with expertise in these areas to assist you. Even if you are developing a basic business plan, you should have an idea of ​​how to address elements that you are unsure of. For example, the financial and marketing components are often very complicated, but are also crucial to your entire plan.
3. Have a friend or family member read your plan. What makes sense to you may not make sense to other people. Get feedback on your business plan from friends and family to make sure it's clear, concise, logical, informative, and compelling.

Tips

• As your business grows, you will likely want to rethink and expand your business plan to accommodate changes in your business. It is important to take into account changes in your business, the financial projections, changes in the market or industry, and so on.
• When you're ready to share your business plan with investors, don't just send them the full plan. You must submit a request to convene a meeting to discuss extensively about potential collaboration. You may also want to consider having a non-disclosure agreement signed by the investor, which will protect you from anyone attempting to steal or use your ideas for their own use.