Quick guide to creating a business plan (updated)

As it is usually something complex to do, it is essential to end the year with a commercial plan already defined for the next year.

Because of how important this topic is for your company, you should pay special attention to it. Planning is usually one of the tasks that we leave aside day by day, and that's how time passes and you still don't finish it. So that this does not happen, block a couple of hours two days a week, for example, Thursday and Friday, to dedicate to the planning and strategy of your company. This helps everything follow a proper and orderly course.

And to take advantage of your valuable time, we have decided to create a quick guide to creating a business plan in a few easy steps:

• Executive Summary

It is the first section of the business plan, it contains global information about the company. It should not exceed 2 pages in total, and it should be very clear and consistent. In the executive summary, describe the main market that your business targets (you can base it on the buyer personas); also do not forget your sources of financing (or possible sources), such as some credit in your bank at a good rate, or possible investors, as well as financing, the idea is to capture the budget allocation you have for your business activities.

Do not forget about the risks. Is there a new competitor in the market and its strategy is aggressive? This is a risk. Will any law or regulation complicate your business? All possible risks must be made explicit. (When we know and accept what we are facing, we have a much clearer picture).

• Market analysis

Being up to date with the latest news in your industry is also an important factor to leave expressed in the document. Thanks to this analysis you can detect trends and be able to take advantage of them in a better way.

Although you know your ideal buyer more than anyone, it is good to leave it expressed and that all those who will use the commercial plan must know them in the same way as you. Remember that your company is a team, and a team works well if everyone is aligned in the same direction.

You can detect trends in Google searches, for example, with the free Google Trends tool, which allows you to know how your topic in question is evolving.

We recommend applying it to your products, your industry, your competition, etc. (It is an excellent tool).

• Commercial strategies

What we are looking for here is to detail the actions that your commercial team will carry out, you can make a checklist and fulfill it, or use tools such as the Gantt Chart (What is it and what is it for?), where you can create activities and relate them to the time variable, in this way you will be able to organize yourself better. (Tip: Although you can do it with a pen and paper, several online tools make the task easier).

Some ideas:

• Are you planning to attend events in your industry?
• Do you think you can be a sponsor or exhibitor at an important event?
• Attend a trade show? (How to succeed at trade shows with planning).
• Increase your sales staff?
• Generate more demand with paid advertising? (Tips to keep in mind).
• Implement Inbound Marketing as a demand generator?
• Start using a CRM?

These ideas can serve as a start to shape your commercial activities. They must be well focused on your industry, but more than anything on your buyer.

• Control and follow up

No plan is effective if it is not controlled. In this part, you must specify what metrics you will use to measure the continuity and adequate specification of the business plan that you detail. In this way, if you specify a metric such as turnover or number of customers, your sales representatives will be aware that the performance of the commercial plan will depend on this, and it will be clear from the beginning.

This is often obvious, but it is VERY important to leave it expressed and written.

• Bonus

You can use certain applications for better management and/or preparation of this important document, we leave you several:

• Enloop. First, you must enter certain information that the application will request, and based on this it will automatically generate reports such as sales projections, income, expenses, fund flows, balance sheet, and other really important data. (You can see it here).
• StratPad. Ideal for entrepreneurs who are writing a commercial or business plan for the first time. It helps to make better decisions, and on top of that, it offers help to advise you on your process. (You can see it here).

Do you already have a business plan?
How has having a commercial plan in your company benefited you?