Create a Business Plan

Many small businesses feel they must create a business plan. This may or may not be true, and there is nuance in this topic to be aware of, so you know what to do.

The key regarding a business plan is what is its use? For example, do you need funding for the business? Then, yes, you will absolutely need a formal business plan. However, if you are just starting and you do not need funding, you may just want to put together an informal business plan.

Some years ago, some educational colleagues and I published a book on entrepreneurship. In that book, A case study took a look at a local business owner that told me he had wrote out his business plan on a napkin. Now, that does not sound like it makes sense, right? But it did make sense in his case.

The reason he could do this is that he was very familiar with the business he wanted to start. He had been a business owner of a McDonald’s franchise and knew very well the business model for owning and operating a restaurant. He wanted to start his own Italian restaurant. So, he knew what it would take to open that business, find vendors, decide on prices for meals, etc. Because of that experience, he could outline what he needed to do on a napkin.

Now that may not be you. However, you may have a hobby that you have been doing for a while, and people are getting interested in what you make or produce. This is how my business started. I was doing bookkeeping as a side gig, but then decided to make it a true business, with a logo, a formal business name, and all the works. Now, I have not needed any short-term funding for my business, but I do know how it works. Plus, now that I need to create a formal business plan, I can certainly do it. But for now, my business plan is very informal.

If you do need a business plan that is more formal, you will likely need a bookkeeper to assist with that, because evenif you have experience in your field, you may not know how to pull together projections on your business from a financial perspective. However, I would suggest that most small businesses start as I did, unless you need retail or manufacturing space. 

So, how are you starting? Do you only have a service, not a product that requires space to manufacture? Your industry may require a formal business plan.

If you need to talk to someone about the financials, reach out to anyone of our account managers to find out how we can help.