• Business Plans for Start-Ups

What Are the • Internal Business Plans

Various Types of • Operational Business Plans
Business Plans? • Growth Business Plans
 Business Plans for Start-Ups
The business plan you
prepare for a startup is
about as standard as it gets
when it comes to
explaining all the steps that
need to be taken by a new
business to achieve its
goals.
These plans typically Notable among the plan's There will also likely be
include information on the forecasts are predictions additional tables included
financial analysis of the for the sales, profit, loss, in the section on financial
business, the milestones for cash flow and balance analysis, as well as the
implementation, the sheet of the company. monthly projections for the
management team, the first year.
strategy of the business,
various forecasts, the
marketplace and the
product or service offering
of the organization.
 Any business plan you do not
prepare with the intent to show a
financial institution, an external
investor or any other third party is
Internal known as an internal business plan.

Business Plans
In such plans, you don’t really need
Usually, in internal business plans,
to describe in detail the
the whole plan is written as a
organization or the management
report using paragraph form. The
team. You may also choose
main points will either be depicted
whether or not to include financial
as bullet points or as slides, in the
projections like forecasts and
case of a PowerPoint presentation.
budget.
 Operational business plans
are typically prepared for
use by the business itself, so
they are strictly a type of
internal business plan.
They are also known as
annual plans and include
detailed information on
deadlines, implementation
milestones, specific dates,
The operational business
plan doesn’t go into much
detail about who needs to
do what and when.

Operational
and the responsibilities of
teams and their managers.

Business Plans
It looks at the
responsibilities and dates
from the perspective of
what is a top priority and
what is high level.. There's
no need for descriptions of
the management teams or
the organization. You also
won’t find detailed
explanations of all financial
projections in these
business plans.
 Some business plans do not concern
These are called growth plans, new
themselves with the entirety of the
product plans or expansion plans,
business. They are only interested in a
depending on what they are looking to
part of the business or a specific area of

Growth
achieve.
interest.

Business
Plans When you need to attract new funding
or some kind of debt finance, you would
prepare an expansion plan. Both plans
They may or may not be internal plans,
should include a detailed description of
depending whether they are meant to
the organization as well as extensive
attract outside investment or meet the
background data on each member of
loan requirements of a bank. For
the management team. If, however, the
example, you could prepare a startup
expansion plan is for the business’s own
plan to attract new investment when
internal consumption, it will be
the business is just starting out.
categorized as an internal business plan
and won’t contain details about the
organizations or the management team.
 • The bigger picture
What Are the Benefits of a • Strategic focus

Business Plan? • Set priorities

• Manage change
• Forces you to be accountable
 The bigger picture: This is one of the key advantages of a business plan. When
you plan your business right, you can get a clearer picture of the business as a
whole. You can easily comnect the dots between strategy and tactics, and
everything is easier to work out.

What Are the Strategic focus: As a startup, you need to create an identity and focus on
building that identity. It is usually defined by your target market, and the
products and services you are tailoring to match their needs.

Benefits of a Set priorities: It’s impossible to do everything at once in a business. When you
Business plan your business, you can order things in terms of their importance and
allocate your effort, resources and time in an efficient and strategic manner.

Plan? Manage change: When you plan your business effectively, you can check your
assumptions, track your progress and see new developments right from the
beginning, allowing you to adjust accordingly.

Forces you to be accountable: When you plan effectively, you set

expectations for yourself and a means by which you will be able to track your
results. You can constantly review your business plan in terms of what you
expect and what eventually happens
 • Management
• Financial Plan
• Market Analysis
• Customers
Checklist for a • Competition

Business Plan
 • The business plan usually details an entrepreneur’s
skill and expertise in the business environment.
• This information provides external business plan
users with a brief history of the entrepreneur’s
Management past successes.
• Business plans can also include information on the
management team or organizational structure of

Checklist for a the new business.

