Its always easier to write if you have a clear picture of what the finished product should look like. The attached files contain the component elements of sample business plans for three fictitious companies. Taken together, they illustrate the type of information that is essential to the creation of a high quality business plan. These documents are not complete plans; they are not templates into which you can cut and paste information about your business. Instead, these documents demonstrate how the nature of a business and the target audience for the plan affect the content. After looking over one or more of these business plans, a business owner should have a handle on what information his or her business plan needs to contain to make it the best possible plan.

Many people think that the only reason to develop a business plan is to convince potential lenders or investors to provide financial backing. This view is a little short-sighted, however. A well-developed plan can serve as one of your most important management tools. A good plan will provide a blueprint and step-by-step instructions on how to translate your idea into a profitably marketed service or product.

A prerequisite to deriving the benefits you get from using your written business plan is to keep it current. You should treat your business plan as a dynamic document that should be kept current as your business evolves. While you might have initially created your business plan for a specific purpose (such as obtaining financing), the plan can serve you well in a number of capacities. It provides the baseline against which to measure your business's performance. It can help you to anticipate the impact of changing market and economic conditions.

A simplified employee pension plan is usually one of the easiest and least expensive ways for a small employer to provide employees with a retirement plan. Although a SEP is generally regarded as one of the simplest forms of retirement plans, it is still subject to complex — and sometimes confusing — regulations. A small business owner is faced with a surprising number of obligations regarding contributions, tax deductions, recordkeeping, employee notification, etc.

When does it make sense to create a business plan? Few people wake up in the morning and say, "Gee, seems like a nice day to write a business plan." Taking on a project of this size isn't done lightly. But you have to keep the job in perspective. If you're just starting out in business, the time it takes to create the first plan will be more than repaid by the insight you gain. If you're in business already but have never created a business plan, you'll be in a much better position to assess opportunities and risks that accompany the various changes you may be considering.

A business plan is a written document that defines the goals of your business and describes the means you will use to attain those goals. Every small business owner should prepare one, though in reality many do not. Although creating a business plan will take a lot of time, effort, and energy, it'll be well worth the trouble.

Every business plan should capture the unique characteristics of the business and the people who will run it. What sets your business apart from its competitors? While we have provided a list of the documents that should be included in a business plan, the presentation of the recommended information is, to a large extent, a matter of personal preference. In order to illustrate how business plans can vary from one another, consider reviewing the three sample plans included in the following case studies:

The action plan is our name for the portion of the business plan in which you account for business operations that weren't covered in the marketing and sales plans. The marketing and sales plans spell out the steps your business will take in an effort to achieve its financial and sales goals. The action plan explains how you will operate and manage your business. It also addresses the back office activities that don't relate directly to providing goods or services to customers. These include activities such as:

If you have ever considered or even dreamed of going into business for yourself, you've already engaged in some degree of business planning. Most likely your planning was intertwined with your thoughts about the personal issues that accompany a decision to start your own business.

In order to effectively use the retirement plan exemption in your asset exemption planning, your retirement plan must be subject to ERISA (the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act). But there is a very important exclusion from ERISA, which has a direct effect on the small business owner. A retirement plan that includes only the business owner and his or her spouse as participants is not qualified under ERISA.