Business Plan Suggestions

Be concise and be clear. It is difficult to express ideas in a short amount of space. Often, however, plans are most easy to comprehend when they are short and simple. If a plan is too long, the reader may not read closely enough to absorb the information. Even though there is a 65 page limit to the narrative portion of your plan, don’t use all of this room unless the plan requires it.

Present a logical and clear structure. Chart it out before the actual plan writing begins. The more clearly you see the big picture, the more clearly you will be able to describe it.

Make sure that spelling and grammar are correct.
This may not seem like an important aspect of the plan, but your business plan is your main proof of credibility when the plan is the only information to which the reader has access. Poor spelling and grammar may convey inattention to detail. It may also make your plan, and you by association, appear unprofessional. Use the spell check and grammar features in your word processing applications. Sometimes these tools identify items that are not incorrect, but overall, they pinpoint common writing mistakes.

Use language that is easy to read. Clear, easy to read language is ideal. Someone outside your industry should be able to understand it. Get help to write the plan if you are not a good writer.

Be consistent with the information in your plan
As you write your business plan, the process may lead you to make changes to your business model, strategies, products, etc. Sections written earlier in the process may have information in them that no longer applies to the business or refers to something you have described differently in another section of the plan. These inconsistencies can detract from credibility of your plan and confuse your reader.

Leave yourself time at the end of the writing process to go over the plan for these inconsistencies.
Have an unbiased reader review the plan for these inconsistencies. Identify the weaknesses or challenges in your plan and address the means to counteract them. It can seem the simplest solution to keep silent on the situations and circumstances that might jeopardize a business plan or model. This will invariably work to your disadvantage, however. A solid plan will leave very few questions left unanswered. Most judges, lenders, investors and other audiences for a business plan will see the holes and challenges quickly. If no solution or action plan is presented to deal with the challenges, the reader will make assumptions both about the prospects for the proposed plans and about the management team implementing them.

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