Examples of a business plan can be a real life saver.
I indeed remember the first business plan I ever wrote. I tore my hair out for weeks, agonizing over what to include, what to exclude, how to make it look good, what style writing to use, etc., etc. Good grief, I didn't even know what a "business plan" looked like
All I needed were a few good examples of business plans, and I knew I could do it. But none were to be found.
I finally discovered a seminar presented by a guy named Dible. Dible is the real grandaddy of business plans for small business. He didn't have any actual examples of business plans in his book, but the book must have weighed fifty pounds without examples. It was huge!
And business plans back then were huge too. My first one ended up being nearly 100 pages. it covered every possible contingency in the business, and then invented a few. That was just the style back then.
Well, the business plan world has come a long way, baby. We've gotten streamlined. We've gotten spot on with solid facts and information. We've grown up.
When I started this website, I knew I wanted to give my guests a better shot at a great business plan than I had. And I didn't want my visitors to pay for a seminar like the one I went to, which, as I recall, was decidedly on the pricey side.
So we included examples of business plan in every single business plan for financing in our Business Plan Library. Every single one. (Note: The "Start Up" business plan series does NOT have examples -- the start ups are a whole different keg of fish.)
There are likely 30 - 50 examples of a business plan from all different kinds of businesses, in each ebook, such as:
| Kites | Toy Company | Toys and Games |
| ECommerce Mall | Online Alternative Medicine | Patio Deck Company |
| Pool Company | Skin Cream Formulator | Safety Syringe |
| Wound Care Product | Hot Tub Company | Air Conditioning and Heating Company |
| Barbeque Grill | Party Planning | Window Treatment |
| Baling Hair Product | Carpet Cleaning | Home Decor Products |
| Maternity Aid | Virtual RealityGames | Bottled Water |
| Chili Seasoning | Christmas Ornament Company | Cigar Company |
| Coffee Roaster | Food Manufacturer | Innovative Products |
| Machine Embroidery | Record Company | Robots |
| Cat Furniture | Custom Bicycle Builder | Office Furniture |
| Consignor | Jewelry Store | Gift shop |
| Gift Basket | Bridal Shop | Pawn Shop |
| Antique Dealer | Import Export Business | Clothing Store |
| Car Wash | Taxi Service | Microbrewery |
| Business Consulting | Child Development Center | Toy Company |
| Internet Consulting | Software Developer | Patio Deck Company |
| Nursing Agency | Coin Laundry | Emu Ranch |
... and lots, lots more.
It is nice to see a lot of different kinds of examples of a business plan because then you can discover ones that fit your style.
All sorts of different people and different organizations wrote these examples of a business plan, so many styles are represented. Odds are that, instead of using just one business plan, you will pick something from one business plan, then pick something else from another business plan, and something else from a third.
By the time you are finished, you will have a successful business plan built just for you.
And that is how it should be.
Create your own great business plan from these great examples of a business plan, with lots and lots of inspiration.
And it is none too soon. Business plans have become far more important now than they have been for a long, long time.
We got lazy in the 20th century. And spoiled. Money was too easy to come by.
And now it has come back to haunt us.
We seem to assume that we don't need great business plans any more. Well, it just ain't so.
During the hey days of the '90s and early 2000's, the economy was flourishing, and businesses were being funded left and right. I wish I could say that the same thing is happening now. But it just isn't.
It is a tough economy now. Banks are being more severely regulated than ever before, and so they need better documentation than ever before. Without that documentation (i.e., GREAT BUSINESS PLAN) they just can't fund your business. Period. No explanations. No, "Sorry". Nothing. You just won't get funding.
If I were funding a business today, I would grab onto these examples of a business plan, and start studying them.
Right Now.
I would not pass GO.
I would not collect so much as $100 without getting my business plan really in shape.
And that's what I recommend for you.
p.s. -- And if I really, really wanted my business plan to be a success, I would look at something like the Basic Business Plan, or any of the other 7 Step Business Plans. Each and every one of those has examples of a business plan in them, with a workbook, Excel spreadsheets, and a winning template design -- everything that most entrepreneurs need.
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Give the world the best you have and you might get
kicked in the teeth. Give the world the best you've got anyway.
The blessed MOTHER TERESA, who did
exactly that