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Writing a Business Plan

A business plan is a written document showing how people intend to run their businesses. It is a road map to success and gives a clear guide on how the business will be operated. It also shows the foreseen challenges as well as the projected profits. Writing a business plan shows the viability of a business. It also details what makes it have an edge over others in the proposed market. People looking at starting their own business must take time to sit down and think about the whole intent and place them down.

A draft on the same must be place down to include such things as to why they are writing the business plan. The business strategy must also be place down as well as planning it to include all the vital pillars of a successful business. A business outline must be drawn to guide people in writing the business plan. There are many reasons as to why people prepare business plans one of them being defining the business’s objective. A business plan is well researched to cover many business aspects and this information helps examine the business by just skimming through the document.

A business plan is also prepared to serve as a selling tool. This happens where people want to form relationships with investors, lenders, and banks. They are healthy to run over the document and rate how a good venture it is. The planning process is sometimes hazardously done omitting many vital business tools. Writing a business plan acts as a bridge in this scenario to highlight all the necessary business processes. It uncovers the business’s weaknesses prompting people to spring into action to rectify them.

With a business plan, it is doable to solicit views from other people who might help. People in the same line of business will have valuable information on what it takes to run a successful business of that nature. Writing a business plan might run under different formats depending on the business needs as well as individualized preference. It must contain a vision statement that outlines the purpose of the business and the goals people are looking at meeting. It should also contain details about the people who will be involved in the business. It also details their contribution to the business and their qualifications, which make them assets to the business.

The business profile is another part that should not miss when writing the business plan. This is whereby people describe their nature of business in details defining each particular aspect of it and how the business will be ran. Economic assessment involves the environment in which the business will be launched. Cash flow assessment must be spread out in the business year for at least one year. This will include the capital stipulations of the business and the challenges plus how people plan to overcome them. Marketing plan is vital in writing a business plan and people must expound on the strategies they will employ. Future expansion plans must also be well documented to show the future directions the business would take.
 

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The actual value of creating a business plan lies in the process of approaching a business intent in a systematic and controlled way. Rather than getting the final product at hand, researching and planning about a business intent enables future entrepreneurs to obtain a critical approach at their ideas. Thinking through their ideas might be time-consuming in the beginning, but in the long run, it can save a business from fatal mistakes.

Typically, a business plan is a standard model that describes all the necessary steps to the establishment of the new venture idea. However, depending on the type of the business, a business plan is refined in order to accentuate certain areas. For instance, if the venture intent is a retail business, the business plan emphasizes on the prospects of the retail industry; if it is a manufacturing business, the industry analysis refers to the manufacturing sector and its prospects.

Most of the time spent for developing a business plan is for research and revising the original ideas and assumptions. However, in order to be healthy to move on a road map and develop a well-structured business plan, it is required to follow some standard steps. These are:

> Introductory Page

The introductory page includes a brief description of the nature of the business, business contact information, a statement of financial need and contact information for owners. For instance, if the new venture is a fast food store, the introductory page will say retail food and beverage supplier in the nature of business, the business address in the business contact information, how much money is required to begin the business in the statement of financial need and home address and phone numbers in the contact information for owners. Additionally, a plateau of proforma sources and uses of funds for year one is included in the introductory page as a break down of the total amount of money required for starting up the business.

> Executive Summary

In no more than two pages, the executive summary provides information about the venture idea, what the business is about, the target audience, the product, the qualitative and decimal objectives, and the background of the owners. The most important part of the executive summary is to explain the opportunity that lies behind the new venture because this shapes the ground to estimate the future position of the business in the industry.

> Venture description

In the venture description, the business plan should primarily describe the vision, mission and values of the business. By stating the business philosophy in no more than a 30-word mission statement and by clearly sharing their values with their customers aiming to maximize their customers’ value, many businesses explain their reason of existing in the market and their guiding principles. Besides, a venture description includes information about locations, operations, equipment, products & services, suppliers, target audience, and a general opportunity assessment explaining why the business is significant in relation to the industry.

> Industry Analysis

Industry analysis includes all up-to-date statistical data that support the business idea. Proper evaluation of the industry forces is a key bourgeois in developing a concise and well-structured industry analysis that will depict the potential of the venture intent to investors as a result of favourable industry trends. Typically, industry analysis includes an upside-down pyramid that starts from the general environmental and demographics trends and narrows down to local competition, a Porter Five Forces Analysis that assesses the industry structure, a SWOT analysis that identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the venture as well as the threats and opportunities of the industry, and a competitive analysis that portrays the positioning of the new venture in relation to competition.

