158 | HOW TO WRITE A BUSINESS PLAN
QUiCK PLAN
If you’ve chosen the quick plan
method to prepare a business plan (see
Introduction), you need to read and complete
these sections of Chapter 9:
• “Decide How to Organize Your Plan”
• “Write Your Plan Summary”
• “Create the Appendix”
• “Create Title Page and Table of Contents”
Introduction
Lenders and investors see lots of business
plans. You’ll want to make sure your plan
gets the attention it deserves by presenting
it in the best possible manner. This chapter
shows you how.
Decide How to Organize Your Plan
Each business plan has a unique structure
that to some degree is determined by the
particular business and fundraising needs.
Although you’ll be writing a few more
short sections in this chapter, you’ll
probably want to take a few minutes now
to get organized. Take out all the work
you’ve completed so far using this book.
Then arrange the various components in
the order suggested below for a complete
plan or a quick plan, whichever you’ve
chosen. (See the Introduction for an
explanation of these different methods.)
Of course, you can vary the sequence if a
different order makes more sense to you. If
you’re happy with the order in which the
various parts appear, chances are that your
readers will be also.Quick Plan (One-Day Plan)—
Suggested Outline
Title Page: Section: “Create Title Page and
Table of Contents” of this chapter
Plan Summary: Section: “Write Your Plan
Summary” of this chapter
Table of Contents: Section: “Create Title Page
and Table of Contents” of this chapter
Problem Statement: Chapter 3
Business Description: Chapter 3
Business Accomplishments: Chapter 5
Sales Revenue Forecast: Chapter 3
Profit and Loss Forecast: Chapter 6
Capital Spending Plan: Chapter 7
Cash Flow Forecast: Chapter 7
Appendix: Table of Contents: Section:
“Create the Appendix” of this chapter
Appendix: Supporting Documents: Section:
“Create the Appendix” of this chapter.Complete Plan—Suggested Outline
Title Page: Section: “Create Title Page and
Table of Contents” of this chapter
Plan Summary: Section: “Write Your Plan
Summary” of this chapter
Table of Contents: Section: “Create Title Page
and Table of Contents” of this chapter
Problem Statement: Chapter 3
Business Description: Chapter 3
Business Accomplishments: Chapter 5
Marketing Plan: Chapter 8