June 3rd, 2010 by sushitune
A sound expertly crafted at home based business plan can mean the difference between a company that prospers and one that flounders. A great business plan conveys truth and credibility, and generates excitement for your top home business. Your plan should be in-depth, professional, and based-on-reality.
Even if you’re starting out as a part-time business with an initial goal to earn extra money from home, a well designed plan can be your guide toward a full time future .
General Rules
The following are some significant things to keep in mind when sitting down to write your plan:
- Your plan must be concise (30 to 40 single-spaced pages at most, not counting appendices).
- Your plan should be easy to read and comprehend, without typos or grammatical errors.
- Your plan should convey large and profitable market opportunities for your home based small business.
- Your plan should convey the strength and depth of your work from home company management team, even if it begins with only you?
Do NOT do the Following while Constructing Your Business Plan
Here are some tips on what not to do while building your top home based business plan:
- Don’t make “pie in the sky” assumptions.
- Do NOT underrate the difficulties in growing a business.
- Don’t underrate competitors.
- Do NOT expect that the reviewer knows industry technological jargon.
- Don’t let in long, long-winded or overly technical information.
- Don’t include highly private or proprietary information.
- Do NOT avoid discussing the risks to the business. This may detract from the plan’s credibility.
Standard Business Plan Structure.
The form of every well conceived business plan, although not set in stone, tends to run along the same basic lines, integrating the following key sections:
Cover Page. The introductory page should be professional and instructive and should contain an appropriate confidentiality legend.
Executive Summary. The professional summary is the prelude prefaceto your at home based business plan and the most vital essential section. Although it comes first, you usually write it last because it summarizes the entire plan. Effective summaries generally cover:
- The businesses’ beginnings .
- The product or service and its uniqueness or competitive advantage.
- The company’s aspirations.
- The market potential for the product and/or service.
- A three to 5 year overview of most important financial forecasts, especially sales and profit/loss.
For new businesses, do some market research investigation and make pragmatic assumptions calculations about how your company can compete be competitive.
- The operations team and its success record.
- The capital necessary to enlarge the business.
- The exit strategy.
The Work From Home Company Description. This should convey a sense of the background of the business, as well as its goals. You should also include a wrap-up of the company’s lead objectives — both long-term and down-to-earth interim goals.
Operations. The management section part of the plan identifies the critical members of the management team, describes their individual responsibilities and establishes their pertinent experience and accomplishments. Include resumes that render accomplishments and relevant track records in an appendix. This is so even if it is just you as a single member mangement team.
The Product and/or Service. If the business is merchandising a product and/or service, this section describes what the product and/or service is or will be and shows why it can infiltrate the existing or developing market. If the product and/or service is still under construction, talk in detail where the project and/or service stands and what remains to bring it to market.
Investors are typically not interested in a one product business. You should consequently discuss logical extensions of the company’s product line and future embellishments in the product area.
The Market. You must persuade potential investors that the company’s market is large, growing, and open to your products or services. If the market is small or declining, investors are less likely to invest. Appendices can include more detailed market information.
Competition. The competitors section of the plan is focused on how you will be competing with your competition? How will your product and/or service price or quality be different? What will make it successful attractive?
Merchandising.The marketing area of your business plan should describe the company’s marketing plan and strategy in as much detail as you are able.
Financial Statements and Projections. This area of the plan should incorporate a summary of the major aspects of the financial projections, which appear in more depth in appendices. These may include total monetary requirements, the time frame for positive cash flow and the projected growth in sales and profits.
The financial projections appendices should have more detail: balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow forecasts for a three to 5 year time-frame, with the details presented monthly for the first year and every quarter in remaining years. The proposed income statement is probably the most important forecast.
The most significant aspect of the forecasts is the set of projections that are the basis of your calculations — they must be “down to earth”, logical, and attainable.
If you’re not a financial statement guru “geek”, get help. Credible Realistic financial forecasts are so important — if you’re not familiar “up-to-speed” with financial statements, you should seek assistance from an CPA or other reliable source.
Reality Check. After you complete your preliminary business plan, distribute it for comment to friends, professionals, and other experiencedadvisors. Ask for their blunt “no-holds-barred” assessments. Better still, ask them to provide you a “markup” of the plan with particular recommended changes .
Write a Mini Business Plan
A two or 3 page business plan can also be useful at times. This condensed plan helps premise the home based small business to potential investors, lenders, or associates. If the party is interested, you can present them with the complete business plan.
*******************************
Statistics say that most people miss at least one MAJOR opportunity every year. The fact is that if you took advantage of all the opportunities that you have missed, you’d be better off than you are now.
Laying the right foundation to launch an at home-based business is one of those opportunities!
Our North Star At Home Business Success System will change your life TODAY! Click Here
business plan, financial statements, merchandising