Business Plan Help

Free Online Business Plan Guide

PlanWare offers you a range of advice on how to write and structure your business plan. Their online Business Plan Guide is thorough and helps you to break down the plan into manageable chunks. The 4 sections – (1) Introduction to Business Plan Guide, (2) Front of Business Plan, (3) Body of Business Plan, (4) Appendices – give you detailed advice on how to structure your plan and how much detail you need in each part. Among the good tips handed out is, 'aim for quality rather than quantity'. Hear, Hear!

Choosing the Best Structure for Your Business Plan

If you’re not sure of the best way to structure your business plan Business Plan Pro 2005 - the No.1 rated business plan software – can save you hours of head-scratching. Just answer a few simple questions and their ‘EasyPlan Wizard’ selects the business plan structure and template that’s right for you and your business.

During April 2005 Business Plan Pro is offering a 15% discount to users of Business Plan Help. The saving is automatically deducted from the usual price when you ‘Checkout’. More details on Business Plan Pro 2005.

Free Guide to Help You Structure Your Business Plan

Wenta – the local Enterprise Agency for South and West Hertfordshire - provides a detailed and very helpful 21-page Business Planning Guide that will help you to get to grips with the whole business planning process. The guide gives good practical advice on what information you should include in your business plan and how to structure your plan. The Business Planning Guide is a pdf document you can download free.

Guidelines on Structuring a Business Plan

The Greenwich Enterprise Board provides a useful, free download - Business Plan Guidelines - on their website. The guide offers sound advice and will help you to structure your business plan effectively.

Scottish Enterprise Recommended Business Plan Structure

The Scottish Enterprise website offers some advice to help you write your business plan including their recommended business plan structure. If you live in Scotland you can also contact the Business Gateway directly on 0845 609 6611 to receive free advice from one of their business advisers on how to write a business plan to fund expansion.

Wired Sussex: Key Elements for Your Business Plan

Wired Sussex is the business development and networking agency for companies operating within the digital, media and technology sectors in Sussex. Their site gives some concise advice on Key Elements for Your Executive Summary and Business Plan including a draft structure for a business plan and what each section of the plan should cover. If the business you’re planning fits into their remit they may be able to provide further help for your business to grow.

Imperial College of London: A 15-25 page Business Plan Structure

The Imperial College of London’s Entrepreneurship Centre website gives you their take on what to include in a business plan and a typical business plan structure to follow. Follow their suggested business plan format and you’ll produce a 15-25 page business plan.

Business Plan Structure from Microsoft bCentral

The Microsoft bCentral website carries a detailed briefing to help you write your business plan. Their business plan guide covers the reasons to produce a business plan; what your business plan should emphasise; what information you should include; and how to structure your business plan.

Outline Format for a Business Plan

Business Ignition carries a detailed piece on ‘Writing a Business Plan for Your Small Company’. The guide aims to help you to produce a business plan that is meaningful, internally and externally and includes a suggested layout and structure for your business plan along with the approximate length of each section.

LMU's Guide to Structuring Your Business Plan

Leeds Metropolitan University's website provides a useful, punchy guide to what to include in a business plan. It gives you their suggested structure for a business plan and takes you through each section individually, highlighting the purpose and suggested contents of each chapter of the business plan.

You can also download a free business plan template from their site. The template is in MS Word and is a handy shortcut if you need to write your business plan quickly.