Steven T. Ng asked:


A business plan is a summary and appraisal of your business concept. It is the written result of the planning process.

A business plan shows the likelihood of success of the business and your ability to make it work. It affords the means to work through all aspects of a business and to scrutinise the consequences of a variety of strategies relative to marketing, management, finance and human resources.

It is a management instrument to provide direction to you as the business owner. If you are starting a business, the process of preparing and writing a business plan provides a great opportunity to test your motivation and commitment.

Why complete a business plan?

A business plan enables you to take an objective look at your business, identifying areas of strength and weakness and indicates requirements and problems that might otherwise be unnoticed. If your business enterprise is at best, marginal, the business plan will demonstrate to you why.

Having a business plan that is well prepared also provides a foundation for monitoring the progress of the business.

Lastly, if you require external financing, your business plan will provide the information needed to evaluate your business enterprise. A carefully prepared business plan routinely becomes a complete financial proposal that will in most cases meet the requirements of most investors and lenders.

Understand the business you are in.

Most business owners spend a considerable amount of time pondering the future of their business, but not all actually complete any formal business planning. What the planning provides is a measure of structure and a focal point, allows one to analyse alternative strategies that may have been missing on first thought.

There are a number of ways and formats including software packages that assist in preparation of a business plan. The following list is just a guide to a standard business plan layout; we hope it is useful to you.

1. Front cover

2. Statement of purpose

3. Summary

4. Table of contents

5. The business



* Business objectives

* Name, address, contact details and ABN

* Business activity, commencement date, commencement capital and business structure

* Competitive advantage

* Owners? profiles

* Major clients

* Licences and registrations

* Business advisors

* Current performance

6. Industry analysis

* ANZSIC category, political/economic, social, technological, industry and competition

* Key success factors

7. Product and services

* Product range analysis

* Competitor analysis

* SWOT analysis

8. Marketing plan

* Target market

* Marketing objectives

* Marketing strategy ? product, price, promotion and place

9. Operational strategy

* Location and premises

* Plant and equipment

* Inventory

* Human resources

* Environmental strategy

10. Financial strategy

* Financial objectives

* Capital structure

* Statements of financial performance and financial position (Income statement and balance sheet)

* Cashflow forecasts

* Sales and collections from debtors forecasts

* Purchases and payments to creditors forecasts

* Breakeven analysis

11. Appendices

* Financial statements

* Legal documents, leases, contacts, letters of intent

* Research documents, patents, trademarks

For further information on Business Planning, please visit the Business section of Income Resource Club.

Michael.t.brian asked:


If you want to achieve big then one should start with small steps. The same philosophy is shared by most of the individuals who want to make a beginning with small business. But a major obstacle comes in the form of finances, which is very important. While business acumen and a shrewd approach are very much needed, equally important is the financial back up. As most of the individuals do not have access to finances, they have no other option left other than relying on loans. So to help these individuals, lenders have come up with small business loan. This loan provides you the required monetary assistance through which you can finance the business you want to start.

This loan is very beneficial as its offers the finances in a favourable environment. Whether it is starting a new business or financing a new one, you are free to utilize this loan. Finances obtained under this loan can be used to cover the expenses on purchasing raw materials, arranging transportation of finished goods, paying salary and wages, clearing previous debts, advertising, marketing etc.

The loan is made available to you in secured and unsecured option. In case of secured option, the amount approved depends a lot on the equity value present in the collateral. On the other hand, unsecured option of the loans can be accessed without pledging any collateral. Here too, the amount is approved on the basis of your prevailing financial condition.

One thing you should remember while going for these loans is that the approval of the amount depends a lot on your business proposal. The lenders would very much check whether the plan is viable and meet the standards or not. Therefore you must prepare a well laid out plan which should clearly identify the areas and project the feasibility of your proposal.

A number of lenders based in the financial market are offering this loan. Although the best deals on this loan are mostly available online. By comparing the rate quotes, you can locate lenders offering this loan at feasible terms and conditions.

With small business loans, you get the much needed financial support which helps you to make rapid progress to your business. The terms and conditions too are beneficial and does not create too much of inconvenience.

M Morgan-Bellinger asked:


Surprisingly, many people claim that a business plan has no value & is just a waste of time - they tap their heads knowingly saying that it’s all in there.

Well this notion can be dismissed as being without any logical basis as every single activity, from the day to day running of your business to long term projects requires planning, investigation and analysis.

Having a business plan is just as essential for your business as it is knowing where you are going when you drive out of your house, ie if you don’t know where you’re going, you aren’t going to make much progress in getting there.

So whilst its fairly obvious that any business, new & existing, needs proper planning, there are some less obvious reasons for this.

5 Top Reasons Why You Need a Business Plan for Your Business

To Test the Feasibility of Your Business Idea

Formulating a business plan can save you a great deal of time & money as it will soon reveal that your business idea is untenable if this is in fact so. Whilst an idea for a business often sounds like a real winner, it can often be found wanting & therefore discarded at the marketing analysis or competitive analysis stage. To Secure Funding

Any potential investor in your enterprise will want to see a well developed business plan before investing, ie, they need to ensure that the return on their capital will be secure. This also applies to established businesses as they often need capital for expansion or to carry them through market downturns. The same applies to lenders if you need to get a short term business loan. Targets

A business plan must contain realistic targets, short, medium & long term, that should be aligned to the core objectives & mission statement of the business. This gives the entrepreneur the framework as to what must be achieved. Focus

Reducing your well though out ideas to writing will ensure that you focus your efforts, set objectives and formulate company direction & policies. Growth

Without proper planning & growth objectives you will be in the dark as to whether you are on track with your business’ growth projections.

So whether you’re just starting out, need funding or want to monitor the health & growth of your business, creating a business plan is essential for the successful management of any business regardless of its size or turnover.

PS.

For your new or established business, you can get all the information you need to Create Your Business Plan here ?