Get started with a business plan template
There are great business ideas out there, but often when entrepreneurs need to put those ideas on paper they draw a blank. A good business plan template let you prepare a professional plan document and get your thoughts organized. It provides you guidelines about what to write in each section of the plan.
Below is our gallery of sample business plan templates, financial plan template, marketing plan template, startup template. Just find your match and get started. Pick your favourite outline and make use of our cloud-based business planning software.
- The offer to target customers
What does your product and/or service do? What benefits make your offer unique, or just different? What will motivate customers to switch to your product and/or service? How would you describe a typical customer for your product and/or service? How would you describe a group(s) of target customers? - The market potential
What is the market potential for your product and/or service? Is the market growing, staying the same, or declining? How many competitors are there? How will you compete (e.g. faster service, more convenient etc.)? What sales can you realistically achieve in the first 6 months? First year? - Reaching target customers
Which route(s) to access your target customers will you use e.g. website, shop etc. What promotional methods will you use (e.g. email, social media, advertising etc.)? - Provision of product and/or service
What resources do you need to get started - premises, equipment, machinery etc.? What is the key function in your business (e.g. scheduling drivers to collect and deliver parcels)? How much could you provide in total (hours available and/or maximum production)? Who will be your suppliers and/or subcontractors? - The team
What relevant skills and experience do you have? Who will be responsible for what in your business? What skills and experience do other team members bring? Who will act as your Mentor/Adviser? - Simple financials
Will it break-even? What is your own financial contribution to the business? Is there any additional funding needed? Where will this come from (e.g. owners, friends, family, bank, business angels, venture capital) What will these funds be used for?
- Executive summary
Although positioned at the beginning of the plan the executive summary is best completed at the end. It's primary purpose is to "sell" the plan to the intended audience, enticing them to read on. It should be an easy-to-read overview presented concisely, ideally on one side of A4. - Business aims
What will your business be doing in 5 years time? What will it have achieved? What are the main growth targets for sales revenue and profit by the end of year 3? By the end of year 5? - The offer to target customers
What does the product or service do (the features)? What benefits make the offer unique, or just different? What customer problem does your product or service solve? How would you describe a typical customer for the offer? How do you know they will spend money on your product and/or service? - Market potential
What is the market potential in terms of sales revenue? Is the market growing, staying the same, or declining? What is causing this? Who are your main competitors? Describe their strengths and weaknesses. How will the business compete and grow in the market (e.g. faster service, lower cost etc.)? - Marketing and sales
Which routes to access your target customers will you choose (e.g. shop, distributor, website etc.)? What is your basic approach to pricing (e.g. high price/low volume, low price/high volume)? What range of promotional methods will you use (e.g. email, social media, advertising, discounts etc.)? How will the pattern of your sales develop and grow over the next 3 years? - Providing the offer
What assets (e.g. equipment, machinery etc.) are needed to get started and grow your business? What are the ongoing resource requirements (e.g. premises, outsourced services etc.)? What are the key processes in your business (the activities that makes the most difference for your customer)? How do you measure and cost the capacity available for supplying your product and/or service? Who are your key partners (e.g. suppliers, subcontractors) and what is their role? - The team
Who are the key team members, their roles and profiles (e.g. skills, experience) Are there any important gaps in skills and/or experience to fill? How will these gaps be filled now, and in future to achieve your growth targets (e.g. employ, specialist consultant)? Who will act as your mentor/adviser? - Managing performance and risk
What are the key internal measures of performance that must be closely monitored (e.g. unit costs, response times etc.)? What are the key external measures of performance (e.g. monitoring customer satisfaction and needs, market and competitor intelligence)? What potential events would have a significant adverse impact on your business or prevent its growth? What is their likelihood? What specific countermeasures will you take? - First year action plan
List the main goals, activities and/or events in the next 12 months that will help you to reach your growth targets. - Financials
What is your financial contribution to the business? Is there any additional funding needed? Where will it come from (e.g. friends, family, bank, business angels, venture capital)? What will it be used for?
