a business plan should be

How To Write A Business Plan (2024 Guide)

Updated: Apr 17, 2024, 11:59am

Table of Contents

Brainstorm an executive summary, create a company description, brainstorm your business goals, describe your services or products, conduct market research, create financial plans, bottom line, frequently asked questions.

Every business starts with a vision, which is distilled and communicated through a business plan. In addition to your high-level hopes and dreams, a strong business plan outlines short-term and long-term goals, budget and whatever else you might need to get started. In this guide, we’ll walk you through how to write a business plan that you can stick to and help guide your operations as you get started.

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Drafting the Summary

An executive summary is an extremely important first step in your business. You have to be able to put the basic facts of your business in an elevator pitch-style sentence to grab investors’ attention and keep their interest. This should communicate your business’s name, what the products or services you’re selling are and what marketplace you’re entering.

Ask for Help

When drafting the executive summary, you should have a few different options. Enlist a few thought partners to review your executive summary possibilities to determine which one is best.

After you have the executive summary in place, you can work on the company description, which contains more specific information. In the description, you’ll need to include your business’s registered name , your business address and any key employees involved in the business. 

The business description should also include the structure of your business, such as sole proprietorship , limited liability company (LLC) , partnership or corporation. This is the time to specify how much of an ownership stake everyone has in the company. Finally, include a section that outlines the history of the company and how it has evolved over time.

Wherever you are on the business journey, you return to your goals and assess where you are in meeting your in-progress targets and setting new goals to work toward.

Numbers-based Goals

Goals can cover a variety of sections of your business. Financial and profit goals are a given for when you’re establishing your business, but there are other goals to take into account as well with regard to brand awareness and growth. For example, you might want to hit a certain number of followers across social channels or raise your engagement rates.

Another goal could be to attract new investors or find grants if you’re a nonprofit business. If you’re looking to grow, you’ll want to set revenue targets to make that happen as well.

Intangible Goals

Goals unrelated to traceable numbers are important as well. These can include seeing your business’s advertisement reach the general public or receiving a terrific client review. These goals are important for the direction you take your business and the direction you want it to go in the future.

The business plan should have a section that explains the services or products that you’re offering. This is the part where you can also describe how they fit in the current market or are providing something necessary or entirely new. If you have any patents or trademarks, this is where you can include those too.

If you have any visual aids, they should be included here as well. This would also be a good place to include pricing strategy and explain your materials.

This is the part of the business plan where you can explain your expertise and different approach in greater depth. Show how what you’re offering is vital to the market and fills an important gap.

You can also situate your business in your industry and compare it to other ones and how you have a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

Other than financial goals, you want to have a budget and set your planned weekly, monthly and annual spending. There are several different costs to consider, such as operational costs.

Business Operations Costs

Rent for your business is the first big cost to factor into your budget. If your business is remote, the cost that replaces rent will be the software that maintains your virtual operations.

Marketing and sales costs should be next on your list. Devoting money to making sure people know about your business is as important as making sure it functions.

Other Costs

Although you can’t anticipate disasters, there are likely to be unanticipated costs that come up at some point in your business’s existence. It’s important to factor these possible costs into your financial plans so you’re not caught totally unaware.

Business plans are important for businesses of all sizes so that you can define where your business is and where you want it to go. Growing your business requires a vision, and giving yourself a roadmap in the form of a business plan will set you up for success.

How do I write a simple business plan?

When you’re working on a business plan, make sure you have as much information as possible so that you can simplify it to the most relevant information. A simple business plan still needs all of the parts included in this article, but you can be very clear and direct.

What are some common mistakes in a business plan?

The most common mistakes in a business plan are common writing issues like grammar errors or misspellings. It’s important to be clear in your sentence structure and proofread your business plan before sending it to any investors or partners.

What basic items should be included in a business plan?

When writing out a business plan, you want to make sure that you cover everything related to your concept for the business,  an analysis of the industry―including potential customers and an overview of the market for your goods or services―how you plan to execute your vision for the business, how you plan to grow the business if it becomes successful and all financial data around the business, including current cash on hand, potential investors and budget plans for the next few years.

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Home > Start a Business > How to Write a Business Plan: The Ultimate Guide

How to Write a Business Plan: The Ultimate Guide

By Bernardo Barbosa

Published on 26 March 2024

15 mins read

Business plans have a bit of a bad rep amongst many entrepreneurs. Some find the idea of business plans daunting, others claim to be too busy to write one, and a few even consider them a waste of time (usually because they’re “not looking for investment”). However, knowing how to write a business plan isn’t just about raising investment; it’s a crucial part of your company's strategic planning, guidance, and communication.

The best approach is to view your plan as a living document; a roadmap that allows you to dodge potential obstacles, mitigate risks, and seize opportunities as they arise. Yes, a business plan isn't static. It should adapt, grow, and evolve as your business does. But is it really that important?

Benefits of a Business Plan for a New Business

1. Clarity of Vision: A business plan forces you to articulate your prospective business comprehensively and concisely, ensuring that you have a clear sense of purpose and direction for your business concept.

2. Effective Resource Allocation: With a business plan, you'll be able to allocate resources more efficiently. A clear understanding of your budget enables you to allocate funds where they will have the most significant impact on your business's growth.

3. Alignment with your Team: For businesses with a team, well-structured company plans keep everyone on the same page. Building the business plan together will ensure that your executive team and key employees understand the company's objectives and are working together towards common goals.

4. Measuring Progress: A business plan serves as a benchmark against which you can measure your progress. You can track your achievements, assess whether you're meeting your goals, and make adjustments as needed. This ability to monitor performance keeps you accountable and adaptable.

5. Flexibility and Adaptation: While a business plan provides structure, it also needs to be flexible. As your business evolves, you can update your plan to reflect changing circumstances, strategies, or goals. This adaptability allows you to pivot when necessary and seize new opportunities.

Convinced? Great!

So, where should you start?

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Chapter 1: Getting Started - Before the Business Plan

Getting started with writing a new business plan can feel overwhelming. But business plans don't need to start as a blank page! Before even typing the words "business plan," there are a few things you can do:

Step 1. Clearly Define Your Business Idea

To effectively do so, you'll need the following:

1. Identify Your Unique Value: Your business operations should align with your interests and expertise, as this will keep you motivated and focused in the long run. You may be keen to own a restaurant, but does it fit you as a person? Invest in industry sectors that you're either passionate about or deeply knowledgeable of.

2. Problem-Solution Fit: Successful businesses identify and solve a specific problem. Think about the pain points or challenges your potential customers face and develop a solution that addresses those issues uniquely and effectively.

3. Unique Value Proposition (UVP): What will make your product or service special? How will it provide more value or solve problems better than existing alternatives? Your business should have a clear Unique Value Proposition that sets it apart from competitors, and you should be able to communicate it in a sentence! If you can’t, your customers won’t understand why they should come to you.

4. Test Your Idea: Before fully committing to a specific idea for a business, test it on a smaller scale. This step is crucial for verifying the viability of your prospective business.

Step 2. Develop a Deep Understanding of Your Target Audience

Understanding your target audience is about getting under the skin of your potential customers. Get nosey. Really nosey! Get to know the characteristics, needs, preferences, and behaviors of the people or businesses that are most likely to become your customers.

Take the following steps to understand your target audience:

1. Market Analysis: Gather data about your potential customers. This includes demographic information (age, gender, location), psychographic details (lifestyle, values, interests), and firmographic/financial data (for B2B businesses).

2. Competitor Analysis: Analyse your competitors to see who they are targeting. Identify gaps in the market that they may be missing or underserving, and you'll be able to cater to a specific segment of your target audience.

3. Feedback and Surveys: Engage with your potential customers through surveys, focus groups, or online communities. Then, ask for feedback on your idea and use their input to refine your business plan.

4. Segmentation: Segment your target audience into smaller groups based on shared characteristics or behaviors to create a more personalized marketing and sales strategy for each segment.

Step 3. Research Your Industry and Target Market

Take some time to research your industry and target market. This involves gaining insights into the larger business environment in which your company will operate. This could mean looking at patterns and shifts in consumer behavior, industry developments, or socioeconomic factors that will influence the demand for your products or services.

This knowledge allows you to anticipate customer needs and adapt your business strategy accordingly. Additionally, by keeping an eye out for potential opportunities in the marketplace, such as gaps in the competition or underserved customer segments, you can capitalize on untapped markets and develop new revenue streams.

This may sound complicated, but it doesn’t need to be!

Let’s say you want to open a coffee shop. Your industry research might involve:

• Going to different coffee shops in the area you have in mind, seeing the types of coffee and other products they offer, and making note of their hours of operation, ambiance, and seating arrangements.
• Researching how the cost price of coffee might be affected due to climate change or instability in coffee-producing regions.
• Checking out different types of barista training programs you could implement at your shop.

Your target market research, on the other hand, could be that you:

• Survey friends, family, and residents about their coffee preferences.
• Ask them how often they visit coffee shops and what they value most.
• Research online for coffee consumption trends in your city or country. Google Trends is your friend here!

Step 4. Set Clear Objectives

Now that you’ve done some thorough research on your customer, industry, and target market, and have some facts to work with, it’s time to look forward and chart your business goals.

Objectives provide direction, focus, and a sense of purpose for both your business and your business plan. Here's how to set clear business goals:

1. Mission Statement: Begin with a mission statement that defines the core purpose and values of your business. This statement should capture why your company exists and what it aims to achieve.

A great framework for a mission statement, designed by author Simon Sinek in his great book "Start with Why," is “We….. (what it is that we do) so that…….. (the outcome of our work)”. Our example of that at Rauva would be “We simplify business banking so that entrepreneurship is democratized."

Getting this level of clarity on your company mission can act as a guiding light for every decision you need to make.

2. Long-Term Goals: Outline your long-term objectives, often referred to as "big-picture" goals. These are your aspirations for where you want the company to be in several years. Include metrics like revenue targets, market share, or expansion plans for better results.

3. Short-Term Goals: Break down your long-term goals into shorter-term objectives. These are the specific, measurable targets you aim to achieve within the next one to three years. Short-term goals can include milestones like product launches, customer acquisition targets, or revenue growth.

4. SMART Goals: Use the SMART criteria to set objectives that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. This framework ensures that your goals are clear and actionable.

5. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Identify the KPIs that will help you track your progress toward achieving your objectives. KPIs are quantifiable metrics that provide insights into how well your business is performing.

Are you moving the needle? Are you doing things each day that move you toward your company goals? Common KPIs include customer retention rates, conversion rates, and profitability margins.

6. Risk Assessment: Evaluate potential risks and challenges that may hinder your ability to achieve your objectives. Develop contingency plans to address these risks and mitigate their impact on your business.

7. Alignment: Ensure that your objectives align with your overall business strategy. Your goals should support your mission statement and fit within the larger context of your industry and market. 

8. Regular Review: Objectives are not set in stone. Regularly review and reassess your goals to account for changes in the business environment, market conditions, or internal factors. Adjust your objectives as needed to stay on track.

9. Communication: Communicate your objectives to your team members and stakeholders as clearly and transparently as possible. Everyone in your organization should understand the goals and work collectively to achieve them.

Chapter 2: Step-by-Step Guide to Creating Each Section of Your Business Plan

Looking for the good news? Well, now that you’ve conducted your research and got some clarity on your business's goals and overall characteristics, the next part—actually writing the business plan—should be a breeze!

Step 1. Decide on your Business Plan Format (Traditional vs. Lean Canvas)

First, you need to decide which format you'll use to write your business plan, and there are a couple of main types of business plans to choose from: traditional business plans and lean business plans.

A traditional business plan is the classic, comprehensive roadmap for your business. It provides a detailed overview of your company, its mission, vision, and long-term goals.

Whether you opt for a typical business plan or a lean canvas approach depends on your business's nature and goals. Traditional plans suit established businesses with predictable markets, while lean canvas plans are ideal for innovative ventures.

Step 2. Write your Executive Summary (Conciseness is key!)

The executive summary serves as a snapshot of your business plan and is typically the first section that potential investors or stakeholders read. You should think of it as an overview of your entire business plan, much like the synopsis of a book.

An executive summary should contain elements such as your company's mission statement, products/services, competitive advantage, financial projections, and financing requirements.

Step 3. Craft a Compelling Introduction

Your business plan's introduction sets the tone for the entire document, so craft an introduction that captivates and engages your readers. This is where you might include your mission statement, concept, and high-level goals. Just don’t go into too much detail, as you'll do that later in your business plan.

Step 4. Company Description - Define Your Company's Identity

A company description introduces your company to the reader, providing essential information about your business, its history, and its core values. It sets the stage for the reader to understand your company's identity and purpose.

Step 5. Market Analysis - Identify Market Trends and Opportunities

In this section, you delve into the industry in which your company operates, analyze target market trends, and define your target audience. Market analysis helps investors and stakeholders understand the broader context of your business, and it's essential to write a business plan that hits the mark.

Step 6. Products and Services - Describe Your Offerings

This section outlines the products or services your company provides. It should showcase your offerings' unique features, benefits, and value proposition.

Pro tip: Even Amazon started by only selling books, so start with just one thing! Associated products should come after you’ve proven you can sell your core product. To stay on the right track, familiarize yourself with the concept of Minimum Viable Product .

Step 7. Organizational Structure - Outlining Your Team and Roles

Your team is the backbone of your business. This section should outline the internal framework of your company, including the hierarchy, roles, and responsibilities of your staff and management team, emphasizing their qualifications and roles.

Step 8. Marketing Strategy - How will you Attract Customers?

A marketing strategy or marketing plan is a pivotal component of how to write a business plan, serving as the blueprint for how a company communicates its value proposition to potential customers. It goes hand-in-hand with your sales strategies and outlines the tactics the business will employ to reach its target audience and achieve its long-term goals.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) plays a crucial role in building a marketing and sales strategy, ensuring that your business website is optimized to rank high on search engines, thereby increasing organic traffic and potential conversions.

Additionally, social media has emerged as a powerful tool for businesses to engage directly with their audience, build brand loyalty, and drive sales. By integrating up-to-date marketing strategies, a marketing plan ensures a holistic approach to digital marketing, positioning the business for sustained growth and success in a competitive marketplace.

Step 9. Financial Projections - How the Business Will Make Money

To secure a business loan, a formal business plan may not be enough. Consider additional documents and data such as net income, capital expenditure budgets, and key customer contracts to make sure you have a thorough business plan in place. This is particularly important for startups seeking investment.

Step 10. The Appendix - Adding Depth to Your Plan

The appendix is your plan's secret weapon, housing supplementary information that adds depth and credibility. It's good practice to include detailed financial projections, legal and insurance documents, testimonials and references, and any sales commitments or market validations.

Chapter 3: Common Pitfalls to Avoid When Writing a Business Plan

Lots of entrepreneurs make similar mistakes when writing their business plans. There are just too many potential mistakes on the road to building a successful company, but the following three are perhaps the most common:

Overlooking Market Research

One of the most common pitfalls to avoid when you write your business plan is overlooking the importance of thorough market research. Neglecting to gather comprehensive data on your target market can lead to misguided strategies and unrealistic expectations.

Unrealistic Financial Forecasts

Unrealistic financial projections can be a significant stumbling block for entrepreneurs. While it's natural to be optimistic about the future of your business, overly ambitious revenue and profit estimates will erode the credibility of your business plan.

How many business owners have wasted a good idea on unrealistic financial statements? Tragically, way too many! To make sure you're not next, stop scaring potential investors away with projections that seem way too good to be true (because they probably are)!

Neglecting Competitive Analysis

Neglecting competitive analysis is another pitfall that can undermine your business plan's effectiveness. Understanding your competitors' strengths and weaknesses, market positioning, and strategies is essential for crafting a plan that sets your business apart.

If you're competing against a fantastic company, don't shy away from the truth: tell potential investors why they're great while also emphasizing why they're not as great as your business. Even the smallest, most inexperienced business owners can have an advantage over their competitors if they look hard enough.

Chapter 4: Presenting Your Business Plan

Presenting your business plan effectively is another critical step in gaining support from investors, lenders, or stakeholders. Here's how you can do it:

Preparing for Investor Meetings

Preparation is key when it comes to investor meetings. Once you've crafted your business plan and are ready to meet with potential investors, thorough preparation is essential.

Review your business plan in detail, ensuring you can speak confidently about its contents, and anticipate questions that investors may ask, especially regarding financial projections and market strategies.

Pitching Your Business Plan Effectively

Pitching your business plan effectively involves more than just delivering a presentation—it's about conveying your passion, vision, and the unique value your business offers.

You will only get the attention of potential investors for a little while, so make it count! Get inspired by the fundamentals in your lean startup business plan and try to answer two fundamental questions as concisely as possible: Why your business? And why now?

Chapter 5: Resources and Tools

Resources and tools play a crucial role in the business planning process, so take the following into account:

Business Plan Template

Online tools and software.

Online tools and software have revolutionized the business planning landscape, offering entrepreneurs and business owners innovative ways to create, manage, and collaborate on business plans.

Professional Assistance

Sometimes, seeking professional assistance can be a wise decision when creating a business model, especially if you're dealing with complex financial projections or aiming to get the attention of venture capital firms.

In conclusion, a well-crafted business plan serves as the cornerstone of success for freelancers and established companies. It's a comprehensive document that outlines a company's objectives and strategies to achieve those goals. The importance of knowing how to write a business plan cannot be overstated, as it plays a pivotal role in attracting investors, securing financing, and guiding a company's operations.

Knowing how to write a business plan is not merely a formality, but a dynamic skill that provides a roadmap for a company's journey, keeping both internal and external stakeholders informed about the company's vision and mission.

For startups, it's often the key to securing essential funding and getting off the ground. For an established business, it's like a compass for adapting to new challenges and opportunities.

Key Details

For those just starting their entrepreneurial journey, embarking on the process of creating a business plan might seem daunting. However, it's essential to remember that every successful business once starts with a plan. Take it step by step, focusing on the key elements that matter most to your business, and don't hesitate to seek guidance from mentors or professionals if needed.

Remember: A business plan is not just for others, but also for yourself. It can provide you with a clearer overview of your business financials, marketing efforts, and long-term objectives .

Importance of Continuous Plan Review

Lastly, remember that a business plan should not be a static document: It should evolve along with your business!

Regularly review and update your plan to reflect changing goals, market conditions, and new information, as adaptability and flexibility are crucial in the business world.

Recommended Books

The Lean Startup by Eric Ries - Emphasizes building a minimum viable product, measuring its market success, and iterating based on feedback to achieve product-market fit efficiently.

Hurdle by Tim Berry - A comprehensive guide that breaks down each step of a solid business plan.

The One Page Business Plan for the Creative Entrepreneur by Jim Horan and Tom Peters - A concise guide to crafting a business plan that fits on a single sheet.

The Art of the Start 2.0 by Guy Kawasaki - Offers advice on perfecting your pitch, bootstrapping, building your team, and more.

The Complete Book of Business Plans by Brian Hazelgren and Joseph A. Covello - Provides multiple business plan templates and advice on staying motivated and choosing the right partners.

Successful Business Plan by Rhonda Abrams - Helps you determine the feasibility of your business plan, covering market positioning, competition, costs, funding strategies, and more.

The Founder's Dilemmas by Noam Wasserman - Focuses on staffing and leadership decisions, emphasizing the importance of these choices for the success of your business.

Anatomy of a Business Plan by Linda Pinson - A detailed guide on creating a custom business plan, covering organizational structure, goals, forecasts, and more.

Writing a Convincing Business Plan by Art deThomas - A systematic approach to crafting a business plan, focusing on business structure, goals, forecasts, and more.

Glossary of Business Plan Terms

• **Business Plan:** A formal written document that describes the nature of a business, its sales and marketing strategy, and its financial background, containing documents such as a profits and loss statement, a cash flow statement, and a financial plan. If you want to write a business plan, you can opt for a traditional business plan or a lean business plan.
• **Executive Summary:** An executive summary is a concise overview that provides a snapshot of the key elements of a traditional business plan.
• **Funding Request:** A funding request is a formal solicitation made by a company, a small business, or an entrepreneur to acquire financial support or investment from potential investors, lenders, or other funding sources.
• **Business Insurance:** A type of coverage that protects companies, small businesses, and business leaders from financial losses due to unexpected events or risks that may occur during their operations.
• **Intellectual Property:** Intellectual property (IP) refers to creations of the mind such as inventions, literary and artistic works, designs, symbols, names, and images.

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Written by bernardo barbosa.

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What is A Business Plan

Learn about what goes into a well‑thought‑out business plan and how writing one can help your business prosper.

A business plan is a document, usually a road map, that acts as an executive summary of your business. It outlines the key elements crucial to the success of your business, including its business concept, products and services, financial plan, marketing strategy, company structure, and more.

By laying out these elements in a written document, you gain a comprehensive understanding of your vision. A detailed business plan also gives potential investors clear insight into why they should support your business.

Overall, while there is no one-size-fits-all solution to writing the best business plan, there are a few proven tips and tricks. Continue reading to learn more about how to write a business plan for your company.

Why have a business plan?

Writing a business plan forces you to think about how your business will operate and succeed. It also allows you to present that information to potential investors. You'll see each aspect of the business more clearly and you'll show investors the value of funding your company.

How your business plan helps you

Creating a business plan is useful for new companies or existing businesses.

• Clarify : A detailed business helps you clarify what you expect from the business. You’ll see what you need in money and resources, and you can establish a timeline for each of your goals. It’s not day-to-day planning; it’s your long-term strategy.
• Adjust : Writing out your business plan makes finer details become clear. This helps you anticipate needed changes or adjustments for your business to succeed. In that way, writing your plan focuses your attention to make strategic decisions for your business.
• Strategize : A business plan guides the progress toward your company’s long-term goals. This helps you make informed day-to-day decisions based on the big picture you’ve outlined.

How your business plan helps others

A business plan describes your business in enough detail to give any potential hire, investor, or partner a clear picture of your company.

• New hires : You’ll want your employees to understand and believe in your company. A business plan outlines your vision so that potential hires can have the same confidence in your business as you do.
• Investors : Someone looking to invest in a business wants to see evidence their money is being used wisely. A business plan gives investors an in-depth look into exactly how you’ll spend their money.
• Partners : Collaborating with other companies can benefit everyone. Potential partners will want to see your strategies, ideas, and big-picture plan before agreeing to tie their fortunes to yours. A carefully crafted business plan can give them the information they need in one document.

What should you include in your business plan?

Two types of business plans are most common today: traditional and lean startups. A lean startup business plan is a shorter business summary—perhaps only one page. It describes the key points of your plans. It presents a quick snapshot of your business without giving the full details. If you choose to use a lean startup business plan, prepare further information and details for lenders or investors.

Most businesses choose to use a traditional business plan. These plans are longer and go into detail about different aspects of your business. This format gives a comprehensive picture of your business. They outline your vision for the future of your company and the strategies you'll use to execute it.

What to include in your business plan will vary depending on what type of company you own and your goals.

Executive summary

The executive summary is an overview of your business plan—just the key points. The goal of this section is to entice potential investors to continue reading for the details that come later. This summary statement should address several essential questions.

If you're sharing your business plan with potential investors or lenders, the last 3 questions are key. Give specific amounts and explain how you'll use that money. Briefly describe the benefits investors will reap by supporting your company. You'll provide further details in the financials section.

If you keep your executive summary to the recommended one or 2 pages, you'll have to distill your business plan down to the most relevant points. This can be a great exercise in restraint that results in a focused synopsis.You'll answer these questions in depth in the sections that follow.

Business description

The description of your business explains exactly what your business is and how it's different from other companies within its industry. First, offer an overview of the industry you're part of. Then describe how your company will succeed within that industry. This will guide your decisions and show potential investors or partners that your company is worth their time and money.

This detailed description will show why your business should be the source for whatever product or service you are selling. Why should customers buy your sneakers, purchase your homemade picture frames, or use your delivery service? Show why your vision will succeed and why customers will choose you over your competitors.

Product or service

Describe in detail what your product does or what your service provides. Explain its benefits and value to customers. Compare your offering with your competition. Emphasize the uniqueness of your product and how it will give you an advantage over other similar products.

If your company doesn't manufacture the product, describe who makes it, how it's made, and how you get it. Is it made in a factory, homemade, or are you dropshipping?

