How to write a business plan

Without a well-crafted business plan and strategy in place, it can be challenging for businesses to win an investment.

Business planning strategies can help businesses understand their current market, and their place in it, to project financials and sales, define who their customers are, and outline sales and marketing strategies. It also provides third parties with a helpful summary of the business, its goals, and how it plans to achieve them.

A business plan is just as useful internally as it is externally. It can help keep stakeholders and their teams focused on the same goals and objectives, and it’s a valuable introductory guide to your business for onboarding and potential partners. It should be written in your brand’s tone of voice with a clear visual identity. For example, if your business is all about efficiency and leanness, keep your business plan concise and fuss-free.

This article will outline how to write a business plan which satisfies multiple audiences, communicates the true essence of your business, and contains all the necessary financial projections.

Understand and define business goals

Growing into a new market? Launching a new product? Expanding your market share? When your organization sets a business goal or decides on business planning strategies, a business plan should outline and explain them.

Your business goals could include financial projections, which look ahead to the turnover, budgets, and profits your business is aiming to achieve in future quarters. This can be broken down in any way you think is appropriate, covering the individual countries or regions the business operates in, different product or service offerings, or departments within your business.

Your goals can also include your business’s mission statement. One business might be focused on design innovation, whereas another might be focused on sustainability and low environmental impact. Both businesses should make this clear in their business plan format.

Your business goals should also cater to your target market and competitors. What’s your current place in the market? How will your business’ goals impact the market? How could competitors and other market leaders affect this?

Investors will always look for convincing, concrete data. Your goals should be achievable, specific, and measurable, so potential investors can see when and how they’ve been achieved.

Research and data collection

Your business plan should identify and define your ideal customer, what they care about, what they worry about, and how your business helps or serves them. Consider conducting customer research through surveys, focus groups, and branding and product research. Market research will improve accuracy and demonstrate to that your business knows its customers well.

How to structure your business plan

There’s no specific business plan structure to follow, but there are some essentials to include:

Writing a business plan

If your organization is creating a business plan to attract investors, it’s important to tell the business’s story in a compelling and engaging way. The reader should be engaged.

However, this isn’t a creative writing exercise. A business plan should use concise, accurate, and clear language throughout. It should be pragmatic and focused, with no wasted words or sections, which are unnecessary. This writing style will work for any kind of reader, from investors and lenders to partners and new hires.

A business plan should be tailored to specific audiences to ensure the content is relevant. A marketing or branding agency will be particularly interested in the business’ mission and current marketing activity, but they’ll be less interested in the deep financials.

Implement and revise your business plan

A business plan is a practical, living document and should be put into practice. As your business works towards its goals and financial milestones, your plan will need to be revised and updated.

One goal might shift and become less relevant, or your business might implement a marketing plan, which yields poor results and requires a rethink. Your business might even face an unprecedented challenge and need to develop a business continuity plan. As your business moves forward, these changes need to be reflected in the business plan.

Why consider a business plan?

To summarize, a business plan is an essential document, whether your business is a brand-new start-up or an established legacy brand. It will outline your business and its goals, market share, customer profiles, financial projections, marketing and sales strategies, and the makeup of the team.

This is important information for many different audiences, particularly investors, and can help reach your growth goals.