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Home > Services & Assistance > Career Services > eSight Careers Network > Small Business Resources > Writing a Business Plan

The Business Plan should have nine sections that present a company history, a business summary, its vision and mission, its goals, a market analysis and assessment of your competitors, an overview of your marketing plan, a management profile, company history and an executive summary.  Here are some guidelines for writing the plan.

The company history (2-3 paragraphs) should tell the story of how you came up with the idea for your venture, what marketplace need you are meeting or problem you are addressing.  If yours is an existing business, tell the story of how it was formed, what obstacles you have overcome, and what success you have experienced.

The business summary (3-4 paragraphs) documents the nature of your business and how you have developed your products or services.

The vision and mission section (several sentences for each) defines the nature and purpose of your business, and extend 10 years ahead.

The goals specified in the next section should be both short (the months ahead) and long (one or more years), and must be specific and attainable.  Include your criteria for measuring progress, be sure your goal is realistic and relevant to your values, and establish time frames and deadlines.

The market analysis (2-3 paragraphs) details your existing and/or potential customers, including both primary and secondary markets.

A competitive assessment (2-3 paragraphs) distinguishes your business from those of any competitors, emphasizing your uniqueness.

The marketing plan overview (2-3 paragraphs) should detail the methods you will use to inform potential customers about your products or services.

The management profile section (2-3 paragraphs) details your background and that of any additional staff, and should include documentation of your planning, organizing and project management skills.

The financial information section (4 paragraphs) should include estimates of the amount of funding required to start up and keep running, your sources of capital, your costs and profit margin, and your best estimate of sales per month for the next year.

The executive summary (5-10 paragraphs) should be presented at the beginning of the plan as a digest of the eight sections, a high-level overview designed to convince the reader that your business is viable.

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