PART 1 The Contemporary Business Environment

BUSINESS NAME

What is the name of your business?Hint: When you think of the name of your business, make sure that it captures the spirit of the business you’re creating.

Note to students: Once you have inserted your answer, delete the question and the tip provided here and leave just the heads so that your business plan will look more professional.

     

DESCRIPTION OF BUSINESS What will your business do?Hint: Imagine that you are explaining your business to a family member or a friend. The business should be easy to explain. Keep your description here to about 30 words or less.

     

FORM OF BUSINESS OWNERSHIPWhat form of business ownership (sole proprietorship, partnership, or corporation) will your business take? Why did you choose this form?Hint: For more information on the types of business ownership, refer to the discussion of the different forms of business ownership in Chapter 3.

     

IDEAL CUSTOMER Briefly describe your ideal customer. What are they like in terms of age, income level, and so on?Hint: You don’t have to give too much detail in this part of the plan; you’ll provide more details about customers and marketing in later parts of the plan.

     

OUR ADVANTAGES Why will customers choose to buy from your business, instead of your competition?Hint: In this section, describe what will be unique about your business. For example, is the product special, will customer service be exceptional, or will you offer the product at a lower price?

     

ETHICAL ISSUES All businesses have to deal with ethical issues. One way to address these issues is to create a code of ethics. List three core (unchanging) principles that your business will follow.Hint: To help you consider the ethical issues that your business might fact, refer to the discussion in Chapter 2.

     

PART 1 The Contemporary Business Environment

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY A business shows social responsibility by respecting all of its stakeholders. What steps will you take to create a socially responsible business?Hint: To help you consider issues of social responsibility, refer to the discussion of social responsibility in Chapter 2. What steps can you take to be a good citizen in the community? Consider also how you may need to be socially responsible toward your customers and, if applicable, investors, employees, and suppliers.

     

GLOBAL ISSUES Do you think that you’ll sell your product in another country? If so, what countries would you choose, and why? What challenges will you face?Hint: To help you consider issues of global business, refer to Chapter 4. Consider how you will expand internationally (i.e. independent agent, licensing, etc.). Do you expect global competition for your product? What advantages will foreign competitors have?

     

PART 2 The Business of Managing

MISSION STATEMENT Provide a brief mission statement for your businessHint: Refer to the discussion of mission statements in Chapter 5. Be sure to include the name of your business, how you will stand out from your competition, and why a customer will buy from you.     

BUSINESS GOALS Consider the goals for your business. What are three of your business goals for the first year? What are two intermediate to long-term goals?Hint: Refer to the discussion of goal setting in Chapter 5. Be as specific and realistic as possible with the goals you set. For example, if you plan on selling a service, how many customers do you want by the end of the first year and how much do you want each customer to spend? If you plan on selling a good, how many do you hope to sell?     

SWOT ANALYSIS Perform a basic SWOT analysis for your business, listing its main strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.Hint: We explained above what factors you should consider in your basic SWOT analysis. Look around at your world, talk to classmates, or talk to your instructor for other ideas in performing your SWOT analysis.Strengths      

Weaknesses      

Opportunities      

Threats      

MANAGEMENT Who will manage the business?Hint: Refer to the discussion of managers in Chapter 5. Think about how many levels of management as well as what kinds of managers your business needs.     

ORGANIZATION CHART Show how the “team” fits together by creating a simple organizational chart for your business. Make sure that you organizational chart indicates who will work for each manager as well as each person’s job title.Hint: Most businesses start off quite small. However, as you create your organizational chart, consider what your business will look like in the future. What different tasks are involved in the business? Who will each person report to in the organizational structure? Refer to the discussion of organizational structure in Chapter 6 for information to get you started.     

FLOOR PLAN

PART 2 The Business of Managing

Create a floor plan of the business. What does it look like when you walk through the door?Hint: When sketching your floor plan, consider where equipment, supplies, and furniture will be located. Ask your instructor how they would like you to submit the floor plan for your business.     

RAW MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES Explain what types of raw materials and supplies will you need to run your business. How will you produce your good or service? What equipment do you need? What hours will you operate?Hint: Refer to the discussion of operations in Chapter 7 for information to get you started.     

QUALITY ASSURANCE What steps will you take to ensure that the quality of the product or service stays at a high level? Who will be responsible for maintaining the quality of the product or service (or both)?Hint: Refer to the discussion of quality improvement and Total Quality Management in Chapter 7 for information to get you started.     

PART 3 People in Organizations

CORPORATE CULTURE What do you see as the “corporate culture” of your business? What types of employee behaviors, such as organizational citizenship, will you expect?Hint: Will your business demand a casual environment or a more professional environment? Refer to the discussion on employee behavior in Chapter 8 for information on organizational citizenship and other employee behaviors.     

LEADERSHIP PHILOSOPHY What is your philosophy on leadership? How will you manage your employees day-to-day?Hint: Refer to the discussion on leadership in Chapter 9 to help you formulate your thoughts.     

