How to write a business plan: step by step instructions with examples. How to write a business plan: step by step instructions with examples Money from the budget

Last update:  02/17/2020

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Hello, dear readers of the Internet magazine about money "RichPro.ru"! This article will talk about how to write a business plan. This publication is a direct instruction for action that will allow you to turn a raw business idea into a confident one. step by step plan to achieve a clear goal.

We'll consider:

• What is a business plan and why is it needed;
• How to draw up a business plan;
• How to structure it and write it yourself;
• Ready-made business plans for small businesses - examples and samples with calculations.

At the end of the topic, we will show the main mistakes of novice entrepreneurs. There will be a lot of arguments in favor of creating quality and thoughtful business plan that will bring the realization of your idea and success affairs in the future.

Also, this article will provide examples of finished works that you can simply use, or you can take as a basis for developing your project. Ready-made examples of submitted business plans can be free download.

In addition, we will answer the most frequently asked questions and clarify why not everyone writes a business plan, if it is so necessary.

So, let's start in order!

The structure of the business plan and the content of its main sections − step by step guide in its drafting

1. How to write a business plan: detailed instructions on how to write it yourself 📝

7. Conclusion + related video 🎥

For every entrepreneur who wants to develop himself and develop his business, a business plan is very important. He performs many responsible functions that no other person is able to do differently.

With it, you can get financial support and open, develop your business much earlier than you can collect a significant amount for the business.

Investors generally react positively to a good, thought-out, error-free business plan, as they see it as a way to make easy money with all the troubles invented and described.

In addition, even before the establishment opens, you see what awaits you. What risks are possible, what solution algorithms will be relevant in a given situation. This is not only investor-friendly information, but also the right plan if you get into trouble yourself. In the end, if the calculation of risks is too daunting, you can remake a little, transform the general idea to reduce them.

Creating a Good Business Plan is an excellent solution for finding investments and developing your own action algorithms even in the most difficult situations, which are more than enough in business.

That is why, in addition to their own efforts it is worth using "other people's brains". A business plan includes many sections and calculations, research and knowledge, only with successful operation, with which success can be achieved.

The ideal option would be to study all aspects on your own. To do this, it is not enough to sit and read the relevant literature. It is worth changing the circle of contacts, turning to courses and trainings, finding specialists for consultations on certain issues. That's the only way really figure it out in the situation and dispel all your doubts and delusions.

A business plan is worth writing for many reasons, however home is a clear algorithm of actions by which you can quickly get from point A(your current position, full of hopes and fears) to point B(in which you will already be the owner of your own successful business stable and regular income). This is the first step towards fulfilling the dream and the confident status of the middle class.

If you still have questions, then perhaps you will find the answers to them in the video: "How to write a business plan (for yourself and investors)".

That's all we have. We wish everyone good luck in business! We will also be grateful for your comments on this article, share your opinions, ask questions on the topic of the publication.

Most likely Each of us has come across ideas that we lacked the knowledge and energy to implement. However, to realize any idea and achieve the intended goals, it helps to clearly build a plan and follow its guidance. To implement a business idea, entrepreneurs face the question of how to create a business plan, which will be discussed in this article, the purpose of which is to help beginners organize their business and calculate all the pros and cons of a new project.

You will learn how to make a business plan that will help you understand your assets and in case of a shortage, you can count on the support of sponsors who want to invest in a worthwhile cause.

What is a small business business plan, what does it consist of, who develops it?

This business organization tool will help you more organized approach to the implementation of your idea and related preparatory work.

After analyzing the ideas for your business, the question arises, how to draw up a business plan?

How to write a business plan for a small business and what is included in its structure:

• Targets and goals;
• Market analysis;
• Product;
• Marketing plan;
• Organizational plan;
• Management staff;
• Material resources;

Purposes and functions

A well-written business plan reveals the idea itself, its functions, the means necessary for the task, and the final profit. It displays the current economic and material activities of the enterprise and shows further prospects for its implementation.

At correct compilation The business plan must be followed by its guidance until external or internal factors put such pressure on it that it needs to be adjusted.

It should be noted at the same time that a business plan is a document of a prospective nature, which is calculated for 2-3 years of its implementation.

Business plan features:

1. Calculate the activities needed to achieve the goal.
2. Present a project for investment.

Document content

The document consists of two conditional parts, a description of the project and a presentation of the strengths of the idea.

• Project summary;
• General provisions;
• Market analysis;
• Marketing and strategic plan;
• Costs;
• Investments.

How to learn how to draw up your own business plan diagram yourself - step by step instructions

How to build a business plan, the face of your future business, because any business at the initial stage of its inception requires clear planning. How to write a business plan step-by-step instruction presented in this article will help you do it right.

Evaluation of the prospects of the promoted product or service

If we focus on the relative market share and the growth rate of sales in the market, then this may not give necessary information, because market demand undergoes constant change. Also, the intensity of competitive growth makes the market unstable and unattractive.

Therefore, it is necessary to evaluate the prospect of the promoted product as follows

Columns 2-5 are evaluated on a four-point scale: 4 - good, 3 - average, 2 - below average, 1 - bad. The final score will show how promising your promoted product is.

Making a cheat sheet for yourself

To visualize the feasibility of your project, it would be good to build a Gantt chart, which will display the dates of implementation of the various stages of promoting the idea.

Based on the analysis of the market and the competitiveness of the product, a strategic and tactical course of action is built to conquer the market.

The pricing policy is carried out on the basis of economic calculations and expected income.

Thus, the Gantt chart helps to achieve three main goals:

• graphically visualize and simplify the perception and evaluation of your project;
• helps to realistically assess the sequence and timing of the project;
• makes it possible at any time to analyze the current affairs of the project and the progress of their implementation, which facilitates the process of its management.

goal setting

The development of a business plan begins with setting goals, for this you will need to honestly determine:

• What do I want to achieve?
• What do I benefit from this?
• Why and who needs my project?
• Then state the purpose of the project.
• As a result, decide on what I draw up a business plan for.

Preliminary analysis of the market and competitors

In parallel with writing a business plan or before, a market analysis is carried out, the assessment of which will directly determine the success of your project. Having focused on a certain market niche and target audience, a rigorous analysis is carried out to identify the relevance of your idea and its implementation. In the course of the analysis, an excess of supply may be revealed, then the idea should be corrected according to the state of affairs in the market. In case of increased demand, you can safely get down to business. For market analysis, you can use outsourcing, but for organizing own business it would be better to research this issue yourself, this will help to give an objective assessment of your business and determine the strengths and weak sides your project.

Identifying the strengths and weaknesses of your project

It identifies the most likely problematic aspects and prospects for business ideas.

For analysis, use the SWOT matrix.

How to competently draw up the structure of a production project for investors yourself - the content of the main sections

The typical structure of a business plan and the content of its main sections to attract investors consists of several parts:

Summary -summary project, which is displayed on title page, plays a leading role in the consideration of the project by investors.

Business characteristics - detailed business information.

Market analysis - description of the market situation in your case.

Project description - rationale and description of the idea, especially its commercial side.

How to write a business plan to attract investors? This will require a high level of skill and knowledge in your field, as well as experience and time to write a project. However, the implementation of such an idea may be rewarded with financial investments.

