2 answers
Abel
Student
Birmingham, Alabama
1
Question
Asked
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How to create a business plan?
How to create a business plan?
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2 answers
John Husband
Computer Science, Real Estate, Life
47
Answers
Boca Raton
Updated
John’s Answer
Hi Abel,
What a great question! It infers that you want to start a business which can be one of the hardest and most rewarding careers. There are plenty of templates on the internet that you could fill out to get a bit of a business plan put together. But you really want to think about why you need/want a business plan? Are you creating one to raise capital (money) to invest in your business? Or are you using it to explain the business to employees? Or perhaps you are trying to just organize your own thoughts to better help you take the next step. Each of these have different formats and slightly different information.
Let's start with something basic. Then we can expand on each of these.
What are you selling? For it to be a business you have to sell something right? Ice cream at the ice cream store or medical services at the doctor's office etc. What do you think you have or know that other people would be willing to spend their money on?
How much does it cost you to make (product) or deliver (service)? Whatever it is that you are selling will likely cost you something. Either you'll need to buy materials or fully manufactured products, or you'll need to hire employees (even if you are hiring yourself!) You need to figure out what it's going to cost you to be able to deliver the product or service to the marketplace.
How much will the market pay you for your product or service? Assuming you have something people want to pay for, what are they willing to pay? What do they pay today? Would they pay more for what you are offering? Would they only pay less?
What is the difference between what you can charge for the thing you are selling and the overall cost of what you are selling? Answering this question will tell you at a very high level if there is any hope that the business has a chance to be viable. A good rule of thumb is if something costs you $1 you should be able to sell it for $3. If you can't make that kind of margin then continue to work on lowering your costs and increasing what your customers will pay for it.
There are many other factors that might play into making a business and business plan. Like legal for example. Is what you want to do legal or how can you sell it legally etc.
To build your custom business plan either start with a template available for free or just start writing in MSFT Word or Google Docs. the most important thing to learn at this stage is don't keep notes in your head. Write them all down. As you build the plan over time and as it changes form for different uses you will want to have everything readily available so you can just copy and paste and edit.
Hope this gives you a start. I can wait to see what you dream up!
-John
What a great question! It infers that you want to start a business which can be one of the hardest and most rewarding careers. There are plenty of templates on the internet that you could fill out to get a bit of a business plan put together. But you really want to think about why you need/want a business plan? Are you creating one to raise capital (money) to invest in your business? Or are you using it to explain the business to employees? Or perhaps you are trying to just organize your own thoughts to better help you take the next step. Each of these have different formats and slightly different information.
Let's start with something basic. Then we can expand on each of these.
What are you selling? For it to be a business you have to sell something right? Ice cream at the ice cream store or medical services at the doctor's office etc. What do you think you have or know that other people would be willing to spend their money on?
How much does it cost you to make (product) or deliver (service)? Whatever it is that you are selling will likely cost you something. Either you'll need to buy materials or fully manufactured products, or you'll need to hire employees (even if you are hiring yourself!) You need to figure out what it's going to cost you to be able to deliver the product or service to the marketplace.
How much will the market pay you for your product or service? Assuming you have something people want to pay for, what are they willing to pay? What do they pay today? Would they pay more for what you are offering? Would they only pay less?
What is the difference between what you can charge for the thing you are selling and the overall cost of what you are selling? Answering this question will tell you at a very high level if there is any hope that the business has a chance to be viable. A good rule of thumb is if something costs you $1 you should be able to sell it for $3. If you can't make that kind of margin then continue to work on lowering your costs and increasing what your customers will pay for it.
There are many other factors that might play into making a business and business plan. Like legal for example. Is what you want to do legal or how can you sell it legally etc.
To build your custom business plan either start with a template available for free or just start writing in MSFT Word or Google Docs. the most important thing to learn at this stage is don't keep notes in your head. Write them all down. As you build the plan over time and as it changes form for different uses you will want to have everything readily available so you can just copy and paste and edit.
Hope this gives you a start. I can wait to see what you dream up!
-John
Eddy H
Consultant
16
Answers
Seattle, Washington
Updated
Eddy’s Answer
It is great that you are looking into business plans and it can be pretty straight forward. Start with an introduction, where you summarize your business idea, its purpose, and your goals. Next, explain your business in more detail by describing what you will sell or offer, the name of your business, and what makes it unique. Identify your target market by thinking about who your customers are, such as their age, interests, or location, and explain why they would want your product or service. Research your competitors to understand who else is offering something similar, what they do well, and how you can stand out. Finally, outline your marketing and sales strategy—how you will attract customers and encourage them to buy from you.