No such thing, right? 

Yes, a business plan requires research in order to be a viable document. Better to write nothing than to waste time committing to paper a lot of thoughts, such as “I think,” “I assume,” and “I heard.” After all, this is your business you are describing; what do you know?

There is so much information available through technology today. So there is no reason to be less than well-informed, especially about your chosen occupation.

For the average entrepreneur: yes, you know exactly what you want to do; yes, you will probably need startup funding; and, yes, the majority of the information you require to make this a reality is available. And, yes, you are the one who must map out the critical steps and commit them to paper.

Why? As in creating anything from the bottom up, you need a blueprint. How will you know when you are finished if you don’t set a goal and create a plan to reach it? How will define your business idea to a prospective lender, customer, or investor? If you don’t assign a value to each aspect of building your business, how will you make reasonable and realistic financial decisions? Are you in a position from the onset to form your business according to your vision, or will you just be reacting to conditions as they occur?

So, where to start? Keep it simple. Begin by describing the business as it exists in your mind. When you use the following outline as a guide, and can easily address each point, you have a business plan (helpful resources are included).

The What

• Product or service you will offer
• Into what industry do you fall (NAICS code)?
• Who will use your product or service?
• How you will grow the business? 
• Who will be involved in the business?

Resources: www.entrepreneur.com, www.zapdata.com, www.bizfilings.com

The Market

• Target market: describe those most likely to purchase your product/service
• Demographics
• Location
• Income
• Enduring customer or random buyer
• Size of market (large enough to sustain your business?)

Resources: www.census.gov, http://www.melissadata.com/lookups/index.htm, http://factfinder.census.gov/home/saff/main.html, https://nysdot.gov/tdv (traffic data)

Products and services

• Detailed description of products and services
• What they will do for your client/customer
• Pricing strategy
• How your products and services are competitive

Resources: www.virtualpet.com/industry/howto/search.htm

Organization and management

• Who in your organization is doing what
• State your legal entity: sole proprietorship, LLC, corporation
• What licenses and/or permits are required
• How does your day-to-day operation flow

Resources: www.bizfilings.dom, www.bizstats.com

Marketing and sales strategy

• Based on your knowledge of your target market: how you will reach them, get them to come in, satisfy their needs and wants
• What forms of marketing you will use: social media, website, one-on-one
• Portion of your budget devoted to marketing

Resources: www.homestead.com, www.bizstats.com, www.socialquickstarter.com, www. zoho.com (paid)

Financial management 
Remember that target market you identified as customers most likely to purchase your products/services? Now, couple that information with your pricing strategy to determine projected sales revenue with the following simple formulas:

• Customers X amount spent per month = monthly revenue
• Monthly revenue – monthly expenses = monthly profit

Because you have researched your target market, you will be able to make reasonable and realistic income projections for your first several years.

Resources: www.bizstate.com, www.profit-cents.com, www.waveapps.com, www.dmsretail.com, www.zapdata.com 

Remember, keep it simple to ensure you are building your business, your way.

Nancy Ansteth is a New York State-certified business advisor at the Onondaga Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at OCC. Contact her at anstethn@sunyocc.edu