You may wish to add comments and highlights on the financial projections below such as financial milestones already achieved (e.g. break even) and/or the assumptions made (e.g. about the rate of forecast growth).
- Company Purpose
Define the company or your business in a single declarative sentence. - Problem
Describe the problem of the customer. Or the problem of the customer’s customer. Outline how the customer addresses the issue today. - Solution
Describe your company’s value proposition to make the customer’s life better. Provide some use cases. - Timing
Why now? Set-up the historical evolution of your category. Define recent trends that make your solution possible. - Market Size
Identify your customers. Calculate the TAM (Total Available Market) - the absolute maximum that can be reached by the product; SAM (Served Available Market) - the fraction of the total available market that is accessed by the product now; SOM (Share Of Market) - the fraction of the served available market that the product controls. - Competition
List your competitors. Spell out your competitive advantages. - Product
In most cases, customers will only buy a simple product with a singular value proposition. Describe your product line-up (features and functionality, architecture, intellectual property), and development roadmap. - Business Model
Describe your revenue model and pricing. What is the average account size and/or lifetime value? Describe your sales and distribution model. List your customers or pipeline. - Team
Make a list of: Founders and Management, Board of Directors and/or Board of Advisors. - Financials
A set of financial projections is included with this section automatically. You may leave some comments or assumptions.
- Executive Summary
The goal of the executive summary is to stimulate and motivate the
investor to learn more. Keep it simple, be brief. If your business is
truly complex, you can dive into the details later on. - Company Data
- Company Analysis
The goal of this section is to educate the investor about your company’s history and explain why your team is perfect to execute on the business opportunity. Give some history and provide the background on the company. Show off your track record. Detail prior accomplishments, including funding rounds, product launches, milestones reached and partnerships secured.
Demonstrate your team’s unique competitive advantage or key partnerships. - Industry Analysis
The goal here is to prove that there is a real market for your product or service. Demonstrate the need for your product. Cite credible and independent sources when describing the size and growth of your market. Determine the relevant market size and focus on the products or services that you will directly compete against. Explain how you would overcome potential negative trends. - Customer Analysis
Convey the needs of your customers and show how your products or services satisfy those needs. Define your customers precisely. Detail their demographics. How many customers fit the definition and where are these customers located? Use data to demonstrate past actions (X% have purchased a similar product), future projections (X% said they would purchase the product), and/or implications (X% use a product which your product enhances). Explain what drives their decisions. Detail the decision-making process. - Competitive Analysis
Define the competition and demonstrate your competitive advantage. List competitors. Include direct and indirect competitors. Carefully describe their strengths and weaknesses, as well as the key drivers of competitive differentiation in the marketplace. Demonstrate barriers to entry. In describing the competitive landscape, show how your business model creates competitive advantages, and defensible barriers to entry. - Marketing Plan
Describe how your company will penetrate the market, deliver products/services, and retain customers. Products - Detail all products and services, but focus primarily on the short-to-intermediate time horizon. Promotions - Explain which marketing/advertising strategies will be used and why. Price - Provide a clear rationale for your pricing strategy. Place - Explain how your products/services will be delivered to your customers. Explain how you will retain your customers. Define your partnerships. - Operational Plan
Detail the short term processes and systems that provide your customers with your products and services. Business milestones - Lay out the significant long-term business milestones for the company, and prove that the team will execute on the long-term vision. - Financial Plan
A set of financial projections is included with this section automatically.
Detail your key assumptions here. Detail the uses of funds. Understandably, investors want to know what, specifically, you plan to do with their money.
Provide a clear exit strategy. The most common exits are IPOs or acquisitions.
