A Step-by-Step Guide to Acing your first Business Plan

If you’re thinking of launching a new venture, having a business plan is key to its success. It gives you direction and tells you what you need to plan and do to achieve your future goals while setting you up for the best possible chance of success. 

Writing your first business plan can, however, be an extremely daunting and overwhelming task. While your business plan must be well thought out and thorough, it doesn’t need to be complicated. Follow this step-by-step guide so that you can get the plan for your new venture down on paper without any confusion or frustration and ace your first draft. 

What are the main components of a business plan?

Regardless of what business idea you have, all business plans are comprised of the same six components, and to ace your first business plan, you need to know what these are. 

1 – Executive Summary

An executive summary is an outline of your business as a whole and its plans for the future, bringing all the key elements together as one. Despite it summarising your whole business, it is the most critical part of your plan and will often be the make or break when approaching lenders or investors that you want to help you on your journey. It is the first thing that they will read, and if they don’t like what’s written in front of them, they may decide against pursuing a professional relationship with you. 

One of our top tips for creating a compelling summary is to actually leave the writing of this section to the very end. Making it your last job, even though it sits at the front of the plan, means you’ll have completed all of your research, consolidated all of your thoughts, and will have digested all of your data and ideas. You can then use all of this knowledge to craft this all-important introduction.

2 – Business Overview

This part of your business plan needs to give a more in-depth view of your company. It should include your company’s mission statement and values, visions for the future, and who the business is made up of. If your business is already up and running, you could also include which markets you’re currently operating in and any notable achievements to date. 

3 – Products & Services

Next come the products and services that your business will be offering. What problem are you offering a solution to with this product or service, and how your business offer that solution. This chapter should include descriptions and diagrams of your business’s main offerings, along with details of any other products or services that you hope to launch at a later date. 

4 – Marketing

This section is where you define who your target customers are and how you have tailored your branding to suit. You should also include market research into competitors and how these both provide opportunity while simultaneously acting as threats. Your marketing section will consist of details of any marketing you’ve already undertaken, as well as plans for the future and a marketing budget. 

5 – Operations

The operations section of a business plan handles the logistics of the entire company. What space and facilities do you need to carry out your business? What are the details of your supply chain? How will you be distributing your products and services? This is where you can showcase your true business understanding and detail how the operations will be organised to run at maximum efficiency. 

6 – Finances

Finally, you’ll need to complete a section on the financial forecast for the next 12 months to five years. This will include a sales forecast backed up with research, as well as a cash flow statement and income statement. You’ll also need to detail your expenses. 

How can I make business planning easier?

Despite knowing the components of a business plan, knowing where to start can still be difficult – writing a plan for the future of your new venture is intimidating. However, here are a few of our top tips to help make writing your business plan as easy as possible, while still acing it. 

1 – Keep it Concise

Business plans do not need to be exceedingly long, and the more concise your business plan, the better. You want potential investors to read the plans for your venture, and so keeping things short is better in this respect. You will also need to refer to your business plan multiple times along your business journey, so it needs to be easy to navigate. 

2 – Write for Your Audience

You need to know who you will be pitching your business plan to and keep this in mind when writing your business plan. If you’re pitching to industry experts, you can include more technical terminology than if you were writing for prospective investors who are not aware of complex industry lingo, for example. 

3 – Keep Calm

Writing your first business plan is daunting, but remind yourself that you are capable of this. You know your business or your vision better than anyone else! Start with the sections you feel most comfortable and confident with and then expand from there. Keep in mind this is a living document and something you will add more to over time as you learn more about your target audience, your market, your finances, and your product. 

At HiThrive, we have a vast amount of experience helping business owners create a business plan that is fit for purpose. If you need help creating your business plan or need someone to review the plan you've already written, contact us today for a no-obligation quotation.