how to write a business plan
while there are any number of templates that you can use to write a business plan it s best to try to avoid producing a generic looking one let your plan reflect the unique personality of your business many business plans use some combination of the sections below with varying levels of detail depending on the company common elements of a business planthe length of a business plan can vary greatly from business to business regardless gathering the basic information into a 15 to 25 page document is best any additional crucial elements such as patent applications can be referenced in the main document and included as appendices common elements in many business plans include investors want to see a clear exit strategy expected returns and a timeline for cashing out it s likely a good idea to provide five year profitability forecasts and realistic financial estimates 42 types of business plansbusiness plans can vary in format often categorized into traditional and lean startup plans according to the u s small business administration sba the traditional business plan is the more common of the two 5