Ever wonder what goes into a business plan?
Then this video’s for you.
I’m Keisha Mabry Haymore, a Grow with Google Digital Coach.
Having a detailed business plan is an essential part of starting or growing a company
and guiding it toward success.
Not only does it inform investors, banks, and stakeholders about your business,
but it also gives you and your team a better vision and strategy for achieving your goals.
Today we’ll go over what you should include in your business plan.
Start by creating a high-level overview of company details.
Write out your business’ name, where your company is located,
what product or service you sell, what industry you’re in,
who your target audience is, and what your goals are.
Add short bios for the most important people in your company,
such as management, advisors or the board of directors.
Describe how their skills and background will benefit your business.
Make a chart that also shows everyone who works for your business
and who covers what roles.
For example if you are opening a bike shop,
who is the mechanic, who handles the front desk and cash register, etc.
Of course, maybe your business is just you.
Think about if you plan on hiring more people,
and include these roles even if you haven’t hired someone to fill them yet.
Next, write an analysis of your industry,
including its size and any trends you’ve noticed.
This can be as simple as doing a Google search
and looking at Google Trends to see what people are looking for.
Now, consider who your competitors are,
and what you have to offer that they don’t.
Why do you think there’s an opportunity for you in this industry?
Describe your target demographic, including geographic information.
For instance, your demographic might be young women
living outside of big cities who care about sustainability.
Do some research online to find out how big this market is.
For example, how many followers do similar businesses have on social media?
Explain how you’ll meet your audience’s needs, including key differentiators.
In other words, what problems can you solve that your competitors don’t?
What techniques will you use to do this?
Make sure your business plan includes important details
that you’d like people to understand about your product or service,
such as unique features or special customer service.
Make note of any research and development you’ve done or plan to do.
Next, detail how you’re going to promote and advertise your business,
and how you’ll make sales.
Explain how your marketing will introduce your product or service to your audience;
which marketing channels you’ll use,
such as social media, search and display ads, and email marketing;
and what your strategy is for each of these channels.
For example, if you are running a restaurant,
you might create a cadence for posting photos of your daily specials.
For sales, will you rely on partnerships, distributors, an online store,
physical storefronts, or salespeople?
List the steps you’ve already taken and what still needs to happen.
State what funding you need now,
how long that funding can maintain your business,
and what funding you’ll need in the future.
Give a breakdown of what the money will go toward,
like start-up costs, operational costs, research and design,
salaries, hiring, growth, and so on.
Write out your financial information,
including your projected monthly and yearly sales numbers broken down by revenue source.
You should also include projected income statements, balance sheets,
capital expenditure budgets, and monthly or quarterly projections for the first year.
If you’re an established business,
show the past 5 years of these statements.
Next, list what milestones your business must hit to be financially stable.
Identify when you might take a loss,
and when you expect to break even or gain a profit.
You can make your financial information easier to understand
by using simple pie charts, bar graphs, and other imagery.
For more information about growing your business,
be sure to tune in to our other videos and subscribe to our channel!
You can also keep learning on the go with the Google Primer app
or check out our Google Career Certificates for job-ready skills you can put to work.
See you next time.