Whether you’ve launched a startup or you’re still considering building one, a business plan is one of the most essential documents you need.

In addition to being a roadmap for your business, investors usually want to see this document before investing in your company. 

Since your business plan is a very detailed document, you have to be thorough when writing it.

It must also be well-structured and properly researched to accurately depict your vision. 

This article will share everything you need to know about writing a business plan, including its structure, mistakes to avoid, and other helpful tips.

What is a business plan?

A business plan is a written document that highlights what goals a company or business has and what strategies they have to achieve these goals.

Any company can come up with a document as a business plan. But a well-written business plan should;

• Thoroughly outline company goals and objectives
• Highlight detailed strategies the company wants to use to achieve these goals
• Identify the business strengths and what opportunities exist in the market
• Highlight potential business problems and contingency plans to avoid them
• Include a detailed financial breakdown and forecast for potential investors

Why do you need a good business plan?

Since a good business plan requires a lot of work, you might probably be wondering why it’s so important to your business.

Here are some reasons why you need to prioritise writing a perfect business plan for your business;

It helps with attracting investors and funding

A well-written business plan shows how well you understand your market and how viable it’ll be in that market.

The financial section in particular helps investors assess the potential return on investment and any risks involved in the business. 

Also, when you go to the bank to request for a loan, your business plan is a major deciding factor in whether you get it or not.

It helps you make informed decisions

Your business plan is a clear roadmap that will outline your goals, strategies and steps to achieve these objectives.

It also includes a framework for tracking progress and measuring performance. Over time, you can make decisions based on data, and analysis and set KPIs that align with your initial business goals

Since the plan would also identify potential risks in your business, you can develop strategies to tackle these risks. For example, you’d adapt to changing market conditions and adjust your strategy as needed.

You can allocate resources better

Since you’ll have a detailed outline of what your business costs are, you can allocate resources like your staff and budget better.

You can even identify what areas in the business need cost reduction based on what you monitor after creating your business plan. 

But overall, your business plan would include details of your operations. So when drafting this document, you’d identify opportunities to streamline operations and improve business efficiency.

It ensures there’s a strategic plan

For starters, everyone on your team can be aligned when there’s a written strategy document.

This way, everyone is working towards the same goals. In the long run, this document will act as a north-star metric that’ll keep you grounded and true to your vision.

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Structure of a good business plan

Now that you understand how important your business plan is, here’s a detailed guide on how to write a comprehensive business plan for your UK startup;

Executive summary

This is an overview of all the details of your plan. Usually, this would include a summary of your business plan in less than two pages.

We recommend writing this last because you’d need to know all the other bits before drafting a compelling summary.  Here’s a good structure for your executive summary;

• What does your business do?
• Some brief company information like founders, team size, and what year it was founded. 
• Follow this with some growth details like previous funding, customer size, market share, financial growth (if any)
• Details about the problems your business solves and its unique value proposition
• Some financial projections outlining how much you need and what results it would yield. (Do this if you’re seeking funding)
• Summarise your business goals - both long and short-term. For example, market expansion, new products/services and more

Company description

This bit gives some more details about your company. It should include your company history, the business structure and insights into your management team. So just follow this format;

Market analysis

Your market analysis section is what shows that you have a detailed understanding of your market, ideal customers and also factors that might affect your business.

This includes your competition, your company’s strengths, weaknesses and more. We recommend using this format;

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Organisation and management structure

This section outlines details about your organisational structure, the key members of your management team and other operational plans.

We recommend including an organisational chart in this section to make it more detailed.

• Detail your company’s hierarchy and reporting structure. Include the chart here
• Provide detailed profiles of the key team members including their qualifications and experience

Service and product line

Here, show that you have a product or service and how it fits into the market you’ve analysed earlier. Clearly outline what you’re offering and what the unique selling points are. 

Will there be any legal risks? Include this here. If your startup is running any research or production, this is also where you give insights on it. 

Finally, give some insight into your day-to-day operations. So like what are your production processes like, is there adequate supply chain management and how do you manage customer service?

Marketing and sales strategy

Here, you want to give more detail on how you’ve entered the market and how you’ll reach your customers.

So it primarily covers how you promote your business, your key message and your sales processes. This is what it should include;

We recommend using the marketing mix to really make a convincing pitch and cover all bases in your business plan. 

Funding request

This is perhaps the most important aspect of your business plan because, here, you have to include the numbers.

If you’ve been running the startup for some time, you have to show historical data. Here’s a format you can use;

When putting together your business funding request, having a business account with Ohentpay can make this process so much easier.

You can easily get your income statement, cash balance and other financials for your business plan. It’ll make it look more professional and organised.

Appendix and supporting documents

Think of this as the final opportunity to include anything you haven’t mentioned earlier. This includes permits, registrations, insurance and any other relevant documents.

How long should my business plan be?

The length of your business plan will depend on why you’re putting it together and who you’re doing it for. Usually, it varies between 15-30 pages long. 

If you’re seeking funding from investors, you might need to make it as detailed as possible. This is why we’d recommend about 20 pages or more. This also applies when you have a complex business model with multiple products or services. 

However, for internal use or for a simple bank loan, you can make it shorter (10-15 pages). This is because you wouldn’t need much detail here. Bank loans for example only want to focus on your repayment strategy.  

Most importantly, you should always update your business plan. Since your business will keep growing and evolving, so will your needs. Keeping your document updated will make you stay two steps ahead. 

By following the guidelines we’ve discussed and tailoring your business plan to the specific needs of your UK startup, you can create a powerful document that will help you secure funding, attract investors, and achieve your long-term goals. 

To improve your financial operations and have all your essential documents in one place, consider using Ohentpay.

With a business account, you can also automate invoicing, expense tracking, and payment processing, giving you the time to focus on what truly matters - growing your business.

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