highlight tables and charts in contrast to text
After you have gathered the necessary information and understood why you need one, you can now begin to create your business plan. The next pages will outline the seven core elements of your business plan. These include the things you should and shouldn't do and how you approach with numbers, as well as any other resources you may require. Let's begin.
Executive Summary
Within the overall outline of the business plan, the executive summary will be a part of the title page. This summary should inform the reader about your goals. This is essential. Many entrepreneurs do not include the most crucial details on page 8. When you write your summaries, state clearly what you want.
Description of the Business
The description of the industry is usually the first item in a business description. You should be able to discuss both the outlook for the future and the current outlook when you describe the business. Additionally, you must talk about the various markets within the industry. This includes new products and developments that may benefit your company.
What length should your plan be?
When I first started working with business plans back in the late 1970s, the average plan was much longer and more complex than what I see today. This could be because business plans are much more popular than they were. They are getting more often used and by many more people. This could result from the growing acceptance of business plans with bankers and investors. Perhaps they don't have the time to read through documents.
Business plans today are all about the basics. Solid projections and a solid analysis are essential. An "easy to read quickly" structure is more crucial than ever. It is important to keep your business plan as simple as possible if you want people reading it. Don't misconstrue your business plan for an academic thesis or a life-long project. Make sure that the formatting and language are simple and concise.
Do not think of simple formatting or words with basic thinking. It's not because you don't have a fully developed idea. This is to ensure that you are able to communicate your point quickly and easily to everyone reading it.
Let's get into the specifics of simplifying your strategy.
It is essential to be concise and clear in your writing. Effective business writing is simple to read. Your plan will be read by people who try to read it while talking over the phone or going through their e-mail. If you're writing the classic American novel, save the long prose. These tips will help you in the process of creating your writing strategy.
There's no need for long, complex sentences to communicate meaning. Short sentences are acceptable, and they're easier to read.
Avoid acronyms, jargons, buzzwords and jargon. Although you might know that NIH is "not invented here" and KISS is "keep it simple and stupid", this does not mean that everyone else has the same knowledge.
Use simple, straightforward language like "use" instead of "utilize" and instead of at that moment in the present.
Bullet points are great for lists. They aid readers in digesting information more easily.
Avoid "naked" bullet points. Make them fleshed out with short explanations where explanations are needed. Frustrating bullet points that aren't explained can happen.
Keep it short. Nowadays, business plans are shorter in length than ever before. It's now possible to convey everything in between 20 and 30 pages of text, plus the appendices, which are 10 pages long that include management overviews, projections for the month and other information. It's impossible to summarize a plan for more than 40 pages in length.
There are exceptions. Recently, I saw an idea for a chain if coffee shops. It included images of locations proposed and mockups of menus and maps for different locations. While the plans were longer because of the graphics, they were very useful. It is possible to use product images, location shots and menus as well as floor plans and floor plans, logos, signage photos and blueprints.
Utilize business charts. Use business charts to make your most crucial numbers easily accessible and easy to comprehend. Highlight the main numbers using simple business diagrams and summaries. Appendices should be simple to locate the relevant information. Also...
You can use bar charts to display at-minimum sales, gross margin, net profits and cash flow for each year.
Three-dimensional bars may look more professional, but it is easier to see two-dimensional bar. Make sure the numbers are obvious.
The stacking of bars makes totals more easily visual. If your sales are split into sections then stack your bars in order to show totals.
Pie charts can be used to identify markets or segments of the market.
You can show milestones or other tasks in horizontal bars. The labels are on the top left. Dates along the bottom or top. This is known as a Gantt chart. Show only the major goals and milestones, as too many details make these charts difficult to read.
Make sure to place the source numbers next to the charts in the form of a summary table so that readers are able to quickly refer to them and quickly recognize the numbers in charts. Don't let any reader of your business plan without knowing the source numbers. That's frustrating.
You must reference charts in your writing. If source numbers aren’t obvious from the tables of summary, make certain to mention which appendices contain the specific numbers.
Polish the overall look and feel. The text should be concise and succinct. Follow my suggestions.
Use two fonts for your text. Simple sans-serif fonts should be used for headings. A standard text font should be used for body text.
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Beware of using fonts that are small. Certain fonts that are more legible are only fine at 10 points. The majority of fonts perform better at 11 and 12 points.
To differentiate sections, highlight tables and charts in contrast to text. you can use page breaks. Move to the next page in case you are unsure. There's no reason go back to the first page.
Make sure you have plenty of white space. It's difficult to read words that are too tightly packed together.
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Use your spell-checker to ensure accuracy. To make sure you're not using an incorrect spelling word check your text for errors. Check the table and the text numbers.