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Tools and Resources to Help You Write Your Business Plan

December 10, 2021
By James Gussie

When you have an idea for a business, creating the plan is often one of the first steps. You create your business goals and outline how to achieve them before getting started. This article will give you some tools and resources that can help make your process easier, from cost analysis templates to software programs that draft marketing plans on-the-fly automatically as ideas are generated!.

The “how to write a business plan step-by-step” is a helpful tool that will show you how to write your business plan. The article also includes links to other helpful resources.

Are you working on a business strategy and need some tools or resources to help it go faster? There’s no need to start from scratch or reinvent the wheel. Here are some useful tools and resources.

Others will get you started, some will act as examples, and some will function as pushes and assistance to help you go forward with confidence.

Your choices will determine the tools and resources you use.

Some individuals just want to look at a sample business plan so they may mimic the framework, themes addressed, or style, while adding their own information.

Others choose a business plan template, which is a partially-completed blank Word doc or PDF with apparent areas to alter and add your own words, data, and content.

Others are seeking for a short framework to help them understand what a business plan should include.

To begin, decide what you want to achieve.

Always begin by determining what you want to achieve with your strategy.

Are you looking for a bank loan or a financial investment?

Do you want to utilize your business plan as a strategic blueprint for your company’s future growth?

In those two instances, what you’ll need to provide might be extremely different.

Form follows function is one of the most basic concepts of company strategy. Write the sort of business plan that best suits your company’s needs.

Is a business strategy really necessary? The quick answer is yes, but if you’re still unsure, read this article on the 8 reasons why having a business plan is crucial for your company.

Template for a business plan

A business plan template is a basic business plan framework in Word or PDF format, with a fill-in-the-blank approach to assist you in creating your own plan. If you’re having problems getting started or aren’t sure what should be included in a business plan, it might be a useful tool to get you started.

Business planning software like LivePlan makes developing your plan lot easier and more intuitive, with a step-by-step approach for going through each section, including your finances. It’s particularly beneficial if you’re looking for a bank loan or want to pitch investors, since you can build your financials without having to fiddle with spreadsheets.

a business plan example

A sample business plan is a complete, conventional business plan based on a genuine firm. It displays the business’s real text, financials, and charts.

On Bplans, we offer over 500 free example business plans for you to look at and download if you like. It’s worth reading this post on how to get the most out of your example business plan.

The basic conclusion is that copying and pasting a plan and using it as-is is never a good idea. There are several factors that will distinguish your company from others. If you copy and paste, a bank or investor will notice that you didn’t take the effort to personalize the strategy.

Also, don’t feel obligated to pick a plan for a firm that is identical to yours while looking at example plans. A strategy for a vegetarian restaurant, for example, will have many similarities to a plan for a steakhouse. It isn’t necessary for it to be an exact match.

Outline of a business strategy

“Business plan blueprint” is another word you’ll hear a lot. It refers to the items that are most often included in a business plan’s fundamental framework. Here’s an example of a normal business strategy.

Keep in mind that your blueprint will need to be tweaked to meet the sort of company you’re running. A business plan outline for a restaurant, for example, should vary from a business plan overview for a daycare. Consider an outline to be a tool and a guide rather than a restriction.

Software for creating a business plan

We offer LivePlan as a tool—business plan software—to help the process go more smoothly. Step-by-step directions, helpful prompts, explanations of essential concepts, and video and text lessons are all included.

It also makes it easy to conduct your financials without having to use a cumbersome spreadsheet. Enter your monthly sales and expenditures, and LivePlan calculates and visualizes your financial data in easy-to-understand charts and graphs.

Full disclosure: Bplans.com and LivePlan were created by us. LivePlan has been utilized by over 750,000 entrepreneurs to help them establish their companies and keep them growing and flourishing.

How-to articles from Bplans’ library

Bplans.com has hundreds of professional how-tos and resources to assist you in writing your business plan and getting started.

It serves as a one-stop shop for information on:

This website has been expanding since 1995, with a lot of trimming and paring to keep it fresh and relevant. Bplans is a free and simple to use planning tool. It’s a fantastic resource for anyone who want to do it themselves.

