Creating a business plan is crucial as it outlines your company’s mission, vision, and goals. It’s a roadmap that indicates how a company wants to operate to achieve its goals.
That’s great, but how long does it take to write a business plan? It takes between 60 and 65 days to create a plan from scratch. Read more to know the exact timeline.
Step 1: Research (1 to 2 Weeks)
The first step to creating a business plan is researching and gathering information about your niche. Here’s how you can split the time frame.
- Day 1 to 4: Spend time studying your niche, competitors, target audience, and market trends, as these elements are the foundation of your business strategy. You may also take longer to complete this step, as it provides the framework for your entire business.
- Day 5 to 7: Conduct a SWOT analysis to identify your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Strength and weakness are internal factors, while opportunities and threats are external.
Step 2: Outline (3 to 5 Days)
- Day 8 to 10: Create a rough outline for your business plan to ease the writing process. Outline all sections you want to include. This includes the summary, company description, market analysis, product details, marketing strategy, organization structure, and financial projections.
Step 3: Writing (2 to 4 Weeks)
Now comes the actual writing part. Ensure that you write the business plan yourself. You may take help from others but don’t entirely delegate the task to someone else.
- Day 11 to 15: Write the executive summary.
- Day 16 to 20: Write a company description, which includes your company’s background, mission, and legal structure.
- Day 21 to 25: Describe your company’s niche, target audience, competition, and market trends.
- Day 26 to 30: Describe your products in detail. Include the features and unique benefits of your product.
- Day 31 to 35: Develop marketing strategies to reach and engage your target customers. Come up with the pricing for your product and allocate a marketing budget.
- Day 36 to 40: Create the organization structure explaining your team member’s roles, responsibilities, and expertise.
- Day 41 to 45: Forecast your financial performance, including income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow projections.
Step 4: Revision and Editing (1 Week)
- Day 46 to 50: Review the entire business plan and make necessary changes. Ensure the information is clear and accurate.
Step 5: Get Feedback (1 Week)
- Day 51 to 55: Share your business plan with mentors and potential investors for feedback. Consider any changes they recommend. Implement them if they will benefit your business.
Step 6: Legal Considerations (1 Week)
- Day 56 to 60: Find the legal formalities in your business industry and include them in the business plan if needed.
Step 7: Finalise (1 Week)
- Day 61 to 65: Review the business document and ensure all details are correct. Format the document and make it ready for presentation.
Conclusion
The time you take to write a business plan can vary based on your business’s complexity, industrial knowledge, and writing skills.
You can write a business plan within a week if you already have a clear idea about your business niche, target audience, and market trends. If you’re starting from scratch, it can take 60 to 65 days. But here is the key to success! No matter how far along you are in business, you can write a powerful plan that will guide you and help you clarify the direction you must take for success.
If you’re a business owner and want help to increase the profit, book a coaching session with Ken D Foster. Ken’s 35 years of experience in business development can help you define your business’s vision and accelerate the pace of success.
Follow Us!