So what exactly is a business plan? It’s simply a written description of your business’s future—a document that tells what you plan to do and how you plan to do it. Business plans can help perform a number of tasks for those who write and read them. Perhaps the most important use of a business plan is for you, the entrepreneur, to document your vision and your strategies. Think of your business plan as a playbook of sorts, where you lay out your | ABOUT OUR SPONSOR MICROSOFT®. At Microsoft, our mission is to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential. That’s why Microsoft created the Startup Center—to enable entrepreneurs to realize their full potential. In the Microsoft Startup Center, you’ll find the resources you need to get your business up and running. You’ll find practical how-to advice alongside special offers designed for new businesses from our partners. We know you have a lot of work to get done, and we hope we make startup simple. Get started now at . TABLE OF CONTENTS Intro: Why Everyone Needs a Business Plan # 1: SUM IT UP Why executive summaries are the most important part of your plan8 # 2: COMPANY OVERVIEW Target your market 14 # 3: PRODUCTS AND SERVICES What are you selling? 18 # 4: FIELD NOTES Understanding and explaining your industry. 24 # 5: MARKETING SMARTS A marketing strategy primer 28 # 6: COMPETITIVE ANALYSIS Identifying competitors 34 # 7: TEAMWORK Who’s who on your team. 38 # 8: OPERATIONS The inner workings of your business 44 # 9: MONEY GAME Explaining the financials 48 # 10: EXTRA, EXTRA Deciding what goes in your plan’s # 11: BUSINESS PLAN RESOURCES Extra tools to get you ©2007 Entrepreneur Media Inc. All rights reserved. YOUR ROAD MAP TO SUCCESS I 3 Intro: WHY EVERYONE NEEDS A BUSINESS PLAN HE TRUTH IS THAT MANY SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES WERE STARTED WITHOUT BUSINESS PLANS. In fact, the phenomenally successful Martha Stewart told us at Entrepreneur that she never wrote a plan for any of her busi- nesses. Now, while that may be fine for the likes of Martha, it’s generally