Writing services for plans

A business plan may seem to be a difficult task—why not hire a professional business plan writer to do it for you, if you can afford it?

Business planning, on the other hand, should never be a one-time exercise in the actual world. Real business planning is a never-ending process in which the strategy is constantly examined and altered.

A business plan writing service isn’t required for everyone, but it may be beneficial for some. Just as you shouldn’t copy and paste a sample business plan, keep in mind that even if you’re not going to handle the writing yourself, you’ll still need to add a lot of material to the project since you’re the one who understands your company best.

When your plan is complete and you’ve been successful in obtaining money with it, don’t forget to revisit it on a monthly basis in a business plan review meeting. Get the most out of it by keeping it up to date and utilizing it to steer your business as it expands.

Expert advisor or accountant

There may come a moment when you might benefit from expert help, particularly when you finish off the financial element of your strategy or as you begin to develop a strategic plan for development or expansion.

Working with an accountant or Expert Advisors (we suggest picking one that is LivePlan certified) can help your small company get started and flourish. Accountants, CPAs, and other business consultants with expertise doing precisely that may be found in the LivePlan Expert Advisor Directory.

SCORE mentors and SBDCs

In the United States, there are over 1,000 nonprofit Small Business Development Centers located around the nation. A mix of state, federal, and community education agencies finance these programs. They provide substantial experience in counseling, courses, and events at reasonable pricing.

Start by looking into local chapters of the national nonprofit Service Corps of Retired Executives, or SCORE. SCORE advice is provided free of charge by retired businesspeople with extensive expertise.

Look for counselors with similar experience to yours. As an older person and a member of SCORE, I have to recognize that just because we’re older doesn’t mean we know everything. In a counselor, look for appropriate experience.

Incubators and accelerators

Many accelerators and incubators exist in the startup and small company ecosystem in the United States. Some are for-profits, while others are nonprofits supported by local governments and/or educational institutions.

They may provide mentorship or training opportunities, common resources (such as workplaces), and, on occasion, a simple road to money.

Accelerators, incubators, and co-working spaces aren’t always easy to distinguish. There is a lot of gray area, and each program in the United States is unique.

Accelerators, in general, assist an established firm develop quicker than it would on its own. An incubator, on the other hand, aids in the early stages. (This might mean anything from “I believe I have a nice concept” to “I’d want to pursue this idea further and seek angel money.”) This might cover a wide range of topics.

It’s critical to know what you’re getting yourself into before enrolling in one of these programs, and to be certain of what you want to gain out of it. When considering an accelerator or incubator opportunity, bear the following in mind:

The who:

Who is in charge of the program? What kind of background do they have? Is it driven by investors?
Who are the participants in the program? Who are their role models? Do they applicable to you and do you have similar requirements?
Look them up on the alumni directory. Check in with them to see how active they are with one another and call out to them. Do they look to be at a point in their lives where you’d want to be after graduation?

The what:

What is the nature of the program and how does it relate to finance or financing? Is there a track record of funding?
What do you want to achieve? Some workplaces are well-known because you can live there, such as YCombinator. Others have extremely low expectations of themselves. Do you want greater strength and discipline, or do you want more freedom?

The why:

What makes you want to participate in a program like this? Are you all set?
Do you have the mental ability to deal with tough criticism and long working hours?
Are you serious about it? Is the application still running?

Do not be hesitant to inquire. Inquire as to why the program exists and do an interview about it. What are the sources of funding? Find out whether it’s a vanity project for your company’s major investor. They’ll compel you to succeed; all you have to do now is stay alive! The bottom line is to do thorough research. Look for what’s accessible in your area and weigh the benefits and drawbacks for your own aims and ideas.

Go here to find a list of incubators, accelerators, and entrepreneurship centers. Alternatively, contact your local chamber of commerce, business school, or Small Business Development Center for further information (SBDC).

Note from the editor: This essay was first published in 2007. In 2019, it was upgraded.

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The “how to write a business plan pdf” is a tool that will help you write your business plan. The tool is available for free on the internet.

Frequently Asked Questions

What tools are available to help you write a business plan?

A: Business plans are created using a variety of tools, the most common being Microsoft Word and Excel. There are also many online business plan software that can help with the development process.