Summary

The summary of the project, although located at the beginning, is drawn up at the very end of writing the plan. When the document is fully prepared, it will be easier for you to present a summary of the project itself.

The summary includes several aspects:

• objective of the project;
• financial need;
• competitiveness.

It depends on how competently and professionally you approach writing a resume, whether your project will be considered further or not.

Project idea and SWOT analysis

For presentation detailed characteristics For your business, it is important to keep a balance, not to overdo it with details, but at the same time to provide all the necessary information for an investor on the topic. For this, one can describe general characteristics enterprises, the quantitative composition and professionalism of the working structure, tell about the main goods or services, promising aspects of production and other aspects of the business.

SWOT analysis will help to give a real assessment of your strengths and weaknesses, as well as indicate possible risks or promising aspects of the project.

SWOT means:

strengths– strengths and perspective;

Weakness s - weaknesses and shortcomings;

Opportunities- chances, opportunities;

Threats- risks.

This section of the business plan is small in content, but the process of the analysis itself is considered quite complicated and takes a lot of time.

• Conduct a market analysis tailored to your needs. Marketing Analysis will help to collect complete information on competitors and consumers, and determine your target audience.
• The next step will be to determine the optimal location of the office, enterprise, which will be convenient for the consumer. To do this, you need to compare the number of consumers that are needed for the business to pay off with the audience that is within the radius of the proposed location.
• If the market is oversaturated with competitors, you will need to think over your strategic move, focusing on the uniqueness of your product or service.
• Define distribution channels.
• Calculate necessary expenses to attract the consumer.
• Decide on the pricing policy, which tactics will be the most profitable, high cost with little demand or a competitive price with a large flow of consumers.
• Service and maintenance is also not unimportant for most customers, while they are willing to pay more for the high quality service they receive.

Production

This section covers in detail the essence of your business: what do you plan to do?

The production plan states:

• suppliers of goods and equipment;
• location of the enterprise;
• what is the performance;
• step by step production;
• level of qualification of employees;
• calculation of the necessary deductions to various funds,
• logistics costs.

Many factors affect how much money will be spent on the implementation of the future business.

When describing the technology of the final result of production, you will discover other sides of your idea that did not come to mind before. There will be questions related to the storage of goods or problems with the delivery of imported raw materials, a lack of qualified specialists in this field.

After all the subtleties, let's move on to the financial part. Subsequently, calculations may have to be made and adjustments to the plan itself, for example, to reduce costs or change production technology.

This section describes the entire structure of the enterprise and its management. Such a scheme simplifies the system of distribution of rights and powers of structural units.

Assuming the organization of the entire company, it will be easier to draw up a system of interaction between departments and personnel policy.

The organizational chart allows you to plunge deep into the production and reveals the truth of who and how will bring the project to reality.

Finance

When drawing up a financial plan, it is important to determine how much investment is required to start, how long they will pay off, from which the income and expenses of your business will be regulated.

The first thing you need to calculate is how much money you will need to invest in organizing and implementing the stability of your business. After that, the expected profit is calculated, the average number of consumers per month is predicted. This will allow you to calculate the real payback period of the project. This stage will help determine how many customers should be during the month, and what should be the amount in order to pay off the invested capital in a certain period of time.

The calculation indicators in this section will help you weigh all the pros and cons. this project, and understand whether the game is worth the candle or not. Potential investors also evaluate the project according to the data provided in the Finance section.

The financial section directly links all the points of the business plan.

In view of this, if adjustments or additions are made to any of the sections, then this will necessarily affect financial calculations, or vice versa, changes and adjustments in finance will affect other structures.

Risk Forecast

Taking financial indicators as a basis, compare the essence of the business plan and give an objective assessment of what you see. Is the material accessible? What sides does it reveal? If I were an investor, would I invest in it?

If your answers were positive, then you have perfectly completed the first stage of your activity, you can proceed to the next one, the implementation of your idea! This outcome paves the way for a successful start to your project.

How to write a brief overview (summary) of the project for a beginner - rules for compiling

The executive summary is the protagonist of the project, the basis of the business plan, revealing the contents of the package on one sheet of paper, often after reading which investors either show interest in getting to know the project in more depth, or leave it without even looking inside. Therefore, in order to adequately and clearly present it, it is given time last, when the entire document has already been drawn up.

A well-written summary will give the right impression about its originator, his idea and plans.

Goals and objectives of the company

Briefly describe the essence of the activity, mention at what stage of development your business is.

For example, the goal of the project is to open a clothing store for the whole family "Happy Family".

Or the goal of the project is to open a network of Bonjour coffee shops, where the products of the confectionery factory will be sold under the same logo.

Essence of the project and business concept

A short description of my entrepreneurial activity, its specifics and stages of development.

Brief analysis

The analysis of the market situation includes a summary of the conducted market research, which includes the marketing area:

1. The total effective demand of the proposed sales product or service.
2. characteristics of the competitive group.
3. Product competitiveness.
4. To give the resume more weight in the eyes of investors, information sources are indicated that are trustworthy and participation in the market analysis of well-known marketers, the entire marketing move is based on this.

What does the organization's marketing look like, how to prepare the main parts?

For the first stage of business development, a marketing plan is important, which includes the target audience, an advertising move that attracts and retains the attention of customers.

A well-designed marketing plan will be a guide for you, following which you will not only get the maximum number of loyal customers, but also increase the profit of your organization.

Part I. Summary of current products and / or preconditions for the creation of new ones

1. Summary of current goods. This will require a thorough analysis of how goals were achieved and marketing plans were solved in the past year, which strategies and tactics were used, which worked, and which did not produce results. Highlight the main lessons learned from last year's marketing system, describe the lessons learned from the lessons, and apply them in the new year.
2. Prerequisites for creating a new product. To launch a new product on the market, you need to briefly and simply describe the idea for it. The carefully crafted concept of the new product will be outlined in the main part of the plan. It is desirable to give a source of the idea of ​​a new product, which will emphasize the need for it.

Part II. situational analysis

A situational analysis is the rationale behind your marketing planning, the foundation that will give you solid support for your decisions and the reasons behind a particular approach. Evaluation of the conformity of the strategies and tactics of the subdivisions with the prerequisites of the constructed plan.

Part III. Strategic Direction

A brief description of the main direction of the product, target audience, benefits and positioning, performance criteria.

How to make a production plan, what are the right points?

Development of a business plan for an enterprise, including a production plan, which determines the size of the work team and the amount of resources required for the production of goods;

The production plan includes:

• manufacturing process;
• the needs of the enterprise in stocks, materials, fixed assets;
• quality control of products and production process;
• major suppliers of various materials;
• production facilities - use, location, advantages, disadvantages, buildings, adjustments;
• personnel - the number of employees of different specifics, their salary, level of training or qualifications.

Important for the production plan is a description of the achievement of quality control, procurement and production costs, maintenance provision.

Cost control is carried out on the basis of cost analysis, which determines the compliance of the planned and standard volumes. Because of the importance of cost control in every organizational process, the enterprise must know at what stage the product is located, require reporting from managers competent in this matter.

Procurement control. It helps to control the discipline of deliveries, track the quality of raw materials, quantity, characteristics and prices of goods from suppliers.

