Concept, functions, a sample of a business plan. A business plan is ...

Planning in any business is its basis. In business, it is especially important to make a plan, because an entrepreneur must clearly visualize how profitable his enterprise is.

What is a business plan

So, it should immediately be indicated that without proper planning, not one undertaking can take place, no matter how large the enterprise is planned. A business plan is a document that regulates the activities of a company. It contains all the important information about the owner, the scope of activity, competition, sales and much more.

The concept of a business plan is quite extensive, in fact - it is a step-by-step guide to the action of the entrepreneur himself, in which everything is written down on points. It also takes into account possible risks and solutions to potential problems. The business plan necessarily includes calculations, not only current expenses, but also the expected profit.

In general, you need to consider in detail what is business planning, the sample, its tasks and functions. Also it should be noted that for each individual enterprise the plan is individual, and the businessman makes it exclusively for himself.

Basic principles

How to make a business plan correctly? Definition of it means planning of entrepreneurial activity. In the future, not only the organizer himself, but his entire team will strictly follow the planned plan. Accordingly, it should not be a collection of scientific terms, but a simple and accessible language guide to action, which everyone can understand, even a layman. For example, if an investor is involved in an organization, he must understand the essence of the business plan.

It should also be taken into account that, depending on the circumstances, the plan can be adjusted. The calculations, terms of project implementation and much more can change. Nevertheless, the business plan has certain tasks.

Objectives of the business plan

It is quite obvious that the entrepreneur faces not one, but several tasks. Here are some of them:

• Identify the purpose of the enterprise and the prospect of its development, how it will behave in the market.
• Determine the flow of sales, to which category of the population the final product is calculated.
• Find out what percentage of the market should the enterprise win.
• Identify with the company's range and designate the pricing policy of the company.
• Find out with what difficulties the entrepreneur can face at different stages of project implementation, and how to solve problems.
• In what direction will the enterprise move and how will it develop in the future.
• How much does the project cost? These are compulsory calculations that will help the organizer to assess their material possibilities.

It is completely erroneous for many businessmen to believe that a business plan is not an obligatory component, and one can do without it without it. But this is not so, because without it you can not clearly coordinate your actions. By the way, a business plan is needed not only at the stage of organization of the enterprise, but also for its development.

Purpose of the business plan

The main objective of the business plan is to make sure the profitability of the enterprise and correctly distribute the actions and strengths. In addition, you need to clearly understand how the organization will behave in today's market.

Another important goal of the business plan is market research. To determine the profitability of the event, you need to find answers to important questions:

• How much is the product in demand in the modern market?
• Is there any competition?
• What will it take to organize a business?
• Where to look for suppliers?
• Where and how to find customers?
• What will be the ratio of cost and market value of the product?

To answer these and other similar questions, you should conduct a marketing study. It is more expedient to entrust it to the marketer. Only the best business plans made by professionals guarantee success in business, and it is impossible for a newcomer to cope with the task.

Business plan functions

In the modern economy, four business planning functions are distinguished:

1. Planning is mandatory at the stage of the organization of the new company and during a certain period of its activity.
2. The main function of the business plan is to assess the capabilities of the enterprise and monitor the organization and development processes.
3. Get a loan: this will require a cost plan.
4. Attract investors: without a detailed business plan, you can not get funds for opening or developing an enterprise.

Do not forget that the functions of the business plan are not limited to the above. The main one is to help the entrepreneur correctly assess his opportunities and distribute actions to achieve the goal.

Business plan structure

There is no clear definition of how to create a business plan, and there are no clear requirements for its writing, every entrepreneur writes it in an arbitrary form. It can be divided into several articles:

1. Summary, it should be briefly described, as will be discussed later.
2. Next, you need to identify the goals and objectives of planning. That is, we need to conditionally determine what needs to be done in order to obtain a certain result.
3. Write a real description of the company, how many employees it will be, where and in what area it will be located.
4. The financial plan, that is, the determination of the amount of seed capital, how it will be distributed as a percentage, the expected income and the pricing policy of the enterprise.
5. We need to create a marketing plan, consider competitors, identify their weaknesses and understand how they can be surpassed.
6. The production plan, that is, the description of the technological process - from the search for a supplier and the purchase of raw materials until the final buyer is determined.
7. Next, you need to identify the organization of the workflow and the enterprise management system.
8. The last thing to consider is the staffing of the enterprise and the distribution of duties among the staff.

Since the concept of a business plan is ambiguous, its structure may vary depending on the scale of the organization and many other factors.

Business plan example

Clear requirements for writing a plan there, respectively, you can just consider the example and write it yourself. For example, a sample business plan for small businesses will begin with a summary, that is, with a brief project writing.

Next, you need to write in detail what the company will specialize in, for example, retailing food or building materials. It is also necessary to determine where the office or store will be located, in which district and with what density of population.

The next action is a marketing study. First of all, it is necessary to identify the presence of competitors and evaluate their performance. Then, designate the target audience, that is, the circle of consumers, on which the product or service will be calculated. If, for example, this is a grocery store, then its permanent buyers will be residents of the nearest houses.

The next step is to calculate the financial costs. We need to calculate everything - from renting a room and purchasing equipment to purchasing raw materials and paying staff. It is also necessary to calculate the profit that the enterprise will bring, that is, to make a forecast.

Do not forget that in any case there are risks, they need to be minimized. For example, if there is real competition, then first of all you need to think about promoting the company, that is, about high-quality advertising, and this entails additional costs.

Actually, if you need a sample business plan for a small business, then it is easy to find it on the network, but only for acquaintance. They should not be guided, because each case is individual.

The main mistakes in the preparation of a business plan

Unfortunately, having no experience, it is difficult to make a plan correctly. Despite the fact that a business plan is a document that does not have a certain form, it is necessary to take into account certain nuances. For example, there should be no unnecessary information in it, everything written must have a certain meaning.

Before you create a business plan, clear and understandable, you need to accurately identify the purpose of the enterprise. Because the ways to achieve them must be real and accessible. In addition, we need to clearly analyze the market, adequately assess competition. It is present in any industry, this must be taken into account first.

Conclusion

So, the business plan is a guide to action for the entrepreneur, which will help him to correctly distribute his opportunities and attract investments. You need to prepare a plan yourself and know it very well. It is not necessary to write a lot, the main thing is to highlight the key issues and the essence of the whole event.