> Operational Plan

Operational Plan provides analytical information on the physical stipulations of location (amount of space, type of building, zoning, facilities, and utilities), production (production techniques and costs, calibre control, inventory control, product development, customer service), suppliers, credit policies, equipment, organisation responsibilities, operation schedule, and pay structure.

> Marketing Plan

Marketing plan includes all the marketing and advertising efforts that take place in order to promote the venture intent to a broader audience. Product, price, place, promotion is the marketing mix model, also known as 4P’s, that is typically used in the marketing plan section of a business plan. Besides, the marketing plan involves product forecasting methods and estimates for the first three years of operation as well as control patterns of business processes to ensure a constant flow of business.

> Organizational Plan

The organizational plan includes the description of the legal form of the venture (Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, Corporation, Limited Liability Company – LLC), short bios of the management team, and roles and responsibilities of personnel.

> Financial Plan

The financial plan includes any start-up expenses that occur before operating the new business. For an accurate estimation of these expenses, it is important to perform accurate financial assumptions that are based on the forecasts provided in the marketing plan section, but also on the industry analysis section and the trends that are expected to have an impact on the business. Accurate estimates are important for accurate funding of the venture. Besides, the financial plan includes analysis of the sources and uses of funds, financial ratio analysis, as well as income statement, cash flow and equilibrise sheet proforma statements.

> Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment presents any contingency plans prepared after finding of areas that carry significant risk for the successful operations of the venture. Contingency plans are implemented for the anticipation of unexpected and threatening events.

> Appendix

Appendix includes any statistical tables; graphs from the industry analysis section; market research studies; blueprints and floor plans; advertising materials; location photos; equipment lists; duplicates of operating agreement; management team bios; anything that can ruin the flow of the business plan with redundant information.

In effect, a good plan undertakes three important responsibilities. First, it aligns the management team toward a common set of objectives, expressed on organizational vision. Once the vision is expressed on paper, the management team is forced to investigate the feasibility of the business. Finally, the business plan is a income document that intends to attract professional investors.

In conclusion, a winning business plan should be professional, enthusiastic, and concise. The great difference between a successful businessman and a mediocre entrepreneur is the capability to admit own weaknesses. Combining a good business intent with a well-structured business is a profitable joint venture that will bring money in the business and will attract more customers in the future.

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Free Web Development Business Plan for Loans

Obtaining Business Financing

 

When obtaining a business loan for a website development business, it is imperative that you have a properly structured business plan that will assist you in showcasing how you intend to operate your Web Development business, how the business will operate, how you intend to market the business, the anticipated financial results of your company, and how you intend to repay your debt obligations. This sample loan business plan will wage you with the framework that you need in order to acquire a business loan for starting or expanding this type of business.

 

Executive Summary

 

Introduction

 

When obtaining a business loan for a web development business, it is imperative that your business plan has a clear and concise executive summary that provides an outline of what are seeking to accomplish, how much capital you are seeking to raise, the management biography of the business owner, and an overview of the anticipated profit and loss statements of the business. Here is an example of how the title paragraph should be written:

 

Web Development, Inc. (“the Company”) is seeking a business loan of 0,000 in order to launch the operations of a web development business that will be based in San Francisco, California. The Company was founded in (Insert Year). The business was founded by Mr. John Doe.

 

Products and Services

 

In the next segment of the business loan and business planning document, you should showcase the products and services that you will be providing to the general public. For instance:

 

Web Development, Inc. will wage customers with a broad range of web development services including website development, web application development, e-commerce site development, and web hosting. The business will acquire substantial revenues from the website development services coupled with recurring streams of revenue from the web hosting revenues that will be generated on a monthly basis.

 

Business Loan Terms

 

Now it is time to discuss the anticipated terms of the business plan that you are seeking. An example paragraph of how this is stated:

 

At this time, Mr. Doe is seeking a conventional business loan in the amount of 0,000. The interest rate, loan terms, and loan covenants are to be determined during negotiation. However, this business plan assumes that the business will receive a seven year business loan with a seven percent interest rate due on the outstanding principal balance.

