Heading: The heading of your plan should be simple and clean. A logo is not required but can be included here if you have one. The components of the heading are:

• Name of Company
• Address
• Logo
• Mission Statement

The Mission Statement articulates the purpose of your business. In a few sentences describe what your company does and your core values and business philosophy. The following is PayPal's mission statement. Notice it is short, simple, and states exactly what the company's intentions are.

EXAMPLE PayPal's Mission-To build the web’s most convenient, secure, cost-effective payment solution

Here is an example of a complete heading, including a mission statement, which was taken from the Business Plans Handbook:

EXAMPLE  Complete Heading & Mission Statement

Moore, Claire. "Trucking Company." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Donna Craft, vol. 42, Gale, 2018, pp. 137-144. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3665800026/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=a915ba4e. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.

The Role of an Executive Summary

• It is a place for you to explain the business and summarize the key points
• Captures the reader's attention (ex. Banker) so that they want to learn more about your business
• State the purpose of the business (ex. What problem is the business solving)
• In business plans that are meant more as internal guides, the executive summary is a good place to state objectives and goals
• Great place to tell about you and your background and why you would like to start this business
• Should be written last, but placed first in the plan: Writing a plan takes time and a lot can change during the process. Your executive summary may need to be modified to reflect the realities of the current business environment when it comes time to finalize your plan

EXAMPLE  Executive Summary

In the broader field of psychology, sports psychologists fulfill a highly specialized niche. They work with individual athletes to maximize performance and help them deal with a variety of challenges and problems. While some sports psychologists are employed by teams and university athletic departments, others (like Janet Holland–Smith) are independent practitioners. After working for other organizations for the first part of her career, Holland–Smith has established Pinnacle Sports Performance Consulting to serve clients in the geographic markets of North Carolina and South Carolina. The following plan details her strategy for establishing and growing her practice during its first three years of operations.

Greenland, Paul. "Sport Psychology Practice." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Donna Craft, vol. 50, Gale, 2021, pp. 173-182. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX8089800026/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=25e83052. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.

Industry Analysis: Industry analysis looks at your industry as a whole, usually in the United States, although there are global reports for certain industries as well. The information you find here can be used to establish a baseline for the industry as a whole. You can them apply those numbers, ratios, and trends to your local market to see how the businesses in your area compare.

The industry reports are located in the First Research database. Unlike the business plan, it is imperative that you find the industry report closest to your business. Sometimes you will need to use more than one report because the products or services offered may overlap industries. The report should be read forward, backwards, and sideways. It is important to know everything about the industry so that you can make good business decisions and be knowledgeable if questions arise from bankers, investors, etc. 

The report is full of great information. Any of the information can be used for the industry analysis section. Your focus though should be on the following:

• Industry Indicators
• Industry Drivers
• Industry Forecast
• Financials

The report also contains Critical Issues, Business Challenges, Business Trends, and Industry Opportunities. These make up the business equivalent of a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis.

Below is a good example of an industry analysis from the business plan of an ice cream manufacturer. All of this information can be found in industry reports and on trade organization websites.

EXAMPLE  INDUSTRY ANALYSIS

In the United States, the ice cream and frozen dessert industry produced about 872 million gallons of ice cream in 2014, according to figures from the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA). The industry includes many family-owned businesses like Anna's Homemade Ice Cream. As of August 2014, industry sales totaled $5.4 billion, up 2.1 percent from the previous year, based on data from the Chicago-based firm, IRI.

Based in Washington, D.C., the IDFA ( www.idfa.org ) describes itself as “the premier organization for dairy foods processors, manufacturers and marketers. The association provides its members with strategic leadership and expertise, and advocates for their success by influencing government policy at the state, federal, and international levels. Its members enjoy many benefits, including training and education programs and materials. The IDFA includes constituent organizations such as the International Ice Cream Association (IICA), the Milk Industry Foundation (MIF), and the National Cheese Institute (NCI).

The industry also is served by the Elk Grove Village, Illinois-based non-profit National Ice Cream Retailers Association ( www.nicra.org ), a major trade organization that has operated since 1933. Its mission is “to be the leader in the frozen dessert industry that others look to for help, support, and education. Membership benefits include a training video library; insurance programs; access to information regarding business planning, marketing, promotion, and operations; an annual directory of members, suppliers, and product information; a monthly bulletin; and an annual convention.

"Ice Cream Retail & Manufacturing Business." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Kristin B. Mallegg, vol. 35, Gale, 2015, pp. 101-109. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3792200019/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=f81a82c0. Accessed 10 Oct. 2024.

Aside from the reports, you can find key industry information on trade organization websites.  These are great places to see the latest trends, discussion of the current market, and in some cases, data sets.  You should also check government websites such as the Bureau of Labor Statistics and census.gov.

For details on industry analysis and research, as well as search strategies and database instruction,  head over to the Industry Analysis section of this LibGuide.