If you have any patents or intellectual property claims for your product or service, be sure to list them. Also provide any additional information to show your ownership of the product.

If you plan to expand your offerings in the future, explain how. Will you offer a greater variety of products or services? Will you continue to improve upon your current offerings?

Marketing strategy

How will your business fit into an existing market? How is your business different and better than the competition? You, your potential partners, investors, and employees need to know. A big part of getting a lay of the land is having a plan to get the word out about your product or service. To do so, conduct market research and plan a marketing strategy .

First, describe the market you're entering—its current size, trends, and demographics. Then explain how your business fits in. Next, look at the competition. Analyze businesses that offer the same or similar products or services. Note their strengths and weaknesses. Then show how your company measures up. Your unique selling proposition differentiates your company from your competitors'. That is the starting point for your marketing strategy. Some of the questions to address here include:

• How will you reach your prospects?
• How will you convert them to paying customers, and how will you retain their business?
• What channels will you use for your marketing campaigns? Think about email , social media , digital ads , and postcards , among others.

Researching your industry as you create your business plan can help you understand your customer profile. It also helps you learn about projected changes within the industry. Analyzing your market will give you a good basis for estimates regarding your company's future.

Operations and management

You will have mentioned the legal structure of your business in the executive summary section, but it belongs here too. Will you operate as a sole proprietor, a general or limited partnership, or a corporation? If the necessary paperwork isn't complete yet, explain where in the process you are and when you expect it to be done.

This section will also introduce your company's management team and explain who has what specific responsibilities. You can include an organizational chart that clearly shows each person's job title and their role in the overall operations of the business.

An org chart like this is particularly useful if you haven't hired all the key positions yet—you'll still be able to show the roles you've outlined and how they relate to each other. If you have hired your team, you might consider including their resumes or short bios in this section.

Financial plan

If you're looking for investors or partners, this section is essential. Investors want to know where their money is going and that you'll be able to recoup it.

Your approach to your business plan's financial section depends on whether you've been in business for some time or are starting out.

If you're launching your company, you'll need to research and make projections and estimates regarding the financial future of your business. An existing business will need to provide past statements showing proof of previous and current revenue and make projections based on those figures.

If you're presenting financial statements, graphs, or charts, include a summary of the information to explain key points at a glance. In addition to a narrative description, there are 3 statements you should include.

Income statement

This statement shows your expenses and revenues over time. It's also called a profit and loss statement. If your business is new, you'll estimate these amounts.

Take stock of your expected expenses, from rent or mortgage payments on a property (if you'll have a brick-and-mortar presence) to salaries. Be sure to consider the cost of your product itself.

Subtract these expenses from your projected sales or other revenue to show your total expected income by month, quarter, or year. An established business will use past performance to estimate future income.

Cash flow statement

Your cash flow differs from your income in that it shows how much cash you actually have on hand.

The cash flow statement shows whether the cash coming in is more or less than the amount going out at a given time. These figures help you see if you may need another source of funding or if you have a surplus of funds to invest or use to expand your business. If your business is new, you'll estimate your cash flow using your forecasted figures for revenue.

Balance sheet

This shows the amount of equity you have in your business at a given time. Equity is the amount you own (assets) minus the amount you owe (liabilities). The balance sheet differs from the income statement in that it includes more than just expenses and revenues. It differs from the cash flow statement by representing the bigger picture.

These 3 statements, taken together, provide a snapshot of the financial health of a business. Existing businesses should include these statements for the past 5 years in their business plan. Both new and existing companies should provide projected statements for the next 5 years. Doing so will show the potential success of their business and the profit it will bring in.

How to create a business plan

Understanding the basic components of a business plan is just the first step. Actually starting to write a business plan can still be a daunting task. Writing a truly stand-out, successful business plan, in particular, can take months of research and revision.

However, there’s no need to worry. Even if you have no prior experience, our detailed process on how to create a business plan documented below will make sure you get off to a good start.

Conduct an industry and a competitor analysis

No matter what you’re doing, you always want to be prepared. Why take a shot in the dark when you can be armed with all the knowledge you need? To avoid potential missteps and see how you stack up against the competition, conduct an in-depth analysis of the industry you’re in.

Where is your industry headed? Is it projected to grow in the next 5 to 10 years? How can you be a first mover? Research the trends and statistics in your industry to identify future threats and opportunities. Use data to predict your performance.

In addition, conduct a competitor analysis . Identify your direct and indirect competitors and figure out their strengths and weaknesses. How does your business compare? Apply what you learn to upgrade your business strategy and remember to include your competitive advantages in your own business plan.

Identify your target market

Do not skip market research when writing a business plan. Secure funding by showing your future investors that you have a precise understanding of who your customers are and what they want. Identifying your target market will help you refine your product and service offerings as well. This way, you can increase your profits and steer clear of losses.

Learn more about your target audience through surveys, personal interviews, focus groups, observation, and data you’ve already collected. How big is your target market? How old is your typical customer? How much disposable income do they have? Is there a lot of demand for what you are selling? How does your audience interact with your brand? Can you use behavioral targeting for more personalized marketing?

Develop a marketing strategy

If you want a business loan, be sure to showcase your unique selling proposition and a detailed advertising and sales strategy in your business plan.

What does your business do best? Why should investors help you instead of someone else? Do you offer irresistible low prices, high-quality materials, innovative products, or a sustainable vision? Highlight your strengths and tell a concise but touching story with your business plan.

Detail how you are going to market your offerings in your business plan as well. From your goals and budget to the metrics and KPIs you are going to measure, write everything down. What types of marketing do you plan to utilize? While content marketing may make you an authority in your industry, social media marketing may be better for audience engagement.

Outline your operations and management

Describe your business structure or business model in your business plan. Not only does your business structure communicate how your business is legally recognized, but it also influences your day-to-day operations. Do you own an unincorporated business by yourself and have a sole proprietorship? Or do you run a limited liability company?

Additionally, outline the different positions within your business. Who is on your management team? How many departments do you have? Who are the key personnel? What are the responsibilities of each employee?

Create a financial plan

A financial plan holds you accountable and keeps you focused on your goals. Investors also want to see that your business' finances are something you have put a lot of thought into before giving you a loan.

In general, you’ll want to develop a budget and project your sales and revenue. Include numbers on the sales operation , profit margins, cash flow, customer acquisition cost, and debt ratio of your business.

Write an executive summary

Having an executive summary for your business plan is more important than you think. Many investors don’t have the time to go through every business plan that lands on their desk. For the most part, it’s common practice to look at the executive summary of a business plan before deciding whether to continue reading.

This means your executive summary has to be immediately interesting and straight to the point. Make it as concise as possible, summarizing the key points of your business plan. Typically, it’s best to include a short company description, your purpose and goals, your target market, and your financial projections. Remember to include stats to back up your claims.

Review and revise your business plan

Don’t be hasty and submit the first draft of your business plan as soon as you finish writing it. A solid business plan takes time to perfect. Seek feedback from your advisors and mentors. Then, implement their recommendations in your business plan. Always remember to edit and revise.

Continuously update and improve your business plan

Creating a business plan is a great way to take stock of the big picture of your business. Thinking through your legal and operational structure , your financials, your marketing strategies, and more will help guide you to success and profit. It's also a concise way to pique the interest of and inspire confidence in outsiders you want to impress, like potential hires or investors.

If you're starting a new business, a well-thought-out business plan can help you see which areas need more attention so you can iron out any potential problems before diving in. For an existing business, creating an updated business plan can help you analyze your success, set new goals, and stay on track.

Need more help writing a business plan? Check out Mailchimp's Marketing Library for inspiration and examples . If you're looking to level up your marketing strategy as a part of your business planning, try Mailchimp's email marketing software .

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• May 6, 2019

Key Considerations When Writing a Business Plan for Your Startup

• --> Written by Nick Price

Steve Jobs said, “If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.”

Starting a business is an exciting venture! It takes a lot of time, dedication and perseverance. The emotional and financial payoffs can be memorable.

Every business needs a business plan no matter how large or small it begins. Writing a business plan isn’t a difficult task. To write a good business plan takes a lot of thought and consideration. There are many templates available to help you get started. Think beyond the blank lines to how you can customize your business plan so that you can really make it your own.

There are countless things to consider as you prepare to write your business plan that will have a major impact on the final result.

If your business plan includes forming a board of directors, it’s wise to factor the cost of a BoardEffect board management software system into your plans to help your business get off the ground based on sound good corporate governance principles.

Here are a few things to give you some food for thought before you get started writing your business plan:

Key Considerations for Startup Businesses

It’s been said that timing is everything, and there’s certainly a lot of truth to that when it comes to deciding the best time to launch your business. Starting a business is incredibly time-consuming in the early months, so it’s wise to consider whether your lifestyle will allow you to dedicate the necessary time to pursuing a successful startup.

Think about what is going on in your life and how that may (or may not) change in the next few years. If you’re getting married, having a child or dealing with a debilitating illness, it might not be the best time to launch a startup.

Finances play a big role in timing a startup business . Do you have the funds to start a company? Do you have a plan for how to obtain startup funding? Will you be quitting a job that currently pays the bulk of your bills?

If you’re ready to go, complete your business plan, make those important decisions and stick by them!

Be sure to bear down on your budget. Large chunks of startup money whittle away quickly. Think through your startup and maintenance expenses thoroughly so you know what to expect. Get advice from other business owners and account for every expense and every penny.

If you lack discipline, starting a business might not be for you. You’ll need to form a budget and stick to it. Set goals for the day, week and month until you settle on a good flow. Establish benchmarks and put in overtime as needed. Don’t forget to think about work/life balance so you don’t burn out before you get started.

Sharpen your social skills. Build on your current network or get started building a new one. Talk up your new business at every opportunity.

Be sure to tie up all loose ends at the end of each day. If you don’t know how to do something, take the necessary steps to figure it out. Be flexible. There may be more than one way to do something. Don’t be afraid to step outside of the box and try something new.

Parts of a Business Plan

Writing a business plan is as easy as following directions or making a recipe. A business plan has distinct parts with specific instructions. The following is an outline for a standard business plan.

The Executive Summary

The Executive Summary is a one- to four-page summary that spells out the key points that you will describe in each section of the business plan that follows. The Executive Summary should stand alone as its own separate document.

Business Overview

The Business Overview heads up the first page of your business plan. This part of the business plan describes your business. It should include your business’s legal structure, a short history of how you formed your business, the type of business and the location. The Business Overview should also include a description of the means of how you will do business, whether it’s a brick-and-mortar store, the internet, mail order, a subscription box or something else.

Operations Plan

The Operations Plan provides a brief explanation of how the business will function. Describe the physical setup, who will fulfill various responsibilities and who will tend to certain tasks.

Market Analysis

The next section is the Market Analysis. Provide a brief overview of the market as a whole. Graphs, charts and infographics may be useful to paint an accurate picture of your business, at it will be in the scope of the industry. Clearly define your target market and how you plan to reach them.

Products and Services

In this section, you will provide a description of your products or services. Classify and categorize them and provide a succinct description of each.

Sales and Marketing

This is the place to outline your pricing and sales information. Describe your reasons for why you believe these are the best price points and what will attract your target audience to your products or services. Describe your plans for the marketing and advertising efforts that will lead you to your target audience.

Competitive Analysis

Figure out who your direct and indirect competitors are and analyze their strengths and weaknesses. Describe your plans to gain an edge over your competition.

Management Team

Describe in this section who your top leaders will be. Provide biographical information on all key staff.

Financial Plan

Outline the amount needed to start and maintain the business. Project how much will be required to maintain the business for the next two to five years. Describe how you plan to use the funds and whether you have a plan for additional funding. The costs for your board portal go in this section as a business expense. Carefully think through all business costs, including business supplies, business expenses, salaries, insurance costs, promotional expenses, marketing and any other financial information.

Projections

Write up income statements with financial projections for at least two or three years.

Finally, attach all supporting documents to your business plan. Include biographies of key managers, articles or media on the company, and any other relevant documents.

A board management software system such as BoardEffect is essential to a successful business. The portal is highly secure and provides unlimited cloud-based document storage for all of your startup documents. It’s a valuable tool that will help you keep your company in legal compliance and assist you in getting off the ground on the best possible footing. BoardEffect commits to adding innovative solutions as your business evolves to support business growth now and in the future.

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Free Business Plan Template for Small Businesses (2024)

Use this free business plan template to write your business plan quickly and efficiently.

A good business plan is essential to successfully starting your business —  and the easiest way to simplify the work of writing a business plan is to start with a business plan template.

You’re already investing time and energy in refining your business model and planning your launch—there’s no need to reinvent the wheel when it comes to writing a business plan. Instead, to help build a complete and effective plan, lean on time-tested structures created by other  entrepreneurs and startups. 

Ahead, learn what it takes to create a solid business plan and download Shopify's free business plan template to get started on your dream today. 

What this free business plan template includes

• Executive summary
• Company overview
• Products or services offered
• Market analysis
• Marketing plan
• Logistics and operations plan
• Financial plan

This business plan outline is designed to ensure you’re thinking through all of the important facets of starting a new business. It’s intended to help new business owners and entrepreneurs consider the full scope of running a business and identify functional areas they may not have considered or where they may need to level up their skills as they grow.

That said, it may not include the specific details or structure preferred by a potential investor or lender. If your goal with a business plan is to secure funding , check with your target organizations—typically banks or investors—to see if they have business plan templates you can follow to maximize your chances of success.

Our free business plan template includes seven key elements typically found in the traditional business plan format:

1. Executive summary

This is a one-page summary of your whole plan, typically written after the rest of the plan is completed. The description section of your executive summary will also cover your management team, business objectives and strategy, and other background information about the brand. 

2. Company overview

This section of your business plan will answer two fundamental questions: “Who are you?” and “What do you plan to do?” Answering these questions clarifies why your company exists, what sets it apart from others, and why it’s a good investment opportunity. This section will detail the reasons for your business’s existence, its goals, and its guiding principles.

3. Products or services offered

What you sell and the most important features of your products or services. It also includes any plans for intellectual property, like patent filings or copyright. If you do market research for new product lines, it will show up in this section of your business plan.

4. Market analysis

This section includes everything from estimated market size to your target markets and competitive advantage. It’ll include a competitive analysis of your industry to address competitors’ strengths and weaknesses. Market research is an important part of ensuring you have a viable idea.

5. Marketing plan

How you intend to get the word out about your business, and what strategic decisions you’ve made about things like your pricing strategy. It also covers potential customers’ demographics, your sales plan, and your metrics and milestones for success.

6. Logistics and operations plan

Everything that needs to happen to turn your raw materials into products and get them into the hands of your customers.

7. Financial plan

It’s important to include a look at your financial projections, including both revenue and expense projections. This section includes templates for three key financial statements: an income statement, a balance sheet, and a cash-flow statement . You can also include whether or not you need a business loan and how much you’ll need.

Business plan examples

What do financial projections look like on paper? How do you write an executive summary? What should your company description include?  Business plan examples  can help answer some of these questions and transform your business idea into an actionable plan.

Professional business plan example

Inside our template, we’ve filled out a sample business plan featuring a fictional ecommerce business . 

The sample is set up to help you get a sense of each section and understand how they apply to the planning and evaluation stages of a business plan. If you’re looking for funding, this example won’t be a complete or formal look at business plans, but it will give you a great place to start and notes about where to expand.

Lean business plan example

A lean business plan format is a shortened version of your more detailed business plan. It’s helpful when modifying your plan for a specific audience, like investors or new hires. 

Also known as a one-page business plan, it includes only the most important, need-to-know information, such as:

• Company description
• Key members of your team
• Customer segments

💡 Tip: For a step-by-step guide to creating a lean business plan (including a sample business plan), read our guide on how to create a lean business plan .

Benefits of writing a solid business plan

It’s tempting to dive right into execution when you’re excited about a new business or side project, but taking the time to write a thorough business plan and get your thoughts on paper allows you to do a number of beneficial things:

• Test the viability of your business idea. Whether you’ve got one business idea or many, business plans can make an idea more tangible, helping you see if it’s truly viable and ensure you’ve found a target market. 
• Plan for your next phase. Whether your goal is to start a new business or scale an existing business to the next level, a business plan can help you understand what needs to happen and identify gaps to address.
• Clarify marketing strategy, goals, and tactics. Writing a business plan can show you the actionable next steps to take on a big, abstract idea. It can also help you narrow your strategy and identify clear-cut tactics that will support it.
• Scope the necessary work. Without a concrete plan, cost overruns and delays are all but certain. A business plan can help you see the full scope of work to be done and adjust your investment of time and money accordingly.
• Hire and build partnerships. When you need buy-in from potential employees and business partners, especially in the early stages of your business, a clearly written business plan is one of the best tools at your disposal. A business plan provides a refined look at your goals for the business, letting partners judge for themselves whether or not they agree with your vision.
• Secure funds. Seeking financing for your business—whether from venture capital, financial institutions, or Shopify Capital —is one of the most common reasons to create a business plan.

Why you should you use a template for a business plan

A business plan can be as informal or formal as your situation calls for, but even if you’re a fan of the back-of-the-napkin approach to planning, there are some key benefits to starting your plan from an existing outline or simple business plan template.

No blank-page paralysis

A blank page can be intimidating to even the most seasoned writers. Using an established business planning process and template can help you get past the inertia of starting your business plan, and it allows you to skip the work of building an outline from scratch. You can always adjust a template to suit your needs.

Guidance on what to include in each section

If you’ve never sat through a business class, you might never have created a SWOT analysis or financial projections. Templates that offer guidance—in plain language—about how to fill in each section can help you navigate sometimes-daunting business jargon and create a complete and effective plan.

Knowing you’ve considered every section

In some cases, you may not need to complete every section of a startup business plan template, but its initial structure shows you you’re choosing to omit a section as opposed to forgetting to include it in the first place.

Tips for creating a successful business plan

There are some high-level strategic guidelines beyond the advice included in this free business plan template that can help you write an effective, complete plan while minimizing busywork.

Understand the audience for your plan

If you’re writing a business plan for yourself in order to get clarity on your ideas and your industry as a whole, you may not need to include the same level of detail or polish you would with a business plan you want to send to potential investors. Knowing who will read your plan will help you decide how much time to spend on it.

Know your goals

Understanding the goals of your plan can help you set the right scope. If your goal is to use the plan as a roadmap for growth, you may invest more time in it than if your goal is to understand the competitive landscape of a new industry.

Take it step by step

Writing a 10- to 15-page document can feel daunting, so try to tackle one section at a time. Select a couple of sections you feel most confident writing and start there—you can start on the next few sections once those are complete. Jot down bullet-point notes in each section before you start writing to organize your thoughts and streamline the writing process.

Maximize your business planning efforts

Planning is key to the financial success of any type of business , whether you’re a startup, non-profit, or corporation.

To make sure your efforts are focused on the highest-value parts of your own business planning, like clarifying your goals, setting a strategy, and understanding the target market and competitive landscape, lean on a business plan outline to handle the structure and format for you. Even if you eventually omit sections, you’ll save yourself time and energy by starting with a framework already in place.

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Business plan template FAQ

What is the purpose of a business plan.

The purpose of your business plan is to describe a new business opportunity or an existing one. It clarifies the business strategy, marketing plan, financial forecasts, potential providers, and more information about the company.

How do I write a simple business plan?

• Choose a business plan format, such as a traditional or a one-page business plan. 
• Find a business plan template.
• Read through a business plan sample.
• Fill in the sections of your business plan.

What is the best business plan template?

If you need help writing a business plan, Shopify’s template is one of the most beginner-friendly options you’ll find. It’s comprehensive, well-written, and helps you fill out every section.

What are the 5 essential parts of a business plan?

The five essential parts of a traditional business plan include:

• Executive summary: This is a brief overview of the business plan, summarizing the key points and highlighting the main points of the plan.
• Business description: This section outlines the business concept and how it will be executed.
• Market analysis: This section provides an in-depth look at the target market and how the business will compete in the marketplace.
• Financial plan: This section details the financial projections for the business, including sales forecasts, capital requirements, and a break-even analysis.
• Management and organization: This section describes the management team and the organizational structure of the business.

Are there any free business plan templates?

There are several free templates for business plans for small business owners available online, including Shopify’s own version. Download a copy for your business.

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• Business Planning

Ask The Experts: How Long Should A Business Plan Be?

Business planning can be confusing, and one of the questions that entrepreneurs often ponder is, “how long should a business plan be?”

Asking around doesn’t seem to help much. One camp of people believes that a business plan should be a single page, while the other camp believes that a business plan should be comprehensive and extremely detailed.

The truth is, there is no perfect answer to this question. A plan should be as long as is needed to fulfill its purpose – and not everyone has the same objective when developing a business plan.

Each business plan is unique. While some plans may be text-heavy and go into deep detail with research about its market, others may use graphics to get their points across. The way a business plan writer presents their information can drastically affect the overall length of their business plan.

Does business plan length matter? Yes, but the length of your business plan is highly dependent upon your business, your audience, your writing style, and the type of plan you are developing.

The One-Page Business Plan

Over the last several years, the one-page business plan has become more and more popular as an introduction tool. Very similar to a standard executive summary, a one-page business plan summarizes the important points of the business into a single page. This  business plan format  is extremely digestible but isn’t acceptable for all situations.  

The most applicable scenario for a one-page business plan is for introducing an investor (or another party) to a business that they are unfamiliar with. With only one page, it isn’t too time-consuming for them to read, and provides just enough information to spark their curiosity.

When building your one-page business plan, it is important to realize that a single page does not leave much room for extreme detail. With a one-pager, you will have to choose the elements that are most important and the information that will best describe your business to drive the interest of readers.

However, for an investor who is already curious about your business and seeking to learn about it in detail, a one-page business plan is often not enough. Unfortunately, a business plan of this length does not provide enough context to get into the fine details of your overall strategy.

Is a one-page business plan right for you? Consider the following pros and cons.

• Easy to put together quickly when in a pinch.
• Provides just enough content for readers to easily digest.
• Allows entrepreneurs to explain the market problem, their solution and their strategy for reaching the market.
• Often does not provide enough context for readers to fully understand your business.
• If investors are interested after reading the one-pager, they will likely request a more comprehensive business plan.
• A one-page business plan doesn’t provide enough research and won’t prove the feasibility of a company.

The Mini Business Plan

A “mini business plan” is typically around 1-10 pages and provides much of the same information as a comprehensive business plan. However, the information is condensed and minimizes all fine details and explanations.

A mini business plan cuts to the chase, often using bullet points to fulfill the section. While it includes some of the same information, it doesn’t replace a comprehensive plan. It is perfect in a situation where more detail is required to prove the feasibility of the business but immense detail is not yet necessary.

For example, if an entrepreneur has already shared their one-page plan, but the investor requests more information, a mini business plan can be sent. This version will include more extensive information including the problem, solution, marketing strategy, financial projections, and financial requirements.

Is a mini business plan right for you? Consider the following pros and cons.

• Much more inclusive than a one-pager, but easier to digest than a comprehensive business plan.
• Provides a better balance between document length and business information.
• Can be written within several days.
• Meant for brevity. Does not give enough room to thoroughly explain the major points within the plan.
• Typically excludes certain information such as an operational strategy, exit strategy, and etc.
• Provides a strong introduction to the business, but does not typically include enough research or background information to prove feasibility.

The Comprehensive Business Plan

Comprehensive business plans are full-scale plans that can be anywhere from 15-35 pages and beyond. This business plan gives readers a full view of the business including the market problem, the solution, company mission, objectives and goals, marketing strategy, competitive analysis, operational strategy, financial projections, management team, financial ask, and more.

A comprehensive plan begins with an executive summary (similar to the one-page business plan) and then expands on the summary with details and supporting information. This plan tells the story of the business, connects the entire strategy together, and provides the necessary research to validate the entire idea.

However, comprehensive business plans have their place. Virtually no one will read a 35-page document with no prior knowledge of the business. Instead, these business plans are best given on request, and after a one-page or mini-business plan has already been sent. When  raising seed funding , a comprehensive business plan provides investors with a full scope of the business.

Is writing a comprehensive business plan right for you? Consider the following pros and cons.

• Provides the most detail and information with supporting research and data using text, pie charts , and other visual aids.
• Examines every aspect of the business with a solid go-to-market strategy.
• Gives the most context and answers reader’s questions with full detail.
• Readers may not read through the entire plan and flip directly to specific sections.
• Comprehensive plans require thorough research and preparation and may take weeks to fully complete.
• Plans must be extremely informative and be presented in a way that captures the reader’s attention. If they get bored while reading, they may miss important points.

