contents of a business plan cover page

How to Write Your Business Plan Cover Page + Template

6 min. read

Updated March 4, 2024

The cover page is likely the last thing you’ll consider when writing a business plan . 

While it’s not the most vital part of your business plan, a well-formatted cover page can be a nice touch when pitching to investors , banks , or business partners. 

In this article, we’ll cover what to include and how to format your cover page so you can assemble an impressive page in just a few minutes.

• What is a business plan cover page?

The business plan cover page – or title page – is the introduction to your business plan document. It should be simple and straightforward—only providing logistical information about your business for stakeholders to reference.

Unlike your executive summary , a summarized version of your business plan, the cover page is strictly meant to provide contact information and set the tone for what they are about to read. The quality, formatting, and readability can all impact a stakeholder’s expectations for your plan and business.

Why do you need a cover page for a business plan?

To be clear, the cover page is not a required section of your business plan. 

It’s a largely decorative addition meant to grab the attention of a stakeholder. It should introduce you, your business, and the planning document and make it easy for the reader to find your contact information.

If you’re writing a business plan purely for internal purposes , you probably don’t need to spend time on a cover page.

But if you pitch to investors , apply for a loan , or approach a potential partner—a cover page can be a nice touch that makes you (and your business) look more professional.

What to include in your business plan cover page

It’s best to keep your cover page simple. The page should only include:

• Company logo
• Business name
• Value proposition (optional)
• Business plan title
• Completion and/or update date
• Address and contact information
• Confidentiality statement

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How to create your business plan cover page

Creating a cover page shouldn’t take too long. Gather all the information listed above, and then fine-tune the formatting. Here’s how we recommend you organize the information:

1. Start with your logo

Including your logo should help your business be more memorable. Just be sure it’s memorable for the right reasons.

That means adding a reasonably sized, high-resolution image at the top of your cover page. Just don’t make it so large that it takes attention away from other information on the page.

2. Add your business name 

You want readers to connect your business name to your logo. So, add some space (2-3 lines) and drop your name front and center. Consider using a large and bold font option to ensure it’s easy to read and immediately noticeable.

3. Include your value proposition (optional)

While optional, including your value proposition can be useful if it effectively describes your business purpose. 

4. Craft a title

Now you need to describe the document’s purpose. Don’t overthink it – start by adding “Business Plan” to the center of the page. Keep the bold font, but apply a slightly smaller font size than with your business name. 

From there, you can apply a title that frames the type of business plan you’re creating: “ One-page ,” “ 5-year ,” “Merger,” “ Growth plan ,” etc. 

Expanding the title is optional and should only be done if you believe it will benefit the reader.

5. Add the completion date

Including the completion date shows how fresh and up-to-date your plan is. Ideally, you’re revisiting your plan regularly (especially the financial projections in your plan). So the date should be relatively recent.

This information alone can show how focused and dedicated you are to running a successful business. 

As far as formatting is concerned, keep it simple. Include the month, day, and year – either numerically (9/15/2023) or spelled out (September 15, 2023).

6. List your contact information

This is the true purpose of your cover page. The last thing you want is for an investor or lender to love your pitch only to have to scrounge around for your email or phone number.

Add a header that states “Contact Information” centered near the bottom of the page. Then, on separate lines, add your name (or other points of contact for your business), email address, phone number, business website, and physical address. 

Tip: If you’re sending your plan digitally, add links to your email address and website so they can reach you quickly.

7. Include a confidentiality statement

The confidentiality statement is meant to help legally protect your information and ensure that no one shares or copies portions of your business plan. 

You can include a simple “Confidential” watermark near the top of the page or write a more thorough statement to sit at the bottom.

Here’s an example:

“This document contains confidential and proprietary information created by [your business]. It is exclusively designed for informational purposes and should not be disclosed, shared, or copied without the consent of [your business].”

Don’t worry too much about emphasizing this information. It can sit as smaller text in the footer of your cover page. 

• Tips to make your cover page memorable

Adding the information should be quick. Now, spend some time on these best practices to get your business plan title page ready to share.