Market Research: While industry analysis looks at the industry as a whole, market research looks at your industry in your specific area of operation. For many small businesses, it is their immediate area, be it a neighborhood, city, county, or zip code.  

The primary information you are looking for during market research is:

• Competition - You need to identify similar businesses in your operating area.  Look at their revenues, employee numbers, and expenditures.
• Target Market/Demographics - It is important do determine who and where your target market.  Information such as age, gender, spending habits, or home ownership status are just some of the factors to consider.
• Consumer Spending Habits - Knowing how much on average a household in your operating area spends on particular consumer goods can help you determine how much money is available and what percentage your competition is taking.
• Local Financial Ratios - Financial ratios for your operating area can be compared to the national averages found in the industry reports.

The following is an example of a market analysis from the plan for an Energy Consultant business:

EXAMPLE MARKET Research & Analysis

Market Segmentation

Jacobs Consulting will sell to a number of sectors, all of which are in the commercial segments. Jacobs Consulting does not plan on selling to the homeowner sectors.

Customer segments are as follows:

• Mining Customers: With the huge input costs for mining, our advisory services can be very helpful to reduce, as well focus, costs for ongoing mining projects and new projects that are being planned now.
• Manufacturing Customers: Similar to that of the Mining sector.
• Aviation Customers: Aviation energy costs can put a company out of business. Without planning for these costs properly, investors and owners of aviation companies can end up in the red. We allow these companies to plan and profit.
• Transportation Customers: This area is a direct link to the economy; every dollar that is added to the cost of a product due to shipping will result in a cost increase for that item in order to cover the shipping/energy costs. In some cases our services reduced the cost of a product by 5 percent because of shipping.
• Retail Business Customers: Similar to that of the Transportation sector.
• State Government: This area is where we can help develop policy that, in the end, will help all sectors if managed correctly.
• Federal Government: This area is where we can help develop policy that, in the end, will help all sectors if managed correctly.

Rekve, Gerald. "Energy Consultant." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Lynn M. Pearce, vol. 15, Gale, 2009, pp. 43-54. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2560300013/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=a5570226. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.

For details on market analysis and research, as well as search strategies and database instruction,  head over to the Market Analysis section of this LibGuide.

Services/Products/Pricing: This section lists the services and products being offered as well as the pricing. It is important that they are listed individually.

There are several purposes to listing your products, services, and prices in full. First, more products/services equals more potential revenue. It also helps to have prices so that bankers and investors can quickly look to see how many services/products would have to be sold to hit the breakeven point. If it is a business that is project based, the price can be listed by the hour or by project. This can include price ranges.

A hair salon's products and services may look like this:

 EXAMPLE 

Here is an example from a Construction Cleaning Service which works on a bidding system:

EXAMPLE SERVICES AND PRICING

We estimate our post construction cleanup production rate to be 150 square feet per hour just for the rough cleanup. With this in mind, we can establish a price for services based on either the amount of square footage or by the hour. When bidding per square foot, we find that a rough clean should be billed at fourteen cents per square foot and a final clean at nineteen cents per square foot.

When bidding a per-hour price for a job, we must take into account the costs of payroll (including taxes and insurance), materials, and overhead. Labor will be billed at $14 per hour for each cleaner and $17 per hour for a supervisor. Each work day consists of seven hours per worker.

- Moore, Claire. "Construction Cleaning Service." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Donna Craft, vol. 43, Gale, 2019, pp. 57-63. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3665900016/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=bce8c4eb. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.

Competitors: Your competition are the businesses in your operating area that provide the same products or services. It is important to identify your competitors for several reasons.

• Limited pool of money available within each industry: Is this available money evenly distributed across your competitors or are some more successful than others? This will help determine who your biggest competitors are.
• Identify business demographics: Information such as amount of employees, square footage, and annual expenditures can help determine a baseline for successful businesses in your local market.
• Marketing & Operations: Hit the pavement. Become a "secret shopper." Visit your competition and see how they operate, interact with customers, and promote & market their products.

The following is a great example of competitor analysis where the general contracting company identifies what makes their competition successful and where they fall short.

EXAMPLE COMPETITOR ANALYSIS

"General Contracting Company." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Donna Craft, vol. 7, Gale, 2000, pp. 127-154. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3418200016/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=7098c871. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.

Operations:  This section of your plan will contain everything involved in the running of your business.  Important things to consider are:

• Location- This section talks about the location. Gives details such as but not limited to:

  • square footage
  • parking
  • rules, regulations, and safety procedures
  • This is also a good place to talk about the strategic value of your location.  Be sure to specify the surrounding businesses, people, or events that you may identify as an advantage or hinderance to your business.  For example, an entrepreneur starting a sandwich shop may want to be located near large office buildings, a college campus, or apartment complex.
• Hours of operation
• Personnel
  • How many people will work for you?
  • Do they require special training, certification, or a degree?
  • Are they part time, full time, or a combo of both?
• Logistics
  • Consider things like deliveries, opening & closing procedures, or other routine occurrences.  Do they require extra staff, time, capital, or special trainings/instruction?