What Type of Plan Do You Need?

Many entrepreneurs only complete one business plan, and they send that one business plan out for every situation. Unfortunately, this is not an effective method. Instead, entrepreneurs should have all three types of business plans in their arsenal and be able to supply the right business plan when needed. The length of your plan isn’t what’s most important – knowing what type of plan to use, and when, is what will give you an advantage when seeking funding.

Whether you need a one-pager, a mini-plan, or a full-scale comprehensive business plan, we can help. Our experts have written hundreds of winning business plans for startups around the world. We’d love to help you, too.  Contact us  today and let’s write your investor-ready business plan!

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How long should a business plan be? Mistakes and tips

Table of contents, how long should a business plan be, #1. correctly format your plan, #2. create different size versions, #3. adapt the business plan to the reader, #4. use graphics wisely, #5. ask for feedback, mistakes of a business plan length, the business plan for you.

If you are wondering “ how long should a business plan be?” , you must know that it would depend on your short-, medium- and long-term objectives. Asking strategic questions as: “what is your main goal?” and “how to achieve it?” will help you to clarify your business idea and will determine the length of your business plan .

Remember the main purpose of a business plan is to correctly scale or grow a business , meaning to efficiently prepare a plan for future business growth , where it becomes both economically and operationally optimal.

Creating a business plan is one of the most arduous parts of starting a company and has to be done with the utmost diligence. This, of course, presents many challenges that if not taken into consideration can create many missed opportunities for a company . n this article you’ll be able to understand which mistakes to avoid and you’ll learn some tips for creating the correct Business Action Plan (BAP).

There is no precise answer to this question. The correct standard length of a business plan does not exist ; it all depends on your company's planned objectives; whether it is a big company, startup, etc. The length of your business plan is up to you, however, it is important for a business plan to contain the following:

• cover page,
• table of contents,
• executive summary,
• company description,
• market analysis,
• balance sheets,
• financial projections.

Tips for an adequate length business plan:

Formatting your action plan allows you to be organized and not include useless information, which only makes the document busy and not reader-friendly. Including precise information in a uniform way:

• enables readers a more pleasant experience ,
• allows them to easily localize precise information .
• increases audience engagement and the possibilities of a more positive outcome .

Because a BAP serves as the company's introduction, it is imperative to hold different length versions of the business plan in order to supply it when the occasion arises:

• a long (25 to 35 pages),
• medium (15 to 25 pages),
• version (5 to 15 pages). of the plan.

An example of this is, if a company wants to get a venture capitalist , it should primarily show him/her an executive summary of the plan, in order to not overwhelm him/her with information, but rapidly captivate his/her attention. Once this happens, the company should send the long version for a detailed action plan.

Going hand in hand with the previous tip, if you want to effectively captivate the reader , and not have them just briefly skimming through it, it’s important to adapt your plan for the type of audience you have . Whether you are demonstrating it to a financial institution, a marketing specialist, or a potential customer for your product and service .

For example , if trying to get the first attention of a potential investor, they typically only need a summary of your product offer, and a detailed description of your cash flow projections , (sales, budget, etc.). This allows you to hold their attention and interest them in what they specifically have a passion for.

Because business plans are so precise and tend to contain copious amounts of information, it is important to utilize graphics wisely . Graphics are good tools for explaining data and summarising information. However, the excessive use of this tool can be harmful to particular types of readers.

Not everyone is comfortable with pages full of data and no explanation and so for a successful BAP, it is imperative to have the correct balance between graphics and images.

The most recommended tip for an adequate length is to get feedback from reliable sources . It is always a good practice to understand other people's perception of a person's work. Feedback allows people a trial of how targeted readers can react to reading your business plan , it helps you understand the different points of view, new ideas, and opens a space for improvement.

According to the feedback, you’ll understand how engaging your BAP is, whether you have to shorten it, add information, or be more precise. These are key suggestions that can lead you towards a successful action plan.

An effective business plan takes more into account than the overall proposition of the company. If a plan is not well established, doesn’t contain the essential elements, and doesn’t offer captivating information, the audience won’t continue to read it , will get bored, and won’t effectuate any initiatives .

Some common mistakes to avoid of a BAP are:

• not giving enough precision ,
• excessive or minimal use of words ,
• wrong targeted audience ,
• being non-realistic about financial projections ,
• excessive use of graphics ,
• not being adapted for skimming ,
• being out of order .

Remember: an effective business plan must be appealing , easy to read , available to skim , and captivating, in order for the audience to be engaged with your action plan, thus getting positive results from your business.

It’s normal for companies to have an extensive business action plan . After all, it details a company's business model based on amp research, thus defending its value proposition in light of the global context data. However, it is imperative to exercise different versions of the same plan in order for the reading parties to be instantly and easily engaged .

This will allow the company a versatile and straight to the point proposition for their audience, captivating different types of readers and adapting their plan towards their main areas of interests. Furthermost, positioning itself as an efficient company that does their homework and research for optimal delivery.

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Should You Stick to the Business Plan or Change It?

5 min. read

Updated April 9, 2024

Is it time for plan B?

The best and most useful kind of business planning is not just a use-once business plan, but rather a continuous process.

The first business plan is just the first step. For the rest of your business’s life, you review the plan once a month. Compare actual results to what you had planned, determine what steps to take to optimize, and revise the plan.

You’ll find that continuous business planning helps in many ways:

• It helps maintain focus
• You’ll be able to align the team with priorities
• You can address changes in the marketplace as they happen
• It helps you tune strategy and tactics to what’s working and what’s not working
• It starts with knowing what happened

Review means comparing what actually happened to what you expected. Business plans are always wrong, so there will always be a difference between the plan and the actual results.

For the actual business numbers, such as sales, expenses, and such, accountants call the difference between the estimates in the plan and the actual results variance. Variance analysis looks at these differences to determine where the numbers are different, and in what direction.

What’s important here is not the accounting or the calculations, but rather the resulting management. You look for indications of problems or unexpected positives, so you can react.

In the illustration above, revenue is lower than planned and expenses are higher. Operating income is less than planned. Cash and cash flow are improving, which is good news. However, that may be because this company is stretching out its payments, averaging about six months, which is seven times more than in their plan. So accounts payable is 25 percent higher than planned. That’s good because it’s helping with financing and keeping money in the bank, but may also be bad because it could be spoiling reputation and relations with vendors.

The point is the management, not the hard numbers. What should be done, given these results, to make the company better?

• The monthly review meeting

The monthly review meeting is absolutely essential to real business planning— Lean Planning . The real value of business planning is the decisions it causes, and the management that results; and for that, you need not just a plan but a regular monthly review to track results and revise as necessary.

And the toughest part of the review meeting is this crucial question: Do we stick to the plan, or do we change it?

That comes up often because in the real world things never go exactly as planned. Business plans are supposed to set goals, tracking, milestones, and expectations.

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The review meeting is when you ask:

• What happened? What went right and what went wrong?
• If I change the plan, then is my plan (forecast) versus actual result valid?
• Doesn’t it take consistent execution to make strategy work?

You won’t find some set of best practices to make this easy. You’ll end up deciding on a case-by-case basis.

• The arguments for staying the course with your plan

I consider this an awkward, difficult fact about business strategy:

It’s better to have a mediocre strategy consistently applied over three or more years, than a series of brilliant strategies, each applied for six months or so.

Too often, management teams get bored with strategy before it’s had a chance to be effective. I was consulting with Apple Computers during the 1980s when the Macintosh platform became the foundation for what we now call “desktop publishing.” We take it for granted today, but back in 1985 when the first laser printers came out, it was like magic. Suddenly, a single person in a home office could produce documents that looked professional.

What I saw in Apple at that time was smart young managers getting bored with desktop publishing long before the market even understood what it was. They started looking at multimedia instead. They were attracted to new technologies and innovation. As a result, they lost the concentration on desktop publishing and lost a lot of market potential as Windows vendors moved in with competitive products.

That argues for staying the course. Strategy takes time.

• The arguments for revising the plan

On the other hand, this is also true:

There is no virtue in sticking to the plan for its own stake. Nobody wants the futility of trying to implement a flawed plan.

Generally accepted best practices have changed over the three decades I’ve been focusing on business planning.

Back in the 80s, business timeframes stretched longer and many business leaders recommended sticking to the plan. But times have changed. You’ve probably dealt with the problem of people doing something “because that’s the plan” when in fact it just isn’t working. I certainly have. That kind of thinking is one reason why some web companies survived the first dotcom boom and others didn’t. It also explains why some business experts question the value of the business plan.

This is sloppy thinking, in my opinion—confusing the value of the planning with the mistake of implementing a plan without change or review, just because it’s the plan.

• How to decide: Stay the course, or revise the plan?

This consistency versus revision dilemma is one of the best and most obvious reasons for having people—owners and managers—run the business planning, rather than algorithms or artificial intelligence. It takes people to deal with this critical judgment.

One good way to deal with it is by focusing on the assumptions. Identify the key assumptions and whether or not they’ve changed. When assumptions have changed, there is no virtue whatsoever in sticking to the plan you built on top of them.

Use your common sense . Were you wrong about the whole thing, or just about timing? Has something else happened, like market problems, disruptive technology, or new competition, that has changed your basic assumptions?

Do not revise your plan glibly . Remember that some of the best strategies take longer to implement. Remember also that you’re living with it every day; it is naturally going to seem old and boring to you long before the target audience gets it. But do revise your plan if it is out of date, inaccurate, or based on false assumptions.

That’s why you have the plan in the first place: to manage your business better.

Tim Berry is the founder and chairman of Palo Alto Software , a co-founder of Borland International, and a recognized expert in business planning. He has an MBA from Stanford and degrees with honors from the University of Oregon and the University of Notre Dame. Today, Tim dedicates most of his time to blogging, teaching and evangelizing for business planning.

Table of Contents

• You’ll find that continuous business planning helps in many ways:

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How Long Should a Business Plan Be?

The short answer is “as long as it needs to be”.  The length of your business plan depends on several factors such as who your audience is, the complexity of your product or service, and how long it takes to prove your mastery of the market.

In similar articles, you’ll hear things like this: “Your business plan should be as long as it takes to convince the reader that your company is worth investing in.”  This is true if your only objective is to secure an investment, but research shows that people use business plans for so much more than that.

In this article, I’ll answer the general question of, “How long should a business plan be?” based on who your audience is, and what their requirements are.

Internal Audience

An internal audience like yourself, a small team, or even a medium to a large group can benefit from a lean business plan, standard business plan or a comprehensive business plan.

A lean business plan may only be a page or two in length but can be incredibly helpful in developing the leadership qualities of your management team.

Business Plan, not an Operations Manual

It’s fascinating when it comes to standard or comprehensive business plans.  Most people believe that startups only write long business plans when they’re writing for an outside audience.  This is completely inaccurate, especially for startups with a complex product, or service.

What happens is the founders write word for word how their technology or intellectual property works.  Remember, a business plan requires a summarization of operations, not a focus on the actual operational plan.

Your business plan should dial in on the strategic direction of the company.  Any detailed explanations of IP, or specific processes should be done separately.

External Audience With Criteria

Some audiences will require your business plan to be a certain length.  It’s important to review these criteria to ensure you’re meeting all of their requirements.  Here are a few examples:

• The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) requests basic business plans to be 38 to 50 pages in length, and complex plans to be 80 to 100 pages.

https://www.sba.gov/offices/district/az/phoenix/resources/sba-recommended-business-plans-length#:~:text=This%20is%20one%20of%20the,on%20their%20own%20personal%20perspective.

• The Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs requires a business plan to be 10-30 pages in length, typed and double spaced, with adequate margins for adding notes or questions

https://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/busdev/facts/08-051.htm

• The DECA International Business Plan requirements are that the body of the written entry must be limited to 30 numbered pages, including the appendix

https://www.deca.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/HS_IBP_Guidelines1.pdf

• Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program encourages candidates to provide business plans not exceeding 10 pages plus required appendices.

https://www.alberta.ca/assets/documents/lbr-ainp-business-plan-guidelines.pdf

●        Yahoo Small Business suggests a business plan can range from 20 to 50 pages in total.

https://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/advisor/resource-center/does-business-plan-140000974/

As you can see every audience is drastically different.  That is why your business plan’s length should mirror the audience it’s going in front of.

External Audience With No Criteria

In the situation that your business plan is for an external audience that hasn’t set forth any criteria, simply follow this procedure:

• Do all the research you can to ensure that your business plan answers every question it should.  Ensure your content is based on evidence.
• Once completed, revise your business plan for readability.  Is your business plan easy to read?
• Get your business plan in front of people you know: small business owners, friends, family, people with English degrees.  Get the advice you need, not just what you want to hear.
• Next, you can contact our team.  We’ll peer-review your business plan and offer our thoughts based on your goals and objectives.

Every business plan should be written with a consideration of who the audience is.  A bank may focus on financial projections, while an investor might be more focused on the life-cycle of the market.  A great business plan starts with a clear understanding of the audience, their requirements and criteria.

Use Charts and Graphs

That’s right.  Business plans with strictly text are boring, and rarely ever get the point across.  By using charts, graphs, and other visuals you can illustrate your concept while keeping your audience engaged.

The Average Length of a Business Plan

A standard business plan is usually 2,600 to 4,000 words in length, which is around 10-15 pages of text.

A comprehensive business plan can be anywhere from 4,000 to 26,000 words, which is equivalent to anywhere from 15-100 words in length.

“Our best approximation of the average length of a business plan is 3,200 words throughout 12-15 pages.”

Our main takeaways are to:

Excite your readers, and keep them focused on your idea.  Speak to your audience. Figure out what will be most compelling to them, while ensuring your content is evidence-based.

More important to length is the content inside your business plan.  Some long plans may communicate very little, while some short plans will communicate the essence of the business more effectively and with fewer words.

Most audiences skim business plans.  This means you never know where your audience’s eyes will land; therefore, every sentence must be your best sentence.  To help your audience with their skim you should:

Use Headers To Help Them Navigate

Headers will give your audience an idea of the business plan’s structure, so they can dial in on their areas of interest.

One option is to write your plan at a length you’re confident with, provide it to your audience, and allow them to suggest areas that can be expanded upon.

So, how long should a business plan really be?  A winning business plan is not based on its length, but rather on what’s inside.  A good rule is do not make your business plan longer than it needs to be.

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What is a business plan?

1. write an executive summary, 2. describe your company, 3. state your business goals, 4. describe your products and services, 5. do your market research, 6. outline your marketing and sales plan, 7. perform a business financial analysis, 8. make financial projections, 9. summarize how your company operates, 10. add any additional information to an appendix, business plan tips and resources.

A business plan outlines your business’s financial goals and explains how you’ll achieve them over the next three to five years. Here’s a step-by-step guide to writing a business plan that will offer a strong, detailed road map for your business.

ZenBusiness

A business plan is a document that explains what your business does, how it makes money and who its customers are. Internally, writing a business plan should help you clarify your vision and organize your operations. Externally, you can share it with potential lenders and investors to show them you’re on the right track.

Business plans are living documents; it’s OK for them to change over time. Startups may update their business plans often as they figure out who their customers are and what products and services fit them best. Mature companies might only revisit their business plan every few years. Regardless of your business’s age, brush up this document before you apply for a business loan .

» Need help writing? Learn about the best business plan software .

This is your elevator pitch. It should include a mission statement, a brief description of the products or services your business offers and a broad summary of your financial growth plans.

Though the executive summary is the first thing your investors will read, it can be easier to write it last. That way, you can highlight information you’ve identified while writing other sections that go into more detail.

» MORE: How to write an executive summary in 6 steps

Next up is your company description. This should contain basic information like:

Your business’s registered name.

Address of your business location .

Names of key people in the business. Make sure to highlight unique skills or technical expertise among members of your team.

Your company description should also define your business structure — such as a sole proprietorship, partnership or corporation — and include the percent ownership that each owner has and the extent of each owner’s involvement in the company.

Lastly, write a little about the history of your company and the nature of your business now. This prepares the reader to learn about your goals in the next section.

» MORE: How to write a company overview for a business plan

The third part of a business plan is an objective statement. This section spells out what you’d like to accomplish, both in the near term and over the coming years.

If you’re looking for a business loan or outside investment, you can use this section to explain how the financing will help your business grow and how you plan to achieve those growth targets. The key is to provide a clear explanation of the opportunity your business presents to the lender.

For example, if your business is launching a second product line, you might explain how the loan will help your company launch that new product and how much you think sales will increase over the next three years as a result.

» MORE: How to write a successful business plan for a loan

In this section, go into detail about the products or services you offer or plan to offer.

You should include the following:

An explanation of how your product or service works.

The pricing model for your product or service.

The typical customers you serve.

Your supply chain and order fulfillment strategy.

You can also discuss current or pending trademarks and patents associated with your product or service.

Lenders and investors will want to know what sets your product apart from your competition. In your market analysis section , explain who your competitors are. Discuss what they do well, and point out what you can do better. If you’re serving a different or underserved market, explain that.

Here, you can address how you plan to persuade customers to buy your products or services, or how you will develop customer loyalty that will lead to repeat business.

Include details about your sales and distribution strategies, including the costs involved in selling each product .

» MORE: R e a d our complete guide to small business marketing

If you’re a startup, you may not have much information on your business financials yet. However, if you’re an existing business, you’ll want to include income or profit-and-loss statements, a balance sheet that lists your assets and debts, and a cash flow statement that shows how cash comes into and goes out of the company.

Accounting software may be able to generate these reports for you. It may also help you calculate metrics such as:

Net profit margin: the percentage of revenue you keep as net income.

Current ratio: the measurement of your liquidity and ability to repay debts.

Accounts receivable turnover ratio: a measurement of how frequently you collect on receivables per year.

This is a great place to include charts and graphs that make it easy for those reading your plan to understand the financial health of your business.

This is a critical part of your business plan if you’re seeking financing or investors. It outlines how your business will generate enough profit to repay the loan or how you will earn a decent return for investors.

Here, you’ll provide your business’s monthly or quarterly sales, expenses and profit estimates over at least a three-year period — with the future numbers assuming you’ve obtained a new loan.

Accuracy is key, so carefully analyze your past financial statements before giving projections. Your goals may be aggressive, but they should also be realistic.

NerdWallet’s picks for setting up your business finances:

The best business checking accounts .

The best business credit cards .

The best accounting software .

Before the end of your business plan, summarize how your business is structured and outline each team’s responsibilities. This will help your readers understand who performs each of the functions you’ve described above — making and selling your products or services — and how much each of those functions cost.

If any of your employees have exceptional skills, you may want to include their resumes to help explain the competitive advantage they give you.

Finally, attach any supporting information or additional materials that you couldn’t fit in elsewhere. That might include:

Licenses and permits.

Equipment leases.

Bank statements.

Details of your personal and business credit history, if you’re seeking financing.

If the appendix is long, you may want to consider adding a table of contents at the beginning of this section.

How much do you need?

with Fundera by NerdWallet

We’ll start with a brief questionnaire to better understand the unique needs of your business.

Once we uncover your personalized matches, our team will consult you on the process moving forward.

Here are some tips to write a detailed, convincing business plan:

Avoid over-optimism: If you’re applying for a business bank loan or professional investment, someone will be reading your business plan closely. Providing unreasonable sales estimates can hurt your chances of approval.

Proofread: Spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors can jump off the page and turn off lenders and prospective investors. If writing and editing aren't your strong suit, you may want to hire a professional business plan writer, copy editor or proofreader.

Use free resources: SCORE is a nonprofit association that offers a large network of volunteer business mentors and experts who can help you write or edit your business plan. The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Small Business Development Centers , which provide free business consulting and help with business plan development, can also be a resource.

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How To Write A Business Plan

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If your dream is to be your own boss, to run your own company, there are lots of things you can do to get started on the path of entrepreneurship. A business degree can be crucial in helping you get started on the path to being a business owner. A degree helps you learn the business fundamentals you will need as a business owner. 

Beyond earning a degree in business, it’s important to set up your business to succeed from the get-go. That starts with a great business plan. Discover how to write a business plan to set your business up for success as soon as possible.

What is a business plan?

Simply put, a business plan is a document that acts as a roadmap or guide for your company. It outlines how you’re going to make your business work and the elements that it will need to succeed. It will give the details about how you will set up, run and grow your business. A business plan is used to help explain your business ideas to partners or investors. It’s a vital document to show others the backbone of your business, and how you intend to make it a success.

Traditionally business plans have been a formal document, but more often today businesses opt for a “lean business plan” which is simply some bullet points to help give direction to their company. Whether you want to write out a document that’s a few pages long, or rely on a bulleted list, a written business plan is crucial for your success. 

What should a business plan include?

The U.S. Small Business Administration has a list of what they say every business plan should include. Their list recommends:

Executive summary.

This is an overview of your business. An executive summary should include your mission statement, an overview of your product or service, and information about the leadership team. It should also include financial information about the company, especially if you’re asking for financing. 

Company description.

The description should go more in-depth about your company. Explain the problems your business can solve, the consumer and audience you plan to serve, and how you plan to meet their needs. It’s important to detail the competitive advantages your business has over similar businesses. Highlight important details that show how your business has specific strengths working for it. 

Market analysis.

This section needs to demonstrate that you have a good understanding of the industry and market. Look for trends and themes in the market research and identify how your company works with them. Identify competitors and their strengths, and how you can beat them at their game. It’s important that this section answers questions investors or partners may have about the overall market. 

Organization and management.

This section should explain how your company is structured, who runs it, and why that will work. You should detail the legal structure of your business here—whether you intend to run your company as a C or S corporation, form a general or limited partnership, or if you’re a sole proprietor or LLC. This information is crucial in helping readers understand how your company will work. An organizational chart will lay out who’s in charge of what at your organization. Include information of key members of your team and detail how they are vital to the organization’s success.  Tell your reader how your company will be structured and who will run it.

Service or product.

This section is where you can go into more detail about your product or service. Share why consumers need this product and how your company gives them what they want. Share plans for intellectual property, copyright, or patent filings. If you’re doing research and development about a product, detail what that looks like. This is the section where you can really explain the backbone of your business. 

Marketing and sales.

This section should talk specifically about how you’ll get and keep customers. Explain the different strategies you plan to employ to market your product or service, and how it will adapt based on your needs. It’s important to describe how a sale actually happens, through a website or in-person, etc. Financial projections will come through this section, so it’s important to thoroughly describe your marketing and sales strategies. 

Funding request.

If you’re asking for funding, this is the section where you detail your financial needs. This section should explain how much funding you’ll need over the next 5 years, and exactly how you plan to use that money. You want to specify the kind of funding you want, debt or equity, and the timeline for your funding. Talk about the specific use for your money, if you need to buy equipment, cover bills, pay salaries, etc. Include a description of your future financial plans as well, like how you’ll pay off the debt. 

Financial projections.

After you’ve asked for funding it’s important to provide financial information. Show that your business is stable and will be a financial success. Include income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements for the last five years if you have them. List collateral you have to put up against a loan to demonstrate that you have assets. Give a financial outlook for the next five years, including income forecasts and budgets. It’s important to break down projections in the first year to quarterly or monthly to really show how you’ll come out of the gate swinging. Make sure your projections match your funding requests correctly. Images like graphs and charts can really help make this section shine in your business plan. 

You may not need an appendix, but it can be a handy place to put supporting documents. Things like resumes, product pictures, references, licenses, permits, and other contracts are great assets to an appendix.

How to write a business plan.

Now that you understand what needs to be in your business plan, it’s time to start writing. It can be overwhelming to know how to start this process, but it doesn’t have to be! These tips will help you get to work in writing a successful business plan.

1. Decide the purpose of your plan . Are you asking for funding or for a partner? Is this just information for you? Will you need to show investors in the future? It’s vital to know the purpose of your business plan before you get down to writing it.

2. Research. Before you start writing, you need to put in the legwork and research. Learn about the industry, about competitors, about marketing strategies, and finances. You’ll need to spend a good amount of time learning and researching so you can write something accurate and beneficial for the organization.

3. Make an “about us” section. Many companies have an “about us” section on their website to help explain to consumers who they are. Writing this can be a great help as you go to write your business plan. You can make small tweaks and turn this element into your executive summary. This will help you get your feet wet as you start creating an official business plan.

