Steps to Creating Your Business Plan:

Always keep your audience in mind:

The business plan is the blueprint for your business model. It is a plan for growth along 

with a clear description of the opportunities in your market. When writing a business plan, 

write it from the perspective that you would defend the plan on the television show “Shark 

Tank.” See the questions below to help you get started writing the sections that make up a 

business plan.

Executive Summary

• This is a one to two-page summary of the entire business plan.

• The summary is generally written last.

• If you write your summary in the beginning, you will have to make changes to the 

summary as you work out the elements of the remaining portions of your plan.

Business Description

• Describe all aspects of your business to include each potential line of business.

• What is your history of providing services?

• What changes in the market are impacting your business?

• What are your goals?

• Why would your business be successful compared with your competitors and who are your competitors?

• How are you uniquely positioned to benefit from growth in the market?

Products and Services

• Clearly define each product and service you are providing in the market.

• If you are paid for a service or product, it is a line of business.

• What makes your services and products unique in the market?

Sales and Marketing

• What is the state of your industry?

• Who are your competitors?

• What market forces are impacting your industry (e.g., health reform)?

• What are general costs of doing business, and how can you leverage economies of scale?

• What can you do to grow your share of the potential market?

• What will be the incremental growth in your market share if you implement your planned interventions?

Operations

• How does your business operate?

• Where is your office located?

• What is the market area that you serve?

• What are your operational expenses?

◊ Equipment, overhead, supplier network, revenue streams, unit cost per revenue stream, 

investments required to increase units of products/services provided to the market.

Management Team

• Who are the key personnel in your business?

• What is the management team’s history and planned contribution to realize growth in the market?

• Why is your management team uniquely qualified to support the planned growth strategy?

Market Opportunity

• Project the future of growth in your market.

• How will the changing health care landscape impact your business?

• How will your planned interventions or product offerings position you in the future market?

• Do you plan for your business to dominate the defined market?

• What would be needed to dominate your defined market area?

Financial Summary

• This summary provides an analysis of the business model.

• What are the costs of doing business?

• What are your current liabilities?

• What are your current earnings?

• What investments are required to grow the business?

• When do you plan to make necessary investments?

• What is the projected growth once these investments are made?

• What will be the future revenue projections if the growth potential is realized?

This project was supported in part by grant number 90PPNU0002 from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees 

undertaking projects with government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official ACL policy.

Learn more about Step by 

Step Business Planning for 

Community Nutrition Programs 

in this presentation.