Business Plan Outlines - The Very Basics

 Business plan outlines vary in their complexity.  Depending on your situation you may just want to follow a very basic business plan outline.  Regardless, the process of sitting down, creating a business plan outline, and writing a business plan is one of the most valuable exercises you will do.

Basic Business Plan Outline

List your business credentials - why are you qualified to start this business and sell your products and services?

List your staff:  Is it going to be just yourself, or do you have a definite plan in terms of when you are going to hire sales, technical, or administrative staff?

Project revenue:  Will you be selling services, products, or a combination of both?

How much revenue will come from products?  How much profit will come from products?

How much revenue will come from services?  How much profit will come from services?

Sales and marketing plan:  outline your major sales and marketing activities - the things that you're going to do to bring in key, sweet spot clients. Talk about what you're doing on a month-by-month or week-by-week basis. How much time you think it’s going to take up and how much money you think it’s going to cost to execute. 

Operations: Where will you be located? Home office or rented space? How will you get to your clients' places of business?  Personal car or leased vehicle? Will you need to rent facilities from time to time for meetings, seminars, etc...

Finance:  What capital do you need to start?  Where will you get this capital? Where will you get additional capital during your first year in business?

Salary and Payroll:  What are your expectations for your personal salary or drawings.  Do you have to pay staff as well?

Expertise of principals:  What makes you and/or your partners qualified? What kind of skills and experience do you bring to the table that will be of valuable to this business venture and valuable to the clients you want to pursue?  

The Bottom Line On Business Plan Outlines

Business plan outlines can be as detailed as you want.  The most important aspect is that your business plan outline covers off the basics.  Make sure the business plan outline you adopt allows you to answer the five W's and provides you with a plan for how you will start and operate your business.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consultants Secrets. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Business Plan Outlines - The 5 W's

 Business plan outlines are all different.  The one common thread is that all business plan outlines help the writer answer the five W questions:  who, what, when, where, why.

If any of you ever worked in journalism or as reporters, what you want to do when you investigate anything is answer the 5 W's.  A business plan outline is a concrete method for investigating a business idea so answering the 5 W's makes sense.  

Business Plan Outline of the 5 W's

Who are you? Your business plan outline should detail your certifications, industry experience, and credentials.  List the business credential that you've already received or those that you're planning on getting in the early stages.  This part of the business plan outline also lists the staff you project needing and what their qualifications will be.  

What do you plan on sell?  In your business plan outline you need to include a discussion of what it is you are selling.  Are you selling products, services or both?  Once you know what you are selling you then need to discuss the revenue and profit associated with your products and/or services.  

This part of the business plan outline also includes your preliminary sales and marketing plan.  What will you be doing to gain your clients and how much time and money will you spend doing so?

When did you launch or when do you plan on launching? This information is critical to outside investors and it will also help to keep you on track.

Where are you located?  Here you will indicate the types of facilities needed to run your business. Will you work out of your home or rent office space? 

Why is your approach unique? This is a critical question that your business plan outline must address. You need to explain your number one differentiator. Somewhere in your business plan outline you must make space for detailing the proposition that sets you apart from everyone else in the market.

The Bottom Line On Business Plan Outlines

Business plan outlines help you structure your answers to the most important business planning questions.  These questions can be summarized as the 5 W's.  By answering these questions, your business plan outline will lead you to discover and detail the exact "how" of your overall business operations.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Small Biz Tech Talk. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}