Apply consistent formatting

Inconsistent formatting looks unprofessional and can make a document more difficult to read. So check that your character and line spacing, font choices, and text alignment are consistent to ensure they are identical. 

You should also print out the document (as a Word Document and PDF) to check if the format changes.

Use your brand color scheme

Adding your brand colors to text, borders, and other design elements can strengthen the presence of your brand identity in your business plan. It also better connects non-visual elements to your logo. 

Just don’t force adding color to your plan. If it takes away from the text or takes too much time to get right, it’s best to avoid it.

Check your cover page from top to bottom for spelling errors and mistakes (you should do this for your entire business plan). If possible, have someone else proofread it to ensure you didn’t miss anything.

Business plan cover page examples

To help you visualize your cover page design, here is an example from our free business plan template :

We recommend you avoid creating an overly designed business plan. However, if you believe a more visual cover page will grab your reader’s attention—check out these other examples.

Spend more time on the rest of your business plan

We’ve already emphasized that you shouldn’t spend too much time creating a business plan cover page. While it can be a nice addition, it’s often quickly skipped over and only referenced again if the reader needs your contact information. 

And it’s unnecessary altogether if you’re not planning to share your plan with anyone. If that’s the case, focus your time and effort on writing the rest of your business plan. 

Check out our full plan writing guide for step-by-step walkthroughs for every section. 

You can also download a free business plan template (that includes a cover page) to ensure you cover everything about your business.

See why 1.2 million entrepreneurs have written their business plans with LivePlan

Kody Wirth is a content writer and SEO specialist for Palo Alto Software—the creator's of Bplans and LivePlan. He has 3+ years experience covering small business topics and runs a part-time content writing service in his spare time.

Table of Contents

• Why do you need a cover page?
• What to include
• How to create a cover page
• Cover page examples
• Focus on the rest of your business plan

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How to Write a Business Plan Cover Page Complete Guide with Examples

Fill the form to download business plan cover page examples.

A business plan cover page may not come to mind when you think of writing your business plan. Although it’s traditionally one of the last sections of a business plan, it’s one of the most crucial.

Your business plan only has one chance to make a good impression on your reader. The cover page of a book or business plan can easily make a person make a decision.

In this article, we will explain the importance of business plan cover pages and provide a step-by-step guide to help you create your own cover page for your business plan. See our real world business plan examples to see what should be included in the other sections of your business plan.

What is a business plan cover page?

The cover page of a business plan summarizes all the important aspects of the business and serves as an introduction to the full business plan. Bankers and investors can quickly determine the purpose of a business plan by viewing the cover page.

You should include the name of your company, your logo, addresses, and other information that identifies your business. This is the first page of your plan, so it should look professional, visually pleasing, and informative.

What is the purpose of a cover page?

The purpose of the cover page is to communicate what the document enclosed is and to provide information that enables a reader to contact you about your business.

Make sure your business plan’s cover page is visually appealing, free of errors, and concise to set the tone for its content.

A strong business plan cover page should be simple, clean, and powerful. Don’t clutter your cover page with details about how your business will operate. Save those details for the executive summary .

Whether you are writing a business plan , marketing plan, or proposal, the business plan cover page is an essential part of your plan. Read on to find out which elements your business plan cover page should contain and how to design it for maximum impact.

What to Include in the Business Plan Cover Page?

Although there are no specific rules regarding what should be included on your business plan cover page, we have prepared some essential information that you should not overlook.

Company logo

• Business name
• Document title
• Tagline (optional)
• Contact information and address
• Completion date
• Confidentiality statement

Now let’s look at each of these elements in greater detail so you know what you need to include on your business plan cover page.

1. Company Logo

Use a neat, clean, high-quality logo to make your business plan cover page look professional. The logo should be placed at the top of the page.

The image should be large enough to see details, but not so large that it becomes a distraction. Brand identity begins with your logo. The company logo is the first and most significant section that will capture your readers’ attention immediately.

People are 90% more likely to remember your logo if you place it in the top left corner.

2. Business Name

After the company logo, your company name is the second most important section of your cover page as you want your reader to remember your company name as they read the document.