Management Biography

 

Now that the summary of the business has been provided, it is time to wage a brief overview of the owner of the business. An example paragraph summing up the owner is as follows:

 

Mr. Doe is a highly experienced business mortal that has years of experience regarding the direct ownership and management of business. He will be healthy to effectively bring the operations of the Web Development business to profitability while ensuring that the business loan’s payments and its covenants are met at all times.

Financial Statements

 

The most important thing to your lender when applying for a business loan is how you intend to repay the bank. In this section of the business plan, you should wage an overview of the finance’s of the business discussing the anticipated revenues, expenses, and profits/losses. You can also discuss the applicable collateral within the business plan that will be used to secure your business financing.

 

Expansion Plans

 

One of the most important aspects of your business plan is how you intend to expand the business over a three to five year period. Banks and finance companies always want to see that the business will experience a moderate to strong level of growth. This is especially true in business lending because as your business grows the cash flow that secures your business loan will decrease proportionality against your monthly credit obligations. An example of how this is said is as follows:

 

The Web Development business will continue to expand through organic means including increasing the Company’s advertising budget via the reinvestment into the after tax cash flows of the business.

 

 

The Financing

 

Use of Business Loan Proceeds

 

In this section of the business plan you should focus on how the proceeds of the business loan will be used. An example of this would be as follows:

 

Web Development Office Establishment – ,000
Servers and Technology Equipment – ,000
Working capital – ,000

 

Management Equity

In this section of the business plan you should discuss the percentage ownership of the business among the owners of the business. For example:

 

Mr. Doe will own 100% of the Web Development, Inc.

 

Board of Directors

 

When applying for business financing, the bank will also want to know who serves as the board of directors. For small businesses, usually the owner serves as the director of the business. An example of how this is worded:

 

Mr. Doe will be the sole director of Web Development, Inc.

 

Exit Strategy

 

Any bank or financing company is also going to want to know what you intend to do with the business over a set period of time. Many business owners will develop and expand a business with the intent to sell the company to a third celebration at a later time. When drafting this part of the business plan you should focus on what you intentions are in regards to potentially selling the business. This is often worded as:

 

Mr. Doe would most likely sell the Web Development businesses to a third celebration for a significant earnings multiple. Website Development businesses usually sell for approximately one to three times earnings given the financial strength of the business. In this event, the business would be sold by a business broker and the business loan sought in this plan would be repaid according to the covenants of the business loan agreement.

 

Products and Services

 

When developing a business plan that is appropriate for obtaining a business loan or other business credit artefact you need to clearly showcase the services or products that you will be offering to the general public. An example of how this section is worded goes as follows:

 

As said in the executive summary, Web Development, Inc. will specialize in the ongoing development of website development, web applications, and hosting services to the general public on a nationwide basis. The business intends to hire a number of independent contractors that will work on the Company’s behalf when developing websites for the Company’s clients. The business will also generate highly recurring streams of revenues from the ongoing understanding of hosting services for people that do not own their own website hosting servers.

 

 

Industry and Market Analysis

 

The Current Say of the Economy

 

It is important to let your financial institution know that you are well apprised of the financial situation of the general economy when you are applying for a business loan. This is especially true in today’s environment where lending has become more difficult and will remain more difficult in the foreseeable future. Specifically, you should gear this section of the business plan analysis towards the industry that you are operating within. For example:

 

The current economy has remained difficult over the past few years. However, Web Development businesses tend to operate with a strong degree of economic stability as these businesses are healthy to generate highly recurring streams of revenue from the fees associated with hosting services. As such, the business will be healthy to remain profitable and cash flow positive in any economic climate despite the current deleterious conditions in the general economy.

 

The Web Development Industry

 

In addition to providing your business loan officer with an understanding of the general economy, it is important that you showcase that you have an equal understanding of the industry in which you are operating within. As such, you will need to wage you business loan institution of a brief overview of your industry and any potential changes that might affect the way that your company does business. An example of how an industry overview is as follows:

 

In the United States, there are approximately 100,000 companies and individual providers that are healthy to wage web development services to the general public. Aggregately, these businesses generate more than billion per year while providing gross payrolls exceeding billion. The industry outlook is strong for the web development industry as each business now wants to have a presence on the internet.

