Writing a Compelling Business Plan

Are you finally ready to take the first step in making your business idea a reality? Already in business and wanting to expand, pivot, or apply for financing? You’re going to need a plan.

Writing your business plan is a big task and can seem intimidating at first—that’s why we’ve developed a new, interactive tool to make business planning a less daunting task.

What is a Business Plan?

Your business plan is the foundation of everything you do as a business owner. It’s a valuable document no matter what stage of business you’re at; whether you’re just starting out, already established, or are looking to change or pivot your current business model. It covers all of the major aspects of your business including your financials, operations plan, marketing strategy and beyond.

What’s So Great About It?

• It’s free—all you have to do is create an account and you’re set!
• Your plan is saved to your account so you can log in, make changes, and download a new version at any time.
• You can duplicate your business plan so that you can keep and refer to previous versions.
• Save your business plan as a PDF, Word, or Google Doc so that you can share it in multiple formats, add comments, and access it from anywhere.
• If you’ve downloaded your plan as a Word or Google Doc, you can customize your plan even further. You can add images, customize your font, add your logo, and much more.
• Submit your business plan to our team and our Strategists will review and provide personalized feedback on your plan.

6 Tips to Start and Complete Your Business Plan:

• Start with the section you feel most comfortable with. This will give you confidence when writing the rest of your plan.
• Schedule dedicated time to work on your plan every day or every week, whatever works with your other responsibilities. Dedicated work time will help to create a process and put a priority on getting it done.
• Don’t feel that you need to find the answers to everything as you are writing that specific section. If something will require more time or research to determine, make a note in your plan to come back to it later once you’ve had the time to find what you need.
• After you’ve written a section, come back to it a week or so later and re-read it. Does it still make sense? Is all the information necessary? Is any information missing?
• Have someone that is not involved in the business read over the whole plan. This can help you know where there is too little or too much information.
• When completing your business plan, consider who you’re writing it for: yourself, your business partner, or your bank perhaps? This might help you understand what kind of details you’ll need to include in the plan.

Next Steps

Remember, the most important thing is to take action after you finish your business plan. Do your best to follow what you have written in your plan but remember that businesses are ever-evolving and changing; it’s a good practice to revisit your business plan annually after starting your business. It’s important to keep on top of what’s happening in the real world, this will likely impact your plans. Take the first step today and get started on your business plan!