To make your company name stand out from the rest of the information on the business plan cover page, you should use a readable, bold font that is the largest font on the page.

Please keep in mind that if your company logo includes your company name, you can remove either your company logo or name from the cover page.

You can download 50+ Free Business Plan Templates here that include not only pre-built cover pages but also provide step-by-step guidance in the creation of your entire business plan.

3. Document Title

Plan titles tell the reader immediately what the document is about, whether it is a business plan , marketing plan, expansion plan, recovery plan, or anything else.

It is commonly referred to as a “Business Plan,” but you can also customize it by saying “Five-Year Business Plan” or “Merger Business Plan” if you want to outline more specific objectives.

The title of the plan should be large and prominent on the cover page. Readers should know the purpose of the document immediately.

Increase readability by using a clear, bold font, such as Times New Roman, Garamond, or Arial. It may be difficult to read script lettering and doesn’t appear professional.

Please Note: Make sure your name isn’t more prominent than your business plan title cover page.

4. Tagline (optional)

Business owners sometimes use taglines to describe what they do and how they’re different. It’s optional, but you can also include a catchy slogan or motto describing your business.

A tagline becomes an essential part of your cover page if you want your reader to immediately understand what you do.

Generally, your business plan will be more interesting to investors or readers if the tagline is memorable. A business tagline is a short catchy marketing slogan that signifies your brand or company name, as well as other important aspects of your business.

Create a tagline by describing what you do in a few words. Put your tagline under your company logo on your cover page so readers understand what you do immediately.

5. Contact Information and Address

“Prepared By” contains contact information the reader can use to contact the person. It includes information about the company’s mailing address, phone number, e-mail address, and website.

To make investors aware of where to direct their inquiries, include your name as the business owner as well as the names of any partners or executives.

Try to center this information on the page to maintain consistency in formatting. As long as the information is clearly visible and readable, you may use a smaller font size than you used for the company name and title.

6. Completion Date

When was this plan written? The date is important to readers, so include it (month and year are sufficient).

Under the contact information, write the year (or the year and month) in which the business plan was finalized and published. It’s a good idea to update your business plan throughout the year if you’re including the month, so readers don’t think it’s old.

It is important to note that your company name should appear more prominently than your title and date. Depending on your business plan’s writing style, you may spell out the date, like Jan 20, 2023, or write it numerically, like 20/1/23.

Dates should be formatted consistently throughout the document. To maintain consistency, center the text and use the same font size as your address and contact information.

7. Confidentiality Statement

Adding a confidentiality statement to your cover page protects your idea from being disclosed. It is not required, but you may want to include a confidentiality statement on the cover page, or just text “Confidential” to emphasize that this is a confidential document such as the following:

Example of Confidentiality Statement

It is understood that the information provided in this [Company’s Name] Business Plan is totally confidential, and the reader undertakes not to disclose any aspect of it without the express written consent of the business owner.

How to write a business plan cover page that captures investors' attention?

• Keep it concise and to the point: Investors are busy people, so they don’t want to read a long and rambling cover page. Keep your cover page brief and to the point, highlighting your key business strengths and unique selling points.
• Use clear and concise language: Avoid using jargon or technical language that your target audience may not understand. Use clear and concise language to communicate your business vision and goals.
• Highlight your key business strengths and unique selling points: What makes your business unique and different from the competition? What are your key strengths? Highlight these things on your cover page to grab investors’ attention.
• Make sure your cover page is visually appealing and professional: Your cover page is the first thing that potential investors will see, so it’s important to make a good impression. Use a professional design and layout, and avoid using too many colors or fonts.
• Proofread carefully for any errors: Typos and grammatical errors on your cover page will make you look unprofessional. Proofread your cover page carefully before submitting it to any potential investors.

What are some creative business plan cover page design ideas?

• Use high-quality images or graphics that are relevant to your business: Images and graphics can be a great way to add visual interest to your cover page and make it more engaging for potential investors. Choose high-quality images or graphics that are relevant to your business and that will help to communicate your brand message.
• Use a unique and eye-catching font scheme: Your cover page should stand out from the crowd, so use a unique and eye-catching font scheme. Avoid using overused or generic fonts.
• Use your company colors and branding to create a cohesive look: Your cover page should be consistent with your overall branding. Use your company colors and fonts to create a cohesive look and feel.
• Keep your design simple and elegant: A simple and elegant design is often the most effective. Avoid cluttering your cover page with too much text or too many images and graphics.

