Guidelines on Business Plan Template

1.     What is a business plan and how it helps?

1. It is the face of your business; It helps to attract clients, investors and strategic partners
2. It is a living document; You should review it after any change in external or internal factors
3. First step for fine tuning your ideas for practical implementation into a functioning business
4. Acts as a ‘How to’ guide for running your business
5. Helps you map options for best and worst case scenarios

2.     How to develop a business plan?

1. Know your business: Research your market, product / service, target customer
2. Create your identity: Company/ Business mission,vision
3. Structure your thoughts: Write your business plan

3.     Key features of a good business plan

Think about the following before and after you’ve written every section:

1. Description of your project and product
2. Marketing Plan: Product, customer profile, distribution channel and proposed location, pricing, promotion and advertising.
3. Operational Plan: Production, location, Inventory, Credit, Payables
4. Management and Organization: Competitive strengths, Legal form and structure
5. Startup Expenses and Capitalization: Estimating Pre Ops, Contingencies and unforeseen
6. Financial Plan: Recommend using professional help for Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Cash flow
7. Appendices; Advice on appending useful written materials to Business Plan
8. Refining the Plan; Advice on how to create a plan specifically suited to the applicant’s business

4.     Who will develop a business plan?

1. The entrepreneur may use professional help however we strongly advise the entrepreneurs to do it themselves
2. Technical advice from private sector experts / Govt. institutions, listed on SMEDA’s website.

5.     How SMEDA can help

1. Provide guidelines and explain how to develop a business plan. Refer to a related pre-feasibility
2. Refer to government institutions, private sector experts / institutions, secondary resource materials, SMEDA website www.smeda.org