- An official, simple guideline for writing a business plan
- For those planning a business
- Get an overview of the key concepts of a business plan
Creating a business plan might seem like an overwhelming process for an entrepreneur, but it’s critical that you don’t overlook this step. A business plan not only offers crucial guidance for establishing and growing the company, but can also be a valuable tool to secure financing, investors, or business partners.
The guidance from the U.S. Small Business Administration is a good place to start when preparing your business plan. The SBA says plans typically use a traditional format, which is longer and more detailed, or a lean format, which is shorter and summarizes the most important parts of your proposal.
A lean plan can be a good way to start establishing how you’ll set up a business or to create a more flexible model that can be easily updated as needed. Traditional plans are more comprehensive and cover areas such as products and services offered, a management plan, financial projections, and a marketing strategy.
The SBA provides details on the critical components of each plan, as well as sample plans for both examples.