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What makes a great cover page for a business plan

Formatting should be consistent.

Messy or unprofessional cover pages can create negative perceptions in your readers’ minds before they even open your business plan.

The cover page of your business plan is the first impression of your company, so your logo, fonts, and brand colors should all work together to capture the reader’s attention.

Follow these best practices to create a cover page that stands out:

Keeping your cover page neat and consistent will allow your reader to perceive your organization and professionalism. Use consistent formatting through

• Maintaining equal spacing between characters and lines
• Choosing fonts that are similar or identical
• Make sure each line of your cover page is centered

When it comes to fonts, it’s best practice to stick to one type of typeface, such as serif or sans serif. It’s also important to choose fonts that are simple, easy to read, and represent your brand.

It is important to ensure your business plan’s cover page is free of spelling and grammatical errors. Make sure you proofread your document several times before publishing the final version, and ask others to review it as well.

The less the better

In your business plan executive summary , you will summarize its contents. The cover page should not do the same. It is also unwise to create a business plan cover that is graphically complicated because the information will be difficult to discern. A strong business plan cover page should be simple, clean, and powerful.

Make use of the color scheme of your company

Color plays a crucial role in establishing your brand’s credibility and trustworthiness. Choosing the right brand color will reveal more about your business than you could ever imagine.

In addition, using the right colors can enhance your brand value by creating a strong visual identity. To make your business plan more appealing, your brand color should be incorporated everywhere, such as titles, subtitles, features, images, etc.

Ensure the colors don’t distract from the important information and consider coordinating them with your company’s brand or logo.

Colors represent 90% of your brand’s personality and elicit the right emotions from your customers, so choose colors that represent your brand’s personality and evoke the right emotions.

When it comes to choosing a logo, simplicity is key. Try to create something that represents your brand and speaks to your audience without being too busy (in other words: white space is your friend).

It’s also important to remember to be practical: your logo should look good in any medium, size, color, and even time period. Beyond your business plan cover page, you’ll need it for your social media, marketing material, or labels.

Download Pack of 6 Business Plan Cover Page Examples

We will show you some real-world business plan cover page examples so you may know how to design your own.

Download Business Plan Cover Page Templates

Here are a few business plan cover examples to illustrate the structure and format. Download and customize it according to your needs.

Business Plan Cover Page Example 1

Business Plan Cover Page Example 2

Business Plan Cover Page Example 3

Business Plan Cover Page Example 4

Business Plan Cover Page Example 5

Business Plan Cover Page Example 6

If you’re not confident in your ability to create a business plan on your own, or if you simply don’t have the time to do so, Wise Business Plans can help.

Our expert business plan writers have years of experience crafting comprehensive plans for businesses of all sizes and industries. We’ll work with you to understand your unique vision and goals, and we’ll create a customized plan that outlines your marketing strategy, target market, financial projections, and more.

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How to write your business plan cover page

When you think of putting together your business plan , the business plan cover page may not be the first thing that comes to mind. While it’s traditionally one of the last sections you create in a business plan, it’s one of the most important.

Definition: What is a business plan cover page?

The cover page of a business plan is used to give an overview of all the key information of your business. This includes your company name, logo, address, and any other information that may define your business. It's the first page of your plan, so it should look professional, visually pleasing, and informative.

When potential investors or banks read a business plan, their first impression is the cover page—but don’t overthink it. A business plan cover page is meant to be simple and straightforward, with some important contact information and, more importantly, your logo.

Use this breakdown to find out what the purpose of your cover page is, which elements you need to include, and how to structure it to maximize your impact:

What is the purpose of a cover page?

Your cover page exists to communicate what the enclosed document is and to provide the necessary information for a reader to contact you about your business.

