If you need technical assistance with writing a business plan, we will work in tandem with you to produce a detailed, credible, well-researched and well-presented plan for a viable business.

In order to write a good business plan, we will maintain regular, frequent contact with you in order to understand exactly what you plan to do and how. In fact, we will ask the questions that potential investors will also need answered.

Business plan writing requires that we extract information from our main source – you.

We cannot write your plan without you – your expertise is what makes the plan unique and uniquely yours. What we do is take your knowledge, understanding and ideas and give them form while helping you to refine them.

Small business plans

If you need to open a business, a shop or a restaurant, and you want to plan ahead – or if you are looking for a loan for your business – you will need a business plan.

A plan for a small business is not as long and complex as one for a larger company. It contains all the important information but it is quicker and less expensive to write.

The plan will be about 10 pages long and contain all the information required to evaluate the future of the business: the size of the market, the competition, the amount of investment required, sales and costs forecasts. It will enable you (and your lenders) to understand if your business will be viable and will generate enough profit to repay the loan – and to keep an eye on the more important assumptions.

A small business plan takes no more than one week to be written, based on the information supplied by you.

Full business plans

A complete business plan is up to 50 pages long, and contains:

• An executive summary – not simply a summary of the whole plan, but a short version of the business plan including the main points and figures (4-8 pages).
• A description of the intended products / services – what is the purpose of the proposed business? What is it going to make and sell? (2-10 pages, depending on the type of business)
• A description of current market situations – if the products / services already exist, how are they distributed? If they don't, how are the needs you have identified currently addressed? (2-5 pages)
• A description of the market – who are the proposed customers? How many are there, and how much can they spend on the proposed product / service? What is their geographical distribution? (5-10 pages)
• An overview of the competition – which other companies offer similar products / services, or products / services that address the same needs? How will the new business conquer its proposed market share? (5-10 pages)
• Targets – what key results are planned, and for when? How will the business plan be checked and, if necessary, modified? (3-5 pages)
• The strategy – what is the key element that will allow your business to thrive? How will it manage to sell its products? How will it beat the competition? (2-10 pages, depending on the type of business)
• A presentation of the people involved in the business proposition – resumes, objectives and roles (1-2 pages per person, necessary only if the plan needs to be presented to third parties)
• Investment, cost and revenue forecast charts – these charts visualize monthly results expectations in terms of investments, running costs, and revenues. They will need to be credible and, if you are looking for investors, show clearly how and when the business will become profitable. They will also allow you to check the state of your business in order to modify projections and, if necessary, take the appropriate measures (normally one chart for assumptions, one for monthly cost and revenue forecasts, one for cash flow and cash requirements assessment).

The above size estimates are purely indicative. Every plan will be written according to the key issues it addresses. Simple plans involving innovative products, such as plans for research firms, will place more emphasis on the product descriptions. Complex marketing plans involving simple products, such as plans for direct household goods distribution, will place more emphasis on marketing strategy.

A full business plan will require several revisions and will be written over the course of one or two months.

© 2002 Diadem Business Services, a division of Adverbage Ltd., New Ross, Ireland. All rights reserved.