 

Target Market

 

In this section of the business loan application and business plan analysis, you should focus on the demographics of your localized market (or national market if applicable). This section should discuss how many people live in your area, the anticipated number of people that would require the use of Web Development Services, the median household income of people living in the area, poverty line statistics, and any applicable laws that would apply to your operation of Web Development Companies.

 

Competition

 

Many people that are developing new businesses or expanding existing businesses often feel that their business does not have any competition or limited competition at best. However, this is nearly never the case. Unless you have re-invented the wheel – you will have competition. When applying for a business loan, you should clearly showcase your competition in your business plan. This is especially important to your banker as they will be healthy to gauge your capability to be successful in your targeted market. Many business loan underwriters will aggressively confirm that competitive nature of your local market and your local industry.

 

When drafting this section of the plan you should heavily discuss the competitive advantages that you intend to have over your competition.

 

Marketing Plan

 

In addition to all of the above information that we have covered, your business loan officer is also going to want to know how you intend to market your business to the general public. Most people do not quite comprehend how to effectively market their business outside of prominent signage or flyer distribution. When applying for a business loan (again in this difficult lending climate), your banker is going to want to see that you have a clear methodology of how you intend to market your services or products to the general public. In this section of the business plan – we will overview how to showcase your services/products to the general public.

 

Marketing Overview Example

 

The Web Development will place prominent signage on the artefact to draw a significant amount of foot traffic in its local location in San Francisco.
The business will maintain listings in the Yellow Books.
The Web Development business will also maintain an world wide web website that showcases the Company’s operations, hours of operation, and relevant contact information.

 

Marketing Strategies Overview

Additionally, you will be required to further drill down (in your business plan) how you intend to implement your strategies when you launch or expand your business’s operations. In this section of the business loan and business plan documents, you should amplify the bullet points from the section above. For instance:

 

The Web Development intends to use a number of strategies that will create instant traffic and customer flow to the Company’s location. These strategies include not only using prominent artefact and road signage, but also distributing flyers to people that start into he Company’s targeted demographics. The business will also regularly take out advertisements in localized newspapers that showcase the Company’s hours of operations, web development and web application development services, and specials that are occurring with the on a regular basis.

 

The business will also maintain a highly informative website that showcases the Web Development company’s services, its hours of operation, service information, and other relevant information in regards to the Company’s services. This website will be listed on major search engines such as Google as many people now use the world wide web to locate web development businesses.

 

The Financial Plan

 

Beyond any other part of your business loan application or business plan, the financials section of these documents are what matters most when applying for a business loan or any other type of credit facility. Ultimately, this section of the business plan showcases not only what your anticipated profitability will be, but also how you intend to repay the funds that you have borrowed through your business financing facility. An example of how this section is structure is as follows:

 

Assumptions

 

Web Development, Inc. will have an average annual growth rate of 10% per year.
Mr. Doe will acquire 0,000 through a business loan in order to launch the operations of the business.

 

Proforma Financials for a Business Loan

 

Now it is time to showcase how you intend to repay your loan, generate a profit, and increase the book value of your business over a three to five year period. BusinessPlansForLoan.com has developed an simple to use financial model that you can use when drafting out the financial model for your business plan and business loan application. Through your business loan application, you will be required to have the following:

 

Profit and Loss Statement for your Web Development Business
Cash Flow Analysis for the Web Development Business
Balance Sheet for the Web Development
Business Loan Amortization Tables

Business Venture Solutions – About the Author:

BusinessPlansForLoan.com is a specialty website that provides content that focuses on the needs of people seeking business loans for new and existing businesses. We encourage you to visit our website if you are seeking a Business Plan for a Loan .

Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/entrepreneurship-articles/free-web-development-business-plan-2383875.html

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Most companies develop action plans for what they think about the nuts-and-bolts part of their business, including production, sales, distribution, etc.  It’s surprising how few companies automatically throw marketing into that mix.   This is particularly true when it comes to small or mid-sized companies.  Many entrepreneurs and business owners think of marketing as an extra, an afterthought, something to focus on when there is extra money to spend on incidentals.    The truth is that for a company to be successful (first and foremost) marketing matters.  It is a business essential.  The question should never be if a company should market, but how.