For simplicity and efficiency of such control, use the following steps:

• collect maximum truthful and accurate data on the conditions and dates of deliveries;
• collect data on the quality of supplies, their compliance with production standards;
• get supplier price data.

Supplier control. For this, one or two suppliers are selected for long-term cooperation, as a result, this ensures the reliability of supplies and the effectiveness of cooperation.

Inventory control. To do this, use the re-order system after completing its certain level. Re-ordering is used to minimize the ongoing cost of maintaining inventory, and this approach also provides the proper level of customer service.

Maintenance control. This need must be taken into account at the initial stages of equipment design in the production plan.

Quality control. A comprehensive customer-oriented program improves the quality of production processes and products.

This activity carries out constant quality control of products for compliance with established GOSTs and standards.

How to develop and build an organizational chart?

To build the main work schedule, a general production plan is needed. Main organizational system clearly fixes the type and quantity of each individual product manufactured, and gives detailed information about how, where and when it will be produced tomorrow, in a week, in a month. The data also includes the number of working class, production needs. The organizational chart, first of all, divides the general plan into separate detailed operational sub-plans for each product, and then they are combined into a general production plan, which was discussed above.

How to calculate a financial plan - calculation step by step

Due to the insufficiently stable market situation, when analyzing a business, experts have to pay attention not only to mathematical calculations of the potential income of organizations. It is also very important to take into account the level of demand for the product / service produced, as well as the social component of the field of activity where the organization develops.

Since many factors affect the economic component in business development, it is not always possible to bring the company to the desired level of profitability. Therefore, the financial plan is designed to control the profits and expenses of the company, which allows the owner of the organization not to incur losses.

When calculating a financial plan, you should pay attention to 3 important criteria:

• the effectiveness of the financial plan;
• possible risks;
• final analysis of the financial plan.

Determining the effectiveness of the financial plan is an important point at the planning stage. This is what allows us to evaluate the effectiveness of the company's activities in the market in a competitive environment.

When calculating the financial plan, the most significant are such indicators.

This is the amount of expected profit from the calculation of the cost of the product / service at the moment.

The reasons for the change in the indicator may be:

• inflation;
• the risk of losing investment;
• investments bring predicted income.

If in the course of calculations this indicator has a value of 0, this indicates the absence of unprofitability.

Profitability

Profitability is a complex indicator of the financial productivity of the company. With the help of this indicator, the owner has the opportunity to understand how successful his project is, as well as to figure out whether the income received is stable.

If the profitability indicator has a negative value, then the company does not generate income, but there are only losses.

The profitability indicator is classified into 2 groups:

• sales ratio - the percentage of income from each unit of currency (allows you to understand the effectiveness of pricing policy, as well as regulate costs);
• profitability of an asset is a relative indicator of performance (allows you to see the possibility of making a profit from the company's activities).

Payback periods

This is a time indicator that displays the period for which the full payback of the business occurs.

The payback indicator is divided into the following subgroups:

• a simple indicator (it is the time period after which the investor will be able to return the invested funds);
• dynamic indicator (to calculate the indicator, data on the value of Money, which depend on the inflation threshold over time).

As a rule, it is the dynamic indicator that always prevails over the simple one.

To calculate the financial plan, you need to use the following formulas.

Net discount income is calculated as

NPV=NK+(D1-P1)/(1+SD1)+(D2-P2)/(1+SD2)+(D3-P3)/(1+SD3), where

• NK - initial capital of expenses and investments;
• D1-D3 - income by years, depending on the number next to it;
• P1-P3 - expenses by years, depending on the number next to it;
• SD - discount rate.

To calculate profitability, you need

ROOD=POR/PZ, where

• ROOD - profitability from the main activity;
• POR - profit from sales;
• PP - incurred costs.

CO=NC/NPV, where

• SO - payback period;
• NK - initial capital (if necessary, additional investments are added to this figure;
• NPV is the company's net discount income.

Despite the simplicity of the formulas, today it is more convenient to carry out calculations using specialized programs. If you are new to business, it is easier to purchase demo versions of such programs, their cost is much less, and the functionality is similar.

How to correctly calculate the risk forecast - a detailed procedure

Since it takes a lot of time to create a financial plan from scratch, it is sometimes easier to analyze an existing one and correct weaknesses. This will speed up the process of obtaining profit from the activities of the organization.

As they say, risk is a noble cause, but this expression should not be used in business. It is the financial plan that serves to ensure that the company can prevent unpleasant situations in order to avoid losses. It is important to consider all possible situations and choose the safest solution.

According to the sphere of influence, risks are classified into 3 groups.

Commercial

External factors of commercial risks are:

• decline in demand for manufactured products/services;
• unexpected entry of a competitor into the market;
• fraud on the part of business partners (delivery of low-quality raw materials, delays in the supply of goods, etc.);
• price volatility technical support and services.

These are just the most common external causes which may have a negative impact on the financial plan. It is very important to consider the scope of the company and consider the impact of each specific unforeseen situation in a timely manner.

Financial

Financial risks are unforeseen items of expenses, as well as receiving unforeseen profits.

Reasons for financial risks may include the following:

• in late payments for goods/services by buyers;
• receivables;
• increased rates from creditors;
• changes in legislation that entail an increase in the cost of doing business;
• unstable situation with the currency in the world markets.

Control of the above risks allows avoiding possible losses and bankruptcy.

Production

Such risks are associated with changes in the operating mode of the company due to unforeseen circumstances.

Cause production risk may be:

• insufficient level of qualification of workers;
• protests and strikes that disrupt the work schedule of the organization;
• production of low-quality products, which entails a decrease in demand for goods and a decrease in sales;
• there is no quality control of the manufactured goods.

If such risks are not controlled in a timely manner when drawing up a financial plan, investments in the business will be unjustified (no income, losses grow).

In order to avoid all kinds of risks, it is worth using risk management techniques. To do this, they can use means to resolve the risk, as well as techniques to reduce the degree of risk.

The means to resolve risks can be:

• risk avoidance (avoiding a situation that may entail risk often implies that the investor refuses to make a profit);
• risk retention (responsibility for possible negative consequences rests with the investor making the decision);
• transfer of risk (the investor transfers responsibility for the risk, for example, to an insurance company).

Risk Reduction

This is a reduction in the volume of losses and a decrease in the likelihood of a risky situation. To reduce the likelihood, various methods and means can be used.

Diversification

The essence of diversification lies in the division of capital between different investors who are interconnected, as well as different forms of activity of the organization itself, goods produced / services provided. Diversification is the most reasonable and least expensive way to reduce financial risks. But, the risk of investments can be dissipated with the help of diversification, but it is still impossible to reduce the probability to zero. This is due to the fact that there are external factors (not related to the choice of objects for investment) that cannot be influenced downward.

Obtaining additional data and information

The maximum possession of information allows for the most accurate forecasting and reduces the likelihood of risks for decision making - this makes data and information as valuable as possible.

Limitation

The essence of limiting is the establishment of a limit - the maximum allowable amount of expenses, sales, lending, etc.

self-insurance

This procedure means that the entrepreneur decides to insure himself, and not to purchase insurance from insurance companies. This reduces the cost of insurance capital. The essence of self-insurance is the creation of reserve funds, the task of the procedure is to overcome temporary financial difficulties as quickly as possible.