4. Plan to adapt. You may need to adapt your business plan for different audiences. Identify which kinds of audiences you may need to show your plan to, and decide which elements need to be adaptable based on who will see it.

5. Show your passion. If you’re creating a business, it’s important that you believe in it and are passionate about its success. Your business plan should show your passion. Talk about why you care, put your heart into writing it so everyone reading it will see why they should care about your business too.

If you’ve decided that the path of entrepreneurship is right for you, a business plan is an important first step to creating your business. Take the skills you’ve learned from your business degree and put them into play while writing a solid business plan.

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Take a look at other articles from WGU. Our articles feature information on a wide variety of subjects, written with the help of subject matter experts and researchers who are well-versed in their industries. This allows us to provide articles with interesting, relevant, and accurate information. 

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Does your business plan need a push?

Writting a business plan can be a springboard exercise for your business, and it's not as difficult as people think. All it takes is a bit of method, and some efficient tools. The good news our free articles and paid course have you covered!

Resources on Business Plan Writing :

An article of the Accelerated MBA written by:

Antoine Martin (Ph.D) | Business coach

Is this article relevant? Share it & help someone!

In this article:

How long should a business plan be hint: smart is better than short.

How long should a business plan be? That question is typical, and every entrepreneur or business owner involved in a business plan writing process has to answer it sooner than later.

The stakes are high. If you consider that investors and bankers are permanently solicited and thus have a ton of business proposals on their desk (let alone in their inbox), then the quality, the ease of reading, and the length of a business plan are crucial. Not to say vital.

Is your business plan too long to read? You’re out.

Is it boring to read? Out.

Not visual enough? Out.

Not teasing enough? Out.

Not aligned with the code everyone expects you to follow?

Long story short? Business plan writing is a codified exercise, so your interlocutors will have specific (and standard) expectations as to what they want to read. And your job as the business owner is to provide them with just that.

Before getting into typical and ideal business plan lengths, let me give you a quick background reminder, though.

First, this article is part of a more extensive series of articles written to share  tips on how to write a business plan people will want to read . As business coaches, we repeatedly answer the same questions, and coming up with these resources felt logical. So please give them a look!

Second, in case the articles are not enough and you want to get your own business plan ready in no time, we also created  a very efficient business plan template and module (The Business Plan Builder)  to get you going fast, with two hours of business coaching videos, a template you can use immediately, automated financial tables and two designer-made renderings you’ll be able to adapt to your liking. The module will get you going immediately and pays for itself in no time. You have no excuse!

Back to our question now: how long should a business plan be?

In this article, we’ll give you various elements of answer.

We’ll answer the question the best we can, but we’ll also go through a brief reality check to tell you how long a typical business plan is (as compared to an ideal one) and how many pages yours should be if you want to give your business a chance with investors.

We’ll also talk briefly about the importance of pitching your operational plan in your business plan. Finally, we’ll conclude with some hints about the importance of storytelling.

Sounds good? Let’s get going.

The stake: How long should a business plan be?

So, how long should a business plan be, then? Well. Let us come back to the basics:  what is a business plan for? A business plan is an excuse to tell a story people about your business that people will want to remember.

How does that translate in terms of length? Your document should be long enough to convey your story and message. But it should also be short enough to keep people focused and attentive.

That’s not helping too much, we know. But read again. The answer is there (and in the next section, so keep reading).

Your document should be long enough to convey your story and message. If you get people excited about your project with just one page: fantastic. And if you need a few pages to get the same result, that’s fine too.

Your goal is to get people on board, so the stake is to pitch your story in just the right amount of words and pages needed to tease and get the excitement through. Once that occurs, your reader will ask you for more information, which gets you to second base. And then you’ll be able to get the relationship going.

However, there is no point in putting absolutely everything about your business in your business plan document. If the business plan is too long, you’ll lose your reader. And if the design is boring (i.e., black text on a white page), you’ll also lose the reader.

Having said that, the point is obviously not to start printing your business plan in blue on a pink background. It is to turn your business plan into something fancy to read. More on that later, but in short, you have everything to lose in not being concise and teasing!

So – how long is a business plan? Long enough to tease and turn people on. Short enough to keep them focused. That’s it. Period!

Okay, that’s still vague, so we’re going to give you the number you want. Keep reading.

Reality check: how long is a typical business plan, and how many pages should a business plan be?

Ready for the number you’re looking for?

Seven pages, plus the cover page (obviously) and the financial statements in an annex. That’s how long your business plan should be. Not less, not more. Here’s why.

So, how many pages should a business plan be?

As I’ve suggested before, your readers – investors and bankers – expect your business plan to match a code everyone in the industry abides by.

That code is there for a reason. It creates a standardized best practice that shows who’s done their research or not (insights on the investor’s side). And it gives business owners a framework to work with to structure their thinking (insights on the business owner’s side).

According to that code, your business plan should follow a precise outline and include the following seven points (and recommended pages):

• An executive summary
• A big picture presentation of the issue solved by the business idea
• A description of your offering (the products & services) and target market analysis
• A go-to-market strategy presentation (your business model, marketing plan…)
• An operations presentation (including the company description)
• A presentation of your management team
• Your financial plan & projections, plus the corresponding financial documents & cash flow projections

All of them. Not less, not more. Seven!

And, because you don’t want people to die out of boredom, you want each topic covered over one page tops! So, seven topics, seven pages. Plus a cover page and the financial tables, which, as we just said, can be provided in the annex.

If you want to learn more about  business plan outlines and formatting , we wrote an entire article on the topic – follow the link.

How long is a typical business plan?

In comparison, though, the typical business plan is long, bland, and boring.

Most business owners are not aware of the code part of the exercise. Therefore, they have no idea about what they are expected to do. So they think a bit, try and find a free template and write their thoughts without being too careful about the amount of text they’re using.

Walk a mile in your investor’s shoes: how’s that type of business plan looking to you?

Yes, exactly.

The good news, though, is that you have a chance to stand out from the crowd now that you know. So what are you waiting for? It’s time to get started!

Beware of the one-page business plan trap!

Right. Before moving on to the next step – let me finish this point with a short comment on one-page business plans.

Long story short? These can be highly efficient as teasers if (if if if) you have a real strategic plan for your business and you can really (really really really) defend that strategic plan. Otherwise, just a page will lack depth and will likely be pointless.

Or, said differently, the stake is not to do a quick and dirty plan on a page. Instead, it is first to build an elaborate plan that allows you to consider your options for real. And then, to go straight to the point on one page designed to sell your story and tease your reader so bad they’ll want to know more. The logic is really close to the one you’d typically want to use to  create the executive summary of a business plan . Can you see the difference?

To explore the topic in more depth, We’ve also published an article to explain  how to use one page business plans  (and why they can be a trap). Have a look and see for yourself!

In short: How many pages is a business plan?

• The typical business plan is usually way too long
• Your ideal business plan should be concise: it’s a pitch and a teaser!
• Aim for seven key topics, developed on seven pages. Period.

Pitching your operational plan in your business plan is critical.

So we just gave you a framework here: seven key topics, seven pages to tell a story and tease. But what’s the reader looking for exactly?

Again, it depends on who you are talking to.

Suppose you are looking to  write a business plan for a loan . In that case, your interlocutor is likely to be a banker – and their expectations are very specific. We dedicated an article to the topic (follow the link), so I’ll be brief.

A banker wants to see that the operational plan in your business plan will enable you to repay the loan asap. The point, therefore, is to make sure that your seven pages build confidence in your ability to deliver on that.

Now suppose that you are looking to  write an investor proposal . The perspective is dramatically different. An investor is not expecting you to repay a loan. Instead, they expect you to generate profit so they can get their money back a few years from now with an X factor as significant as possible.

There, the point is to show that  the operational plan in your business plan  is (beyond) likely to generate the drive needed to make a profit that makes their investment worthwhile.

As far as the length of your business plan document is concerned, your job is, therefore, to optimize the storytelling power of your presentation. Written and oral.

Again, the point is not to expend the document as much as needed to stuff everything inside it. Instead, it is to tweak and tailor your arguments to fit them nicely into your space. One page for one topic.

Ultimately, the goal is to tease and give people a reason to invite you to the next meeting, so be selective!

How to make the financial projections fit?

Financial projections are an essential component of your business plan  if you remember the list of topics and pages we provided earlier. Still, if you only have one page dedicated to the subject, how do you do? How do you fit all the financial tables into one page?

Well, the keyword we used earlier was ‘financial projections’, which is a matter of showing what targets you have in terms of turnover and EBITDA for the next three to five years.

Reminder: your turnover is the money that comes in, while the EBITDA is the profit leftover on your bank account after all the expenses are paid, but before the taxman claims their share. 

So, well, you could use that important page to throw in a graph showing both elements and a few other indicators. For example, your expected marketing plan budget, expected customer acquisition cost, expected margin or expected return on investment.

To go deeper, think about who your reader is.

If the business plan is written for a banker, show numbers related to your investment capacity and cashflow, and demonstrate your borrowing and repayment capacity.

If you are talking to investors, show that your financial estimates give your company some value and develop valuation numbers that show what’s in for the investors.

Note, however, that the financial statements and tables used to obtain your target numbers (Cashflow, P&L, and balance sheet) should not be displayed on your financial projections page. Instead, you can put them as annex documents at the end of the business plan.

Oh, and just in case you’re wondering how you’ll come up with those financial tables in the first place, we’re providing the automated spreadsheets you’ll need in our Business Plan Builder module – you know what to do!

Smart is better than short: focus on storytelling!

So, how long should a business plan be? How long should a startup business plan be? How many pages should a business plan be? What’s the ideal length of a business plan?

The questions are all the same, so the answer is also the same. To wrap things up, you’ll probably want to keep three key ideas in mind.

Idea one: make your business plan long enough to pass your message, but make it short enough to keep people focused.

Idea two: seven topics, seven pages, plus the financial information (the tables) in the annex. That’s it.

Your business plan should be a teaser , not a profitability report, so the focus should be on building storytelling. This is what business plans are about if you think about it. So, more than making yours short, make it smart!

Idea three: coming up with a short business plan usually requires a lot of business planning work. You first need to build a complete business plan that gets all your ideas laid down before summarizing everything into something straightforward. Sounds unfun, we know, but that’s also an excellent opportunity to stand on the table and take some needed perspective on your business, so why not give it a try?

Meet The Business Plan Builder: 2 hours of tutorial videos and the tools you need to get started

Now – If you are looking for a push to get started with everything we’ve talked about in this article, the  Impactified  Business Plan package was created for you! It’s built around over 2 hours of explanatory videos and comes with a template you’ll be able to use to:

• Figure out what you need to figure out – powerful, uh?
• Understand the business plan code!
• Write your business plan – with just the right amount of words and pages!
• Build your financial estimates – with automated tables!
• Create a visually appealing (designer-made!) document and deck people will want to read!

If you want to stop wasting your time, this is THE most simple business plan template, and you can’t afford to miss it!

Psss! Share this Article!

Topics related to How Long Should a Business Plan Be? Hint: Smart is Better Than Short!:

• How long should a business plan be?
• How long is a business plan? How many pages should a business plan be?
• Do I need a business plan software?
• Should I hire a business plan writer?

Need help with building & scaling your business?

At Impactified , we are on a mission to make you build, grow, and scale businesses you can be proud of, and we do that by making our business coaching expertise available to you, in person and through kick-ass self-coaching modules. You will love the experience either way, the only question is, what makes the most sense to you?

More Insights on Business Plan Writing

Financial Projections: How to write the financial plan in business plan

Hey coach! I’m writing a business plan and I’m wondering how to build the financial projections part of the document. What’s the importance of financial projections exactly – I mean, isn’t it absolute BS? How do I write the financial plan in business plan, and even more importantly, how can I make sense of all those messy tables? Can you help me understand this? Thanks in advance!

Do I Need a Business Plan Consultant? No, You Don’t!

Hey there Coach! I’m a small business owner and I need to find some support with my business plan. People suggested that I find a business plan consultant near me, but that’s a big cost and I’m not too sure about what to expect from that. What’s your opinion about business plan consultants in general? Is there any alternative you would highly recommend? Thanks!

How Much Does a Business Plan Cost? Just Under $100!

Hey coach! I was wondering – how much does a business plan cost? I need one, and I’m thinking about having it written for me, so I’d love your insights. Also, I’ve heard business plan writers cost a lot of money, so I’m interested if you have tips for writing a low-cost business plan! Thanks!

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• Business Guides

How long your business plan should be?

It’s a common question: How long should a business plan be? This is one of the most important questions to ask when you’re creating your business plan since it impacts how much time and effort you put into writing the document.

Introduction (3 to 5 pages)

Market analysis (9 to 22 pages), company description (1 to 2 pages), organization and management (3 to 5 pages), marketing and sales strategies (4 to 6 pages), product or service (4 to 10 pages), equity investment and funding request (2 to 4 pages), financial information (12 to 25 pages), in conclusion.

In answering the question as to how long a business plan should be, the first thing to know is that it shouldn’t be any longer than necessary. Why are you writing the document in the first place? Recall that it should be considered a “living document.” You’ll want to revise it over time.

In this article, we’ll give you a good idea about how many pages should a business plan be so that you know how much work is required ahead of time!

The introduction section of your business plan should be around three to five pages long and is your chance to seize the reader’s attention and give them a broad overview of what you’re trying to do. You should include:

• The problem that you are solving or an issue in need of resolution
• How your product, service, or company can solve the problem
• Why it matters for the reader (the investor or company executive) and why they’ll care about the suggested solutions
• How much of a profit do you believe you’ll realize?
• Who is your target audience? What are their demographics?
• What is the size of the market?
• How large of a market share do you believe you can seize?

These points help paint a picture of who you are and what you intend to achieve.

• How to use wire strippers correctly
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In brief, your introductory section should include:

• An attention-grabbing Cover Page (1 page)
• An Executive Summary (1 to 2 pages); and
• A Table of Contents (1 page)

Generally, a market analysis should include the following:

• Background information about your company and its products/services
• An overview of the industry with an examination of key trends that are driving change in the marketplace (industry structure)
• Identification of customer needs and how these compare to competitive offerings (customer profiles), which will help you determine where there is an opportunity for profitable growth.

It’s also essential to understand how well positioned your company is relative to competitors on various performance indicators such as product quality or service levels.

The company description is a snapshot of your organization’s history, what you do, and how the values that drive success. It should be succinct – no more than two pages.

The following are some potential parts to include in this section:

• How long has the company existed? What were its early years like?
• How does it operate today?
• How have recent changes impacted operations or strategy, and why was change needed?
• What sets your business apart from competitors (products/services)?
• Why would someone want to work at the organization as opposed to others out there in similar industries?

The organization and management section of a standard business plan includes all the information about running and developing your organization. You also explain what your company’s culture is like and who your executive team members are.

This section should cover how you will promote your products/services, the media channels being used, and whether or not there is any need for additional help. How much of a budget do you have? What’s your target audience? Have all these questions been answered before spending valuable time creating ads without knowing if they will produce results?

The product or service section is one of the most important parts and should give an in-depth look at your company’s products and services. How will they be produced? How much do you charge for them? This section may take some time to write if it includes things like manufacturing costs, but it’ll save time later when making decisions about how to sell your goods.

The investment and funding request section is a brief overview of the requester’s strengths, what you need from an equity partner, how much it’ll cost an investor to be invested in your business, and other pertinent information.

This section is detailed and provides all relevant information about the company’s financials, such as how much money you’ve made in past years. This includes a comparison to other companies of similar size or industry.

The length of a typical business plan ranges from 15-25 pages. How long yours be? That’s up to you. How much information do your readers need or want about your company and its plans for growth? For example, if investors are looking at investing in your company, they may require more detailed financial information.

Finally, keep in mind that the Executive Summary at the beginning of your plan is the section most people will read and pay attention to the most. You’ll want to write it after you’ve written the rest of your document as it summarizes everything you’ve put together. However, you’ll want to ensure that the summary is presented in an exciting and engaging style so that it keeps the reader’s interest.

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You are a hard worker who does constant labor on the job. You could be a construction worker, electrician, fisherman or woman, or a scientist, hard labor requires a lot of supplies. You want certain tools for your job that prevents you from possible issues or injuries. Your job can be dangerous, and it could be quite stressful not being able to accomplish one thing during your work hours. Your safety is your top priority. You enjoy the hard labor, so you rely on a lot of planning ahead. Your job requires tools for safety and for storage as well.

You want constant supplies for your job, supplies that make it easier for you to finish the task at hand. In your job, you run the risk of toxication, burned from chemicals, and electrocuted. You risk your life every day in your labor job. That is why supplies are essential to your daily work life. The listed supplies are some supplies that are required for your daily work life. These supplies are a way to plan your job and accomplish your job tasks. You will appreciate having the supplies to make it easier for you to do your job in labor.

Event planning can make or break a business. Events can help market products, improve business networks, and launch successful ventures, but that is only if they are considered a success. Whether your event includes a series of speakers or simply a short welcome from the CEO, the business's message can be lost if the audio isn't up to par. That's why the products on this list are so important to planning the event.

This list goes beyond the microphone and speaker, since those are often provided by the venue. A professional event planner should bring their own inventory of a few key products to ensure they can handle the audio. A couple of cords, a filter, and some stands should cover any last minute concerns that might arise. It's definitely a good idea to have these products on stand by because the audio is one of the most important aspects of the event.

As a part of your journalism career, it involves traveling and the weather. You report the weather, and sometimes it could be hard to speak with your microphone with chattering teeth. When it comes to the cold or rainy seasons, it can be tough for you to report the weather. You need the supplies to keep you dry and warm while reporting the weather news forecast. You do not want to catch a cold or get frostbite while trying to warn people about the current weather conditions. It is a part of your job that involves traveling and the weather.

It can be freezing during the winter season, especially when you have to stand outside to report the news. You want to stay focused on the camera and speak clearly without your teeth chattering or the distraction from the cold breeze. As a reporter, the weather can make it difficult for you to have a clear mind and clear speech. You are risking your body during the cold season with determination to report information for everyone's safety. You love your career in journalism, but you also have to rely on thinking ahead. Importantly, you need the supplies to keep yourself and your equipment from freezing during the winter season.

• Home > Blog > Small Business Success > The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan
• By Laura Drechsler
• Mar 5, 2018
• 4 mins read

The Importance of Updating Your Business Plan

A business plan is a formal document that guides you through each stage of starting and managing your business. However, some business owners make the mistake of creating a business plan and then never looking at it again. But it is vital to treat it like a living document. Updating your business plan regularly can help provide greater clarity on the different aspects of your business and lead it to further growth.

Business Plans: What They Are and Why They Change

If you don’t already have a business plan in place, you may be falling behind. Business plans serve as a roadmap for everyone involved in a company. This includes employees, investors, and the founders. Even within a smaller business, it can be difficult to keep everyone aligned with the group’s primary goals and their methods used to achieve them. A business plan serves as a reference when this confusion arises.

You also need to establish a plan for how to use it and when to update it. The first version of a business plan will serve as a valuable internal tool. Your business plan should plot a course for the first months of the firm’s life. Like most plans, though, things don’t always turn out the way they’re supposed to. Employees come and go, competitors shift their strategy, and unexpected roadblocks arise. To succeed, a business needs to constantly adapt to these inevitable changes. That means its official business plan must be routinely revised.

Updating Your Business Plan

According to Ernst and Young advisor Jeffrey Tannenbaum, you should be updating your business plan at least once per year. This gives business owners and their teams a chance to evaluate their performance in accordance with their prior year’s goals. Based on your evaluation you can make necessary changes and take advantage of new growth opportunities. That often requires tapping into small business financing to bolster working capital and move forward with new projects.

However, as Tannenbaum and others often warn, this shouldn’t be the only time in a year when business leaders strategize and set objectives. Many companies set monthly and quarterly target goals for revenue, expenses, and other key performance indicators. They also benefit from setting firm deadlines for their goals and constantly monitoring and analyzing their progress. If things start slipping, strategic changes need to be made as soon as possible instead of waiting for the next planning session. Again, a short-term business loan can be the perfect tool to launch new projects without sacrificing daily operations.

Managing Change and Uncertainty

As you continue utilizing and updating your business plan, you might grow frustrated with the process. What’s the point of having a business plan at all if it’s constantly changing, and assumptions rarely prove to be correct?

Tim Berry, a guest writer at Entrepreneur.com, explains this conundrum in brief.

“You have to realize your business plan is wrong,” Berry wrote. “All business plans are wrong. Plans are about the future – and nobody gets the future right very often, so keep the plan fresh and watch closely as reality moves forward.”

Berry’s point is that the content of a business plan isn’t as important as how it’s used in structuring and managing your business and how it’s revised. In the process of updating your business plan, you should examine why certain past projected assumptions were incorrect and adjust future projections accordingly. An updated plan should account for what your business has learned to create a better picture of where it needs to improve.

Managing a business boils down to managing uncertainty. Whether it’s an unexpected opportunity, immediate need for employee growth or an unplanned financial cost, a partnership with a dependable small business lender like QuickBridge helps fill in the gaps. Get in touch today and learn how we are making small business loans better and helping small business owners find certainty in even the most uncertain situations.

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ENT 396 Chapter 12

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Business Development > Starting a Business > Feasibility & Business Plans

Updated July, 2020 File C5-68

Writing a business plan.

Every business needs to have a written business plan, whether creating or expanding a business. Formulating a business plan should be one of the first things done when starting a new business , because the primary goal of most business plans is to raise outside-investor capital. The business plan is the tool to convince others their investment is worthy.

Although a comprehensive and well thought out business plan is important to the success of your business venture, many people drag their feet when it comes to preparing one. The major reason people don’t want to write a business plan is that it is extra work that they don’t find enjoyable. But if you are serious about creating a successful business, you need to be serious about creating a good business plan.

Reasons for Writing a Business Plan

Before you start writing your business determine the purpose of your plan. That means you need to identify why you are writing it and how to prepare it properly. Below are eight reasons for writing a business plan. Identify which ones are relevant in your situation.

1. Putting the pieces together - Determine the purpose of your plan. Until you prepare your business plan, you won’t know if the internal logic of your proposal is consistent. In other words, do the pieces fit together? Writing the business plan will lead you to well-researched and insightful answers ahead of time to identify holes in your project and force you to critically think through various aspects of your plan that you previously had not identified. Building a business plan allows you to proactively determine the most tangible answers to some of the most critical business decisions. Think of the business plan like a substitute teacher, ready to answer questions anytime there’s an absence (because odds-are you won’t make every decision yourself).

2. Creating a blueprint for action - The business plan provides you with a "blueprint" or "action plan" for creating your business or business expansion. The more specific your business plan, the easier it is to implement the plan and build your business. Without a business plan, objectives often become arbitrary, while business planning tends to make benchmarks more intentional and consequential.

Business planning is a 2-stage process. The first stage is creating the plan and the second is implementing the plan. A great business plan is worthless if it is not properly implemented. This is why it is critical that you are intimately involved in writing the business plan. If you are not involved in writing the business plan, how can you implement it?

3. Focusing founders/management team - During this stage of business development, the founders often become weary from the relentless onslaught of issues facing them. The business plan helps to focus their activities and presents issues in an organized manner. It tends to bring structure and organization to a process that may be become chaotic.

Many small businesses employ contractors or freelance professionals, e.g. accounting, marketing, legal assistance, etc. With a business plan in place, the pertinent sections can get to the right support staff, while keeping everyone on the same page. Writing a business plan can go a long way in better understanding the competition and the market by more broadly illuminating consumer trends and preferences, potential disruptions, or other pitfalls that aren’t plainly visible.

4. Obtaining financing - Business plans are often used to obtain financing from venture capitalists and banks. These capital sources will likely need a business plan and many times business plans are the most-effective way of proving business viability. In this sense the business plan is a promotional piece to present and describe your business venture, how you will put it together and why it will be successful. The basic premise is to show that you know what you are doing and why your business will be successful.

Look upon lenders as partners. They can point out shortcomings and deficiencies of the plan. Lender concerns about financing your business should be looked upon as opportunities to strengthen your project and increase its chances of success. However, understand the lenders role in your project. It is not the lender’s responsibility to be the financial manager of your business and make it successful. The lenders purpose is to generate returns for the lending institution while protecting their investment in your business.