- Executive Summary
The executive summary is where you will list all of your previous restaurant experience, as well as any management and staffing skills you may possess. The executive summary serves a couple of important purposes, including showcasing your strengths as a business owner and detailing how you plan to go about starting a restaurant that will quickly become the premier destination in your town. - Business Overview
In the business overview section you actually get down to the nuts and bolts of how the business will operate. This section will include such vital details as where the restaurant will be located, what hours it will keep and what type of cuisine it will specialize in. It is important for the business overview section to provide a compelling argument for why starting a restaurant of the type you propose will be a successful endeavor. - Products and Services
Opening a restaurant or a bar means providing both products, namely the signature dishes you will create, and services, including the attention of your wait staff and the ambiance and elegance your restaurant creates. The products and services section gives you a chance to detail what your restaurant will offer, and what will set your new restaurant apart from the competition. - Marketing Strategy
Chances are there are already plenty of restaurants in town, and this section of the plan is designed to convince skeptical lenders and would-be investors why your plan to open a restaurant is a good one. In this part, you will detail the marketing strategy you will use to differentiate the new restaurant you open from others in the area. This section can also include details of the market research you have done, including efforts to identify and cater to underserved segments of the market. - Management and Staffing
The management and staffing section of your plan should lay out in detail your strategy for attracting and retaining talent, both in the kitchen and in the front of the house. This section should also detail the experience and core competencies of the management team, since those individuals are just as critical to the success of the enterprise. - Implementation Plan
The implementation plan portion of the business plan should include a detailed timeline for starting the restaurant, from renting or buying the space and obtaining the furnishings to stocking the kitchen and hiring the personnel who will run the operation. - Investments
Opening a restaurant requires a lot of capital investment, including purchasing the freezers used to store food at the proper temperature, the stainless steel sinks and dishwashers and the tables and chairs needed to make diners feel at home. The investment section of the business plan is where you will lay out the details about the items your new restaurant will need to get off the ground, as well as the ongoing investments that will be needed to keep it up and running. - Funding
The funding section of the business plan will include details on the funding it will take to get the new restaurant off the ground. This section is very important, since lenders and equity investors will need to see that you have done a thorough analysis that includes all the equipment and supplies you will need. - Risk Analysis
All businesses have risks, but restaurants have a number of risks that are specific to their line of business. Some of these risks include a bad report from the health inspector, a negative review from a respected food critic or the sudden loss of a top chef to a competitor. Addressing the possible risks of the restaurant business is a critical part of your plan document. - Financials
A set of financial projections is included with this section automatically.
You may want to leave some comments here on the business financial plan.
- Value Proposition |
- Customer Segments |
- Channels |
- Customer Partnerships |
- Revenue Streams |
- Key Resources |
- Key Activities |
- Key Partnerships |
- Cost Structure |
- Financials |
- Details >>
- Target Market |
- Objectives |
- Strategies |
- Tactics |
- Metrics |
- Return on Investment |
- Details >>
- Summary |
- Sales revenue and variable expenses |
- Break-even analysis |
- Other operating revenue |
- Operating expenses |
- Personnel expenses |
- Other operating expenses |
- Fixed assets |
- Financing |
- Share capital inflows |
- Annuity loans |
- Loans |
- Financial projections |
- Income statements |
- Cash flow statements |
- Balance sheets |
- Performance measures |
- Details >>
- Executive Summary |
- Market Analysis |
- Industry Description and Outlook |
- Target Market |
- Market Tests |
- Lead Times |
- Competitive Analysis |
- Regulatory Restrictions |
- Company Description |
- Company Data |
- Operating Expenses |
- Organization and Management |
- Organization Structure |
- Ownership Information |
- Key People |
- Marketing and Sales Strategy |
- Service or Product Line |
- Funding Request |
- Financials |
- Details >>
- Executive Summary |
- Company Data and Owners |
- Company Description |
- Products and Services |
- Marketing Plan |
- Economics |
- Product |
- Customers |
- Competition |
- Niche |
- Strategy |
- Promotion |
- Pricing |
- Location |
- Distribution Channels |
- Sales Forecast |
- Operational Plan |
- Production |
- Location |
- Legal Environment |
- Personnel |
- Suppliers and Inventory |
- Credit Policies |
- Operating Expenses |
- Management and Organization |
- Professional and Advisory Support |
- Financial Plan |
- Capitalization and Starting Expenses |
- Profit and Loss Projections |
- Cash Flow Projections |
- Balance Sheet |
- Break-Even Analysis |
- Financial Ratios |
- Appendices |
- Details >>
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