Business Plan
• The most important part of the business plan
usually relates to the financial outline of the new
business venture.
Financial • The financial plan outlines the initial start-up costs,
Plan first few months of estimated business
expenditures and the amount of estimated
external financing in potential sales based on
current economic conditions.
 Market Analysis
Checklist for a Business Plan
(Contd)
• Business owners can conduct a
market analysis to review the overall
stability of the current economy.
Information can include the total
market size, annual growth rate of the
past few years and the various
segments or industries in the market.
• Business owners may also need to
provide information on whether they
will sell goods or services in local,
regional, domestic or international
markets.
• Each market will have specific and
distinct characteristics relating to
current size and growth.
Checklist for a
Business Plan Customers Competition
(Contd) The target market or demographic Business plans can also outline the
analysis is another important part of a amount of current competition in the
business plan. business environment.
This section provides detailed Business owners can describe how
information on customer’s age, race, they will create a competitive
sex, income level and other advantage to achieve a sufficient
information. market share and profit in the
Business owners can also include marketplace.
information on current demand for A competition section may also
certain goods or services in the include the amount of regulations and
economic marketplace. Business taxes that the small business will face
owners can use information to tailor when attempting to establish
their business operations to specific themselves similar to other
consumers. companies in the business
A customer analysis may be needed environment.
for each market in which the company
will sell goods or services.
 • Executive Summary
Four Types of • Marketing Strategy
• Financial Information
Information in a • Operational
Information

Business Plan
 Executive Summary
Four Types of • The executive summary provides an overview of your business venture.
Information in a • It includes a synopsis of the company, as well as your mission statement
and key selling points like offering outstanding customer service or
Business Plan superior products.
• The summary also outlines which niche you plan to attain in the market
and why you think there is a need for your business.

Marketing Strategy

• Your marketing plan should first identify your target market, which can be
broken down into demographic factors like age, gender, level of income
and education.
• It should identify the methods you intend to use to reach your target
market, like the type of media for advertising or any types of promotional
methods like special pricing or events.
• Your marketing strategy must also factor in your competition, identifying
the key players in your market and how you plan to obtain some of their
market share.
Four Types of
Information in a
Business Plan (Contd) Financial Information
Your business plan should include
an array of financial data.
In particular, you should show
projections for income for each
month during the first 2 years,
monthly cash flow projections for
the first 2 two years, a projected
annual balance sheet and a break-
even analysis, which predicts the
point at which your business will
begin to turn a profit. If you're
attempting to obtain financing,
you'll need to justify the amount of
the loan you're asking for with your
detailed financial statements.
Operational Information
Your business plan must detail your
management and operational
structure.
If you're operating as a sole
proprietor, this will be relatively
simple. However, if your
organization involves several
stakeholders, you will need to
supply an organization chart.
If your business involves a complex
process such as the manufacturing
of a product, detail each step of the
process in your business plan.
Also identify items such as hours of
operation and how many
employees you'll need.
 • Road Map
• Details of Your
Business
• Marketing Plan What Are the Functions
• Initial Costs
• Securing Financing of a Business Plan?
What Are the Functions of a
Business Plan?

• Road Map
• A business plan serves as a type of road map for your
business by clarifying where you are, where you want to be
and how you plan to get there.
• Without a clear business plan, you may resort to methods of
trial and error to attain business success, and it will be much
more difficult to determine whether you're making real
progress.
• Details of Your Business
• Your business plan explains what your business is about by
describing your products or services in detail and what the
ultimate goals of your business are.
• For example, your plan may stipulate what your revenue
goals are for each of your first three years of operation. Your
plan should also indicate why you believe there is a need for
your business and who your main competitors will be.
 •A business plan should describe how you intend to market your

Marketing products or services as well as identify your target market.

•For example, if you're selling a product that appeals to young
professionals between the ages of 25 and 34, your plan should

Plan include the marketing strategy you intend to use to reach them,
such as developing advertising for media outlets that appeal to
that particular demographic.

What Are the

Functions of a •If your business requires any start-up capital or costs, your
Initial business plan should list all required items and your anticipated

Business Costs
cost for each. If you're seeking financing, you'll need to determine
how much money you'll need to borrow and how you arrived at
the figure. Possible costs can include a place of business,
equipment, the hiring of employees and marketing expenses.

Plan? (Contd)
•A business plan is essential if you intend to seek financing to start
Securing your business. A financial institution such as a bank will want to
see your plan to determine the viability of your business idea. If
you're seeking investors as a means of raising capital, they'll also
Financing most likely want to view your plan to determine their level of
investment risk.