‘Fail to plan, plan to fail’, as the saying goes. If you're going to create an effective, successful and profitable business, you need to create a solid strategic plan
Your business plan is the route map that defines your goals, explains your strategy and gives real direction to the everyday running of the company.
So what should you include in your plan?
5 key elements to include in your business plan
To create a truly robust and meaningful plan:
Outline your vision – explain WHY you’re in business and how you intend to add value for customers. For example ‘We promote a healthy lifestyle through organic produce’.
Set out your goals – outline your personal goals as a founder, and your wider strategic goals for the business. Then explain how these key goals are aligned. If your aim is to exit in 10 years, build this into your long-term plan.
Define your funding and budget – to start trading, you need finance, so outline the investment that’s needed and how you’ll access that funding. Then break down this initial investment pot into clear budgets for each operational area.
Forecast sales and cashflow – define the profit number you need, then calculate the volume of sales needed to deliver that income – and give a clear breakdown of the cash inflows and outflows needed to achieve positive cashflow.
Set your timelines for success – set key milestones and give the business some concrete deadlines for meeting the goals, sales and revenues that you’ve projected.
Talk to us about creating a watertight business plan.
We’ll help you define your purpose as a business, and systematically set out how you’ll achieve your aims, giving you the best possible blueprint for success.
Xero's '10 steps to creating a business plan' is a helpful resource to start the process.
Get in touch and let’s start planning.
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