A business plan is an important document for any type of business, at any stage. Not only is it necessary to raise funds for the company, but it is used to craft a better company strategy through reflection on the past and projection into the future and to bring all employees together under that common mission.

Fundraising

At certain times in the life of a business, an opportunity arises to move forward which requires a capital investment beyond what the company can afford with its own resources. The startup phase is certainly one of these times, as is the situation when a business is ready to expand to additional locations, create a significant product extension, or to franchise. Fundraising requires convincing outside sources (investors or lenders) of the strength of the business’s plans and a written document is needed to support this argument.

Reflection and Projection

A business plan helps a business create a stronger strategy in the first place. The process of creating a plan creates a specific time for reflection on the past of the business (or of the industry and market if it is a new company) as well as projection into the future. Reflection should yield valuable insight into what tactics have worked and which have not. Projection into the future creates financial metrics against which the progress of the business can be measured.

Getting the Team On Target

A business plan is a document which can be shared with the managers and even staff of the company. By understanding the strategy and mission of the business, and the market research which has been done, staff and managers should all gain a greater understanding of why the business is run in the way it is. They should also gain a greater idea of the company culture that they should be trying to create. Writing a unified plan is a way to hand down marching orders to managers and staff.

Eric Powers is associated with Growthink, a business plan consulting firm. Since 1999, Growthink business plan writers have developed more than 2,000 business plans. Call 800-506-5728 today for a free consultation. If you’re writing your own business plan, you can access a proven template, here: http://www.growthink.com/products/business-plan-template.

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