Insurance

It is the most requested and important trick to reduce the degree of risk. The essence of insurance is that the organization is ready to give up a certain part of its income in order to avoid risk. talking in simple words, the company is willing to pay to reduce the likelihood of risk and financial loss to zero.

To avoid the most unpleasant consequences, the owner of the company must regularly resort to preventive measures, for example, analyze the activity of competitors in the market.

In conclusion, I would like to note that a financial plan can be considered successful in such a situation:

• if high incomes are visible, and financial costs are minimal;
• when the predicted risks are eliminated at the initial stage;
• when the activity of the enterprise is worthy of competition with similar companies;
• when the company has a material and technical base and funds are invested in it;
• in the presence of documentary evidence of the profitability of the company.

The financial plan has many subtleties. Due to the correct analysis of the received data, it is possible to eliminate shortcomings and avoid unprofitability.

After getting acquainted with general requirements By writing a business plan, we can conclude that before embarking on the realization of your dream, it is still important to set out a detailed plan for achieving it on paper, calculate all the pros and cons, and eventually begin to act according to your planning.

In contact with

We present detailed instructions from the experts of the Institute of Business, which will help you draw up the right and effective business plan for your business.

How to create a business plan from scratch? To get started, do a little analysis of your project, identify its strengths and weaknesses, and set specific goals. Based on this, you will draw up a development strategy.

The list of preliminary studies includes the following sections:

Research of the chosen market niche, be it industry, trade, services.

Thoroughly study the production process, demand for products, features of pricing.

Competitor analysis. Who else works in your field, produces the same goods, is located near your establishment?

Carefully study what they offer and at what price. Your task is to offer consumers Better conditions and prices than competitors.

Research of requests and needs of buyers. Think about what is most important for them when choosing a product or service (price, quality, service, discounts, wholesale opportunities, etc.).

For yourself, you need to develop a table with an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of your enterprise, or the so-called SWOT analysis. This will help strengthen your strengths and deal with your weaknesses.

In the Strengths line, write down your strengths, Weakness - vulnerable, Opportunities - opportunities and prospects (for example, the ability to significantly reduce the cost of products, create a whole network of enterprises, etc.), Threats - threats (what threatens the corporation).

The last point will help you find ways to solve possible problems in the future, plus these obstacles will not come as a surprise to you.

Business plan structure

Below is a sample of a clear structure that will allow you to step by step describe the scheme for opening a company.

The main components of a business plan

• Project summary;
• Description of activity;
• Marketing plan;
• Industrial;
• Organizational;
• Financial calculation;
• Risk assessment;
• Application.

Summary

The section gives a general idea of ​​the project: what the organization does, what resources it uses (for example, raw materials), what schedule it works in, how much money it plans to invest and bail out, what are the payback periods.

It is worth specifying what results the company wants to achieve, for what period of time.

Usually investors decide on the summary, whether it is worth continuing reading, considering the offer and investing your money in the business. A business plan summary consists of 5-7 sentences.

Company Description

This part is a kind of short pomace» from the entire document describing the project.

Its structure:

1. Industry (e.g. clothing store, kitchenware, app development, etc.);
2. A brief description of the manufactured products or services (names, scope, features);
3. Areas of work;
4. Advantages and used innovations;
5. Structural structure of the organization (departments, subdivisions);
6. Available licenses and certificates.

Let's analyze in detail the main and most important points of a business plan.

Marketing plan

well-formed marketing strategy will allow you to successfully start in the market and make good profits from the very beginning.

It uses the research and market analysis that was carried out prior to the drafting of the document.

Description of activity

To be successful in trading, you need to think through a number of issues.

Features and geography of the sales market. In which region do you plan to work or where to supply products? Does demand depend on the season, political or economic situation?

For example, if demand falls during a crisis period, you should think in advance about ways to reduce the cost of a product, to stimulate sales (for example, promotions and bonuses from the category “Third product as a gift”, “Installment plan for regular wholesale customers”, etc.).

Competitor analysis. What do they offer and how are they progressing? What features of them can be used in your own business, how to move forward better?

It is worth adopting all the advantages from competitors and analyzing their disadvantages in order to avoid other people's mistakes. This will give you additional competitive advantages.

Buyer portrait. Gender, age, financial situation of your main audience, their needs and interests.

Thanks to this information, the most advantageous offer is formed for a particular category of the population, the benefits that may be of interest to them. Appropriate advertising channels are also selected.

How to draw up a business plan yourself, taking into account the portrait of the consumer?

Example : The average youth prefers to purchase clothes and accessories through online stores with delivery. The selection criteria are a low price, a large and frequently updated assortment, the presence of sales, and a pleasant design of the store site itself.

Main advertising channel– Internet (direct advertising, communities in social networks). Depending on the gender of the buyer, the design of the store, salon, website, advertising slogans and offers is selected, and an assortment is formed.

For wholesale buyers low prices, fast delivery, possible installments, etc. are important.

Consumer characteristics of the goods. Describe in detail the properties of the products or services provided, their availability. Why they are useful and unique, what needs they satisfy, why you should choose them. This will help in the preparation of advertising texts.

Sales promotion

Your business plan must contain ways to stimulate demand and sales.

This includes various promotions (promotions, discounts, tastings, leaflet distribution, sponsorship at events and festivals, "guerrilla marketing"), unique offers for customers, marketing techniques, such as the correct layout of products in the store.

Manufacturing program

This item carefully considers the entire production process, technology and innovation, the necessary equipment, procurement, storage. This is true for any type of activity..

If the company is engaged in wholesale purchases and retail resale, then the emphasis is on suppliers (analysis of the best offers, selection criteria, terms of cooperation), storage of goods, methods of sale.

How to draw up a business plan for the production part? Main sections:

• Location of the enterprise, requirements for the premises, necessary communications, repairs (list of works and calculation of their cost);
• Technological process, if we are talking about production;
• Required equipment. Here you should list all the machines, machines, apparatus, equipment, indicating their cost and brand of the manufacturer. What capacities will you need, will you have to increase them later? Describe the process of installing the equipment (sequence), how much time and money it will take.
• Volumes of output and/or sales of goods and services;
• Raw materials, where they are purchased and in what volumes. For stores, purchases of necessary products for resale are prescribed here. For the service sector - consumables. A scheme is needed for the delivery of raw materials and consumables to the factory, store, salon, etc .;
• Calculation of the cost of goods and services;
• Storage of products and raw materials (where, under what conditions);
• Will the dynamics of production or sales increase over time? Describe how and what is required.

A good business plan includes various schemes, tables, diagrams. In this form, it is worthwhile to draw up data on production volumes, deliveries, and repair activities. They can be placed in the Appendix.

Mandatory schedule production / sales, clearly illustrating the required volumes of output and sales for 3, 6 and 12 months of work.

Organizational program

All details related to the organization of the case, the internal structure of the organization, personnel and work schedule are given in this section.

It will become a kind of scheme according to which you will create a company.

General structure of this section

To open a business questions need to be addressed:

1. Legal form (IP, LLC, etc.), OKVED codes, The best way taxation;
2. Permissive papers: licenses, certificates. List the services with which you will need to sign service agreements (disinfection, disinsection, garbage collection, etc.);
3. Organization structure: division into departments, management staff, number of employees in each department;
4. Possible personnel training system;
5. Information about partners;
6. List of products or offers;
7. Schedule.

