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Listen in! Pick up some expert advice to a reader's question that we selected from CyberSchmooz.

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How to Write an Impressive Business Plan

 

Business plan writing task can make any flinch even the most diligent student. To make your life at least somewhat easier we've prepared this detailed plan for your business plan writing. Here is a standard business plan structure you should take into account to succeed in writing:

Title page
At the very beginning of the business plan should contain information about the name of the company, contacts (address, phone number, website, etc.), as well as phone numbers of the founders. In addition, you must specify the content of the entire business plan. On average, the size of the business plan is 30-40 pages, which also includes applications. However, if you are writing a business plan for your Business or Finance class it will hardly take 10 pages.

Introduction
The introduction should fit approximately 2 pages. Here you need to indicate the main  idea of your project: what are its merits and what is unique about it, what is the specific activity of your firm, how your product or service will be able to attract consumers, what kind of income is expected. If you plan to attract investors to finance the project, you also need to specify how much capital you need and how you will use it.

Tip: it is better to compose this part after the completion of writing the entire business plan. Since the main idea of this chapter is to describe the most general picture of the project, and you can only imagine it when you study all the nuances and aspects of the business.

Market opportunities
In this chapter, you need to describe the market for your products. This description will contain the answers to the following questions: what is the size of the market, are there changes and what is intensity, what are the opportunities and threats of the market, who are your potential customers and what exactly they are attractive to you.

Tip: Most often all these facts are taken from open sources of mass media and analytical reports, less often the sources are other entrepreneurs working in this field. You must specify from where the information is taken in case it is necessary to confirm it.

Market Review
Unless you have invented something radically new, you will enter the market where competitors are already waiting for you. Ignorance of your competitors is the first step to failure. Therefore, it is worth describing what competitors do, what they sell, how they attract customers, what percentage of the market they occupy, what are the advantages of your product over competitors' products. Immerse yourself in the study of competitors as deep as possible: describe not only direct but also indirect ones.

Founders
It is good to have an idea. But no less important is who embodies it. Investors will always be interested in the team of founders. This section should contain the complete summaries of all members of your team, partners, shareholders.

Production plan
This section includes the company's business model. Here you need to provide complete information about the sources of the company's income and costs, as well as about suppliers and customers. Describe what technologies and equipment will be used in the manufacturing of goods (or the procurement scheme). This chapter of the business plan should be the most detailed, so do not neglect any detail.

Financial plan
In this part of the business plan, state the forecast for profit and loss, cash flow, possible unplanned expenses. The forecast is made at least 3 years in advance. Also, you need to specify the payback calculations for initial financial flaws and SWOT analysis.

Marketing plan
Here you should mention information about the positions of your product on the market, its pros and cons, the target audience and its segments, the methods of promotion, how you will work with customers' feedback.

Organizational plan
This section is devoted to the organization of work in your company and the interaction of staff. The section includes the description of the duties of the employees, the system of subordination, the internal regime of the enterprise, methods of material and non-material encouragement.

Risks
It is worthwhile to look serious and prepared and to assess which troubles the future enterprise may face – from the worst case to the best. Describe the possible risks and solutions to problems associated with them.

Sources and use of funds
If the business plan is provided to potential investors, then it is necessary to state the information on how exactly the received capital will be used. Many novice inexperienced businessmen assume that the cost of launching the project will be worth less than it actually comes. Therefore, in advance, work through all the points and calculate in detail all the costs for starting a business - premises, equipment, production of the first lots of goods, the development of a logo and so on.

You can use these tips both for your college, university and MBA projects or for your real start-up. Additionally, you can order a custom business plan written from scratch by experts. There are a lot of business plan writing services which provide people with professional assistance. In any case we wish you all the luck!

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