Ten Major Guidelines for Writing Business Plans

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It does not matter whether you are seeing a bank asking for a loan or a business angel for a equity investment they will want to see a business plan. The irony is of course that so few entrepreneurs have much experience of writing business palns. Here are 10 secrets on how to write a wonderful business plan

1.What are your objectives. Before you even begin writing think what you are trying to achieve. Is the plan for a financial investor who is going to be very interested in the return or are you applying to a bank who is going to be most interested in risk and security. If writing for venture capitalists they will often want an exit after three or five years' time so that needs to be foremost in your mind

2. Write for the audience. Don't write the plan for a scientist when it is going to be read by Aunt Agatha or your bank manager . If you can communicate your idea easily then you've also got a much greater likelihood of raising money.

3. Plan it . There is no need to write a plan from the start to the end in one go. One way is to begin with the page headings and then write the paragraph heading before writing the plan itself.

4. Show them the sales and bottom line. Whilst investors and banks should look at all aspects of a plan in practice sales and net profit attract most scrutiny. It is essential the readers believe your sales forecast so make sure it is well backed up by historical sales or by a convincing explanation and realistic explanation of the market share you expect your product to take

5. Be clear and concise. Your business plan should not be too long or a one page summary we recommend ten to twenty pages is optimum, Your business plan also needs to be well layed out with bullet points, paragraph headings, page headings and summary Supporting data should also added as appendices and as foot notes. The aim is to tell the story succinctly and compellingly.

6. Put within an industry context. This will lead the reader to understand and believe your sales projections. A good analysis will help convince investors you know what you are talking about

7. Set out the basics. All plans have certain things in common. Obvious ones are introduction, management ream, company description, industry analysis, P&L projections etc. A good trick by the way is to include both a introduction and an executive summary and use it to reinforce your points

8.get advice . {Many banks offer free advisory services for small businesses|Many government schemes provide free business services including business plan writing{}. Ask your accountant or lawyer to check that the plan coherent|Alternatively ask your accountant or lawyer to look at your plan - they will be getting lots of fees if you do raise the money}. Alternatively show it to a friend and ask him to play "devil's advocate

9. Competitor analysis. A common mistake in business plans is not to spend enough time analyzing the competition. Not only what they are dong now but also analyzing how they react if your company or product is successful

10.Keep revising. A business plan is not set in stone. After each pitch you should be revising. In particular revise those parts which seem to be causing concern to readers. Put some time aside to improve those parts Your plan should also be updated with recent developments or news

That concludes our top ten secrets for business plans. AS always we hope the tips will be of use to you soon

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Roger Smith is the marketing manager at Peacock Bar www.the-peacock-bar.co.uk or email bookings@the-peacock-bar.co.uk

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