Business plans can be used to attract equity investors to your business. A business plan forms the basis of the offering presentation to potential investors. The business plan is the tool you’ll use to convince people that working with you (investing in your company) is a smart choice. Your attorney will use the business plan in the creation of your offering documents.

5. Attracting key managers and employees - An important element of creating a successful business is your ability to attract key managers and employees. These individuals will want to be assured that you know what you are doing and that your business concept is viable. A well designed business plan is essential in this process. If a general manager has already been selected, the business plan should describe why this person is capable of achieving success.

6. Obtaining contracts – Entrepreneurship is a risky business. That risk becomes more manageable once tested against a well-crafted business plan. The success of many businesses is based on their ability to have commitments or contracts in place from users. However, potential users need to be assured that you can actually deliver on the commitment. Once again, a well-designed business plan is essential for these commitments.

7. Creating joint ventures, mergers and acquisitions – Create a company profile, including history of the organization, your product or service offerings, target market and audience, what makes your business unique, etc. These profiles, found best in the first written parts of your plan, can be used to attract customers and talent.

Many rural businesses focus on moving up the supply chain to take advantage of profit opportunities closer to the consumer. To achieve this, it is common for businesses to create relationships with existing business in the supply chain through joint ventures, mergers or acquisitions. One of the purposes of this strategy is to take advantage of skills and experience of these businesses. Once again, a well-designed business plan is essential for creating these relationships.

8. Avoiding the big mistake - About half of small businesses are not around to see their 5th anniversary. While there are many reasons for failure many of the most common are purposefully addressed in business plans: no market need; lack of capital; inadequate managerial team; stiff competition; or pricing.

Research, research, research! Consider spending twice as much time researching, evaluating and thinking as actually spent writing the plan.

How to Write the Plan

Business plans help to run your business, determined viable from the feasibility study! A good plan guides you through each stage of starting and managing. The business plan should be written in plain, easy-to-read language. Use short simple sentences and easy to understand terms. Avoid jargon and terms that are unfamiliar to people outside of your industry.

There is no right or wrong way to writing a business plan. What is important is picking the format where the plan meets your needs. Determine what you want to cover in your business plan and make headings for each of the items. Begin each major section on a new page with the appropriate title (e.g. Marketing Plan). Make sure your business plan covers all of the relevant topics. To help you organize your business plan use Information File C5-69, Create Your Own Business Plan .

Fine tune your business plan. It is extremely rare to achieve the finished version of a plan in the first draft. It may need to be re-written several times. So, review, revise and rewrite.

The purpose of rewriting the plan is to fill in gaps, solidify the logic and make the plan easier to understand by the reader. It is not to add extraneous materials. So if you find the length of the plan expanding greatly after each rewrite, your efforts are probably counterproductive. At some point in time you need to declare the plan finished - for now - remembering that the plan will need to be updated as conditions change.

The business plan is a promotional document. So, in addition to your own purposes, consider the viewpoint of others you are writing the plan for (banker, investor, customer, etc.). The business plan may be used as a sales document. The content and quality of the plan should be representative of your company. Represent your company’s image and convince the reader you understand all aspects of the business.

Be honest. Do not be overly optimistic or try to hide limitations or weaknesses. Be sure to support the goals and the claims you make in the business plan. Include supporting evidence. This includes statistics, studies and other research support.

It is usually a good idea to have someone proofread your business plan who is not involved in the project. He/she can help you identify aspects of your business plan that may need additional clarification and explanation.

A great business plan will always have a strategic and aggressive marketing plan, including marketing objectives like:

• Introducing new products
• Extending or regaining market for existing products
• Entering new territories
• Boosting sales in a particular product, market or price range
• Cross-selling or bundling
• Entering into long-term contracts with desirable clients
• Raising prices
• Refining a product
• Having a content marketing strategy
• Enhancing manufacturing or product delivery

Proofread your plan for the following:

• Poor organization
• Vague statements
• Errors in logic
• Gaps in the plan
• Repetitive statements
• Inconsistency
• Misspelled words
• Poor grammar
• Incomplete sentences
• Mathematical errors

Questions to Answer in Writing the Plan

There are certain elements that are critical for a business plan. Below are eight questions your business plan should answer. The quality of your business plan will depend on how well you can answer them. You can use these as a “checklist” of the completeness of your plan.

1. Who are we? 2. What do we do? 3. What do we have to offer? 4. Why will someone pay for our product or service? 5. What resources do we have? 6. Why will we be successful? 7. Why would someone participate/invest? 8. How will we measure performance?

Who Should Write the Plan

Involvement in creating the business plan is critical. Although it is common and often preferable to have someone help you write the business plan, the founders are ultimately responsible for creating the ideas and content of the business plan. Stated simply, if you are not intimately involved in writing the business plan, you will not know what it contains. If you don’t know what the business plan contains, how can you implement the plan? If you cannot implement the plan, how can you create a successful business?

So, the primary responsibility for writing the business plan is with you, the founders. You can hire someone (consultant) to help prepare the plan. He/she can challenge and question assumptions and conclusions. But you are responsible for the content of the plan. The role of consultants or professional writers is only to assist you in this important process.

Place one person in charge of preparing the plan. You may divide the responsibility of preparing and/or writing various sections of the plan among the founders, or you may hire a consultant to assist you in preparing the plan. However, one person needs to be responsible for moving the process forward and integrating the various sections.

How Long Should It Be

Focus on the quality of your business plan, not its length. The length of the business plan should be the shortest version needed to adequately cover the topic. The business plan should properly and succinctly tell your story. Does it address the relevant issues? Anything more is not a sign of depth or completeness. Rather, it will dissuade people from reading the plan because of its length. Remember, focus on content - not length.

How is Your Business Unique

Rural agriculture includes many types of businesses.  Businesses range from a few producers marketing products directly to local consumers to large-scale integrated processing/manufacturing businesses. So, a business plan is a unique document. The actual content of the business plan will vary depending on the nature and complexity of the business, the stage of development and the type of financing needed. Likewise, the individuals whom you are writing the business plan for can vary substantially.

The plan must fit the needs of the business. For example, the marketing needs of a commodity processing business like ethanol are much different than those of a niche food business. The financial needs of a processing business are much greater than those of a direct marketing business. So the focus on investors and lenders is much greater. In addition, the need for risk management strategies is much greater due to the capital intensive nature of the business and the volatility of commodity markets. Conversely, the management needs of both types of businesses are substantial, although of a different type.

Because your business is unique, the role of developing a strategy to achieve success is important.

1. Where are we now? 2. Where do we want to be? 3. How do we get there?

Although all three questions are relevant, it is essential the business plan answers the question “how do we get there?”.

Who are the Readers of Your Plan

Make your business plan adaptable based upon your audience. Although this is a diverse group, it is a finite one. Strive for versions directed at a particular audience, by including the specific reader’s interest (lender, supplier, etc.).

Most businesses have several types of stakeholders. A stakeholder is someone who has a stake or interest in the outcome of the business. In addition to the business founders, stakeholders include equity investors, bankers, key employees and others. Different stakeholders have different priorities. These priorities need to be balanced in the business plan.

Table 1 shows issues to emphasize or deemphasize depending on whom the plan is written for. For example, bankers are usually looking for cash-flow while investors may be looking for growth. This is not to say that the content and direction of the business plan should be altered. However, it does mean that the focus of the plan may shift.

This means that you may have more than one version of the business plan. This works well, as long as the same story is told - just with different emphasis.

Implementing the Business Plan

Preparing a business plan is only one step in creating a viable business. Writing a great business plan is meaningless unless you properly implement the plan. Many start-up business ventures fail because they do not focus their efforts on properly implementing the plan. Essentially this is a plan for implementing the plan. A portion of the business plan should focus on the steps required to implement the plan. It should include a timeline and milestones for when various aspect of the plan are accomplished.

Reviewed by Gary Wright, extension farm management specialist, 712-223-1574, [email protected] Original author: Don Hofstrand, retired extension value added agriculture specialist, [email protected]

Gary Wright

Extension farm management specialist 712-223-1574 view more from this author, don hofstrand, retired extension value added agriculture specialist view more from this author.

• Disaster recovery planning and management

Downtime can do serious damage to an organization's bottom line and reputation. Business continuity and disaster recovery -- two closely related practices -- help keep an organization running even in the wake of disaster. This guide explains how BCDR works, why you need it and how to build a BCDR plan for your organization to protect it today and into the future.

Disaster recovery (dr).

• Kinza Yasar, Technical Writer
• Erin Sullivan, Senior Site Editor
• Paul Crocetti, Executive Editor

What is disaster recovery (DR)?

Disaster recovery (DR) is an organization's ability to respond to and recover from an event that negatively affects business operations.

The goal of DR is to reduce downtime, data loss and operational disruptions while maintaining business continuity by restoring critical applications and infrastructure ideally within minutes after an outage. To prepare for this, organizations often perform an in-depth analysis of their systems and IT infrastructure and create a formal document to follow in times of crisis. This document is known as a disaster recovery plan .

What is a disaster?

The practice of DR revolves around serious events. These events are often thought of in terms of natural disasters, but they can also be caused by systems or technical failures, human errors or intentional attacks. These events are significant enough to disrupt or completely stop critical systems and business operations for a period of time. Types of disasters include the following:

• Cyberattacks, such as malware, distributed denial-of-service and ransomware .
• Power outages.
• Hardware failures.
• Equipment failures.
• Epidemics or pandemics, such as COVID-19.
• Terrorist attacks or biochemical threats.
• Industrial accidents.
• Hurricanes.
• Earthquakes.

Why is disaster recovery important?

Disasters can inflict damage with varying levels of severity, depending on the scenario. A brief network outage could result in frustrated customers and some loss of business to an e-commerce system. A hurricane or tornado could destroy an entire manufacturing facility, data center or office.

Also, the shift to public, private, hybrid and multi-cloud systems and the rise of remote workforces are making IT infrastructures more complex and potentially risky. An effective disaster recovery plan lets organizations respond promptly to disruptive events, offering the following benefits in return:

This article is part of

What is BCDR? Business continuity and disaster recovery guide

• Which also includes:
• 7 top business continuity certifications to consider in 2024
• ITGC audit checklist: 6 controls you need to address
• 12 key points a disaster recovery plan checklist must include
• Business continuity. Disasters can significantly harm business operations, incurring costs and disrupting productivity. A DR plan enables automation and the swift restart of backup systems and data, ensuring a prompt resumption of scheduled operations.
• Data loss reduction. A well-designed disaster recovery plan aims to reduce the amount of data lost by using methods such as frequent backups, quick recovery and redundancy checks. The probability of data loss increases with the length of time an organization experiences a system outage, but effective DR planning reduces this risk.
• Cost reduction. The monetary costs of disasters and outages can be significant. According to results from Uptime Institute's "Annual outage analysis 2023" survey , 25% of respondents reported in 2022 that their latest outage incurred more than $1 million in direct and indirect costs, indicating a consistent upward trend in expenses. In addition, 45% reported that the cost of their most recent outage ranged between $100,000 and $1 million. With disaster recovery procedures in place, companies can get back on their feet quickly after outages, reducing recovery and operational costs.
• Help with compliance regulations. Many businesses are required to create and follow plans for disaster recovery, business continuity and data protection to meet compliance regulations. This is particularly important for organizations operating in the financial, healthcare, manufacturing and government sectors. Failure to have DR procedures in place can result in legal or regulatory penalties, so understanding how to comply with resilience standards is important.
• System security. A business can reduce the detrimental effects of ransomware, malware and other security threats by incorporating data protection, backup and restoration procedures into a disaster recovery plan. For instance, several built-in security mechanisms in cloud data backups can minimize questionable activity before it affects the company.
• Improved customer retention. When a disaster strikes, customer confidence in an organization's security and services can be questioned and easily lost. A solid disaster recovery plan, including employee training for handling inquiries, can boost customer assurance by demonstrating that the company is prepared for any disaster.
• Emergency preparedness. Thinking about disasters before they happen and creating a response plan can provide many benefits. It raises awareness about potential disruptions and helps an organization prioritize its mission-critical functions. It also provides a forum for discussing these topics and making careful decisions about how to best respond in a low-pressure setting. While preparing for every potential disaster might seem extreme, the COVID-19 pandemic illustrated that even scenarios that seem farfetched can happen. For example, businesses with emergency measures to support remote work had a clear advantage over unprepared companies when stay-at-home orders were enacted during the pandemic.

DR initiatives are more attainable by businesses of all sizes today due to widespread cloud adoption and the high availability of virtualization technologies that make backup and replication easier. However, much of the terminology and best practices developed for DR were based on enterprise efforts to re-create large-scale physical data centers. This involved plans to transfer, or failover , workloads from a primary data center to a secondary location or DR site to restore data and operations.

What is the difference between disaster recovery and business continuity?

On a practical level, DR and business continuity are often combined into a single corporate initiative and even abbreviated together as BCDR , but they aren't the same thing. While the two disciplines have similar goals relating to an organization's resilience, they differ greatly in scope.

Key points of DR and business continuity include the following:

• BC is a proactive discipline intended to minimize risk and help ensure the business can continue to deliver its products and services no matter the circumstances. It focuses especially on how employees continue to work and how the business continues operations while a disaster is occurring.
• DR is a subset of business continuity that focuses on the IT systems that enable business functions. It addresses the specific steps an organization must take to recover and resume technology operations following an event.
• BC is also closely related to business resilience , crisis management and risk management, but each of these disciplines has different goals and parameters.
• DR measures could typically include developing extra safety precautions for employees, such as buying emergency supplies or holding fire drills.
• A business continuity plan helps guarantee that communication channels, including phones and network servers, stay operational during a disaster.
• DR is also a reactive process by nature. While planning for it must be done in advance, DR activity isn't kicked off until a disaster actually occurs.
• Business continuity ensures the overall functioning and resilience of an organization throughout the entirety of an event, rather than solely focusing on the immediate aftermath.
• The disaster recovery process is complete once systems fail over to backup systems and are finally restored. With business continuity, plans stay in place for the entirety of the event and even after the systems are back up following the disaster.
• Top of Form

Elements of a disaster recovery strategy

Organizations should consider several factors while developing a disaster recovery strategy. Common elements of a DR strategy include the following:

Risk analysis

Risk analysis, or risk assessment , is an evaluation of all the potential risks the business could face, as well as their outcomes. Risks can vary greatly depending on the industry the organization is in and its geographic location. The assessment should identify potential hazards, determine whom or what these hazards would harm, and use the findings to create procedures that take these risks into account.

Business impact analysis

A business impact analysis ( BIA ) evaluates the effects of the identified risks on business operations. A BIA can help predict and quantify costs, both financial and nonfinancial. It also examines the effects of different disasters on an organization's safety, finances, marketing, business reputation, legal compliance and quality assurance.

Understanding the difference between risk analysis and BIA and conducting the assessments can also help an organization define its goals when it comes to data protection and the need for backup. Organizations generally quantify these using measurements called recovery point objective ( RPO ) and recovery time objective ( RTO ).

• RPO. RPO is the maximum age of files that an organization must recover from backup storage for normal operations to resume after a disaster. The RPO determines the minimum frequency of backups. For example, if an organization has an RPO of four hours, the system must back up at least every four hours.
• RTO. RTO refers to the amount of time an organization estimates its systems can be down without causing significant or irreparable damage to the business. In some cases, applications can be down for several days without severe consequences. In others, seconds can do substantial harm to the business.

RPO and RTO are both important elements in disaster recovery, but the metrics have different uses. RPO is acted on before a disruptive event takes place to ensure data is backed up, while RTO comes into play after an event occurs.

Incident response

This encompasses detecting, containing, analyzing and resolving a disruptive event. Incident response includes activating the disaster recovery plan, evaluating the incident's scope and effect, executing the recovery strategy, restoring normal operations and deactivating the plan. To maintain accountability and promote ongoing improvement, it's also essential to record and report incident response actions and results.

The components of a DR strategy can vary depending on the size, industry and particular demands of an organization. Therefore, these plans should be customized to meet the unique requirements of each business.

What's in a disaster recovery plan?

Once an organization has thoroughly reviewed its risk factors , recovery goals and technology environment, it can write a disaster recovery plan. The DR plan is the formal document that specifies these elements and outlines how the organization will respond when disruption or disaster occurs. The plan details recovery goals including RTO and RPO, as well as the steps the organization will take to minimize the effects of the disaster.

A DR plan should include the following components:

• A DR policy statement, plan overview and main goals of the plan.
• Key personnel and DR team contact information.
• A risk assessment and BIA to identify potential threats, vulnerabilities and negative effects on business.
• An updated IT inventory that includes details on hardware, software assets and essential cloud computing services, specifying their business-critical status and ownership, such as owned, leased or utilized as a service.
• A plan outlining how backups will be carried out along with an RPO that states the frequency of backups and an RTO that defines the maximum downtime that's acceptable after a disaster.
• A step-by-step description of disaster response actions immediately following an incident.
• A diagram of the entire network and recovery site.
• Directions for how to get to the recovery site.
• A list of software and systems that staff will use in the recovery.
• Sample templates for a variety of technology recoveries, including technical documentation from vendors.
• A communication that includes internal and external contacts, as well as a boilerplate for dealing with the media.
• A summary of insurance coverage.
• Proposed actions for dealing with financial and legal issues.

An organization should consider its DR plan a living document. It should schedule regular disaster recovery testing to ensure the plan is accurate and will work when a recovery is required. The plan should also be evaluated against consistent criteria whenever there are changes in the business or IT systems that could affect disaster recovery.

How to build a disaster recovery team

A DR team is entrusted with creating, documenting and carrying out processes and procedures for an organization's data recovery and business continuity in the event of a disaster or failure.

The key steps and considerations for building a disaster recovery team include the following:

• Identify the key stakeholders. Determine who within the organization should be involved in the disaster recovery planning process. A DR team typically includes cross-departmental employees and executives, such as the chief information officer , IT personnel, department heads, business continuity experts, impact assessment and recovery advisors and crisis management coordinators.
• Define roles and responsibilities. Once the members of the DR team are determined, the next step is to assign them specific roles and responsibilities to ensure effective management of the recovery process. Common roles include team leaders, IT experts, business continuity experts, disaster recovery coordinators and department liaisons.
• Assess expertise. If the organization lacks internal expertise, it can outsource or engage a service provider. These providers can offer external expertise to aid the team, deliver disaster recovery as a service ( DRaaS ), or provide consulting services to bolster the capabilities of the internal team.
• Develop a recovery plan. The team should outline a detailed disaster recovery plan that outlines procedures for responding to various types of disasters. This plan should include steps for data backup and recovery, system restoration, communication protocols and employee safety procedures.
• Train team members. It's important to teach and train team members on their responsibilities within the disaster recovery strategy. This could entail doing frequent drills and simulations to evaluate the plan's efficacy and pinpointing areas in need of development. For example, this could include testing all apps and finding ways to access the critical ones in the event of a disaster.
• Regularly revise the DR plan. The disaster recovery plan needs to be reviewed and updated regularly to reflect organizational changes and how they affect the recovery process.
• Document the procedures. All procedures and protocols within the DR plan should be documented in a clear and accessible format. This ensures that team members can easily reference and follow the necessary steps during a crisis.

Disaster recovery sites

An organization uses a DR site to recover and restore its data, technology infrastructure and operations when its primary data center is unavailable. DR sites can be internal, external or cloud-based.

An organization sets up and maintains an internal DR site. Organizations with large information requirements and aggressive RTOs are more likely to use an internal DR site, which is typically a second data center. When building an internal site, the business must consider hardware configuration, supporting equipment, power maintenance, heating and cooling of the site, layout design, location and staff.

An external disaster recovery site is owned and operated by a third-party provider. External sites can be hot, warm or cold.

• Hot site. A hot site is a fully functional data center with hardware and software, personnel and customer data, which is typically staffed 24/7 and operationally ready in the event of a disaster.
• Warm site. A warm site is an equipped data center that doesn't have customer data. An organization can install additional equipment and introduce customer data following a disaster.
• Cold site. This type of site has infrastructure to support IT systems and data, but no technology until an organization activates DR plans and installs equipment. These sites are sometimes used to supplement hot and warm sites during a long-term disaster.

A cloud-based disaster recovery site is another option, which is also scalable. An organization should consider site proximity, internal and external resources, operational risks, service-level agreements (SLAs) and cost when contracting with cloud providers to host their DR assets or outsourcing additional services .

Disaster recovery tiers

In addition to choosing the most appropriate DR site, it can be helpful for organizations to consult the tiers of disaster recovery identified by the Share Technical Steering Committee and IBM in the 1980s. The tiers feature a variety of recovery options organizations can use as a blueprint to help determine the best DR approach depending on their business needs.

The recognized disaster recovery tiers include the following:

• Tier 7. Tier 7 is a highly advanced level of disaster recovery capability. At this level, artificial intelligence and automation are likely to play a key part in the recovery process.
• Tier 6. Tier 6 disaster recovery capabilities are comparable to Tier 5's, but they often include even more sophisticated technology and techniques for rapid recovery and minimal data loss.
• Tier 5. Tier 5 often implies advanced disaster recovery capabilities beyond a hot site. This can include capabilities such as real-time data replication , automated failover and enhanced monitoring and administration tools.
• Tier 4. This tier includes a hot site, which is a DR site that's fully functioning and ready to use. Hot sites replicate the primary data center's systems and operations in real time, enabling quick failover and minimal downtime. They provide the maximum availability and recovery speed, but they're also the most expensive alternative.
• Tier 3. By electronically vaulting mission-critical data, Tier 3 options improve upon the capabilities of Tier 2. Electronic vaulting of data involves electronically transferring data to a backup site, in contrast to the traditional method of physically shipping backup tapes or disks. After a disaster, there's less chance of data loss or re-creation because the electronically vaulted data is usually more recent than data sent through conventional means.
• Tier 2. This tier improves upon Tier 1 with the addition of a hot site, which are disaster recovery locations that have hardware and network infrastructure already set up to facilitate faster recovery times. There might still be a need for additional setup and configuration.
• Tier 1. This level consists of cold sites that provide basic infrastructure but lack preinstalled systems. Businesses in this category have data backups, but recovery involves manual intervention and hardware configuration, which lengthens recovery times.
• Tier 0. This tier denotes the lowest preparedness level and is usually associated with organizations that don't have disaster recovery or off-site data backups . Because recovery in this tier is entirely dependent on on-site technologies, recovery times can be unpredictable.

Another type of DR tiering involves assigning levels of importance to different types of data and applications and treating each tier differently based on the tolerance for data loss. This approach recognizes that some mission-critical functions might not be able to tolerate any data loss or downtime, while others can be offline for longer or have smaller sets of data restored.

Types of disaster recovery

In addition to choosing a DR site and considering DR tiers, IT and business leaders must evaluate the best way to put their DR plan into action. This will depend on the IT environment and the technology the business chooses to support its DR strategy.

Types of disaster recovery can vary, based on the IT infrastructure and assets that need protection, as well as the method of backup and recovery the organization decides to use. Depending on the size and scope of the organization, it might have separate DR plans and response and resilience teams specific to different departments.

Major types of DR include the following:

• Data center disaster recovery. Organizations that house their own data centers must have a DR strategy that considers all the IT infrastructure within the data center as well as the physical facility. Backup to a failover site at a secondary data center or a colocation facility is often a large part of the plan. IT and business leaders should also document and make alternative arrangements for a wide range of facilities-related components, including power systems, heating and cooling, fire safety, and physical security.
• Network disaster recovery. Network connectivity is essential for internal and external communication, data sharing, and application access during a disaster. A network DR strategy must provide a plan for restoring network services, especially in terms of access to backup sites and data.
• Virtualized disaster recovery. Virtualization provides disaster recovery by letting organizations replicate workloads in an alternate location or the cloud. The benefits of virtual DR include flexibility, ease of deployment, efficiency and speed. Since virtualized workloads have a small IT footprint, replication can be done frequently, and failover can be initiated quickly.
• Cloud disaster recovery. The widespread acceptance of cloud services lets organizations, typically reliant on alternate or on-premises DR locations, host their disaster recovery in the cloud. Cloud DR goes beyond simple backup to the cloud. It requires an IT team to set up automatic failover of workloads to a public cloud platform in the event of a disruption.
• DRaaS. DRaaS is the commercially available version of cloud DR. In DRaaS, a third party provides replication and hosting of an organization's physical and virtual machines. The provider assumes responsibility for deploying the DR plan when a crisis arises, based on an SLA. In the event of a disaster, the DRaaS provider shifts an organization's computer processing to its cloud infrastructure. This enables uninterrupted business operations to be carried out seamlessly from the provider's location, even if the organization's servers are offline.
• Point-in-time snapshots. Point-in-time snapshots or copies generate a precise replica of the database at a specific time. Data recovery from these backups is possible, provided they're stored offsite or on an external machine unaffected by the catastrophe.