To write a business plan yourself, you need to consider some points in more detail.

Legal support

In addition to registration and permit documentation, need to prepare the charter of the company, product patents, quality certificates, licenses for engineering supply, lease or purchase / sale of premises, agreements with partners and suppliers.

At this stage, the prospects for participation in government programs, tenders, obtaining grants for benefits and reducing the cost of starting a business are considered.

Personnel management

We consider the internal structure of the company, the interaction of its departments, the selection of personnel and contact with them.

Internal structure of the company

Describe in detail all departments of the company: their number and names, responsibilities, number of employees, what goals they must achieve for the stable development of the company as a whole.

Specify what employees are needed(heads, managers, workers, their profile) for each position in the company.

Write down their job responsibilities and qualification requirements, selection criteria.

Are on-site training and staff development planned, in what way, with what regularity and at what cost?

Also, describe the internal regulations, work schedule, possible penalties and fines for non-compliance with the rules.

Employee salaries and incentives

Here we determine the size wages for each position, form of payment (rate, percentage), bonuses (conditions of receipt and size), other tangible and non-material incentives.

With this item, the entrepreneur can easily calculate the payroll.

Work Schedule

Even in order to draw up a business plan, you will need to make a table with a project launch schedule. It is necessary to describe the sequence of actions (registration, purchase of equipment, hiring personnel, etc.), what resources and investments are required.

The table will help you plan the launch, control the preparatory process, make changes in time and, if possible, accelerate the course of events.

Financial plan

This includes all monetary relations companies, ranging from obtaining a loan and paying taxes and ending with utility bills. This part brings together all sections of the business plan.

If a loan is required to start, the first step is to indicate the bank and the conditions for obtaining a loan, repayment terms. We need data on insurance, what amount is planned as a "buffer" - for unforeseen expenses and risk coverage.

Design Two Tables: for one-time and recurring costs.

1. One-time expenses (fixed assets ) is the money to open a business. This includes the rental or purchase of premises, equipment, registration and permits, outdoor advertising, investments in the Internet site and advertising printed or souvenir paraphernalia.
2. Recurring costs (working capital ) are the monthly expenses of the company for the purchase of raw materials, rent, salaries, taxes and other payments (utilities, loans), advertising, transportation costs, etc.

How to write a business plan for a project with a profit calculation? To do this, you need to specify the sales volumes and calculate the break-even point.

This is the number of sales that will be able to cover regular expenses. Upon reaching it, the business will begin to make a profit. A successful project reaches this indicator in a few months.

The next step is to calculate the payback period. When the capital investment in the opening of the company is fully covered net profit, it pays off.

The table-scheme for calculating profits consists of the following points:

• Organizational costs (or prime cost);
• Total revenues;
• net income;
• Payback periods.

Risks and how to overcome them

Every idea comes with certain risks.. To avoid bankruptcy and loss of invested money, think in advance what could threaten your corporation and how to deal with it.

Uncontrolled risks. These are factors beyond the control of the entrepreneur: natural disasters, changes in the political and economic situation, various force majeure. To mitigate the consequences, develop an insurance system, a scheme to attract additional funds from investors.

It is realistic to predict other problems and develop ways to overcome them.

The most frequent situations:

1. Exceeding the planned budget. Usually this figure reaches 5-15% of the planned costs. The solution is to initially budget 15% more after all calculations have been made;
2. Too high cost, insufficient volume of production or sales. It is necessary to develop "backup" options for the supply of raw materials, options for increasing production capacity, campaigns to stimulate sales. You must be prepared to reduce the cost of the product without prejudice to yourself;
3. Decrease in the relevance of the presented product or service, increased competition. Powerful marketing tools are required to keep the audience interested (advertising, promotions, sales) and the opportunity to improve your product or move to a new direction.

Applications

The development of a business plan involves the preparation of graphs, charts, tables, charts for visualization and convenient calculation.

This also includes copies of certificates, licenses, contracts, photographs of products, diagrams and drawings of premises and communications. In the text, place references to the documents in the appendix.

This is a detailed description of how to make a business plan yourself with calculations and development forecasts.

The modern world requires a clear structure for every business. Only in this case he will receive the right to development. But in order to do this, it is necessary to draw up a business plan that will describe in stages all the activities of the company. Almost anyone can write it by referring to special sources, as well as peeping the idea from competitors. But how to make sure that its implementation is as successful as possible, and investors give money for development? Today we will cover this issue in more detail.

Why do you need a business plan?

A business plan is a well-developed concept of a future company written on a sheet. At its core, this is a tool that allows you to analyze your own idea in detail for success. Step by step, developing the entire interaction path inside future organization you can see if it can compete with similar companies.

For investors, this is an opportunity for deep analytics, as well as a means of calculating subsequent profits. When an entrepreneur understands the mechanisms of his "brainchild", then investors will be ready to give their money, because the project is called to become successful from the very beginning.

Most businessmen without experience do not understand the need for a business plan, believing that just one idea will be enough to start. In fact, this is far from the case. If at the very beginning you are not ready to work out the idea, then there is a high probability that it will not work out. This is especially true for business options such as:

• Coffee houses;
• Beauty Salons;
• Confectionery;
• cleaning companies;
• Internet shops;
• Production.

All these business options require careful study, otherwise they simply will not survive among competitors, and even among those who are not doing very well. It is quite difficult to calculate the risks; if the structure is correctly drawn up, it will allow you to see all possible development options, and therefore calculate all the negative aspects.

How to write a business plan - step by step instructions with an example

Drawing up a business plan is a laborious process that requires a detailed study of the issue. Here it is necessary to take into account all the nuances of your business, so that investors have no doubts about the reliability of investments.

You can do the whole process yourself, or contact a special organization that provides such services. It is better to make a plan for yourself - this way you will get the highest quality result, which will take into account all the nuances of entrepreneurial activity in a particular area.

For each specific solution, it is necessary to think over an individual structure. There is no single scheme from which consist business plan, but you can borrow the structure from organizations that have already received investment when using their calculation.

Where to start and what is relevant?

The first thing to do is decide on a niche. Try to choose a direction that will be relevant for at least a few years. So you are guaranteed to receive funds from investors and be able to compete in a narrowly focused niche.

To date, the following options are especially popular:

• Coffee houses. The demand for them is growing rapidly every year, therefore, by choosing this niche, you can be sure of the success of the opening;
• Confectionery. Sweet products have been popular for many years, and every year it only scales;
• Industrial enterprises. Of course, this will require a colossal amount of time, but the profit will be ten times higher. The relevance of factories is high, especially in the field of processing.

There are a large number of niches where it is enough to simply compete with the rest of the market participants, so choosing your direction, it will not be difficult to start working. The main thing is to work out the idea to the smallest detail so that after the presentation, the contributors do not have any questions left.

