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Writing a Business Plan

5/30/2012

24 Comments

 
By Kristen Winterton
         
While writing a business plan is commonly referred to in the entrepreneurial world, there is often little clarity in what is expected in the business plan, and what elements are usually found within the pages of a business plan.  To help with this, I have compiled a general outline of a business plan, with the details of what to include.  The business plan includes: an executive summary, a company description, an industry analysis, a marketing plan, and a financial plan.

A business plan begins with an executive summary.  This summary includes a brief overview of who the stakeholders in the business plan are, the nature of the product or service, how the product will be sold, expected financial requirements, and growth expectations for the company.  This is meant to be relatively short, and will follow the outline of the rest of the business plan.  If there were only one page through which you could convey your business idea, this would be it.  The rest of the business plan is an extension of the executive summary.

This is generally followed by a general company description, through which you can thoroughly describe your product or service, who you would like to sell to, your “target market”, organizational type and structure, and the general administration items of your business.

The next section will be the market research portion of the business plan, and is called the industry analysis.  Throughout this section, the business idea is constantly reevaluated for viability.  The section will have a SWOT analysis which details out the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of this business idea. 

Strengths are the established internal factors that will help the business succeed and can include such things as previous experience in the field or connections to necessary resources, among other things.  Weaknesses are the internal factors that could cause a business to fail, and could include such things as financial limitations, lack of experiences or knowledge, other resource restraints.

The other two factors are external factors, meaning that they have to do with outside influences; it allows you to think beyond your current status to what could happen in the future.  Opportunities are the positive movements that could be made and could include expectations of advancements in technology, decreased governmental regulations, or similar events that a company could take as an opportunity.  Threats are the opposite factor, and could include increased regulations, increased competition in the industry, or consumer substitutions for your product in favor of another product, among others.

The marketing plan is developed to state how a product will be introduced to the marketplace.  It can be brought to consumers in many ways from social media, to word-of-mouth, to networking, to televised or broadcasted media, or through printed banners, billboards, signs, or fliers, depending upon the unique needs of a business.  The marketing plan is developed to outline who will be contacted, the medium through which to contact, how many people will be contacted, and the frequency of contacting.

The final step in the business plan is the financial plan.  This section states how the business will be funded, the necessary requirements for funding, and includes preliminary, or pro forma, financials which are the anticipated results of the business.  It includes income statements, balance sheets, and statements of cash flow.  These financials will include how many units will be sold, anticipated costs and liabilities, anticipated growth based on the availability of customers, and the analysis of the business idea from a purely financial perspective which will allow an investor to see how the business has the capacity to perform.  If necessary, a section for appendices may be included at the end, which contains tables, graphs, and charts and which can be referenced in any of the previous sections.

When developed in this manner, a business plan can be coherently and completely compiled, allowing a company to see potential pitfalls and allowing them to proactively develop a viable business.  Many failures can be avoided in businesses when the business plans are taken through these various steps, as it takes a multitude of concerns into account.  When these mistakes are avoided, the odds of succeeding in business ventures invariably increase.
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Microfranchising: Opportunity in a Bag

4/15/2010

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Wendell Brock - Thursday, April 15, 2010

To Americans, “franchising” means golden arches and sandwiches named after public transportation. Many view these businesses as responsible for obesity, roadside trash, and ridiculous cartoon mascots.

But if you live in a developing country, franchising—and, more specifically, microfranchising—can mean the opportunity to own your own business and make an income to feed your family.

Just ask Rama Devi, who became a Vision Entrepreneur with Vision Spring, a microfranchise business that sells eyeglasses. In 2006, Ms. Devi had been a seamstress in India. But the $44 she earned each month wasn’t enough to support her husband and two children.

  As a Vision Entrepreneur, Ms. Devi now makes over $100 per month. Seeing how lucrative the business could become, her husband quit his agriculture job and they became co-partners in the endeavor. Along with financial security, the couple says their marriage is better because of the cooperative work they do as a sales duo.

Vision Spring helps entrepreneurs improve their communities by making the gift of sight available to those who previously didn’t have access to eyeglasses. Entrepreneurs sell the glasses on consignment, and then reimburse Vision Spring. Additionally, Vision Entrepreneurs educate their communities about eye health and refer those with serious eye problems to clinics.

Last month’s Entrepreneur Magazine has a nice article about Vision Spring and its founder, Jordan Kassalow.

Microfinance is a hot topic because it’s an out-of-the-box approach to combating poverty that works. Microfranchising just may be version 2.0, because it goes one step further.

Not only does microfranchising make owning a small business financially possible for those in developing countries, it gives the entrepreneur a business model, training, and materials. Vision Spring calls it “business in a bag.” I call it “opportunity in a bag.”

Vision Spring’s reach goes one additional step beyond any ordinary microfranchise. Because not only does it improve the entrepreneur’s life, it improves their community, too. The ability to see allows someone to work and become an engaged, productive member of their society.

BYU’s Economic Self-reliance Center is researching microfranchising, evaluating and streamlining its theories, and anticipating and heading off problems. According to their mission statement, they, “intend to be the leader in the emerging field of microfranchising and develop an arena for those who are either currently working or desire to participate in microfranchising to operate.”

Jason S. Fairbourne, director of BYU’s MicroFranchise Development Initiative, was first author onMicroFranchising: Creating Wealth at the Bottom of the Pyramid.

In it, he writes, “We live in a unique period of time in which people living in developed nations … are experiencing a standard of living that was unfathomable half a century ago. Simultaneously, many more are suffering from the tribulations of poverty.”

Perhaps, with basic economic education, microcredit, and the implementation of microfranchises, the next half-century can improve the standard of living for more people.


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Welcome to CREED's Blog

10/13/2009

2 Comments

 
Wendell Brock - Tuesday, October 13, 2009

CREED has developed a new website and we hope you enjoy it!  We are working to expand our services to provide quality economic education and development opportunities.

We are also working on a small business plan project wich we are all very excited about and expect to povide an entrepreneur with some extra needed cash to help start their business.  The announcement is coming soon so stay tuned!

Best of Luck, 

Wendell Brok
Executive Director
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    We have several authors of our blog articles,  including our board members at times.  We are excited to be able to interact with the public through this technology and we hope you will participate.  

    Wendell serves as our Executive Director.

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