JOB DESCRIPTIONS Looking back at your organizational chart in Part 2, briefly create a job description for each team member.Hint: As you learned in Chapter 10, a job description lists the duties and responsibilities of a job; its working conditions; and the tools, materials, equipment and information used to perform it. Imagine your business on a typical day. Who is working and what are each person’s responsibilities? (Note that if your business is very large, you should ask your instructor how many positions he or she would like you to create job descriptions for.)     

JOB SPECIFICATIONS Next, create a job specification for each job, listing the skills and other credentials and qualifications needed to perform the job effectively.Hint: As you write your job specifications, consider what you would write if you were making an ad for the position. What would the new employee need to bring to the job in order to qualify for the position?Insert Job Title #1:      Insert Needed Skills/Credentials/Qualification for Job:      

Insert Job Title #2:      Insert Needed Skills/Credentials/Qualification for Job:      

Insert Job Title #3:      Insert Needed Skills/Credentials/Qualification for Job:      

TRAINING EMPLOYEES What sort of training, if any, will your employees need once they are hired? How will you provide this training?Hint: Refer to the discussion of training in Chapter 10. Will you offer your employees on-the-job training? Off-the-job training? Vestibule training?     

PART 3 People in Organizations

COMPENSATION A major factor in retaining skill workers is a company’s compensation system—the total package of rewards that it offers employees in return for their labor. Part of this compensation system includes wages/salaries. What wages or salaries will you offer for each job? Why did you decide on that pay rate?Hint: Refer to Chapter 10 for more information on forms of compensation. You may also want to check out sites like www.salary.com, which includes a salary wizard you can use to determine how much people with different job titles are making in your area and across the United States.     

INCENTIVES As you learned in Chapter 10, incentive programs are special programs designed to motivate high performance. What incentives will you use to motivate your workforce?Hint: Be creative and look beyond a simple answer such as giving pay increases. Ask yourself, who are my employees and what is important to them? Refer to Chapter 10 for more information on the types of incentives you may want to consider.     

PART 4 Principles of Marketing

TARGET MARKET Describe your target market in terms of age, education level, income, and other demographic variables.Hint: Refer to Chapter 11 for more information on the aspects of target marketing and market segmentation that you may want to consider. Be as detailed as possible about who you think your customers will be.     

PRODUCT FEATURES AND BENEFITS Describe the features and benefits of your product or service.Hint: As you learned in Chapter 11, a product is a bundle of attributes—features and benefits. What features does your product have—what does it look like and what does it do? How will your product benefit the buyer?     

PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION How will you make your product stand out in the crowd?Hint: There are many ways to stand out in the crowd, such as a unique product, outstanding service, or a great location. What makes your “great idea” special? Does it fill an unmet need in the marketplace? How will you differentiate your product to make sure that it succeeds?     

PRICING What pricing strategy will you choose for your product, and what are the reasons for this strategy?Hint: Refer to Chapter 12 for more information on pricing strategies and tactics. Since your business is new, so is the product. Therefore, you probably want to choose between price skimming and penetration pricing. Which will you choose, and why?     

PLACE (DISTRIBUTION) ISSUES Where will customers find your product or service? (That is, what issues of the distribution mix should you consider?)Hint: If your business will sell its product directly to consumers, what types of retail stores will sell your product? If your product will be sold to another business, which channel of distribution will you use? Refer to Chapter 12 for more information on aspects of distribution you may want to consider.     

PART 4 Principles of Marketing

ADVERTISING How will you advertise to your target market? Why have you chosen these forms of advertisement?Hint: Marketers use several different advertising media—specific communication devices for carrying a seller’s message to potential customers—each having its advantages and drawbacks. Refer to Chapter 12 for a discussion of the types of advertising media you may wish to consider here.     

PROMOTIONS What other methods of promotion will you use, and why?Hint: There’s more to promotion than simple advertising. Other methods include personal selling, sales promotions, and publicity and public relations. Refer to the discussion of promotion in Chapter 12 for ideas on how to promote your product that go beyond just advertising.

     

PART 5 Managing Information

IT RESOURCES What kind of IT resources will your business require?Hint: Think about the employees in their business and what they will need in order to do their jobs. What computer hardware and software will they need? Will your business need a network and an Internet connection? What type of network? Refer to Chapter 13 for a discussion on IT resources that you may want to consider.

     

CUSTOMER SERVICES How will you use information technology to keep track of your customers and potential customers?

Hint: Many businesses—even small businesses—use databases to keep track of their customers. Will your business require a database? What about other information systems? Refer to Chapter 13 for more information on these topics.

     

COST OF DOING BUSINESS What are the costs of doing business? Equipment, supplies, salaries, rent, utilities, and insurance are just some of these expenses. Estimate what it will cost to do business for one year.Hint: Insert the costs associated with doing business in the following table. The list below provides some hints as to where you can get this information. Note that these are just estimates—just try your best to include accurate costs for the expenses you think will be a part of doing business.

Hints for each expense in the table below:

Rent: Refer to the floor plan. How many square feet is your place of business? What is the “going rate” per square foot for office space in your community? A real estate agent or a local SBA representative (www.sba.gov) can also be helpful in answering this question.