Types of business plans

There are various types of business plans designed for certain types of activities. The key ones are:

• Company's internal plan. Such a decision is necessary for the restructuring of the company, as well as the development of new interaction mechanisms;
• Business plan for obtaining a loan. The essence of such a plan is solely in the fact that the financial institution will give a loan. What is used in fraudulent schemes, which causes more and more mistrust;
• Investment format is necessary in order to invest in promising direction. It is worth considering all the nuances of such activities, since the idea investment project must fully convince investors of its veracity and promise;
• Company financial recovery plan. This suggests that with the funds raised it will be necessary to create such conditions for small businesses (most likely large companies), at which it will begin to fully function again. This option is unlikely to be suitable for an individual entrepreneur, unless the entrepreneur's activities number hundreds.

Let's analyze each type in more detail.

It's important to know! You should decide in advance who you are going to provide the business plan to. It is worth relying on this decision, since the appointment of the final investor is crucial.

Firm's internal business plan

Such a plan, first of all, is necessary not for the investor, but for the founder of the company. It can form all aspects of the activities within the organization. This includes confidential data, which is financial statistics and a further development plan.

The need to develop such documentation is obvious - the owner sees the full picture of what is happening, on the basis of which he is able to make an informed decision related to the future fate of the company.

In short, the inner plane is normative document, which reflects the current situation in a particular company, thanks to which you can conduct in-depth analytics and identify unwanted actions that lead to losses.

Business plan for obtaining a loan

Most entrepreneurs need a loan, and this option is most favorable for them. Compared to the regular plan, there are a number of significant differences that reduce the number of borrowers. The main nuances include:

• You will have to convince the bank that you are taking money for your business. This is not easy to do, as irrefutable evidence will be required;
• You need to explain to the bank why you need financing right now. The need for money must be really acute, otherwise you can get a refusal as soon as possible;
• Among other things, the document must convince the bank of the solvency of the entrepreneur. It is necessary to provide financial statements, according to which the bank will be able to verify the reliability of the future partner.

For beginners, this process is extremely complicated and incomprehensible, so some of them turn to professional companies that resolve this issue as soon as possible. The cost of work depends on the complexity of the project, but on average it is 5-15% of the loan amount.

Investment business plan

The name itself suggests that everything is compiled for investment in a certain type of activity. For example, buying a digital software may well be part of such an idea if it is subsequently adapted to Russian realities.

According to this principle, you can purchase not only software, but also various foreign ideas for business activities. The main thing is to be able to adapt them to our legislation, then the project will in any case be of interest to investors.

When working out this option, you should calculate the break-even point, as well as the time to implement the project. It is necessary to indicate such a period for which you can really achieve results, and not the one that investors want to see. It is important to understand this in advance, otherwise there may be big problems at the implementation stage.

Company financial recovery plan

Putting up such a plan is necessary in order for the company to be able to swim out of the debt hole and begin to fully function again. Convincing investors that a company can get out of a difficult situation is extremely difficult, but there are some tricks. In fact, there are only two ways out of difficulties:

• Restructure the company. Most often, problems arise due to wasteful spending associated with a large number of employees performing the same function. Restructuring allows you to optimize processes so that with a reduced staff, the business can perform tasks in the same volume. Budget savings directly affect the number and quality of employees, so you will have to leave only those who are really valuable to the company;
• Transfer to another activity. The company can change the direction of work, or start producing the most liquid products. In this case, it will be necessary to conduct analytics for the relevance of certain products, depending on the direction of the company.

Both of these options involve improving the situation of the firm, through a competent distribution financial resources, as well as optimization of the internal component. It is important to understand that the reduction in staff must be objective, otherwise you can lose key employees who bring high income the entire organization.

Structure and content of the business plan

A business plan is a document in which the work process is described to the smallest detail, which allows you to assess the likelihood of your own business on the market. In order to compose structured material, certain knowledge in this area will be required. We have selected an approximate structure, which can change depending on your needs and goals.

Section 1. "Opportunities of the company (summary)"

This section is the basis of the entire document, so its formation should be approached most carefully. In order for this paragraph to be as effective as possible, it must answer two key questions - what is the investor's benefit and what are the risks of loss?

If the answer is worked out briefly and clearly, then the chances of getting the treasured funds increase significantly. Some companies claim there is certain technology writing a resume that includes all the necessary requirements of investors. In fact, none of this exists. Write the way you see fit. stick business style- this will help emphasize your focus on the idea.

The information must be specific and reliable. For example, if you produce a certain product, then highlight its cost, as well as customer interest, based on market analysis in the selected category. So you can get data close to real, and investors get statistics, according to which risks and income are calculated.

It is also necessary to indicate information about the industry affiliation of the company. Showing the primary strategy is essential in order to understand whether you should give money.

The strategy should have the following structure:

• How will the entry into the Russian market take place;
• What methods will be used to attract sales volumes;
• How production will develop (stages, interaction with external companies).

All these factors are extremely important in order to have an initial opinion about the submitted idea. If investors are interested in the proposal, then all that remains is to explain the essence, and the rest of the plans may not be read at all. But, if in doubt, then be prepared for a thorough analysis of each item.

Section 2. "General description of the company"

Once the legal plan is fully developed, a organizational plan, which includes:

• Information about the general director, director and key management positions;
• Do you have work experience in this area, as well as work experience, if any;
• If support is from reputable sources, which, in the event of force majeure, will help resolve the issue as soon as possible at minimal cost.

Almost always at the start CEO takes matters into his own hands and gradually delegates tasks as needed. This decision is the most correct, since at first all the mechanisms are calculated independently, and after the delegation of cases, control over the implementation is established in the form of KPIs or other key indicators.

Support from reputable sources means financial institutions, insurance companies and other firms in the list of which you are listed as a potential client. This issue is resolved by calling these companies and preliminary consultation on all issues with data exchange.

Section 9. "Risk and insurance assessment"

This paragraph is intended to explain to investors that the risks of investing are minimal. The entrepreneur must work out the structure so that investors have an understanding of reliability, otherwise all the previous points will be meaningless.

Here you need to provide information about:

• Possible risks and taking measures to eliminate them;
• High-probability and low-probability risks present in such a segment;
• Identification of the source of risk, as well as methods for its elimination at an early stage;
• Minimization of costs in the event of risks;
• Budgeting insurance policies, as well as full business insurance, in case of increased risk.

All these factors play a key role in the development of a business. In any area, there are a large number of problems that need to be addressed at the stage of formation, otherwise in the future they can accumulate in a big lump and hinder development.

Important! Call the insurance companies for a possible interaction. It may turn out that when opening a business, insurance agents simply will not insure you due to the extremely high risks associated with an unfavorable start in the market. Take this into account and clarify all the nuances in advance.

Section 10. "Financial plan"

Forecast financial results- this is the part of the business plan that I look forward to the most. Here you paint the possible profit of the company, as well as share revenue. Do not write exorbitant amounts, proceed from previous data.

The period of financial planning is from 3 to 5 years, depending on the direction of the company.

Labor costs are being worked out, as well as for new production, thanks to which the range of goods will significantly increase, and then the coverage of the target audience.

Everything is taken into account here: sales proceeds, shares, dividend payments, possible non-liquidity of products.

The more accurately the financial plan is drawn up, the less risk there is to be left without funds. If planned large enterprise, then it is recommended to make calculations together with an experienced accountant who can suggest input data for maximum efficiency.

The purpose of this paragraph is to fully determine the movement of funds, and, if possible, to make this process automated in order to reduce the cost of employees.