The appearance and quality of a business plan cover page will set the tone for your business plan’s content, so make sure it’s visually appealing, free of errors, and concise.“ Simple, clean and powerful are the three goals of a strong business plan cover,” suggest the experts at Growthink . Don’t clutter your cover page with details about how your business will operate—save those important details for the executive summary .

What should you include on a business plan cover page?

To keep it simple, your business plan cover page should include:

Company logo

• Document title
• Business name
• Business address and contact information
• Business plan completion date
• Confidentiality statement

How should you format a business plan cover page?

Once you know what information belongs in this section, all that remains now is to organize it. If you need some further guidance, these downloadable templates can streamline the process of drafting a cover page—and the rest of your business plan, too.

1. Company logo

Add a high-resolution thumbnail of your logo at the top of the cover page. This will help establish a brand identity and allow readers to connect visually to the business right from the start.

Hot tip: people are 89% more likely to remember your logo if you put it in the top left corner.

Give the logo some space and then include the words “Business Plan” in a large, bold font. You can also frame the title as “Three–” or “Five–Year Business Plan,” if you intend to make those kinds of financial projections in the document.

3. Business name

Beneath the title, write your company name in a bold font. This should be the most noticeable and prominent feature on the page, so choose a large typeface.

4. Tagline (optional)

This part is optional, but you can also include a catchy slogan or motto that describes your company and what you do.

5. Address and contact information

Under the company name, include your business’s physical address and website if you have one. Provide the details necessary for interested parties to contact you, such as a phone number and email address.

It’s also helpful to include your name as the business owner and the names of any partners or executive officers so that potential investors know where to direct their inquiries.

6. Date of completion

Below the contact information, write the year (or year and month) in which this business plan was finalized and issued. If you’re including the month, it’s a good idea to update it throughout the year as you send out your business plan so readers don’t assume it’s outdated.

7. Confidentiality Statement

At the bottom of the page, include a sentence to the effect of:

“This document contains confidential and proprietary information created by [business name]. This document is issued exclusively for informational purposes and should not be reproduced without the consent of [business name].”

Adding this confidentiality statement offers a protective measure against the disclosure of your business idea , according to this cover page guide .

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Cover page design

Now it’s time for the finishing touches: the actual design of your cover page. Your business plan’s cover page gives the first impression of your business, so your company logo, fonts, and brand colors should all work together to make people want to read more.

Brand colors

90% of a customer’s impression of your business comes from the brand colors you choose, so it’s important to choose colors that represent your business’s personality and elicit the right emotions from your readers.

Don’t know where to start? Grab a pen and paperand write down three emotions you want your customers to feel when they think of your brand. Now you can brainstorm some colors that represent those emotions. For example, you might choose blue if your product is associated with reliability, or yellow if your product is supposed to make your clients feel happy. It’s safer to only choose 2-3 colors , including black, for your color scheme.

You can also analyze the competition and choose colors that help you stand out. Canva has more detailed instructions on how to create your brand color palette .

When it comes to fonts, it’s best practice to stick to one type of typeface, such as serif or sans serif . It’s also important to choose fonts that are simple, easy to read, and represent your brand.

Serif fonts give off the impression that your brand is trustworthy and dependable, and work great for more traditional businesses, like law practices. “Serif fonts have been widely used in books, newspapers, and magazines, which is why they remind us of more classical, formal and sophisticated themes—think of Old English and Roman scripture,” Robyn Young, founder of branding agency robyn young & co, told Canva .

But if you’re going for a more contemporary and youthful feel, then sans serif is the way to go. “Brands that want a modern aesthetic that scales well at different sizes and is easy to read on screens are going to choose sans serif for their main branding elements,” said Young .

When it comes to choosing a logo, simplicity is key. Try to create something that represents your brand and speaks to your audience without being too busy (in other words: white space is your friend).

It’s also important to remember to be practical: your logo should look good in any medium, size, color, and even time period. Beyond your business plan cover page, you’ll need it for your social media, marketing material, or labels.

Business plan cover page examples

To further illustrate the structure and format of a business plan cover page, we’ve compiled a few cover page template examples. The first example from officetemplatesonline is simple but attractive and effectively emphasizes pertinent information. The next cover page example is from a fictional clothing store . They usea pop of color to instantly tell you about their brand personality.