Salaries: Refer to the organizational chart. How much will each employee earn? How many hours will each employee be needed on a weekly basis? Once you’ve determined the weekly cost, then expand it to a monthly and a yearly cost.

Supplies: Refer to the floor plan. How much will all of the computers, equipment, and furniture cost? What kinds of general office supplies will you need? Most prices for this information can be found on an office supply website such as www.staples.com.

Advertising and Other Promotions: Refer to your marketing section. You have described how you wish to reach your customer—now you need to decide how much it will cost. If you are using television, contact the sales department at a local station. If you are using newspaper, contact their advertising department. Salespeople are usually happy to answer your questions.

PART 5 Managing Information

Utilities: These amounts will vary, depending on your business and what utilities you will pay. If your business looks like an office, then this cost may be similar to what a homeowner pays. However, if your business involves making a product, then the costs will be significant. An SBA representative can be a good resource.

Insurance: This value will be affected by the nature of the business. More equipment will usually mean higher insurance costs. Again, contact an SBA representative for feedback.

Expenses Expected Monthly Cost Expected Yearly Cost

Rent            

Salaries and Wages            

Supplies: Technological, Equipment, and Furniture (computers, software, copy machine, desks, chairs, etc.), other

           

Advertising and Other Promotions

           

Utilities: Heat, Electricity, etc.

           

Telephone and Internet

           

Insurance            

Other (specify)            

Other (specify)            

PART 5 Managing Information

EXPECTED REVENUE How much will you charge for your product? How many products do you believe that you can sell in one year (or how many customers do you think your business can attract)? Multiply the price that you will charge by the number of products that you hope to sell or the amount you hope each customer will spend. This will give you an estimate of your revenues for one year.Hint: You will use the amounts you calculate in the costs and revenues questions in this part of the plan in the accounting statements in the next part, so be as realistic as you can.     

INCOME STATEMENT AND BALANCE SHEET Create a balance sheet and an income statement (profit-and-loss statement) for your business.Note that you will have two options for creating these reports. The first option is to use the Microsoft Word versions that are found within this Business Plan Student template (shown below).

The second option is to use the specific Microsoft Excel templates created for each statement. You’ll find these templates in the file called Business Plan Part 5 Spreadsheets, which is available from your instructor or on the book’s companion website at www.prenhall.com/ebert. These Excel files are handy because they already have the worksheet calculations preset—all you have to do is “plug in” the numbers and the calculations will be performed automatically for you. If you make adjustments to the different values in the Excel worksheets, you’ll automatically see how changes to expenses, for example, can improve the “bottom line.”

Note that the Excel templates also include helpful hints as to where you can get the information you need to complete the balance sheet and income statement.

12-Month Income Statement (Profit & Loss Statement)

June July

Aug.

Sept.

Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

Jan.

Feb.

March

April

May

YEARLY

Revenue (Sales)                          Category 1                          Category 2                          Total Revenue (Sales)                           Cost of Goods Sold                          Category 1                          Category 2                          Total Cost of Goods Sold                           Gross Profit                           Expenses                          Rent Expense                          Salary/Wage Expenses                          Supplies Expense                          Advertising Expense                          Utilities Expense                          Telephone/Internet Expense                          Insurance Expense                          Interest from Loans (if applicable)                          Other Expenses (specify)                          Total Expenses                           Net Profit

Balance Sheet

Assets

Current AssetsCash in Bank      Cash Value of Inventory      Prepaid Expenses (insurance)      Total Current Assets      

Fixed AssetsMachinery & Equipment      Furniture & Fixtures      Real Estate / Buildings      Total Fixed Assets      

Total Assets      

Liabilities & Net Worth

Current LiabilitiesAccounts Payable      Taxes Payable      Notes Payable (due within 12 months)      Total Current Liabilities      

Long-Term LiabilitiesBank Loans Payable (greater than 12 months)      

Less: Short-Term Portion      Total Long-Term Liabilities      

Total Liabilities      

Owners' Equity (Net Worth)      

Total Liabilities & Net Worth      

Executive Summary

STARTUP COSTS How much money will you need to get your business started?Hint: Refer back to Part 5 of the plan, where you analyzed the costs involved in running your business. Approximately how much will you need to get your business started?     

FINANCING How will you finance your business? For example, will you seek out a bank loan? Borrow from friends? Sell stocks or bonds initially or as your business grows?Hint: Refer to Chapter 16 for information on securities such as stocks and bonds. Refer also to Appendix I: Financial Risk and Risk Management and Chapter 3 for more information on sources of short-term and long-term funds.     

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Now, create an executive summary for your business plan. The executive summary should be brief—no more than two pages long—and should cover the following points:

The name of your business Where your business will be located The mission of your business The product or service you are selling Who your ideal customers are How your product or business will stand out in the crowd Who the owners of the business are and what experience they have An overview of the future prospects for your business and industry

Hint: At this point, you’ve already answered all of these questions, so what you need to do here is put the ideas together into a “snapshot” format. The executive summary is really a sales pitch—it’s the investor’s first impression of your idea. Therefore, as with all parts of the plan, write in a clear and professional way.

Once you have written the executive summary, copy and paste it so that it falls at the beginning of your business plan, as the very first element.