Section 11 Funding Strategy

The purpose of this section is for the investor to understand where the income will come from and how the entrepreneur will deal with losses. Key figures in this paragraph can be:

• Credit institutions that issue short-term and long-term loans;
• Clients purchasing shares of the company;
• working capital, gross margin from which goes to the development of the enterprise and increase sales.

A company's assets create cash inflows, while its liabilities create losses. Reading profit is calculated as the difference between these two concepts, which is available even to a schoolboy.

Based on this, it is necessary to operate with all the data specified at the stage of building a business plan in order to form a clear and concise report on possible profits and cash flow.

How to draw up a business plan?

On Facebook and Instagram there is a huge amount of materials on this subject, where examples of hundreds of successful cases are analyzed. You can get a lot of information from social networks.

To get started, you need to title page, which is the face of the whole project. It is recommended to draw it up in accordance with GOST, so that the document is completely similar to other legal documents.

The most comfortable plan size is 30 A4 sheets. It is in this volume that all the necessary information should be placed. There is no need to paint everything in the form of a diploma, it is enough to submit information in a structured and clear way.

Break all the information into sections and subparagraphs, and also prepare brief description sections. For some contributors, the initial information is enough to make a decision.

The key focus should be on the competitiveness of your enterprise. If the product is truly unique in its segment, then the probability of success is extremely high. The rest depends on well-thought-out operations and a financial plan.

Determine the course of action to achieve the result. This will become Starting point, following which success will not keep you waiting.

Drawing up a business plan requires deep analytics and time. You should think through everything to the smallest detail if you plan to receive large investments in your business. Provide information in a structured and understandable way so that there are no additional questions in the process of familiarization. Minimize risks and provide a development strategy that will be the most successful among other competitors. Such a decision will help create a truly high-quality company with unique products that can stay afloat on the Russian and international markets for a long time without any problems.

Many people come up with ideas for business - the question is what are these ideas worth. That is why, if you are going to turn an idea into a business, it is worth creating a business plan in which you can detail your concept and prove its effectiveness, both organizationally and financially.

A business plan is a document that outlines your business in general terms. In it, you talk about what exactly you will be doing, about the structure of the business, the state of the market, how you plan to sell your product or service, what resources you need, what your financial forecast is, as well as permits, leases and any other necessary documentation.

In fact, a business plan helps you prove to yourself and others whether your business idea is worth developing. This is the best way to take a step back, consider the idea from all sides and protect yourself from possible problems for years to come.

In this article, we share tips for writing a successful business plan, describe the points to include in the plan, and give examples.

The translation of the article was prepared with the support of the online school of English language. Before we get into the details, let's start with some basic, general tips.

Focus on your features

Before diving headlong into writing a business plan, you should carefully consider what makes your business unique. For example, if you're about to start a sportswear brand, you need a way to stand out from the many other sportswear brands that are already on the market.

What makes your brand stand out from the rest? Do you plan to create clothing for a specific type of training and activity, such as yoga, tennis or hiking? Do you use environmentally friendly materials? Do you donate part of your proceeds to charity? Does the brand promote a positive body image?

Remember: you're selling more than just a product or service - you're selling a product, value, and brand experience. Consider these important questions and answer them before diving into the details of research for your business plan.

Be brief

The modern business plan is required to be shorter and more concise than ever before. Resist the temptation to include all the results of your marketing research, tell in detail about each product you plan to sell, and describe in detail what your site will look like. In the format of a business plan, this information will not be of particular use, rather the opposite.

All of the above details are important to collect and keep in mind, but the business plan itself should include only the most important. Otherwise, readers may lose interest in you.

Make a good layout

Your business plan should not only be easy to read - it is important that the reader can understand the essence without delving into the details. Formatting plays a big role here. Use headings and bulleted lists, highlight with bold text or color those key points and indicators to which you want to draw the attention of readers. You can even use labels and bookmarks in your document (both digital and printed) for ease of reference.

Edit as you write

Remember that your plan is a living, breathing document, which means you can edit it as you go along. For example, update the plan a year or two after starting a business, before filing new request for funding.

Here are the key elements in a business plan template:

1. Marketing and sales plan
2. Application

Let's take a closer look at what is included in each of the elements of a business plan:

The purpose of this section is to give readers a clear understanding of the company and the market before you get into the details. Tip: Sometimes it's worth writing the main points after you've put together the rest of the business plan so you can easily pick out the key points.

The main provisions should occupy about a page. Spend 1-2 paragraphs on each of the following points:

• Overview: Tell us briefly about what your company is like, where it will be located, what exactly and to whom you are going to sell.
• About the company: Describe the structure of your business, tell us about the owner, what experience and skills you already have and who you are going to hire first.
• Goods and/or services: Briefly describe what you will be selling.
• Market: Summarize the key findings of the market research.
• Financial forecast: Tell us how you plan to receive funding and what your financial expectations are.

An example of the section "Basic provisions"

Startup Jolly's Java and Bakery (JJB) is a coffee and bakery store located in southwest Washington. JJB plans to gain an audience regular customers offering them a rich selection of coffee and confectionery. The company plans to take a strong market position in the city thanks to professional experience partners and the mild competitive climate in the area.

JJB strives to offer products at a competitive price in order to meet the demand in the market among residents of the area and tourists with middle and upper incomes.

The next item in the plan is a description of the company. Here you can describe what your company does, state its mission, tell about the structure of the company and its owners, location, as well as the needs of the market that your company is trying to meet and how exactly you are going to do it.

Example of a "Company Description" section

NALB Creative Center is a startup that is entering the market this summer. We will offer customers a wide range of art and craft products, primarily products that are not currently available on the island of Hawaii. The Internet remains our competitor, as artists usually buy familiar products online. We will supply goods not necessarily well known to local artists. We will also continue to monitor prices and include items available online in price comparisons.

We will conduct master classes on working with new materials and techniques.

We also organize the tourist program "Artist's Oasis". We will provide local bed and breakfast reservations, plein air maps and itineraries, easel and supplies rentals, paint and other supplies sales, and delivery of finished artworks to clients once the canvases have dried.

In the future, the store will turn into an art center that will combine: an art gallery where you can buy original works of art wholesale prices; studio space with musical instruments; classrooms for music and art lessons; literature on music and art; coffee bar with live music; handicrafts such as branded t-shirts, badges, postcards, pottery for trade with tourists.

One of the first questions to ask yourself when testing a business idea is whether there is a place for it in the market. It is the market that will dictate how successful your business will be. Decide which audience you are targeting and why customers will want to buy from you.

Add specifics. Let's say you sell bedding. You should not include in your target audience everyone who sleeps in bed. First, define a small target group of customers for yourself. This may be, for example, adolescents from families with an average income level. Having decided on the target audience, try to answer the following questions:

• How many adolescents from middle-income families live in your country?
• What accessories do they need?
• Is the market growing or staying the same?

When analyzing the market, take into account both the research that is already available, conducted by others, and the primary data that you have collected yourself, through surveys, interviews, or in any other way.

This also includes competitor analysis. In our example, one might ask questions such as: how many other bedding companies already have market share, and who are these companies? Describe the strengths and weaknesses of your potential competitors, as well as strategies that will give you a competitive advantage.

