Every new business which needs a bank loan or grant funding will be required to produce a business plan.
So what needs to be in a business plan?
Content may vary to a degree depending on the funder’s requirements. However the following sections are typical
| Section | Description |
| Summary | This is a brief overview of the key sections described below and enables readers to quickly gain an understanding of the business. |
| Aims, objectives and Vision | This section sets out what you want to achieve from the business. A key element is the amount of profit the business will need to generate to meet you personal and domestic needs |
| Description and Purpose of the Business | Describes exactly what the business does and what customer requirements it will satisfy |
| Background and Skills | Summarises the career history and skills of each of the business principals. Demonstrates the capability of the business to succeed |
| Funding required | Funding required is the total amount needed to acquire, premises, equipment and stock and to support the business during its start up phase until it begins to generate positive cashflows. |
| Financial Summary | This section provides a summary of the profit which you expect the business to make; a cashflow forecast which will highlight funding requirements; and a forecast balance sheet |
| Sales & Marketing Plan | The sales and marketing plan covers your assessment of the available market, the completion and why customers will be attracted to your business |
| Operational Processes | In this section you describe what it is that do to complete a sale of your service or product |
| Resources Required | The resources you require include employees, premises, equipment, and stock of materials |
| Risk Management | In this section you analyse the potential risks to the business and the impact that could have. You will also set out the action which you will take to avoid or minimise those risks |
| Appendices | You should include detailed analysis and research information as an appendix. This provides readers with full details but avoids interrupting the flow of the business plan and making it difficult to read |
A business plan is a combination of words and numbers. Some people find it hard to put ideas into words and it’s not uncommon for minds to go completely blank when it comes to working out the numbers.
To enable you to prepare your business plan the Cube3 Business is comprised of the following parts:
- A Process Mapping model to help you document how your business works.
- The Cube3 Financial Planner which is a comprehensive financial model to help you with the numbers part of your business plan.
- A guide on how to use the Cube3 Financial Planner.
- A business plan template in which you will write your business plan.
- A system guide.
The process map helps to break everything down to manageable pieces and keeps the process real by asking you to visualise each activity in the business and consider the following questions:
- What do you do?
- How do you do it?
- What resources do you need to do it?
- How much will it cost?
Process mapping is an excellent way to document your business. It can start by being very basic as you note down the main activities and then develop greater depth as you think through how your business will operate in detail.
Business mapping can start anywhere. Do the easy bits first, just like a jigsaw where you start with the corners and the straight edges. As you progress you will automatically be prompted of other activities and will become very aware how activities are connected.
The Cube3 Business Planner also has a very flexible and easy to use financial tool to help you calculate the numbers for your business plan.
For a free trial of the Financial Planner click here
To purchase the Cube3 Business Planner for only £35 buy now