The good news is that businesses now have more options than ever.  It used to be that direct marketing, traditional advertising and PR, were the holy trinity in marketing.  Along with some basic grassroots guerrilla approaches, those three were considered the only viable options.  The world wide web has changed everything.  The new marketing arsenal now includes social media, blogging, email marketing, article marketing, pay-per-click, video marketing, Adwords… the list goes on.

But this does not mean that there is now an either/or approach to marketing.  The correct question is not:  should a company launch a traditional public relations campaign or a social media campaign? Rather, how does a company effectively meld a PR campaign with a social media, blogging approach?

To launch an effective campaign, a business first needs to develop a clear message, create a strong brand and define its target market.  The next step is to develop a strong marketing approach and marketing plan.  The plan needs to be a living breathing, fluid approach that can shift and change as the market changes.  Each business has different needs.  But a plan is a necessity.

Write out your short term and long term goals.  Define your target market.  Study where and how your market and customer base finds their information.  Now take some time and develop a strategic plan.  Review your budget, study the various outlets.  An inexpensive approach that works for just about any company is a combination of traditional PR, blogging, social media and article marketing.  Study apiece approach independently, then take a look at combining them.  With some thought you can develop a long term marketing plan, a promotional blueprint that will work as a roadmap to build and grow your business.

Copyright © Anthony Mora 2010

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So you want to get more international clients, and realize that you need to do some international marketing. But you are not quite sure what to do.

Well let’s have a look at the different areas of international marketing. Companies often go through these steps one after the other, but not always. You could begin an export business for example without going through the first step of Domestic Marketing.

Each step clearly explains:

where your company is selling, and

what product you are selling.

You will see very clearly where your company’s business stipulations are this day with regards to International Marketing. This will also give you a superior understanding of what your next step is towards getting more international clients.

1 – Domestic Marketing

First of all there is Domestic Marketing. This is where most companies start. This is the marketing you do for your local market in your own country. There are no international links in this business.

Your Company:

A domestic company, buying and selling its products within one country.

Your Product:

Is a domestic product for the domestic market.

2 – Export Marketing

This is often the second step towards International Marketing. If this is effectively a company’s second step to International Marketing, the company needs to spend a tiny time and effort on the foreign market research and examining all client feedback during this phase.

Your Company:

Sells the same product for his domestic market to a few other foreign markets. There is no effort to adapt the product to the foreign market’s needs. The company remains centered on its domestic market, with minimum cross cultural marketing efforts.

Your Product:

Is a domestic product for a foreign market.

3 – International Marketing

This is a vital stage for the company. The company will have to adapt to the market on several levels. There is often a real learning curve to adapt your products, marketing and income to foreign markets.

The good news is that most of the skills your company will acquire to adapt to one market will be used again for all of the other countries you want to target.

Your Company:

Is now adapting its marketing, communication and products to the foreign market. At this stage in International Marketing the company is only dealing with a 1 or 2 countries.

Your Product:

Becomes one foreign product for one foreign country.

4 – Multinational Marketing

This is the fourth step. It is a logical extension of International Marketing. This is a term that might be a bit noncurrent today, with the internet. It seems to be used more for the massive established companies.

Your Company:

Now sells to many foreign countries. And the company now has the skills to go into more countries and will naturally tend to expand into the neighboring countries.

Your Product:

Becomes one foreign product for one wider foreign region covering a group of countries.

5 – Global Marketing

This is the last phase in International Marketing. There are few companies involved. They are the companies with brand obloquy known worldwide.

Your Company:

Operates in such a massive number of countries, you could nearly state it sells its products worldwide.

Your Product:

The company will naturally move towards slicing costs and will aim to find one product for all countries. In Global Marketing the product will not be created for the domestic market and sold abroad, as in Export Marketing. In Global Marketing one product is created to satisfy the needs of all markets – all foreign countries and your domestic market.

Where Is Your International Marketing Today?

By looking at where your companies markets and products are this day you can refer the type of International Marketing you should be using. You can then move towards your next step in International Marketing. These steps logically follow one after the other for brick and mortar companies and the majority of todays e-businesses.

The world wide web makes international business development easier this day than ever before. Remember, simply having a website online will not make your company global. You will have to work at it a little. You will need to apply the right international marketing for your business’ current market and product range.

Your company will get more and more international clients as it moves through the different marketing stages. The whole notion of global business become more accessible for everyone.