Before you begin reading this article, you may also be interested in the following articles:
- “Business Plans – A Roadmap to Success” – talks about why you need a business plan
- “Creating a Business Plan – The Essentials” – discusses the essential components of a business plan
- “Business Plans – Doing Your Homework” – provides ideas on how you can begin working on a business plan
A business plan not only demonstrates your business model to others, but also helps you think and develop your business ideas. A lot of work that goes into creating the business plan will reveal useful information that you may not have known before. This information will be vital into developing practical and executable ideas. While doing the research, it will be important to pay attention to market indicators, factors, trends and other market statistics that can help you implement feasible plans and make smart decisions. However, one thing that people need to understand about business plans is that they are dynamic; business plans can be modified and changed as time goes on. So just because you are writing something down today, does not mean it will hold the same meaning in the future. So be prepared to constantly revise your business plan.
“If the plan doesn’t work, change the plan but never the goal!” – Unknown
Once you have all the required information, it is prime time to start writing your document. Even though the executive summary is the very first section in your document, you will actually write that as the last section of your business plan. For help on writing a solid executive summary, head on over to this article: “Pitch Perfect – The Executive Summary.”
The first section that you will write will be your company overview. This will be the simplest section to write and it will give you confidence both in your business as well as writing the other sections as it will provide you with a good start. The company overview is where you will be boasting all about your ideas and your business vision. If there was ever a time to suck up to something, it is time to suck up to your idea. Your company overview should portray your idea/business as something that has never been done before. It is important to get as much detail in this section while keeping it precise and to the point at the same time.
“Whenever ideas fail, men invent words!” – Martin H Fischer
Writing your company overview should be as much about you as it is your business. This business is your idea; therefore, you are the only person who knows exactly what should go in the business plan. Let your company overview speak for yourself, demonstrating your vision, showcasing your business idea, illustrating your business model and establishing your business identity. Your company overview should speak volumes about your concepts as well as your business knowledge so that anyone who reads the document can grasp the idea and see why you believe it’s something worth building. In essence, the company overview section should be that dream that you want to make a reality!
“To succeed you have to believe in something with such a passion that it becomes a reality” – Anita Roddick
Here are a few things you can consider while preparing your company overview:
1. Idea/Business Identity
Your company overview should clearly outline your idea/business. Your introduction to this section should include the following principles
- The name of your business
- The legal structure
- The location of your business
- Your product/service/idea
- A brief introduction about the owner/you
2. Business Philosophy
A business is not always just about the idea, but also the philosophy behind the idea. This will demonstrate to readers and investors that you are not all about the money and you are truly vested in this idea because of your passion, dedication and commitment towards it. As the saying goes, where your heart on your sleeve!
3. Subsections
After a brief introduction about your company, you should include the following subsections:
- Vision Statement
- This is the reason your business exists and where you see it in the future – the shorter the vision statement, the better it will be to read it
- Mission Statement
- This is how you will realize your vision – like the vision statement, keep this as short as possible
- Objectives
- List down your major objectives
- Strategies
- List down your main strategies
- Milestone
- Highlight your key target milestones
- Product Information
- Write about your product! Fantasize about it!
- Pricing
- Any additional subsection you think is vital in understanding your business
These three pointers are just some basic grounds to build a solid company overview. Remember, let your ideas flow, structure your sentences to illuminate your thinking patterns, use words to put the spotlight on your business and ensure you get as much passion in there as possible!
