The Business Plan – What Goes In It And Why You Need One

The business plan is the key document for your startup and will help you to organise your thoughts and clarify your ideas. It will contain your goals for your company and your plans for how it will grow. It is the backbone of your strategy for running a successful business and enables you to benchmark your progress against your objectives. Think of it as like a compass that guides you through the uncertain waters of entrepreneurship to the landfall of prosperity.

What goes into a business plan?

Your business plan will guide your company to where it needs to go. It should tie in with your objectives, which you should have decided upon before starting the business plan.

The SMART conceptualisation tool can be useful here. Your goals should be: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time-limited.

Start with an executive summary that includes:

• An overview of your idea.
• Research on your customers, market and competitors.
• Where the company will be located.
• Revenue goals for the first three years, broken down into shorter periods.
• What makes your business unique.

Overview

This section outlines your business idea with more detail about the company’s products or services, what need or problem you are answering and who your customers will be. You should also include a timeline of key milestones – turnover, client acquisition, revenue and, of course, your earnings.

Investors will want to know what you personally have to offer, so highlight the skills and experience you have that will enable you to make a success of your venture.

Structuring the plan

Business influencer Bernard Marr devised an effective layout for a plan, which breaks it down into six sections:

1. Purpose – including your future ambitions.
2. Customers – your target market and what you are offering them.
3. Finances – your financial goals.
4. Operations – the personnel and processes needed to make the business run.
5. Resources – premises, technology, equipment and tools required.
6. Competition and risk – analysis of your competitors and potential threats, and how you plan to address them.

SWOT analysis

A SWOT analysis helps refine your business idea further by breaking it down into Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Apply this both to your own business and your competitors.

Investors will be particularly impressed if you can demonstrate that you’ve considered the risks and have strategies to mitigate them.

Pricing is also crucial: new entrants to a market often under price. Ask yourself whether you want to compete on quality, value, or somewhere in between.

Operational plan

This part considers the basics of how your company will function. You will need to make decisions about:

• Location.
• Products and supplies sourcing.
• Logistics and distribution.
• How to retain customers.

Financial plan

This should include your income expectations, balance sheet and cash flow forecast, as well as short and long-term projections (broken down weekly, monthly, six monthly and annually).

Almost every investor will ask to see a business plan. Including solid financial research, projections, and links to supporting information shows you are serious and well prepared.

Branding

Your business plan should also cover how you want to project the company to customers. Start with an internal mission statement that sets out what you want the brand to achieve.

From there, think about branding and a slogan or catchline. Investors should come away with a clear sense of what makes your company unique and its personality.

Review the document

Once your business plan is nearly finished:

• Review it carefully – remove repetition and unclear passages.
• Put yourself in investors’ shoes: what questions would they have?
• Ensure the plan flows logically.
• Seek feedback from trusted advisors or business owners.
• Add graphical elements, charts, or diagrams where possible.
• Proofread thoroughly, ideally with a fresh pair of eyes.

Aim to keep it concise – ideally one or two sides of A4.

Now that you are on top of putting a business plan together, it’s time to start thinking about other aspects of starting a business. Please see our related guides: Planning stage – ten top tips

For bespoke advice, whether on a business idea or a venture that is up and running, please contact Finsbury Robinson. We are a full-service tax, accountancy and business advisory firm, and our friendly and highly experienced team is available on 020 8858 4303 or via email at info@finsburyrobinson.co.uk

Angus Walker 05.10.2025