Think of your startup business plan as a roadmap for your company. It's a living document that details everything about your small business or LLC. While there are many ways to put one together, here are the key sections most small business plans include:
Executive Summary
The executive summary is an overview of your business idea, mission, and goals. Even though it appears first, you may want to write this section last. Completing the rest of the plan gives you the information you need.
Company Description
As the name implies, this section describes your company's history, mission, values, and milestones. What is your competitive advantage? Go into detail about the problem your business solves. Being specific is the key. If there are experts on your team, list them here and the difference they’ll make.
Market Analysis
In order to differentiate your business, you need to know what’s already out there. Research your industry, target market, and competitors, and place that data here. You want to look for market trends, gaps, and opportunities for your business. Look at market size and share. How much do you think your business can win?
Organization & Management
Explain your business structure (e.g., LLC, sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation). If you have a team, list your organizational chart. Include each person’s expertise and how they contribute to your business’s success.
Products & Services
Describe the products or services your business offers. Highlighting their unique features, benefits, and competitive advantages, this section explains how your business solves a problem. Detail copyright or patent filings.
Marketing and Sales Strategy
This section features your strategies for marketing and promoting your products/services. First, define your target customers and their buying behaviors. Next, describe your sales process and channels. How will you attract and retain customers? Include your brand strategy in this section. It leads your marketing efforts.
Funding Requests
If you’re requesting funding, this section outlines your needs: how much you need and how it will be allocated. Make sure to lay out all details pertaining to your request. Detailing out how your company will allocate funds is crucial. Investors will want to know exactly how you plan to spend their dollars.
Financial Plan & Projections
Give financial projections including income statements, cash-flow statements, and balance sheets. Detail your startup costs and revenue sources. Conduct a break-even analysis and outline your growth plans. If you have graphics, this is the place for them. When investors are looking at companies to buy into, they’ll want to see at least 2 to 3 years into the future.
Appendices
All supporting documents are here in the appendices. These can be legal documents, credit histories, product pictures, and more. Your appendices serve as references for materials that support the main sections of your small business plan.
Struggling to Write a Business Plan? Start Here.
Writing a business plan can feel complicated and daunting. Think of it this way. When you have a plan, you have a roadmap for success. Even for the new business owner who has to make assumptions, a business plan gives you a starting point. It helps you think through problems before they occur. It’s not a one-and-done activity but rather a continuous process. When you have details written down, you see them more clearly.
Getting started is the hardest part, and there isn’t necessarily a wrong way to start. Consider your first attempt just that — a first draft. It’ll be messy and incomplete. When you go to revise it, you’re starting with something rather than a blank page.
We’re here to help you. Check out these articles on the various aspects of business plan writing.
LLC and Startup Business Plan FAQs
As a startup, you will be making some assumptions. A business plan is just that, a plan. Knowing you can revise your business plan as you go can give you the confidence to start.
For it to be effective, you want to make your plans as educated as possible. Research will be crucial. The more you know your target market, the better. This is especially important if you’re seeking money from investors. They want to make sure their money is in safe hands.
Even if you’re not seeking outside funding, the more you know your customers, the more efficiently you’ll convert them into buyers. Creating personas that include demographics, psychographics, and stages of awareness helps you plan marketing opportunities.
Your business plan helps you set goals. As you conduct your business, you can make decisions that best align with those goals. Startups tend to need a lot of money upfront, and you need to know how the business will see a return on investment. Meeting important goals is one way to ensure that happens.
You’ve been in business for a while. Maybe you want to seek outside funding, whether applying for a loan or looking for investors. Even if you simply want to get your goals on paper, writing a business plan is smart. The good news is that, as an existing business, you have more intel than you would if you were a startup!
The plan is essentially the same. You should start with the executive summary and proceed through the abovementioned sections. When you get to the financial section, you can include actual income statements, profit and loss statements, cash flow statements, and balance sheets. You’ve likely executed marketing campaigns, so you have insight into what works and doesn’t. Existing businesses also come armed with a lot information about their target market. This experience informs your business plan.
The length is less important than the content. That being said, experts generally say a well-crafted business plan will end up being 15–25 pages long.
In general, a successful business plan will include:
- Executive Summary
- Company Description
- Market Analysis
- Organization & Management
- Products & Services
- Marketing & Sales Strategies
- Funding Requests
- Financial Plan & Projections
- Appendices
Written By
Jonathan is admitted to practice law in Colorado and Wyoming. In this position, he helps business owners at nearly every level and in nearly every industry with asset protection, estate planning, and business formation. Beyond business owners, Jonathan also helps activists of all political persuasions to legally protect themselves.