Disaster recovery services and vendors

Disaster recovery providers can take many forms, as DR is more than just an IT issue, and business continuity affects the entire organization. DR vendors include those selling backup and recovery software, as well as those offering hosted or managed services. Because disaster recovery is also an element of organizational risk management, some vendors couple it with other aspects of security planning, such as incident response and emergency planning.

Examples of options for DR services and vendors include the following:

• Backup and data protection platforms.
• DRaaS providers.
• Add-on services from data center and colocation providers.
• Infrastructure-as-a-service providers.

Choosing the best option for an organization ultimately depends on top-level business continuity plans and data protection goals, as well as which option best meets those needs and budgetary goals.

Examples of DR software and DRaaS providers include the following:

• Acronis Cyber Protect Cloud.
• Carbonite Disaster Recovery.
• Dell EMC RecoverPoint.
• Druva Data Resiliency Cloud.
• IBM Storage Protect Plus.
• Microsoft Azure Site Recovery.
• Unitrends Backup and Recovery.
• Veeam Backup & Replication.
• VMware Live Cyber Recovery (formerly known as VMware Cloud DR).

Emergency communication vendors are also a key part of the disaster recovery process, as they help keep employees informed during a crisis by sending them notifications and communications. Examples of vendors and their systems include AlertMedia, BlackBerry AtHoc, Cisco Emergency Responder, Everbridge Crisis Management and Rave Alert.

Download a free SLA template for use with disaster recovery products and services .

While some organizations might find it challenging to invest in comprehensive disaster recovery planning, none can afford to ignore the concept when planning for long-term growth and sustainability. In addition, if the worst were to happen, organizations that have prioritized DR would experience less downtime and be able to resume normal operations faster.

Businesses often prepare for minor disruptions, but it's easy to overlook larger and more intricate disasters. Examine the top scenarios for IT disasters that disaster recovery teams should test vigorously.

Continue Reading About disaster recovery (DR)

• SME disaster recovery: Key points to consider
• Game-changing disaster recovery trends
• Maximize the benefits of virtual disaster recovery
• Real-life business continuity failures: Examples to study
• Disaster recovery plan best practices for any business

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What Is a Business Plan?

Understanding business plans, how to write a business plan, common elements of a business plan, how often should a business plan be updated, the bottom line, business plan: what it is, what's included, and how to write one.

Adam Hayes, Ph.D., CFA, is a financial writer with 15+ years Wall Street experience as a derivatives trader. Besides his extensive derivative trading expertise, Adam is an expert in economics and behavioral finance. Adam received his master's in economics from The New School for Social Research and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in sociology. He is a CFA charterholder as well as holding FINRA Series 7, 55 & 63 licenses. He currently researches and teaches economic sociology and the social studies of finance at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

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A business plan is a document that details a company's goals and how it intends to achieve them. Business plans can be of benefit to both startups and well-established companies. For startups, a business plan can be essential for winning over potential lenders and investors. Established businesses can find one useful for staying on track and not losing sight of their goals. This article explains what an effective business plan needs to include and how to write one.

Key Takeaways

• A business plan is a document describing a company's business activities and how it plans to achieve its goals.
• Startup companies use business plans to get off the ground and attract outside investors.
• For established companies, a business plan can help keep the executive team focused on and working toward the company's short- and long-term objectives.
• There is no single format that a business plan must follow, but there are certain key elements that most companies will want to include.

Investopedia / Ryan Oakley

Any new business should have a business plan in place prior to beginning operations. In fact, banks and venture capital firms often want to see a business plan before they'll consider making a loan or providing capital to new businesses.

Even if a business isn't looking to raise additional money, a business plan can help it focus on its goals. A 2017 Harvard Business Review article reported that, "Entrepreneurs who write formal plans are 16% more likely to achieve viability than the otherwise identical nonplanning entrepreneurs."

Ideally, a business plan should be reviewed and updated periodically to reflect any goals that have been achieved or that may have changed. An established business that has decided to move in a new direction might create an entirely new business plan for itself.

There are numerous benefits to creating (and sticking to) a well-conceived business plan. These include being able to think through ideas before investing too much money in them and highlighting any potential obstacles to success. A company might also share its business plan with trusted outsiders to get their objective feedback. In addition, a business plan can help keep a company's executive team on the same page about strategic action items and priorities.

Business plans, even among competitors in the same industry, are rarely identical. However, they often have some of the same basic elements, as we describe below.

While it's a good idea to provide as much detail as necessary, it's also important that a business plan be concise enough to hold a reader's attention to the end.

While there are any number of templates that you can use to write a business plan, it's best to try to avoid producing a generic-looking one. Let your plan reflect the unique personality of your business.

Many business plans use some combination of the sections below, with varying levels of detail, depending on the company.

The length of a business plan can vary greatly from business to business. Regardless, it's best to fit the basic information into a 15- to 25-page document. Other crucial elements that take up a lot of space—such as applications for patents—can be referenced in the main document and attached as appendices.

These are some of the most common elements in many business plans:

• Executive summary: This section introduces the company and includes its mission statement along with relevant information about the company's leadership, employees, operations, and locations.
• Products and services: Here, the company should describe the products and services it offers or plans to introduce. That might include details on pricing, product lifespan, and unique benefits to the consumer. Other factors that could go into this section include production and manufacturing processes, any relevant patents the company may have, as well as proprietary technology . Information about research and development (R&D) can also be included here.
• Market analysis: A company needs to have a good handle on the current state of its industry and the existing competition. This section should explain where the company fits in, what types of customers it plans to target, and how easy or difficult it may be to take market share from incumbents.
• Marketing strategy: This section can describe how the company plans to attract and keep customers, including any anticipated advertising and marketing campaigns. It should also describe the distribution channel or channels it will use to get its products or services to consumers.
• Financial plans and projections: Established businesses can include financial statements, balance sheets, and other relevant financial information. New businesses can provide financial targets and estimates for the first few years. Your plan might also include any funding requests you're making.

The best business plans aren't generic ones created from easily accessed templates. A company should aim to entice readers with a plan that demonstrates its uniqueness and potential for success.

2 Types of Business Plans

Business plans can take many forms, but they are sometimes divided into two basic categories: traditional and lean startup. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) , the traditional business plan is the more common of the two.

• Traditional business plans : These plans tend to be much longer than lean startup plans and contain considerably more detail. As a result they require more work on the part of the business, but they can also be more persuasive (and reassuring) to potential investors.
• Lean startup business plans : These use an abbreviated structure that highlights key elements. These business plans are short—as short as one page—and provide only the most basic detail. If a company wants to use this kind of plan, it should be prepared to provide more detail if an investor or a lender requests it.

Why Do Business Plans Fail?

A business plan is not a surefire recipe for success. The plan may have been unrealistic in its assumptions and projections to begin with. Markets and the overall economy might change in ways that couldn't have been foreseen. A competitor might introduce a revolutionary new product or service. All of this calls for building some flexibility into your plan, so you can pivot to a new course if needed.

How frequently a business plan needs to be revised will depend on the nature of the business. A well-established business might want to review its plan once a year and make changes if necessary. A new or fast-growing business in a fiercely competitive market might want to revise it more often, such as quarterly.

What Does a Lean Startup Business Plan Include?

The lean startup business plan is an option when a company prefers to give a quick explanation of its business. For example, a brand-new company may feel that it doesn't have a lot of information to provide yet.

Sections can include: a value proposition ; the company's major activities and advantages; resources such as staff, intellectual property, and capital; a list of partnerships; customer segments; and revenue sources.

A business plan can be useful to companies of all kinds. But as a company grows and the world around it changes, so too should its business plan. So don't think of your business plan as carved in granite but as a living document designed to evolve with your business.

Harvard Business Review. " Research: Writing a Business Plan Makes Your Startup More Likely to Succeed ."

U.S. Small Business Administration. " Write Your Business Plan ."

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How to Use Instagram for Business and Drive Results in 2024

Everything you need to know about using Instagram for business — from setting up your account to creating a winning strategy.

Table of Contents

Is your business still “like”-ing the idea of using Instagram, rather than confidently sliding into the DMs of the platform’s full potential? It’s high time to stop scrolling and start strategizing.

If you’re wondering how to use Instagram for business in 2024 , we’ve got you covered. In this guide, we’ll share the top strategies to help your brand thrive on the ever-evolving platform.

Bonus: Claim your free pack of 15 creative Instagram post templates made by Hootsuite’s professional graphic designers. Easily customize them in Canva, and start getting more engagement today.

How to set up Instagram for business in 4 steps

Using Instagram for business is a bit different than using a personal account. But don’t worry, it’s not rocket science! Follow these 4 simple steps to get your brand up and running on Instagram.

1. Switch to an Instagram business account

Before you start using Instagram for business, you need to create an Instagram account for business. It’s free and anyone can do it.

Here’s how to switch your existing Instagram account to a business account:

• From your profile, tap the hamburger (three lines) menu icon in the upper-right corner.
• Tap Settings and privacy . Then, scroll down until you see the Account type and tools menu.
• Next, click Switch to a professional account to change the account you’re logged into into an Instagram business account.
• Tap Continue (you may need to tap it multiple times as Instagram previews the available features of a professional account).
• Select a Category and use the slider to choose whether to show it on your profile, then tap Done .
• Choose Business (unless it makes sense for you to choose Creator ), and tap Next .
• Use the slider to opt in or out of promotional emails from Instagram for professional accounts, then tap Next .
• Add or edit relevant contact details, then use the slider to choose whether to show your contact information on your profile, then tap Next (or tap Don’t use my contact info to skip this step).
• If you plan to connect your Instagram business account with a Facebook business page, follow the prompts to connect your account to your Facebook Page. This is technically optional, but it’s necessary in order to use Instagram shopping features or run ads on Instagram .
• Next, you’ll be prompted to add additional features to your account, like telling Instagram your goals, adding details to your portfolio, and growing your audience. If you want to save this for later, tap the X in the top left corner to close this window and return to your profile.

If you’re interested in making an Instagram account for business simply sign up for a new Instagram account , and convert it to an Instagram business account.

You can have up to five Instagram accounts , so go ahead and keep your personal Instagram account personal if that’s what you prefer. Learn more about the difference between Instagram business and creator accounts .

2. Add business information to your bio

In 150 characters or less, your Instagram bio should describe your brand and showcase your brand voice . We’ve got a full guide to creating an effective Instagram bio for business (complete with templates), but here’s a quick video to walk you through the basics:

Also be sure to make the most of the other components of your Instagram business profile:

• Profile pic: Most brands use their logo. Your profile photo displays as 110 x 110 pixels (cropped to a circle), but it’s stored at 320 x 320, so that’s the size you should upload.
• Link in bio: Link to your website, your latest blog post, a current campaign or a Link Tree .
• Contact information: If you didn’t add contact info during your account creation, you can do so at any time by tapping Edit profile . Instagram will then add a Contact button to your profile.
• Action buttons: If relevant, you can add a button that allows customers to book or reserve appointments or to order food. To use this feature, you need an account with one of Instagram’s partners . Tap Edit profile , then scroll down to Action Buttons.
• Story highlights and covers: Instagram Story highlights are another way to maximize your profile real estate by providing more information about your brand, products, or services. Organize Stories into saved collections, then add some polish with Highlight covers.

Create. Schedule. Publish. Engage. Measure. Win.

3. Connect your product catalog

To tag products in Instagram content, or to run certain kinds of Instagram ads, you need to create a product catalog. You can do this in Meta’s Commerce Manager.

• Head to Commerce Manager and click Start Now , then select Create a catalog and click Get started again.
• Select Ecommerce , then click Next.
• If you have a shop on an ecommerce platform like Shopify or BigCommerce, click Connect to an ecommerce platform and follow the prompts to create your catalog. Otherwise, click Upload product info , name your catalog and click Next.
• Click View catalog to open your catalog, then Add items to start adding products.

We’ve got a whole post on using Commerce Manager if you’d like more details on how this tool works.

4. Turn on Instagram shopping

Once your catalog is full of products, it’s time to turn on Instagram’s shopping features.

• Go to the Get started page.
• Select Get started .’
• Click Create a shop , then Get started , then Next.
• Review the pre-selected sales channels and add or subtract accounts as needed.
• Choose the account/sales channel you want to connect your shop to. If you’re already selling on Shopify or another partner platform, change your Checkout method to reflect this . When everything is set up, click Next.
• Next, choose the countries you want to ship your products to. Note that Instagram Shopping is not available everywhere. You can choose from available countries in the drop-down menu.
• Add in your business email . This is where you’ll get any communication about your Instagram Shop.
• Select your business portfolio or create a new one. Click Next .
• Select the catalog you want to use for your shop and click Next . To select a catalog, it must meet catalog eligibility requirements for shops. You can’t switch this catalog later. Note: If you don’t have a catalog already, you won’t see this step.
• Look over your shop details, review and agree to the Seller Agreement and click Finish setup to complete creating your shop.

We’ve got a full blog post explaining everything you need to know about Instagram Shopping if you want to focus on this particular aspect of using Instagram for business.

How to use Instagram for business: 8 strategies

Standing out as a business on Instagram can be, well, tough. Use these Instagram for business tips to make it easier.

1. Research your audience

A good social media strategy starts with a sound understanding of your audience.

Instagram’s audience demographics give you an overall picture of who uses the platform. For example, 18-34-year-olds represent the largest ad audience on the site.

However, that doesn’t mean your specific audience on Instagram will be made up of 18-to-34-year-olds. For example, looking at the audience insights for my own Instagram account, I can see that my audience skews older than the Instagram average:

You can find demographic information on your existing audience using Instagram Insights , Meta Business Suite , or Hootsuite Analytics . But, if you’re just getting started using Instagram for business, you might not have a large enough following to gain meaningful insights here yet.

In that case, take a look at the demographics of your audience on other social channels and of your existing customer base. While this won’t translate exactly to Instagram, it should give you a sense of who’s interested in your business and what you have to say.

Understanding your audience puts you in a better position to create targeted content and business captions for Instagram that resonate. Since audience research is an important foundation for your content strategy, we’ve got a whole post dedicated to helping you find your target market .

2. Figure out your content mix

Now that you know who your audience is, you need to determine what to share with them. Rather than posting random content whenever the mood strikes, you need to develop a content strategy that speaks to your audience and keeps them engaged, all while contributing to real business goals .

While you should certainly post some promotional content to get people excited about your products and drive sales, you also need to provide content that builds community and sparks engagement.

That might mean including user-generated content or other curated resources , sharing insider expertise about your industry, or joining in on a trending meme. (But tread carefully here—only join in on trends that are appropriate for your brand voice.)

i am wearing a disguise pic.twitter.com/HlWFQb8P22 — no name (@nonamebrands) October 31, 2022

Look for opportunities to develop themes or regular installments that you can build into a series. “Content buckets” allow you to check certain boxes without having to overthink creation. The more planning you do upfront, the better you’ll be able to produce regular content and respond to last-minute or unplanned events.

3. Schedule your content in advance

From Reels to Stories to posts, there are many options when it comes to Instagram content.

The best way to create a unified strategy is to schedule your content across all Instagram surfaces (and other social platforms) using a content calendar . Or, take it up a level and schedule all your content to publish automatically at the right time using a tool like the Hootsuite Publisher . Yes, you can even schedule Stories and Reels in advance.

The added advantage here is that you can create your content in dedicated blocks of time and schedule it to post at the best time for your audience . Even if that time is outside business hours, on the weekend, or in the middle of the night.

4. Tag products

When you share content about your products on Instagram, tagging makes it much easier for people to learn more or buy. You can tag up to 20 products in a photo feed post.

Source: Tory Burch

To tag products, create your Instagram post or Reel as usual. Then, on the final screen before posting, tap Tag products . You can tag products from your own shop or someone else’s, which creates great opportunities for collaboration and cross-promotion.

In Stories, you can tag products using the Product link sticker.

Source: Pat McGrath

5. Track your results (and learn from wins and losses)

With an Instagram for business account, you have access to the platform’s built-in analytics tools to help you understand how well different types of content perform.

There are several other analytics tools available, including Hootsuite’s , that can track longer time frames, automate reporting and make it easier to compare Instagram metrics across other social media platforms.

No matter which social media marketing tools you use, the important thing is to check in regularly to learn what kind of content resonates best with your target audience. You’ll start to see patterns about what generates the most engagement, as well as what kinds of social media content increase views beyond your existing follower base. ( Hint: Try Instagram Reels .)

Use these lessons to hone your content strategy over time.

6. Treat Instagram as a customer service channel

Success on Instagram requires you to engage with your followers rather than just blast content out and hope someone likes it. One important component of this two-way communication is monitoring your DMs for questions, comments, and customer service requests.

Instagram business accounts have access to a couple of DM features that make managing customer service easier on the platform. First, your inbox is divided into Primary and General tabs to make it easier to keep track of your messages. And second, you can create saved replies to commonly asked questions that you can access via keyboard shortcuts.

Hootsuite Inbox makes it even easier to manage your DMs by allowing you to assign messages to the appropriate team members . Or, create templated replies to common questions to save your team time and effort.

Manage all your messages stress-free with easy routing, saved replies, and friendly chatbots. Try Hootsuite’s Inbox today.

7. Automate content creation

The average Instagram business account posts 1.55 times per day on the main feed.

That’s a lot of content!

Luckily, manual content creation is now a thing of the past. These days, it’s easy to speed up content creation processes like copywriting and graphic design with the help of generative AI tools .

OwlyWriter AI is Hootsuite’s latest generative AI tool, free to all Hootsuite users. Use OwlyWriter to generate quick social media captions , and get inspiration for your posts across platforms.

You can also leverage outside tools like ChatGPT, Dall-E, Midjourney, and more. But, because OwlyWriter is oh-so convenient in your Hootsuite dashboard, we recommend starting there. Check out our blog on the best AI content creation tools here .

Always remember, content generated by AI should always be seen as a starting point, not a finished product . Be sure to check over any AI generated content for accuracy, brand voice, style, and tone before posting.

OwlyWriter AI instantly generates captions and content ideas for every social media network. It’s seriously easy.

8. Elevate your grid aesthetics

Looking to make your Instagram grid stand out from the crowd? With Hootsuite’s Instagram Grid integration , you can make a totally aesthetic Instagram grid in just a few clicks.

Here’s how it works:

• Seamless planning: Planning your grid layout has never been easier. With Instagram Grid, you can visualize how your posts will look together , ensuring a cohesive and visually appealing grid.
• Drag-and-drop simplicity: Want to rearrange your grid? No problem. With easy-to-use drag-and-drop functionality , you can experiment with different layouts until you find the perfect arrangement.
• Scheduled posts: Say goodbye to last-minute scrambling. With Hootsuite, you can schedule your grid posts in advance , ensuring that your grid remains active and engaging even when you’re busy.
• Curate like a pro: Discover and curate high-quality content right from the Hootsuite dashboard. Whether it’s user-generated content, AI hashtag suggestions , or trending topics, we’ve got the tools you need to keep your grid fresh and relevant.
• Track your success: With Hootsuite’s analytics dashboard, you can track engagement metrics and understand what resonates with your audience. Use these insights to refine your grid strategy and drive even more engagement.

FAQs about using Instagram for business

Is instagram for business free.

It’s free to set up an Instagram business account, promote your business, and even set up an Instagram shop.

The only fees for Instagram business accounts are ad costs if you choose to run Instagram ads , and selling fees if you use Commerce Manager to allow your customers to check out and complete their purchase within the Meta platform.

There is also no fee to use Instagram Shopping to tag products and direct users to your website to buy them.

What is the difference between personal and business Instagram?

The difference between personal and business Instagram accounts is pretty straightforward. Personal accounts are great for sharing your daily life and connecting with friends and family. But, if you’re running a business or want to promote or sell a product, a business account on Instagram offers tools like analytics, shopping, and advertising to help you reach your goals.

What is the best time to post on Instagram for business?

The best time to post on Instagram for your business depends on who you’re trying to reach and what you’re sharing. Mornings generally bring the most engagement for brand accounts, though certain industries, like real estate, retail, or entertainment accounts, may see more success posting in the evening.

Check out our comprehensive guide on the best times to post on every social network to learn more.

How does Instagram work for business?

By switching your personal profile to a business account, you unlock a treasure trove of tools to boost your business. Get free access to features like Instagram Insights, which lets you peek into who’s engaging with your business on Instagram, or Commerce Manager, which lets you tag and sell products directly on Instagram. It’s like having your own personal business assistant right at your fingertips!

What are the disadvantages of using Instagram for business?

While business Instagram accounts are a great way to sell products and be seen, there are a few drawbacks to consider.

First, increased competition among businesses on the platform can make it tough to secure organic reach. Second, managing a business account requires consistent effort, and eventually you may want to consider hiring a social media manager . Third, unlike personal accounts, where updates are more flexible, business profiles carry the weight of reputation and customer perception. Be sure to read up on managing social media crises before you get started.

Save time managing Instagram for business using Hootsuite. From a single dashboard, you can schedule and publish posts, carousels, Stories, Reels, and ads directly to Instagram — and engage your audience, measure performance, and handle all your other social media profiles. Try it free today.

Easily create, analyze, and schedule Instagram posts, Stories, Reels, and Threads with Hootsuite. Save time and get results.

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Hannah Macready is a freelance writer with 12 years of experience in social media and digital marketing. Her work has appeared in publications such as Fast Company and The Globe & Mail, and has been used in global social media campaigns for brands like Grosvenor Americas and Intuit Mailchimp. In her spare time, Hannah likes exploring the outdoors with her two dogs, Soup and Salad.

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Training is necessary for new employees to start off on the right foot. Here's what should go into your new-hire training plan.

Table of Contents

Growing companies hire new employees who need onboarding, assimilation and training. Ideally, employers tap new team members with the in-demand skills and talents to perform their duties. An effective training program helps these promising new employees fully integrate with the company and gives them the tools for success and career growth. 

We’ll explore what an effective new-hire training program requires and explain how to turn new employees into top-notch members of your team. 

How to develop an effective new-hire training plan

These five tips can help you develop a new-hire training plan that will get employees settled and ready to produce top-quality work.

1. Ask existing employees what you should include in the training.

The best way to develop a new-hire training plan is by consulting with current employees who excel in their roles. For the best results, follow these steps:

• Identify key employees. Pinpoint excellent employees who are currently in similar positions as the new hire. 
• Find out what the job really entails. Ask your current employees what they think the new team member needs to perform their daily tasks. This advice can help you avoid overlooking critical job details, including the tools and setup the new employee will need to succeed. 
• Have them evaluate their training. Your seasoned employees can help you identify gaps in your current training plan that they experienced firsthand. Ask them what they wish they knew on day one that would have made it easier to begin working. 

“Setting up a new-hire training program can be daunting,” said Matthew Dailly, managing director at Tiger Financial. “You need to think about the most important aspects of the job but also the smallest details that they will need to learn to get right. The best way of knowing what new staff need to do is to ask your existing workers. They will make sure you know about everything that goes on in the role and how to set them up for it.”

2. Make training flexible, task-oriented and ongoing.

Create a dynamic process with the following features: 

• Customized training for each employee. While all new-hire training plans should cover the basics of working at your company, it’s essential to incorporate unique elements for each hire based on their interview and professional background. “Each person will enter training with varying skills and different focuses on what they need to be able to get through the training process successfully, so while the basics are core features, the rest of the training should remain flexible enough to suit each individual based on their personal needs,” said Adam Korbl, founder and CEO of iFax.
• Incorporate task-oriented training. “Instead of having a fixed-time training, have a task-oriented training where each training item needs to be completed to a specific standard to move forward to full employment,” Korbl said. “This allows the flexibility to give each person the training experience they actually need, as opposed to the basic requirements.”
• Make training an ongoing process. While each new hire should be able to perform their job in a week or two, training should be ongoing, with regular check-ins to ensure new employees have everything they need to excel in their position. 