EXAMPLE Location

We believe that our location in Roseville may work to our advantage against this Sacramento-centric competition. Roseville is located in Placer County and is 26 miles from the center of Sacramento. Cities within 20 miles include Rocklin, Lincoln and Auburn. These areas are growing at increased pace thanks to the continued expansions in its transportation infrastructure and the location of prominent businesses such as Hewlett Packard, Oracle Corporation, Ace Hardware and PRIDE Industries.

Claire Moore. "Auto Detailing Business." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Kristin B. Mallegg, vol. 35, Gale, 2015, pp. 9-17. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3792200009/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=54c92d1a. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.

EXAMPLE  Personnel

Existing law requires that persons performing work as an electrician under a C-10 licensed contractor be certified pursuant to certification standards established by the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement. “Electricians” is defined as all persons who engage in the connection of electrical devices for electrical contractors licensed pursuant to Section 7058 of the Business and Profession Code, specifically, contractors classified as electrical contractors in the Contractors State License Board Rules and Regulations [Labor Code 108 (c)].

Part of the licensing requirement is that the company must maintain a minimum adequate general liability insurance policy. This is a measure taken to protect the customer/homeowner in the event of a problem. The State also requires that each electrical contractor company be supervised by a licensed Master Electrician. This is a measure that could prevent problems from occurring.

Moore, Claire. "Electrical Contractor." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Donna Craft, vol. 40, Gale, 2018, pp. 27-36. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3652600010/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=bada000f. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.

Growth Strategy: This section is designed for you to think ahead. What are your future plans? The timeline can be what you want it to be. 1,3,5 years is a popular interval. It contains well thought out goals that you want to achieve. Common areas of growth are to move into a brick and mortal facility, hire more employees, or open up another location. These can be modified as time goes on and bigger goals can be listed.

Here is an example of a growth strategy for an express pasta franchise:

EXAMPLE Growth Factors

The number of restaurants will grow at an annual rate of 7.3% for the next five years according to a report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The growth can be attributed to many factors such as a continued trend toward two worker families, thus eating out more for lunches and having little time to prepare a meal after work. The biggest potential for growth involves food prepared for consumption, or take-out food. As the name, Pasta Express, implies, we are positioned to take advantage of either market segment.

The local Jordan area will experience a growth rate above the national average due to the rapid growth of the population throughout Langston county. Numerous subdivisions are being developed along with major construction of retail and multi family housing in the downtown Jordan area.

-"Pasta Franchise Business Plan." Business Plans Handbook, edited by William H. Harmer and Terrance W. Peck, vol. 5, Gale, 1998, pp. 313-325. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3418000028/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=338eda77. Accessed 8 Oct. 2024.

Financials: This section includes startup costs & monthly expenses. It should also include the Financial benchmark information and ratios which can be found at the end of the First Research Industry Report and in RMS Means reports on D&B Business Browser.

Some plans have minimal financial data, while for others, it will make up the bulk of the plan. How much financial data you include will vary depending on your source of funding or your corporate structure. If you are seeking a full business loan, your financials will need to be robust and accurate in order to convince the lending organization of the viability of your business. If you are self funded or do not have any major starting costs, financial analysis is still be a good way to keep your business on track financially.

The important financial data to pay attention to when looking at the reports are as follows:

1. Balance Sheets - report a company's assets, liabilities, and shareholder equity.  It is used by investors/lenders to calculate rates of return and evaluate a company's capital structure.
2. Benchmarks - a standard that is used to measure the change in business finances over time.  
3. Ratios - used to understand financial performance as well as measure factors such as efficiency, effectiveness, capacity, and market share.

Financials can often be found for your market area as well. They are good for comparing the local market to the industry as a whole, as well as for making projections.

Here are some select examples from a Real Estate Brokerage plan:

EXAMPLE FINANCIAL ANALYSIS 

Assumptions
The Company has based its proforma financial statements on the following:

• Thomasson Real Estate will have an annual revenue growth rate of 18 percent per year.
• The Owner will acquire $100,000 of investor funds to develop the business.
• Thomasson Real Estate will not seek debt financing in the first three years of operations.

Sensitivity Analysis
The Company's revenues can change depending on the general economic climate of the real estate industry. In times of economic recession, Thomasson Real Estate may have issues with its top line income as fewer sales will be made. However, Thomasson Real Estate will generate income from its property management business, which will reduce the risks associated with this business.

"Real Estate Brokerage." Business Plans Handbook, edited by Lynn M. Pearce, vol. 15, Gale, 2009, pp. 159-169. Gale eBooks, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX2560300023/GVRL?u=carnegielib&sid=bookmark-GVRL&xid=b46c6f7c. Accessed 29 Oct. 2024.