Business plans on one-page

I’ve noticed there’s one piece of advice that’s commonly given to the fledgling entrepreneur: “You must write a business plan. And it’s true, you should. But, it seems so foreign and daunting, such a big task for someone who is just starting out.  

A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals, the reasons why they are believed attainable, and the plan for reaching those goals. So, the business plan is an important tool to focus your energies and stay on track for building your business. Writing a business plan is easy. Writing a clear, and concise plan is not.

For these reasons, I recommend the one page business plan . Here’s how----

Step 1: Consider the big picture, your company's vision.  Make it relevant for its purpose, and write "Vision" for the first category with a statement or bullets describing what you envision for the business.

Step 2: Note the mission for the company under "Company Mission." Focus the mission content with the vision and include what the business does, how and for whom does your company serve.

Step 3: Write "Marketing Strategies" next and describe strategies for growth, service and opportunities involving products and customers. Think of points that reflect the vision and mission as set out.

Step 4: List under "Financial Objectives" a one-year projection of costs and income and write what metrics you'll employ to gauge the success of the objectives with dates. (You an also calculate this section by determining how much you need to make from the business in one year, calculate the sales you require, calculate the cost of the materials and so on)

Step 5: Enter in "Plans", the timetable for development, hiring, fund raising, future location of the business and product rollout.

Step 6: Go over the one page business plan to make it concise with proper grammar and spelling.

Step 7: Keep your business plan fluid by reading it over each quarter. If conditions change, re-consider certain objectives to see if tweaking brings better success.

Resources that may help with your business planning:

http://www.businessballs.com/freebusinessplansandmarketingtemplates...

http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/resources/startups/business-...