Business Plans & SWOT Analysis: Home

This guide will help you to write a business plan.

A business plan is a picture of your business - and it should reflect the best of your company.

If you have a business idea, you must research your field of business and set your goals.

You must write down all your goals and consider your available resources. 

For a new business, you should use future projections on the basis of real facts, and if you are already running a business, past reports would be included. 

The original form of this guide was created by library intern Mansoor Ahmad, School of Business, Class of 2013.

Do you have an idea for a business?

Do you own a business?

Do you have specific goals for your business?

Write a Business Plan!

A business plan is a written description of your business’ future. It is a document that tells what you plan to do and how you plan to do it. If you jot down a paragraph on the back of an envelope describing your business strategy, you’ve written a plan, or at least the beginning of a plan.

Business plans are inherently strategic. You start here - with certain resources and abilities. You want to get to there - a point in the future (usually three to five years out) at which time your business will have a different set of resources and abilities, as well as greater profitability and increased assets.

Your business plan shows how you will get from here to there.

Click here for more information 

•  Executive Summary: Write this last. It is just a page or two of your highlights. 

• Company Description: Type of legal establishment (ie. corporation or LLC), history, start-up plans, etc.

• Product or Service: Describe what you are actually selling. Focus on the customer benefits.

• Market Analysis: You need to know your target market, customer needs, where they are, how to reach them, etc.

• Strategy/Implementation: Be detailed and specific. Include all management responsibilities with both dates and detailed budgets 

• The Management Team: Include backgrounds of key members of the startup team, your overall personnel strategy, etc.

• Financial Plan: Include P&L and Cash flow, Balance sheet, Break-even analysis, Business ratios, etc.