3. Encourage team-level training.

Most companies hire for a cultural fit to ensure new employees align with the company’s mission and vision. However, all too often, training covers only basic expectations and administrative information, like compensation and employee benefits . Incorporating team-based training can help new hires get up to speed faster and assimilate into the company culture better than they would with corporate-level training alone. 

“Companies often do onboarding on orientation at the corporate level,” said Mark A. Herschberg, author of The Career Toolkit: Essential Skills for Success That No One Taught You (Conosco Media, 2020). “While useful, orientation is also helped by being done at the team level. Helping the new team member understand team culture is equally important. How does the team operate in terms of conflict versus coalition building, or like to communicate?”

Team-level training can help new hires do the following: 

• Understand their team’s unique workflow
• Recognize the team’s reporting hierarchy
• Appreciate the day-to-day expectations for their role 
• Understand existing processes
• Meet other team members 
• Learn the metrics used to track the team’s productivity

4. Accommodate each new hire’s preferred learning method.

People learn differently, so your new-hire training plan should adapt to various learning styles. Conforming to a new hire’s preferred learning method can help reduce the instruction a new hire needs to perform in their role effectively.

“When training new employees, it is important to engage them in a way that best suits their ability to learn the most,” said Jase Rodley, founder and SEO service provider at Dialed Labs. “People can often differ in how they will best get a handle on something.”

You’re likely to see three main learning styles among new hires:

• Visual. Some new hires prefer to learn processes by watching someone actively perform tasks.
• Hands-on. Other employees like to take a hands-on approach to learning by performing the task themselves several times before they can commit it to memory.
• Reading. Some employees prefer to read a packet of written instructions and keep it on hand in their first few weeks on the job.

“While not all aspects of training are made to move between [these three learning styles] … it is good practice to give the new employee the best chance of success that you can by providing the method that most inspires them,” Rodley said.

5. Promote good leaders and involve them in the training process.

Without good leaders, your staff will have a hard time succeeding. This is especially true for new hires. When promoting or hiring for managerial positions, carefully consider which candidates could best guide and coach other employees. Then, involve them in developing and executing your new-hire training plan.

“The leadership ability of the manager is the No. 1 determining factor of whether a new hire will have a positive or negative employee experience over the long haul,” said Jessica Donahue, owner of Adjunct Leadership Consulting. “Employee engagement, retention and turnover can all be predicted by the quality of leader an employee works for. In this way, providing an exceptional onboarding experience is the first step for a leader looking to retain and engage a high-performing team for years to come.”

What is a new-hire training plan?

A new-hire training plan is a company’s well-defined process for onboarding new team members and bringing them up to speed. It should do the following:

• Cover administrative concerns. Make sure new team members complete any necessary administrative paperwork. 
• Introduce new hires to their teams. Introduce your new hires to team members, and share processes for communicating with colleagues and leadership. 
• Teach critical tools. Train new hires on software and other tools they’ll need to do their jobs effectively.
• Share the company vision. Introduce new hires to core concepts, like the company mission , organizational structure and company culture.

Why is new-hire training important? 

A comprehensive new-hire training program can help your company in the following ways: 

• Ensures a strong start. A strong training plan can prevent misunderstandings or a sluggish start, thereby helping the company reap the benefits of filling a vacant position as soon as a week after the new hire begins in their role. 
• Helps employees feel welcome. A comprehensive new-hire training plan helps make new employees feel like members of the team. They’ll meet key organization members, learn about job perks, and identify sources of support within the company. 
• Makes employees feel confident. Training makes new team members feel comfortable in their positions while giving them the knowledge, tools and skills they need to become successful and productive members of your company.
• Improves morale and reduces turnover. Training can also boost morale because it helps new hires feel like they are welcome, competent members of the team, and high employee morale decreases turnover . In contrast, new employees without proper training may get frustrated and leave their jobs soon after getting hired. 

Training mistakes to avoid

Avoid these common training program mistakes to help create the best onboarding program possible: 

• Not giving new hires a warm welcome. How you greet your new hires on their first day will color their impression of the company. It can even affect how productive they’ll be in the long term. You’ll seem callous and uncaring if you show them to their desk, give them an assignment, and let them figure out the company on their own. Instead, your hiring manager or a senior employee should greet them at the door. A tour of your facilities and team member introductions can help new employees feel more connected.
• Using too much technical jargon. Many industries have developed their own shorthand, but you shouldn’t assume a new employee speaks the lingo. Take your time introducing new hires to the industry lexicon, and give them resources to learn it at their own pace. Give them a cheat sheet with common acronyms and phrases, or connect them with an in-house mentor who can explain any unfamiliar terms. 
• Failing to nurture their interests. Many new hires are excited to start the job, and it’s possible to harness that energy to kick-start a solid connection to the company. However, just because that connection exists doesn’t mean it will last. Without guidance, a new employee’s passion for their role can fade, and their productivity will vanish along with it. Communication is crucial for maintaining a new hire’s excitement. An HR representative or manager should check in regularly with the new hire to ensure they haven’t run into trouble. Make sure they understand their responsibilities, and share exciting plans.

Turn your new hires into top-quality employees

Many of the best employees in any industry are made, not found. But turning an untested new hire into an employee who reliably provides excellent results requires serious work and dedication. With this guide to training programs, all that work can be much easier – and your team can be better, too. 

Isaiah Atkins contributed to the reporting and writing in this article. Some source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

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What Is Apple One, and Should You Subscribe?

big tech companies are always looking for new ways to tie us into their ecosystems, but there is something to be said for the simplicity of a single monthly subscription. Apple One bundles several Apple services into one payment that is cheaper than subscribing to the same services individually. If you already subscribe to the likes of Apple Fitness+ and News+, it’s a great deal for you. The question is whether it can entice anyone currently using a mix of first- and third-party services to switch completely to Apple and lock that walled garden gate.

Here we break down what Apple One includes, how much it costs, how to subscribe, and other details about the service in case you're thinking of signing up.

Updated March 2024: We refreshed the details and updated prices.

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What Does Apple One Include and How Much Is It?

Apple One comes in three tiers:

• Individual: For $19.95 per month, you get Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and 50 gigabytes of iCloud storage for one person.
• Family: For $25.95 per month, you get Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, and 200 GB of iCloud storage, plus you can share access with up to five other people.
• Premier: For $37.95 per month, you get Apple Music, Apple TV+, Apple Arcade, 2 terabytes of iCloud storage, News+, and Fitness+, plus you can share access with up to five other people.

How Much Can I Save?

Naturally, cost savings only apply if you're subscribed to all of these services separately. If you only currently subscribe to Apple Music and nothing else, for example, then you're not going to save money by switching to Apple One's Individual plan. That said, compared to the usual pricing for the included services, the Individual plan saves you $9 per month, the Family plan saves you $11, and the Premier plan saves you $29.

Here's how the prices break down:

• Apple Music : $11 per month for the individual plan, $17 for the family plan, and $6 for the student plan or voice plan.
• Apple TV+ : $10 per month.
• Apple Arcade : $7 per month.
• Apple News+ : $13 per month.
• Apple Fitness+ : $10 per month or $80 for a year.
• iCloud+ : $1 per month for 50 GB, $3 for 200 GB, and $10 for 2 TB.

It’s worth noting that Apple TV+ and Apple Arcade can always be shared with your family, whether you subscribe separately or with an individual Apple One plan. Apple News+ and Apple Fitness+ also support family sharing.

What About Free Trials and Existing Subscriptions?

You can get a one-month free trial of Apple One. If you are a new subscriber and have no existing subscriptions or free trials for any of these services, you get everything for free for one month and then start paying the monthly fee.

If you have existing subscriptions or free trials running, things get a little more complicated. If you already subscribe to some of the services in Apple One, those subscriptions will continue, and you will get the others for free for one month. At the end of the month, your current individual subscriptions will automatically be canceled, and you'll start paying the Apple One plan price for everything.

By Boone Ashworth

By Eric Ravenscraft

By Julian Chokkattu

What if you scored a free trial of Apple TV+ for three months, or you have six free months of Apple Music through an offer you redeemed? Unfortunately, Apple One will cut those free trials down to the standard one-month period, after which you will start to pay the Apple One plan price you chose. Note: You don’t get any free trial allowance back if you cancel your Apple One plan.

Apple One Services

What exactly do some of these services offer? Here's a closer look:

Apple Music appears in our Best Streaming Services guide because the entire library of more than 90 million songs is available in lossless format, and you get immersive 3D sound with albums tuned in Dolby Atmos. It has an excellent iPhone app and Siri support, but the Android app is just OK, and we're not fans of the desktop app. Social playlist sharing and curation don’t quite match up to our favorite service, Spotify, but the gap is closing. If you want to switch from Spotify to Apple Music , you can also take your playlists.

With a focus on quality over quantity, Apple TV+ isn’t competing with the enormous libraries offered by Netflix, Disney+, and Hulu, and it deserves its place in our Best Streaming Services guide. It's light on movies, though there are highlights, like Killers of the Flower Moon , Wolfwalkers , and Finch . But the real appeal of Apple TV+ is unmissable hit shows like Severance , Foundation , Ted Lasso, and The Morning Show , and it boasts excellent music documentaries, too. Everything is offered in 4K with HDR, and no, you don't need an Apple TV to watch content in Apple TV+.

Closing in on three years since its release, the impact of Apple Arcade on mobile gaming is still unclear. What isn’t up for debate is the fact it offers some of the best mobile games without ads or in-app purchases. There are more than 200 titles in the Apple Arcade now, many of them exclusive. Some of our favorites include Mini Motorways , Sayonara Wild Hearts , Sneaky Sasquatch , Bloons TD6 , and Assemble With Care .

Everyone gets 5 GB of storage space in iCloud for free, but that soon fills up with device backups, photos, and videos. You can upgrade to iCloud+ to get 50 GB, 200 GB, or 2 TB, and each option supports family sharing. There are several alternative cloud storage services that work well with Apple devices, but iCloud is tightly integrated. Aside from the extra space, another reason to upgrade to iCloud+ is for HomeKit Secure Video . It allows HomeKit security cameras and video doorbells to record 10 days of activity, viewable in the Home app. The 50-GB plan supports a single camera, the 200-GB plan covers up to five cameras, and the 2-TB plan supports unlimited cameras. These HomeKit videos don’t count against your iCloud storage limit. Every iCloud+ subscription also includes Private Relay , which encrypts your Safari web browsing, and Hide My Email , which gives you unique, random email addresses to use when you'd prefer to keep yours private.

If you love to read great magazines like (ahem) WIRED, National Geographic , The New Yorker , Time , People , Vogue , Rolling Stone , and Popular Science , or newspapers like The Wall Street Journal and Los Angeles Times, you can find them and many more, cover-to-cover, in the News app with an Apple News+ subscription. The service saves you from paywalls, features slick presentation, and offers curation based on your interests. On the downside, it doesn’t include everything— The New York Times and The Washington Post are famously unavailable. It also only works on Apple devices.

Workout subscription services grew popular at the start of the pandemic , as people could no longer visit the gym. Apple Fitness+ offers various workout types, from yoga to strength training, audio-guided walks and runs, and meditations, along with plenty of real-time metrics. It works via the Fitness app on an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV, and it requires an Apple Watch Series 3 or newer. You can read more about it in our review , but the service has since expanded. (Apple adds around 30 new workouts and meditations every week.)

How to Subscribe to Apple One

If you are sold on Apple One , signing up on an Apple device is easy. Go to Settings , Account (tap on your name), Subscriptions , and you will see Apple One with the option to Try It Now . That’s it!

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What is a Business Plan? Definition, Tips, and Templates

Published: June 07, 2023

In an era where more than 20% of small enterprises fail in their first year, having a clear, defined, and well-thought-out business plan is a crucial first step for setting up a business for long-term success.

Business plans are a required tool for all entrepreneurs, business owners, business acquirers, and even business school students. But … what exactly is a business plan?

In this post, we'll explain what a business plan is, the reasons why you'd need one, identify different types of business plans, and what you should include in yours.

What is a business plan?

A business plan is a documented strategy for a business that highlights its goals and its plans for achieving them. It outlines a company's go-to-market plan, financial projections, market research, business purpose, and mission statement. Key staff who are responsible for achieving the goals may also be included in the business plan along with a timeline.

The business plan is an undeniably critical component to getting any company off the ground. It's key to securing financing, documenting your business model, outlining your financial projections, and turning that nugget of a business idea into a reality.

What is a business plan used for?

The purpose of a business plan is three-fold: It summarizes the organization’s strategy in order to execute it long term, secures financing from investors, and helps forecast future business demands.

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Purposes of a Business Plan

Chances are, someone drafting a business plan will be doing so for one or more of the following reasons:

1. Securing financing from investors.

Since its contents revolve around how businesses succeed, break even, and turn a profit, a business plan is used as a tool for sourcing capital. This document is an entrepreneur's way of showing potential investors or lenders how their capital will be put to work and how it will help the business thrive.

All banks, investors, and venture capital firms will want to see a business plan before handing over their money, and investors typically expect a 10% ROI or more from the capital they invest in a business.

Therefore, these investors need to know if — and when — they'll be making their money back (and then some). Additionally, they'll want to read about the process and strategy for how the business will reach those financial goals, which is where the context provided by sales, marketing, and operations plans come into play.

2. Documenting a company's strategy and goals.

A business plan should leave no stone unturned.

Business plans can span dozens or even hundreds of pages, affording their drafters the opportunity to explain what a business' goals are and how the business will achieve them.

To show potential investors that they've addressed every question and thought through every possible scenario, entrepreneurs should thoroughly explain their marketing, sales, and operations strategies — from acquiring a physical location for the business to explaining a tactical approach for marketing penetration.

These explanations should ultimately lead to a business' break-even point supported by a sales forecast and financial projections, with the business plan writer being able to speak to the why behind anything outlined in the plan.

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Fill out the form to access your free business plan., 3. legitimizing a business idea..

Everyone's got a great idea for a company — until they put pen to paper and realize that it's not exactly feasible.

A business plan is an aspiring entrepreneur's way to prove that a business idea is actually worth pursuing.

As entrepreneurs document their go-to-market process, capital needs, and expected return on investment, entrepreneurs likely come across a few hiccups that will make them second guess their strategies and metrics — and that's exactly what the business plan is for.

It ensures an entrepreneur's ducks are in a row before bringing their business idea to the world and reassures the readers that whoever wrote the plan is serious about the idea, having put hours into thinking of the business idea, fleshing out growth tactics, and calculating financial projections.

4. Getting an A in your business class.

Speaking from personal experience, there's a chance you're here to get business plan ideas for your Business 101 class project.

If that's the case, might we suggest checking out this post on How to Write a Business Plan — providing a section-by-section guide on creating your plan?

What does a business plan need to include?

• Business Plan Subtitle
• Executive Summary
• Company Description
• The Business Opportunity
• Competitive Analysis
• Target Market
• Marketing Plan
• Financial Summary
• Funding Requirements

1. Business Plan Subtitle

Every great business plan starts with a captivating title and subtitle. You’ll want to make it clear that the document is, in fact, a business plan, but the subtitle can help tell the story of your business in just a short sentence.

2. Executive Summary

Although this is the last part of the business plan that you’ll write, it’s the first section (and maybe the only section) that stakeholders will read. The executive summary of a business plan sets the stage for the rest of the document. It includes your company’s mission or vision statement, value proposition, and long-term goals.

3. Company Description

This brief part of your business plan will detail your business name, years in operation, key offerings, and positioning statement. You might even add core values or a short history of the company. The company description’s role in a business plan is to introduce your business to the reader in a compelling and concise way.

4. The Business Opportunity

The business opportunity should convince investors that your organization meets the needs of the market in a way that no other company can. This section explains the specific problem your business solves within the marketplace and how it solves them. It will include your value proposition as well as some high-level information about your target market.

5. Competitive Analysis

Just about every industry has more than one player in the market. Even if your business owns the majority of the market share in your industry or your business concept is the first of its kind, you still have competition. In the competitive analysis section, you’ll take an objective look at the industry landscape to determine where your business fits. A SWOT analysis is an organized way to format this section.

6. Target Market

Who are the core customers of your business and why? The target market portion of your business plan outlines this in detail. The target market should explain the demographics, psychographics, behavioristics, and geographics of the ideal customer.

7. Marketing Plan

Marketing is expansive, and it’ll be tempting to cover every type of marketing possible, but a brief overview of how you’ll market your unique value proposition to your target audience, followed by a tactical plan will suffice.

Think broadly and narrow down from there: Will you focus on a slow-and-steady play where you make an upfront investment in organic customer acquisition? Or will you generate lots of quick customers using a pay-to-play advertising strategy? This kind of information should guide the marketing plan section of your business plan.

8. Financial Summary

Money doesn’t grow on trees and even the most digital, sustainable businesses have expenses. Outlining a financial summary of where your business is currently and where you’d like it to be in the future will substantiate this section. Consider including any monetary information that will give potential investors a glimpse into the financial health of your business. Assets, liabilities, expenses, debt, investments, revenue, and more are all useful adds here.

So, you’ve outlined some great goals, the business opportunity is valid, and the industry is ready for what you have to offer. Who’s responsible for turning all this high-level talk into results? The "team" section of your business plan answers that question by providing an overview of the roles responsible for each goal. Don’t worry if you don’t have every team member on board yet, knowing what roles to hire for is helpful as you seek funding from investors.

10. Funding Requirements

Remember that one of the goals of a business plan is to secure funding from investors, so you’ll need to include funding requirements you’d like them to fulfill. The amount your business needs, for what reasons, and for how long will meet the requirement for this section.

Types of Business Plans

• Startup Business Plan
• Feasibility Business Plan
• Internal Business Plan
• Strategic Business Plan
• Business Acquisition Plan
• Business Repositioning Plan
• Expansion or Growth Business Plan

There’s no one size fits all business plan as there are several types of businesses in the market today. From startups with just one founder to historic household names that need to stay competitive, every type of business needs a business plan that’s tailored to its needs. Below are a few of the most common types of business plans.

For even more examples, check out these sample business plans to help you write your own .

1. Startup Business Plan

As one of the most common types of business plans, a startup business plan is for new business ideas. This plan lays the foundation for the eventual success of a business.

The biggest challenge with the startup business plan is that it’s written completely from scratch. Startup business plans often reference existing industry data. They also explain unique business strategies and go-to-market plans.

Because startup business plans expand on an original idea, the contents will vary by the top priority goals.

For example, say a startup is looking for funding. If capital is a priority, this business plan might focus more on financial projections than marketing or company culture.

2. Feasibility Business Plan

This type of business plan focuses on a single essential aspect of the business — the product or service. It may be part of a startup business plan or a standalone plan for an existing organization. This comprehensive plan may include:

• A detailed product description
• Market analysis
• Technology needs
• Production needs
• Financial sources
• Production operations

According to CBInsights research, 35% of startups fail because of a lack of market need. Another 10% fail because of mistimed products.

Some businesses will complete a feasibility study to explore ideas and narrow product plans to the best choice. They conduct these studies before completing the feasibility business plan. Then the feasibility plan centers on that one product or service.

3. Internal Business Plan

Internal business plans help leaders communicate company goals, strategy, and performance. This helps the business align and work toward objectives more effectively.

Besides the typical elements in a startup business plan, an internal business plan may also include:

• Department-specific budgets
• Target demographic analysis
• Market size and share of voice analysis
• Action plans
• Sustainability plans

Most external-facing business plans focus on raising capital and support for a business. But an internal business plan helps keep the business mission consistent in the face of change.

4. Strategic Business Plan

Strategic business plans focus on long-term objectives for your business. They usually cover the first three to five years of operations. This is different from the typical startup business plan which focuses on the first one to three years. The audience for this plan is also primarily internal stakeholders.

These types of business plans may include:

• Relevant data and analysis
• Assessments of company resources
• Vision and mission statements

It's important to remember that, while many businesses create a strategic plan before launching, some business owners just jump in. So, this business plan can add value by outlining how your business plans to reach specific goals. This type of planning can also help a business anticipate future challenges.

5. Business Acquisition Plan

Investors use business plans to acquire existing businesses, too — not just new businesses.

A business acquisition plan may include costs, schedules, or management requirements. This data will come from an acquisition strategy.

A business plan for an existing company will explain:

• How an acquisition will change its operating model
• What will stay the same under new ownership
• Why things will change or stay the same
• Acquisition planning documentation
• Timelines for acquisition

Additionally, the business plan should speak to the current state of the business and why it's up for sale.

For example, if someone is purchasing a failing business, the business plan should explain why the business is being purchased. It should also include:

• What the new owner will do to turn the business around
• Historic business metrics
• Sales projections after the acquisition
• Justification for those projections

6. Business Repositioning Plan

When a business wants to avoid acquisition, reposition its brand, or try something new, CEOs or owners will develop a business repositioning plan.

This plan will:

• Acknowledge the current state of the company.
• State a vision for the future of the company.
• Explain why the business needs to reposition itself.
• Outline a process for how the company will adjust.

Companies planning for a business reposition often do so — proactively or retroactively — due to a shift in market trends and customer needs.

For example, shoe brand AllBirds plans to refocus its brand on core customers and shift its go-to-market strategy. These decisions are a reaction to lackluster sales following product changes and other missteps.

7. Expansion or Growth Business Plan

When your business is ready to expand, a growth business plan creates a useful structure for reaching specific targets.

For example, a successful business expanding into another location can use a growth business plan. This is because it may also mean the business needs to focus on a new target market or generate more capital.

This type of plan usually covers the next year or two of growth. It often references current sales, revenue, and successes. It may also include:

• SWOT analysis
• Growth opportunity studies
• Financial goals and plans
• Marketing plans
• Capability planning

These types of business plans will vary by business, but they can help businesses quickly rally around new priorities to drive growth.

Getting Started With Your Business Plan

At the end of the day, a business plan is simply an explanation of a business idea and why it will be successful. The more detail and thought you put into it, the more successful your plan — and the business it outlines — will be.

When writing your business plan, you’ll benefit from extensive research, feedback from your team or board of directors, and a solid template to organize your thoughts. If you need one of these, download HubSpot's Free Business Plan Template below to get started.

Editor's note: This post was originally published in August 2020 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

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• Best for older adults
• Best for long-term care
• Best for high returns
• Best for agent support
• Best for term life
• Why you should trust us

Best Life Insurance of June 2024

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Life insurance is as complicated as the policyholders and beneficiaries who use it. That means there's no single "best" life insurance company. Instead, you can find the best option based on what you want or what you prioritize.

Summary of the Best Life Insurance Companies

• Best for customer satisfaction:   State Farm Life Insurance
• Best for older adults:   Prudential Life Insurance
• Best for agent support:   New York Life Insurance
• Best for long-term care:   Columbus Life
• Best for high returns:   Allianz Life
• Best for term life:   North American Company

Best Life Insurance Companies of 2024

While there is no such thing as the objective best life insurance policy, you will be able to find the best insurance policy for your specific needs. Here are our picks for the best life insurance companies, whether you want to use your life insurance policy to build wealth through cash value or you're just looking for a term life insurance policy .

Best Life Insurance for Customer Satisfaction: State Farm Life Insurance

Bundling is standard, and agents often quote with multiple discounts.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Best in JD Power customer service ratings
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Company offers a range of different insurance products to meet buyer needs
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Agents are knowledgeable about its products
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Life insurance products are conservative and limited
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Buyers may be subject to multi-year waiting periods before they qualify for full payouts on life insurance policies
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. State Farm agents cannot offer alternative options if State Farm is unable to bind a life insurance policy

State Farm is one of the insurance industry's most prominent insurers offering auto, home, and other insurance. Bundling is standard, and agents often quote with multiple discounts. Its term, universal, and whole life insurance products are no exception.

• Life insurance products include term and permanent life
• Ranks highly for customer satisfaction

State Farm Life Insurance gets the best life insurance ranking in J.D Power's Individual Life Insurance Study, with a score of 843/1,000. The company is also ranked A++ with AM Best for its financial stability with term, universal, and whole life insurance options. 

