# buissness plans??



## PPM (Sep 12, 2002)

Good day everyone !! and thanks in advance for any advice.
My question is if anyone here can direct me in the right direction regarding buissness plans. What they look like, how to write one, and iny other information you would think is important for me to know. Once again thank you for your help!!


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## snowflake (Jan 16, 2003)

business plan !!!! been there done it. what a headache to do one. you can talk to your banker and see if they got one or you can print one of the internet just type in business plan in the serch engine box. the one i used got from my ex witch. im sure i stilll got that around if needed proberly can look for it and fax it too you if needed too. let me know and i willl dig for it and see if can find
gary


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

PPM, I know the SBA (Small Business Administration) has a real good business plan outlines.

http://www.sba.gov/starting/indexbusplans.html

I would imagine that there is a Canadian equivalent, although I think you could use this anyway.


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## PPM (Sep 12, 2002)

Thanx to snowflake and mick for your help that site had alot of info. Question to you guys, did the business plan make it easier for your operations to get work, loans, or some type of help?? for start up costs. Was it really necessary is what Iam getting to.


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## Rooster (Dec 13, 1999)

PPM,
My experience in the USA when just starting a business:

With a well thought out, planned and outlined Business Plan, is needed when going to a bank or lender of some sort. Also if your plan is detailed enough most questions a lender might have will be answered by the business plan you have.

Good Luck

Rick


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

Any lender will want a Business Plan. Even if you're not going for a loan, a business plan forces you to look at costs and revenue. While a plan is designed to be flexible, you can still refer to it to see if you're on track. 

This is a good example of "do like I say, not like I do". My wife and I both work in a field where we deal with business plans and know their importance. Yet, I find ways to avoid developing one when she "suggests" it.

On the other hand, I had a Business Consultant tell me that a Plan unless necessary I was going for a loan.


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## wyldman (Jan 18, 2001)

Check out your local Staples or Business Depot.They have a software product for producing a professional looking business plan.Just type in the projected info and it spits it out.I just don't remember what it was called.


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## digger242j (Nov 22, 2001)

> On the other hand, I had a Business Consultant tell me that a Plan unless necessary I was going for a loan.


Sorry Mick, I tried figuring out what you meant to say from the context of the rest of the discussion but I can't make sense of that line. (You're one of the members who customarily makes enough sense that it's worth asking what you actually meant to say there...)


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## Stovezbt (Oct 13, 2001)

I have some knowledge of business plans. I got a degree in entrepreneurship, and to the final classes were consulting and business plan. I one semester I wrote a 350 page business plan for a farm market. It involved everything from site analysis to finanicals. If you are planning to use this plan for a loan or have to present to someone, you must do it yourself. Personally I have never had any experience with software that prepares plans. You will have to think of everything. I had 5 years finaicials linked together excel. I went overboard with my plan as I wanted to graduate. You can get a good plan-minus pages for appendix in as little as 50 pages. Just depends on the business. I would try and find a college text on business plans as they will be most usefull. When I graduated my program was ranked 4th nationally, and has info available to business owners, I think.

I will link you to the university-search for entrepreneurship or Midwest entrepreneurial education center, i think, or try searching for Dr. Kuratko.
www.bsu.edu

Writing a plan will seem impossible, but you can do it. Be very specific in what the business is. Locate all competetiors, for snow plowing that would be, other plowers, doing it themselves, snowblowers, kids doing drives, and so on. Research the industry. Research all area of your business-property location, equipment, employees, insurance, so on. How are you going to market yourself? Prepare financials-3years min 5 years is better. Be conservative with the numbers you project. Seems like a lot and that is not everything. It took me a full semester to do it. Everything goes in a specific order. Keep in mid that the idea behind a plan is to see if the business will be profible, sometimes a completed plan will indicate that the business as proposed is not fiscally wise. Hopefully Dr. K or the center can give you leads.

Hope this helps a little


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

digger242j, thanks for the compliment. I think I started to say one thing and decided to change the wording, then didn't check what I written. What I meant was: "On the other hand, I had a Business Consultant tell me that a Plan IS UNnecessary UNLESS I was going for a loan."

That was when I had just started to set up the plowing business and met with a member of SCORE. I'd asked for advise in developing a Business Plan as a reference. I wasn't really impressed as I kept telling him things I thought he should have asked about before he asked. He told me I was well-organized and had a well thought-out plan in my head and really didn't need to put it on paper. I politely (at least I think it was politely) ended the interview and went on about my business.


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## Mick (May 19, 2001)

I swear words get jumbled from typing to posting. I "spell-checked" and reviewed (twice) my last post and it still came out jumbled - The word "had" is missing between "I" and "written".


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## myo (Dec 2, 2002)

Here is a 2 page description of what is typically in a business plan and why a business plan is useful. 
http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~resec140/pdfs/chap08.pdf

Good luck with the business plan.


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