How to Use a Copy of a Business Plan For Guidance

A copy of a successful business plan can be a helpful resource as you try to better understand how to create your own. Follow the following guidelines to make sure you use this resource as you should.

Check the Source

Begin by making sure that you can trust the source of this business plan. How do you know it was truly successful in achieving funding for its writers? Keep in mind the motives of whoever provided you with the plan. Are they invested in your success, because of friendship, good will, or business reasons? If not, what was the source’s reason for passing this plan on to you?

What Stands Out?

Pay special attention to the elements of the business plan which would attract you if you were a funder. How does the writer show that it is not much of a stretch for the business founders and managers to make a profitable business based on the basis business idea presented? How are the returns that will flow to funders shown? How does the strategy fit well with the market situation (the customers and competitors)?

Note the Differences

You should also carefully note areas in which the business described in the plan you are looking at will differ from your business. Be careful to know that you cannot simply transpose the strategy laid out in this plan into your own plan. You are looking at the plan to understand the thinking about it, not to copy specific elements verbatim.

Understand the Format

Since business plan format is relatively standard, any successful business plan should give you a good sense of the important sections of a business plan, their order, and the style of the writing and appearance of the plan. Look for how the plan manages to be professional and polished, without creating stylistic distractions from the content of the plan. Look for how the sections of the plan build the story of the business, piece by piece, following an internal logic and order. Look at how easy the plan is to read and to navigate through, with the use of a table of contents, page numbering, and section headings and subheadings. All of these elements should be found in a successful and well-written plan.