Outlining a Business Plan

What is most important in a business plan? First, here is what a standard business plan should cover:

1. The company (its legal formation, history, and ownership) 2. What it sells (the product or service) 3. The market (including size of market, growth, and trends) 4. The plan (sales forecast, sales and marketing strategy, milestones, assumptions, and tasks) 5. The management team (organizational structure and managers’ backgrounds) 6. Financial analysis (cash flow, profitability, balance, and returns) 7. The most important part of the plan: specifically what is going to happen