An example of a summary section "Market Analysis"

Green Investments has identified two separate target client groups, which differ in terms of family wealth. One group included clients with a household income of less than a million dollars, the other - with an income of more than a million. The main thing that characterizes both of these groups and makes them attractive to us as a company is their desire to change the world for the better by making financial investments with environmental considerations in mind.

In the industry financial services there are many different niches. Some advisors provide general investment services. Others offer only one type of investment, such as mutual funds or bonds. Some service providers focus on a specific niche, such as technology or socially responsible business.

Market segmentation

Green Investments segmented the target audience into two separate categories, according to the level of wealth of the family: more and less than 1 million dollars.

• <1 миллиона долларов (семейный бюджет): представители среднего класса, которых волнуют проблемы окружающей среды и которые вносят личный вклад в ее защиту, приобретая акции компаний, которые демонстрируют высокие экономические и экологические показатели. Так как свободных денег у таких людей немного, они предпочитают инвестировать в акции без особого риска. В целом акции составляют 35%-45% от общего портфеля.
• $1 million (family budget): These clients are average or above average income. They have saved over a million dollars and are investing quite carefully (either themselves or people they hire). Such people are usually concerned about return on investment, but they are also concerned about environmental issues.

Here you can delve into the details of what exactly you sell and what your advantage for customers is. If you can't articulate exactly how you can be of service to customers, your business idea may not be that great.

Start by describing the problem your business is solving. Then focus on how you plan to solve the problem and how well your product or service fits into the big picture. Finally, think about the competitive landscape: what other companies are providing solutions to this particular problem, and how is your solution different?

An example of the "Products and Services" section

AMT provides computer related products and services to help small businesses. We mainly provide network equipment and network maintenance for small and medium businesses. These include both LAN-based computer systems and server-managed minicomputer-based systems. Our services include development and installation of network systems, training and support.

Description of goods and services

In the field of personal computers, we support three main areas:

1. Super Home is our smallest and least expensive line of computers that are originally marketed as home computers by the manufacturer. We mainly use them as inexpensive workstations for small businesses. Specifications include… [additional details omitted]
2. Power User is our main premium level business. It is our flagship system for high performance home workstations and primary workstations for small businesses, thanks to… Key System Benefits… Specifications include… [additional details omitted]
3. Business Special is a middle-level system, an intermediate link in positioning. Its specifications include… [additional details omitted]

As for peripherals, accessories and other hardware, here we provide a complete set of necessary equipment, from cables to molds and mouse pads. … [additional details omitted]

We offer a wide range of service and support services in our office and on site, as well as service contracts and warranties. So far, we have not succeeded in concluding technical support contracts. Our business opportunities… [more details omitted]

Competitive Analysis

The only way to gain an edge and stand out from the competition is to offer our clients IT partnerships. There is no way we can effectively compete with network vendors who offer out-of-the-box or hardware/software solutions. We must offer our clients a true partnership.

The advantages of this approach include many intangible assets: reliability and confidence that, at the right time, the client will always receive help and answers to their questions.

The products we supply and work with require serious knowledge and experience, while our competitors only sell the product itself.

Unfortunately, we cannot sell products at a higher price just because we provide service - market conditions demonstrate that this approach will not be effective. Therefore, we will provide service for a fee.

In this section, you can briefly describe the features of the organizational and management structure of the business (taking into account that it may change). Who will be responsible for what? How will tasks and responsibilities be assigned to each individual or each team?

Include here brief biographies of each member of your team. Justify why these people are the right people for this job - talk about their experience and education that are relevant to your business. If you haven't hired the people in the planned roles yet, that's okay - but make sure you clearly define those gaps for yourself and explain what the people in those roles will be responsible for.

An example of a personnel plan in the "Operational Management" section

DIY Wash N' Fix does not require a lot of labor. The company will hire a general manager who will work part-time, performing corporate duties and resolving issues of inter-organizational relations. DIY Wash N’ Fix will also hire three certified mechanics/managers to carry out day-to-day tasks at the firm. These responsibilities fall into two categories: managerial and operational. Managerial tasks include planning, inventory and basic bookkeeping. Employees are also responsible for operational tasks: safety, regulatory issues, customer service, and repair advice.

In addition, service staff will be hired to perform the most basic tasks. Their functions will include customer service and content and storage control. DIY Wash N’ Fix will hire one general manager to coordinate all external business operations and partnerships. Business relationships include accounting services, legal advice, communication with manufacturers and suppliers, as well as service providers, advertising and marketing, and investment services. This managerial position will be taken by Lori Snyder. She will receive her MBA from the University of Notre Dame in May 2001.

Daily business management tasks will be handled by a lead mechanic. Although DIY Wash N' Fix does not provide a complete repair service, you can expect some customers to attempt repairs they have never done before, which means they will need advice. Therefore, we intend to hire three fully certified mechanics. These mechanics will not be allowed to do any work on the customer's car, but they will be able to inspect the car and assess the damage. We believe that only professional mechanics should advise customers - this will reduce our liability for improperly performed repairs. The main task of the mechanics will be customer service and management functions.

6) Marketing and sales plan

Here you can describe your marketing and sales strategies, how exactly you are going to sell your product. Before you start working on a marketing and sales plan, conduct a complete market analysis and identify target personas - your ideal customers.

From a marketing standpoint, you may need to answer questions like: How are you going to market? How will you develop the business? What distribution channels will you focus on? How will communication with clients be organized?

When it comes to sales, try answering questions like: What is your implementation strategy? How will the sales department work, and how will you develop it in the future? How many sales calls will it take to close a deal? What is the average sale price? Speaking of average cost per sale, you can move on to the details of your pricing strategy.

Example of a Marketing Plan Section

The Skate Zone will be the first inline hockey venue in Miami, Florida. Thanks to the extraordinary growth in the popularity of inline hockey in the US, the company has the opportunity to advertise in various media and on advertising platforms. Below is a list of channels currently available.

Public relations. Press releases will be sent to trade magazines and leading business publications such as USAHockey Inline, INLINE rollersports magazine, PowerPlay and others.

Tournaments. Skate Zone will represent its services at annual championships throughout the United States.

Print ads and articles. Our advertising campaign includes advertisements in publications such as The Yellow Pages, Miami Express News, The Skate Zone Mailing, as well as school flyer printing and publications in specialized inline hockey magazines.

Internet. Skate Zone already has its own website where we have already received several applications. We are currently working on optimizing the site. We expect that in the future the site will become one of the main marketing platforms of the company.

Finally, detail your financial model, including start-up costs, financial plans, and required investments if you are approaching investors.

The initial cost of your business includes all the resources you need to get started, as well as an estimate of how much each of those resources will cost. Do you rent office space? Do you need a computer? Telephone? Make a list of your needs and expenses for them, try to be objective and economical. The last thing you need is to run out of budget.

Once you've figured out your expenses, justify them. To do this, write down your financial forecast in detail. This is especially important if you are looking for outside funding for your business. Make sure your financial model is 100% accurate so you can convince investors and lenders to support your business.

An example of a financial plan for an online store

Application

Optionally, you can add an appendix at the end of the plan. There's space here for your CV and co-owners' CVs, as well as legal documents, including permits and leases.

That's all. We hope this article has helped you better understand what your business plan should look like. The only thing left to do is turn the idea into reality. Good luck!