Keep your business plan cover page simple

As you prepare to write your business plan , remember to keep your cover page simple and concise. With your logo, business name, and contact information, you’ll introduce the reader into your business plan quickly and easily—and set yourself up for success as a result.

Just don’t forget to proofread and keep an eye out for typos!

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Everything you need to know about business plan cover pages

You have only one chance to make a good first impression with the readers of your business plan.

People do judge books—and business plans—by their covers. A quick glance at the cover can easily be enough to make up one’s mind.

So set yourself up for success with a powerful cover page that stands out and entices the reader to find out more about your business.

Here’s everything you need to know:

Definition: What is a Business Plan Cover Page?

Cover page (also known as title page or cover sheet) is the first page of a business plan that communicates what the enclosed document is about and highlights the key company information like name, logo and contact details, making a good impression with professional and attractive appearance.

Purpose: Why is Business Plan Cover Page Important?

Many businesses spend hours preparing their business plans but then do not pay enough attention to the title page. This is a huge mistake .

5 ways a strong cover page can help you make a positive first impression:

• Clearly indicate what the presented document is about
• Provide the necessary information for a reader to contact you
• Create a powerful first impact that sets the stage for how readers will engage with your document
• Avoid falling victim to negative preconceived notions as a result or unprofessional or unattractive cover
• Maximize the chance of the plan being read by making the document stand out from the crowd and immediately drawing your reader’s attention

Keep reading to find out which elements you need to include in the cover page, how to structure it to maximize the impact of your business plan, and to take a look at some successful examples .

Contents: What Should You Include in a Business Plan Cover Page?

Surprisingly, there are no strict rules about what to show on your business plan cover sheet, but there certainly are best practices that you should follow.

Here are 9 elements that are typically included on business plan covers, 3 of which are essential and you should not miss to include them. The remaining 6 are optional for your consideration.

1. Must-haves: 3 mandatory cover page elements

1.1. Business name: The name of the company that is the subject of the plan.

1.2. Document title: The words “ Business Plan ” in a prominent spot so that it is clear what kind of document this is.

1.3. Contact information: Name, title and contact details (e.g., phone, email, social media, website, address) of the primary contact persons presenting the plan (e.g., CEO, Founder, Owner, President) so that any interested parties know exactly to whom to direct their inquiries and can reach them quickly and easily.

2. Nice-to-haves: 6 optional cover page elements:

2.1. Company logo: The logo of the company if available and desired.

2.2. Tagline: Short, memorable summary of the business described in the plan.

2.3. Date: In order to make sure your plan does not look outdated, include only the year of the business plan completion date. If you are including both the month also, it is advisable to create a new cover sheet each time you send out the plan.

2.4. Version control: Numbering each copy of the plan enables you to more easily keep track of who you sent what version of the document to.

2.5. Disclaimer: Disclaimer can help protect you and your company from confidentiality and other legal issues resulting from the distribution of the business plan by indicating that the plan is for information only, not an offering of stock in the company, and not to be shared with third parties without your prior consent.

2.6. Visuals: Graphic elements or images to enhance the professional look and visual appeal of the document.

Let’s have a more detailed look at these cover page elements so you know what exactly to include into each of them:

Business Name

The most prominent feature on your business plan cover is the name of your company.

Instantly, the reader should notice the name of your business. In fact, if readers take away nothing else from the cover page, they should remember your company’s name.

As this is the most noticeable feature on the page, use a large font that stands out, but is easy to read, looks professional and corresponds to the typeface that you used for the rest of the document.

Company Logo

Placing a high-quality company logo on the cover page helps to make the business plan look more professional and establish a brand identity by allowing readers to connect visually to the business right from the beginning.

If your logo includes the full name of the company, you do not have to display both the company name and logo on the cover page, it is sufficient to choose one of the two.

Document Title

The readers need to know what the presented document is about – immediately and clearly.

The cover page should clearly state whether it is a Business Plan, Executive Summary, Financial Forecast, Marketing Plan, Recovery Plan, or any other kind of plan.

