This is on an on-going post and will be updated often. Please check back often for more free business plan templates.

Download Links for Free Business Plan Templates.

Here are some free business plan templates that might interest some of you. Take a look at the differences in each one and see which is best for you. Personally, I prefer the Kauffman Foundation business plan template. It is pretty in-depth and sets up well.

Kauffman:

SBA:

Business Plan for Start up Business

Business Plan for Established Business

If you know of anymore, please comment with links to them and I will see about putting them in this post as well. The more the merrier!

These are all hosted on my server, but I am not the author nor owner of any of them. I will be releasing my own free business plan template after Summer, so check back for additions to this list. It will be geared more toward the small business owner that just needs something short and sweet, not so long and in-depth like the others above.

Part 4 in the web seminar series developing your business plan by Tim Berry.

Part 3 of developing a business plan web seminar by Tim Berry.

Part 2 of the web seminar on developing your business plan, by Tim Berry.

Check it out, great series of web seminars by Tim Berry.

Writing your business plan requires research, and as many of you have probably had to do for other writings, you need to document and cite your sources. The business plan appendix is the place for that.

In your appendix you will include any citing and sources. Copies of them if possible. You will also include any relevant business documents. Like..

For a potential start-up business plan or idea plan:

• Market Studies and Reports
• Advertising Materials (direct mail, logos, anything brand related)
• Referenced Sources and Bibliography
• Resumes (Do you have a partner? Include theirs as well)
• Owners Finances
• Glossary of terms used

For an established or recently started business, you want to include everything from above plus:

• Legal Documents (Company Bylaws?)
• Annual Reports
• Board Meeting Minutes
• Business Credit (DUNs, Experian)
• Tax Documents
• Customer Testimonials (1 to 2 pages worth, quality over quantity)
• Distributors or Supplier listing
• Photographs, pictures, maps (storefront?)

There are a few items on the list that are up in the air. A glossary is not needed if you are using lots of technical terms. For common sense business ideas you can skim a lot from the appendix.

Overall I would say your appendix for a start-up should be at least 6-7 pages. Of course, like I said, this all really depends on the type of business and service vs. product.

I would say it is better to go over than be missing something. Maybe some people feel differently, but sometimes you only have one chance so make sure all bases are covered when that chance comes.

Other than financials, if there is one piece of a business plan that must be PERFECT… this is it. Your executive summary needs to sell the reader on your concept, idea, product, or service. It also needs to sell them on something just as important, you and your business model!

Write your executive summary last. That way by the time you are ready to write it, you have done all the necessary research about every other aspect and probably know your financials like the back of your hand. This is so key. Your executive summary is going to tell the reader if you are full of it or not.

Basically… If I have a hard time getting through your executive summary, I will never make it to the end. I’ve destined you for doom already. You will find about 95% of the people who will be reading your plan feel the same way.

Now, onto the particulars when writing the executive summary of your business plan:

Keep it short. It is a summary after-all. A lot of information you read out there will say no more than 4 pages. I say no more than 2. Unless you happen to be developing a new rocket shuttle, why all the fluff? Do not waste my time, you can do it in 2. And if you are a service business, it’s probably a small operation in which case it better only be 1 page or you are talking too much. The only way I would say to run over is if you use small graphics and tables for highlights that are placed into the executive summary. Which is GOOD, just don’t over do it.

Stay with the track. You should be talking about these points, in this order.

• Mission Statement and Goals
• When did or will the business start? Who are the founders? Briefly, what they do and why.
• Employees? How many? When?
• Location and any other facilities that will be utilized.
• Product or services offered.
• Relationships. Investors? Bankers?
• Company growth. Where are you taking this? How long til this happens?
• Financial and marketing milestones and highlights. Roll this in with the company growth if possible.
• The future for management.

Remember, keep all this simple. You have already laid out the specifics of ALL of these topics in the pages to follow. Don’t be redundant.

Million Dollar Words. Why you should not use them in your business plan.

I’m going to keep this post short, it needs to be simple and straightforward. As should your wording.

If you don’t know what I’m talking about when I say Million Dollar Words, I mean words that you can barely pronounce much less know what they mean. When writing your business plan try to keep it straight forward. On my first business plan, I used lots of million dollar words like plethora, commensurate, and even… Supercallafrajalistic Expialadociuos. Plethora isn’t that bad.. but a lot works just as well. The result was that there were parts that even I was confused by after reading over it. You don’t want this to happen. That doesn’t mean make it so a child can understand, just keep it simple. It’s perfectly fine to use them occasionally, but when you have an entire sentence of huge million dollar words, that’s not good. Keep in mind if you ever take your plan to a bank or investor, they are typically going to be older in age and pretty conservative. The last thing you want is to insult them by making them feel like they need to ask a ton of “what does this mean?” questions.

In short… Please, no extravagant (hah!) language. KISS!
Also, check out this post from another blog. “Simplify what you say.” It’s a good read.

More from other blogs:

Tech Dirt - Big words make you look dumb?

Bizcovering - Six types of words you should axe in business writing 

There are a few pivotal questions that your business plan should be able to answer. Not being able to answer these questions reflects a lack of knowledge and is simply frightening for most you present it to. You have probably heard them before, but I’m going to tell you again. They are who, what, when, how, and why.

Who -  Who are you? Who is going to be working with you? Who will be under you? Who is your target market? Who are your competitors?

What - What are you selling or offering? Is it a service or a product? What does it do?

Why - Why is your product or service different? Why should a consumer or business use your company?

How - How are you going to differentiate? How is your service going to be offered? How is your product going to be made? How are you going to market it? How marketable is it?

When - When is your service available? When is your product ready for shelves? When are marketing initiatives going to take place? When will you break even?

It probably sounds elementary, but I promise these are basic questions that YOU and YOUR business plan better be prepared to answer.

SCORE - Counselors to America’s Small Business

I was introduced to SCORE about two years ago, when working at a small business resource lab (think tank, incubator, whatever you want to call it). What SCORE does is offer free services to smal businesses and entrepreneurs. It is a great resource and should be used when writing your business plan. SCORE is mostly retired executives, lawyers, and entrepreneurs that have been through the ropes and learned a thing or two.

If you want to read more about SCORE, just visit the website.

There are a few avenues you can go through to get assistance with your business plan or other business or legal matters.

First you can search for help. This is broken down by a basic keyword search, expertise search, or by state if you want local help. Expertise search will probably be your best bet if you have an industry specific question. Once you are at the expertise search screen, this is mostly self explanatory. However, there are a few industry listings that are not there. Photography for example is not listed under photography or commercial photography. That is something I would lump under Art and you’ll find that that is where most photographers or related fields are residing. Just select your expertise and hit submit to get a listing of counselors you can contact. By clicking on the persons name you wish to contact it will bring you to a form you can fill it to contact via email with them.

Another way to get help from SCORE counselors for your business plan is to lookup your local chapter. You can do so from the main SCORE website or by the Find SCORE page. My search sends me over to SCORE Baltimore.

Once there a “Counseling” link should be somewhere, you can click that and register to schedule a request for counseling.

Most SCORE chapters have workshops or seminars that can also be of help. Generally cheap to attend. SCORE baltimore is 40.00 for their workshop which is a full work day long and includes a “manual.” This could be an avenue you could explore, I know in my chapter if you view the workshop page they recommend you have a business plan ready before attending, that way you can get better use of the workshop through questions and review.

I suggest atleast exploring the SCORE website, there is a lot of information and avenues to contact them. A lot of people (myself included) think SCORE is a great thing and rave about it. I have received quite a bit of in-depth help from SCORE counselors, so I know how much of a value they can be.