All State Farm policies have to be purchased through a State Farm agent. Your agent can help you bundle and save or buy one policy. State Farm is also among the companies offering "survivorship universal life insurance ," which means the policy covers two people, and it kicks in after the second person dies. Couples looking to maximize their death benefit for beneficiaries with one premium payment each month may enjoy lower overall costs.

State Farm agents can run quotes and compare options to find the right plans for each applicant. The range of options, discounts, and familiar name all contribute to the popularity of State Farm's life insurance.

Read our State Farm Life Insurance review here.

Best Life Insurance for Older Adults: Prudential VUL Protector Life Insurance

Offers aggressive financial plans.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Available in all 50 states (New York residents may have different plans)
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Buyers can withdraw money to pay for nursing home bills due to severe illness or disability
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Knowledgeable agents who can walk you through your options
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Financial returns are limited
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Limited policy options for seniors and other groups who might struggle to find life insurance

The aggressive financial plans offered by Prudential may appeal to many younger buyers and those with a stable income. However, those with lower income or buyers who aren't sure about the financial system may be more hesitant to engage with Prudential. Like many other industry giants, Prudential is working to change this perception.

Prudential Life Insurance is available in all states except New York. New York residents can buy the Pruco Life of New Jersey VUL Protector plan. This plan allows buyers to pull money out of their plan to pay for nursing home expenses. Cash value policy premiums are fixed, so you won't have to worry about extra costs later on. Internal costs are low, which minimizes risk. Due to age, many older adults want a safe investment option for their money. Prudential VUL Protector invests to avoid loss. That also means you're not as likely to see big increases in your available funds outside of what you deposit.

Read our Prudential Life Insurance review here.

Best Life Insurance for Long-Term Care: Columbus Life Insurance

Offers lien method to makes it easier to calculate the financial impact of pulling money out early.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Buyers can pull money out for medical and other bills in the event of disease or disability
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Columbus uses lien method to simplify accelerated death payments
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Company offers a wide range of riders to customize policies
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Premiums may be higher than competitors
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Term policies are not guaranteed to be converted to whole

Best for long-term care and accelerated death benefits.

Columbus Life offers a wide range of riders to customize your policy with affordable premiums. The company also allows you to convert term policies to whole life insurance policies until the end of your term (generally around age 70). For this and many other reasons, customer satisfaction is high.

When using living health benefits (otherwise known as accelerated death benefits), buyers are allowed to pull money from policies early to pay for medical bills, living costs, etc. under certain circumstances. Most companies use a discounted death benefit, which reduces your final payout using two models. Columbus uses the lien method, which makes it easier to calculate the financial impact of pulling money out early.

Best Life Insurance for High Returns on Income: Allianz Life Insurance

Offers life insurance policies for foreign nationals with H-1B visas.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Plans offer high returns on investment
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Great for investment and long-term retirement planning
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. May increase your income by as much as 20%
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Allianz offers plans for foreign nationals including H-1B visas
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Plans are meant specifically for high-income adults, alternatives may not be offered

Best for investing and high returns on income.

Allianz Life plans are geared towards high-income adults looking for more tax-free income. Allianz offers a 40% multiplier bonus with a 1% annual assets charge. In short, the professionals managing your investments take 10%. Overall, your investments would pull in an extra 14%-1% asset charge. This means you end up with 3% more than what you deposit every year your life policy is active. This plan offers strong returns when using a life policy to supplement your retirement savings. Allianz also offers specialized plans to grow your income by as much as 20% according to some estimates.

Of note: Allianz also offers plans for foreign nationals, including those with H-1B visas.

Best Life Insurance for Agent Support: New York Life Insurance

Offers aggressive financial products and extensively trained agents.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Strong life insurance options for financial planning and wealth building
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Policies available nationwide
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Knowledgeable life insurance agents
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. May require a medical exam
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Buyers looking for more modest policies may not find the most competitive pricing

If you're preparing for a comfortable retirement or looking to build generational wealth, New York Life is one of the strongest options. If you have questions or genuinely want to understand your life insurance options, New York Life agents are among the most qualified professionals in the business.

• Life insurance provider with policies available across the US

New York Life Insurance agents go through extensive training before they ever hit the sales floor. What does this get you? Policies vary widely, and New York Life offers both large and small payouts. Some policies have significant penalties for early withdrawal, but taking a loan offers more options. Whatever your questions, New York Life agents are trained to offer comprehensive support giving you accurate information about its policies every time. The company comes in at position eight in J.D. Power's latest life insurance customer satisfaction study.

Read our New York Life Insurance review here.

Best Life Insurance for Term Life: North American Life Insurance

Offers term policies alongside accelerated death benefits for critical, chronic, and terminal illnesses and more.

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers accelerated death benefits for critical, chronic, and terminal illnesses
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Offers conversion for life policies up to 70 years old
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Term policies can be renewed up to age 95 for qualifying applicants
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Not all term policies qualify for renewal or conversion

Best Term Policy.

North American Company offers term policies alongside accelerated death benefits for critical, chronic, and terminal illnesses and more. The company allows one conversion on a 20-year policy at 15 years or 70 years old (whichever is earlier). The conversion cannot happen later than the five-year marker regardless of which policy you choose or the length. North American Company also offers a term policy with a lower premium renewable up to the age of 95 for qualifying insureds.

Types of Life Insurance

While there's many different types of life insurance policies , broadly speaking, there are two types of life insurance: temporary and permanent. Let's go over each in detail.

Temporary life insurance

Temporary life insurance is often called term life insurance. This type of policy covers you for a set amount of time before expiring, usually between 10-30 years. If you pass away after your policy expires, your family won't receive any benefits. Additionally, your policy won't accrue cash value like a permanent policy. That said, some term life insurance policies offer a conversion from term to whole life insurance, so you can extend your coverage. 

Because its benefits aren't guaranteed, term life policies are generally cheaper than permanent life insurance. That said, the vast majority of term life insurance policies never pay out. on

Permanent life insurance

Permanent life insurance is an umbrella term for a variety of life insurance policies that will insure you indefinitely and guarantee a payout as long as you maintain your policy. Policy types that fall under permanent life insurance includes:

• Whole life insurance
• Universal life insurance
• Variable life insurance
• Variable universal life insurance
• Simplified life insurance
• Guaranteed issue life insurance

These policies vary widely in purpose and intended buyers, but all guarantee death benefits to your loved ones. Some permanent life insurance policies, like whole, universal, and variable have a cash value component , which you can use as a savings tool or to leave your heirs a larger death benefit.

How to Pick the Best Life Insurance Policy for You

Finding the right fit in life insurance starts with finding a trusted insurance agent. Because there are so many state regulations, shopping for homeowners or auto insurance can be easily done online. Life insurance is not required. So it's a voluntary purchase. Many buyers don't know what they need or when they need it. Before making your selection, consider a few things:

Some companies will sell you a policy for your child as soon as they're born. While this may seem morbid, early sign-up means lower rates for a policy your child could enjoy in the future. Regardless, early sign-up equates to more policy for lower premiums and a higher likelihood of acceptance. At 20, you may be healthier and be able to pay into the policy for a longer period compared to when you're 50 with more age-related conditions.

As a general rule, never agree to more than you can afford. For the average life insurance agent, their job is to sell you a large policy with a large commission. Consider not only how much you make now, but how likely your current income is to continue. If you work on a project basis and your project is scheduled to end in 12 months, you may want to reconsider a policy premium outside your monthly savings.

How much are you prepared to buy? Some people only want a small policy to cover funerals and other end-of-life expenses. Others build a life policy into their retirement plan. Whatever direction you're going, involving a financial planner could help you make the right decisions. Depending on the carrier, customers can also compare set limits with index universal life policies, which set no limit. These policies never expire, and the value builds over the entirety of your life.

Living Benefits

Life happens unexpectedly. You could be healthy one day and in the hospital the next. Many life policies offer living benefits. These allow you to draw a limited amount out of your policy to cover medical and other bills you cannot pay while sick.

Much like a 401(k), many life insurance policies have penalties for early withdrawal. No matter what policy you want, this question is critical to an informed decision. It's a question of how early you can withdraw and how much you'll lose from the total to have the money in 10 years instead of 30 or after death.

Some policies require insured parties to pay premiums for at least one year before any significant payout would be available. Suicide exclusions are common. Even with no medical exam policies, the company may still do a check for known conditions. An insurance company has to mitigate its risk.

Flexibility

Once you've been denied a life insurance policy, a mark goes on your record. No matter the reasons, other insurance companies may deny you coverage based on the first denial. So consider your whole situation and choose your policy carefully before you submit any applications. Some policies have greater flexibility if you lose your job or otherwise can't make payments. Others will lapse if you miss even one payment.

Payment Type

Even within whole life or term life insurance policies, customers have the option to choose guaranteed fixed or variable rates. Some have guaranteed payouts, but you'll need to ask your agent for details.

What is your intended use? Why are you shopping for a life insurance policy in the first place, and what are your goals? Many successful financial planners also have a background in life insurance. So while they may not be able to find you a specific life insurance policy, financial planners can help you set out a blueprint for your purchase.

Why You Should Trust Us: How We Reviewed the Best Life Insurance Companies

In life insurance, it's easy to get "sold a bill of goods." Many life insurance agents pass a state test to be thrown into the deep end. Agents sell the company product, but not all know the products. In this vein, we look at the products each company offers. We also look at agent training.

A good life insurance agent may not volunteer all facts upfront. But a company's agents should answer questions about its products accurately and in a way the average consumer can digest. Agents should be able to inform you about the long-term benefits and limitations. This will help customers find the right policy for their long-term plan.

We consider affordability, policy sizes available, and performance for a comprehensive assessment in our insurance rating methodology . If you can, we recommend also working with a financial advisor to make a plan for your future with life insurance.

Our Expert Panel for The Best Life Insurance Companies

To inform our choices for the best life insurance companies, we spoke with the following experts:

• Paul LaPiana , head of product at MassMutual
• Barbara Pietrangelo , CFP, CLU, and chair of the nonprofit Life Happens
• Wykeeta Peel , Corporate Vice President and Market Manager, African American Market Unit at New York Life

The Experts' Advice on Choosing The Best Life Insurance for You

How much life insurance coverage do you believe the average buyer should have.

Paul LaPiana, Head of Product at MassMutual

"There are different approaches to determining how much life insurance you need. One is the 'human life' approach, which estimates the current value of your future earning potential. Another is securing specific coverage to pay off debts such as a mortgage or provide for the education of children. A comprehensive protection plan should provide the right amount of coverage over the course of your working life and into retirement."

Barbara A. Pietrangelo, Chair of Life Happens

"There is no one-size-fits-all life insurance policy because everyone is different. One way to get a rough estimate is to multiply your income by 10 to 15; another is adding $100,00 to that amount, should you have a child and anticipate college education expenses.

Your best bet is to talk to a financial professional or use the Life Insurance Needs Calculator on LifeHappens.org to analyze what's right for you."

Wykeeta Peel, Corporate Vice President & Market Manager African American Market Unit at New York Life

"As you consider what policy best meets your needs, it can help to answer four key questions: First, how much death benefit do you need? Second, how long will you need that coverage? Third, what is your budget (or how much monthly premium can you afford to pay?), and finally, what is your investment risk tolerance?

To determine how much death benefit makes sense, it's helpful to think beyond using life insurance to cover funeral expenses and consider whether anyone is relying on the policy owner's income to maintain a lifestyle, pay rent or a mortgage, or fund a child's education and for how long.

There are various rules of thumb regarding the right amount of Life insurance coverage. Some tips can be found online, but they only provide an estimate and don't necessarily factor in an individual's specific needs. In my opinion, human guidance, powered by technology, is required. Basically, it comes down to how much money your loved ones would need to remain on firm financial ground if your earnings were no longer in the picture and that is different for everyone."

What is the biggest opportunity you see for improvement in the life insurance industry?

"Increased accessibility through digital and other channels as well as through underwriting enhancements. Increased tailoring of products and features. And an increased emphasis on health and wellness programs."

"Having enough qualified insurance professionals to walk potential buyers through the multiple benefits of life insurance will be pivotal to the growth of the industry. Education is a key factor here, as professional agents also need to be able to explain life insurance and its benefits in an easy, digestible way, especially when there are so many misconceptions about life insurance."

"The need for life insurance is greater than ever. In fact, a recent New York Life Wealth Watch survey found that 37% of adults have been thinking about life insurance more often these days – and half of adults report that financial products that provide protection (50%) and reliability (50%) are more important now compared to last year. This may be especially true for middle-market and Cultural Market families.

Our organizational structure of having Cultural Market agents embedded in the communities where we live and work allows us to understand the needs of diverse communities and develop solutions that resonate with them."

What advice would you give to buyers who are debating whether or not to buy life insurance?

"It is difficult to say with any certainty how healthy you will be years from now. That's why securing life insurance, and insuring your insurability, today, when you are the youngest you'll ever be again, and perhaps your healthiest is a wise decision."

"Do you love someone? If the answer is yes, then life insurance is certainly something you should consider. Many buy gifts and experiences to express their love, but haven't considered that life insurance is just another way to say I love you. Nothing says support like ensuring your family's financial security and peace of mind."

"If you have someone depending on your income, you should consider purchasing life insurance. A death benefit from a life insurance policy can replace income from the loss of a breadwinner, ensure a family can stay in their home, fund educational or retirement expenses, address debt and so much more.

A life insurance policy can also help you grow your family's wealth over time. Once the risk of an unexpected loss has been managed, you can begin to think more broadly about your family's financial future. Life insurance can enable your mindset to shift from death to growth."

What's the most important thing buyers should look for when choosing a life insurance agent/company to buy from?

"With life insurance, you are securing a future commitment that may be decades away. Research the company behind the policy to ensure it has high financial strength ratings, longevity, and an excellent track record of paying claims."

"When looking for an insurance agent or company, be sure to do your research. When comparing companies, be sure to remember that the policy features that fit you and your loved ones best is the most important factor. Don't automatically assume you should buy from the higher-rated company.

If the policy from the other company has more of what you're looking for, it might be the better choice. If you're unsure where to start, try the Life Happens Agent Locator to find an insurance professional in your area."

• "The insurers' track record: At its core, life insurance is protection - a hedge against the unexpected - and you are paying premiums in exchange for the promise that the insurer will be there when you need them, so the financial strength and track record of the company backing your policy is critical.
• Customer service: Are service professionals available by phone and digital channels? Is there is an online dashboard where you can manage your policy? Beyond ensuring assistance is available after you purchase a policy, it's also critical to ensure you have access to trusted advice and guidance before you buy.
• Flexibility in conversion: How easy is it to change? Life can be unpredictable and while term insurance can cover your loved ones through a critical period of time, you may decide that access to cash value is an important piece of your strategy.
• Accelerated online applications : Online applications are convenient but don't replace human guidance. Keep in mind that accelerated online applications may have a maximum coverage amount, meaning that you may not be able to get all the coverage you may need exclusively through an online process.
• A range of payment options: It's important to understand how often you're required to make premium payments and whether and how often you can change the frequency of payments."

Best Life Insurance FAQs

According to JD Power's 2023 life insurance study, State Farm is the highest-rated life insurance company when it comes to overall customer satisfaction. However, you still may want to shop around for quotes from various insurers if you're looking to purchase a new policy.

There isn't one best life insurance company, because the best option for you will depend on the type of policy you're looking for. It's best to work with a qualified insurance agent to help you find the best coverage. If you're deciding between multiple similar options, it's also worth consulting J.D. Power's life insurance customer satisfaction study . The latest study ranks State Farm as the top pick for individual life insurance, outpacing Nationwide by three points.

The best type of life insurance policy for you will differ from someone else's, as your policy should be tailored to your needs. The best policy for you will be affordable and will offer the benefits best suited to your situation. For example, some policies are only meant to cover end-of-life expenses such as burial and funeral arrangements, whereas others include living benefits like a cash value insurance plan , which you can borrow against during your lifetime.

Some life insurance policies are advertised as "no medical exam." This doesn't mean the insurer won't ask you about known conditions or look at medical records. Policies with no medical exam also tend to offer lower benefits with higher premiums. Most companies have a network of medical examiners, some of whom can come to your home. You can find our guide on the best no exam life insurance here.

Each situation is different and requires a knowledgeable life insurance agent to assess your best options. Bring all your questions and the coverage you're looking for to an insurance agent near you to explore your options.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

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Watch CBS News

How Trump's conviction could change the dynamics of the 2024 race

By Olivia Rinaldi , Jacob Rosen , Katrina Kaufman

Updated on: May 31, 2024 / 11:57 AM EDT / CBS News

Former President Donald Trump has been found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in his Manhattan criminal trial, adding another layer of uncertainty to an already unprecedented campaign.

As a c onvicted felon , Trump is not prevented from continuing to campaign for president , since the Constitution does not prohibit candidates from running for president even if they are convicted of a crime. In fact, there is precedent for a candidate running from behind bars: In 1920, Socialist Party candidate Eugene V. Debs ran for president from a federal penitentiary in Atlanta.

Trump is the first former U.S. president to be found guilty of felonies, and the first major party candidate to run for office after being found guilty of a crime. Here's how his conviction could change the 2024 campaign:

How Trump can campaign after his conviction

Now that he's convicted, Trump is all but certain to appeal the decision handed down by the jury, and he is likely to be able to return to the campaign trail as the process plays out. 

The next development in the case will come at sentencing, currently scheduled for July 11. Justice Juan Merchan has wide discretion over when sentencing occurs and what the punishment looks like. Trump faces a maximum of up to four years in prison and a $5,000 fine for each of the 34 felony charges of falsification of business records. The sentencing options available to Merchan include prison, probation, conditional discharge, fines or house arrest.

The judge could put limitations on his travel, such as restricting Trump from leaving the state and taking his passport, but Merchan has said he doesn't want to interfere with his ability to campaign.

"I would think that the judge wouldn't dare interfere with his right to speak to the American public because it's the right of the voters to be informed as well," said John Coffee, a professor at Columbia Law School and an expert on corporate governance and white collar crime.

In a recent survey of dozens of cases brought by Manhattan District Attorney's Office in which falsifying business records was the most serious charge at arraignment, attorney and author Norm Eisen found that roughly one in 10 of those cases resulted in a sentence of incarceration.

"I think that is fascinating," said Caroline Polisi, a criminal defense attorney and professor at Columbia Law School. "A lot of commentators say the reason he won't be incarcerated is because the logistics of it with respect to the Secret Service would be too much. On the other hand, if you're saying he should be treated like any other defendant, we have a lot of data saying that 90% of other defendants would not get jail time in this situation."

The impact of the conviction on Trump's ability to campaign could largely hinge on what sentence Merchan ultimately hands down, and when Trump would serve it.

"In the context in which he is found guilty and then sentenced to no jail time, I don't think it's going to cause a bit of difference," added Polisi. "There might be some minor issues. He might not be able to vote for himself. But other than that, I don't think it's going to cause any problems."

When determining Trump's sentence, the judge could take into account his numerous gag order violations — which led Merchan to threaten him with jail time if the violations continued — and his lack of demonstrated remorse or respect for the legal system. Throughout the trial, Trump referred to Merchan as "conflicted" and "corrupt" and to the case itself as a "sham." 

"In New York, a 78-year-old defendant, who's a first time offender, committed a non-violent offense, and has an otherwise, well, distinguished record — in some regards being an ex-president is distinguished. In that kind of world, there'd be no chance of an incarceration sentence," said Coffee. Trump turns 78 on June 14. "They can use probation, they can use fines. But there may be a view of many judges that you have to show that no one's above the law, and even the future president should have a taste of prison."

Even if Merchan does order Trump to serve time behind bars, the sentence could be deferred until his appeal has run its course.

"In other cases, when you don't have someone running for the White House, it would be more or acceptable to put him immediately into incarceration," said Coffee. "You certainly could put special conditions on what he could do or put him under house arrest, but I think until we get to the actual election, we're going to have to let Donald Trump run around and campaign."

The conviction's possible impact on Trump's poll numbers and support

Trump has predicted that a conviction in this trial could boost his poll numbers. 

"Even if convicted, I think that it has absolutely no impact. It may drive the numbers up, but we don't want that. We want to have a fair verdict," Trump told CBS Pittsburgh in an interview earlier this month.

Trump's support among his Republican base has been remarkably resilient in the face of his various criminal cases. In the months following his four indictments last year, Trump maintained his commanding lead in the Republican primary, capturing the nomination despite the dozens of criminal charges he faced.

Many Trump supporters who CBS News has interviewed since the trial began have said a guilty conviction will not change how they vote in November, adopting the former president's grievances as their own.

"Stormy Daniels has already been reviewed and stuff. It's kind of coincidental," Michigan resident Lori Beyer said at a recent rally in Freeland, Michigan, adding she would vote for Trump regardless of the conviction. "I don't think it's going to impact it, as far as I'm concerned."

Whether a conviction changes the minds of voters who are not committed to the former president remains to be seen. A recent CBS News poll found that the majority of Americans believed Trump is "definitely or probably" guilty of the charges he faced in New York. The overwhelming majority of Democrats — 93% — believed Trump was guilty, while 78% Republicans said he was not. Independents were split, with 53% believing he was guilty and 47% saying he wasn't. 

Opinions about whether Trump was guilty or not were already highly partisan, according to Kabir Khanna, deputy director of elections and data analytics for CBS News. Most people who believed Trump was guilty also thought the jury would convict him, and vice versa. 

Additionally, Khanna said people who followed the trial closely were the most polarized in their views.

"Together, these factors could blunt the impact of the verdict on the views of an already divided public," Khanna said. "Some voters may be swayed by the news, but I wouldn't expect a sea change." 

Other polling supports that notion. A NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist survey released Thursday found that 67% of registered voters nationwide said a Trump conviction would not make a difference in how they vote. Among independents, just 11% said a guilty verdict would make them less likely to vote for Trump.

The conviction also gives the Biden campaign a potentially potent new weapon in their arsenal: the ability to label Trump a convicted felon. Mr. Biden remained largely silent about the Trump trial while it was ongoing, but NBC News reported last week that he planned to become more aggressive about Trump's legal woes after the trial concluded, while acknowledging that Trump would be on the ballot regardless of how his legal cases played out.

Trump has used the trial to help boost his fundraising, and will likely look to capitalize on the conviction. The Trump campaign and Republican National Committee saw an influx of donations after jury selection began, with the two entities raising $76 million in April. His campaign had about $50 million cash on hand at the beginning of May as he prepared to get back out on the campaign trail after the trial.

The former president repeatedly used the developments in the trial to raise money, including when he was held in contempt for violating the gag order against him.

"I'd get arrested ONE MILLION TIMES before I'd let those filthy dogs get their hands on you," one typical fundraising appeal read. 

Trump's other criminal cases

The New York case might be the only one of Trump's four criminal prosecutions to reach a conclusion before voters cast their ballots in the fall, giving the guilty verdict added weight.

The two federal cases brought by special counsel Jack Smith remain in limbo. 

In Washington, D.C., Trump faces charges related to his actions to remain in power after the 2016 election. Trump has argued that he is immune from prosecution, and the Supreme Court is currently weighing his claim.

The high court heard arguments in the immunity dispute on April 26 and is expected to issue a decision on the matter before the end of the court's term, likely in June. If the case is allowed to move forward, there is a slim possibility that the district court could schedule the trial before November. If the justices side with Trump and find him immune from prosecution, the charges would be dropped.

In Florida, Trump faces federal charges stemming from his retention of classified documents after he left the White House. Judge Aileen Cannon, who was appointed by Trump, has indefinitely postponed the trial. She ruled in early May that picking a trial date would be "imprudent and inconsistent with the court's duty to fully and fairly consider" numerous unresolved pre-trial motions. Those motions include Trump's efforts to dismiss the case altogether, as well as issues related to what classified information can be revealed at trial.

In the third case that remains outstanding, Trump faces state charges related to the 2020 election in Fulton County, Georgia. The trial in that matter is also on hold as Trump seeks to have District Attorney Fani Willis removed from the case. Georgia's Court of Appeals recently granted Trump's appeal of a decision that had allowed her to remain, bringing the trial to a temporary halt.

Trump's two federal cases could largely be in voters' hands if they are not resolved by November, a fact that raises his personal stake in the outcome. If he wins and returns to the White House in January 2025, Trump could order the Justice Department to seek to drop the charges altogether.

Trump has pleaded not guilty in all of the criminal cases against him.

• Donald Trump

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