For example, write the words “ Business Plan ” in a prominent spot on the cover sheet to make it crystal clear what type of document this is. You may include any additional words that are part of the title, such as “Three/Five-Year Business Plan” if needed or relevant.

As a focal point on the cover page, the document title should be in a large font size .

There is no rule though about whether the Document Title or Company Name and Logo should be of the largest font size, as all are of key importance. So it is entirely your decision what feature you prefer to highlight on the cover page of the document.

Contact Information

Contact details should always be on the business plan cover page, letting the reader know who is presenting the document and how to contact them if they need more information.

It is helpful to indicate the names and titles of the company’s primary contact persons for investors and other business plan readers, such as:

• External distribution: company founder, owner, president, partner, CEO
• In-house corporate plans: head of division, departmental manager, executive officer

Next, provide the contact details that will allow the interested parties to reach these primary contact persons quickly and easily, including:

• Name and title of primary contact(s)
• Phone number
• Email address
• Social media handles
• Website address
• Postal address

The contact information is typically displayed in the smallest font on the cover page.

Company tagline, or a motto , is a catchy memorable marketing slogan that captures the essence of a business in a few short and simple words: >> What you do >> How you do it >> Why are you different from the competition

For example, you will undoubtedly recognize the following company mottos:

As such, the tagline is a useful part of the cover page as it helps the business plan readers better understand what you do straight away, and even excite them to read the business plan and study it with more interest.

When was this business plan finalized and issued ? The readers will be interested to know. Hence, it is advisable to state the document completion date on the cover page.

Strictly speaking, you do not need to denote anything more specific that the year in which you completed the business plan. (“Business Plan: 2021”) This will ensure that the plan does not appear outdated for an entire year.

Imagine that you are a potential investor who in December 2021 receives a business plan dated January 2021. It would be natural to assume that the document has been rejected many times by other investors over the last 12 months.

Alternatively, you can include both the current month and year on the cover sheet. (“Business Plan: January 2021”) Each time you update the document and send it out or present it, you will need to check if this date of completion needs updating .

The date is featured on the cover sheet less prominently and in a smaller font size than the document title and company name, and is often displayed below the plan title.

Version Control

As your business develops, you may revise your business plan any number of times and send it to multiple recipients . To keep track of the different versions of the plan that you produce and which version you sent to whom, you may decide to use a version control system.

However, it does not make the best impression when someone receives a “Version 25” of your plan.

Instead, consider devising a simple coding system . For example: “Copy D.5” would indicate it is the fifth copy of a fourth version of the document or “Version 4.5” could mean a fifth copy of a document version completed in April.

Numbering each copy of your business plan before distribution, and keeping a list of which individual has received which copy, would enable you to keep track of how many copies are in circulation, and, if needed, ask to have a copy returned, or trace the responsible party in case a copy is circulated without your permission.

Confidentiality Statement & Disclaimer

Why should your plan include a disclaimer.

Legal issues may arise as a result of circulating your business plan. 

For example, anyone who is in the possession of the document could potentially divulge the confidential information. 

Also, in some countries, offering ownership in your company in return for an investment is considered as selling of stock, which is a regulated activity. The best way to protect yourself is to consult a lawyer.

Nevertheless, including a disclaimer in the business plan helps to protect your company by indicating the plan itself is not an offering of stock for sale but rather a document for information purposes only.

The same disclaimer can also be used to help protect the confidentiality of the information disclosed in your business plan by informing the reader that the plan is confidential and not to be shared with other parties without the owner’s consent, especially when you are not adding a non-disclosure agreement.

What Should the Disclaimer Say?

These are the two most common ways how to show the disclaimer in the business plan:

1. Display a brief disclaimer , just one or two sentences, directly on the front cover , probably at the bottom of the page. Consult a lawyer for the most appropriate wording, but a standard disclaimer might look something to the effect this:

2. Write “ Confidential ” on the cover sheet and include a longer disclaimer and confidentiality statement in the main body of the business plan, perhaps on the first page after the cover sheet.

In addition, you can also include the text “Confidential” into the header or footer of the document.

Design: How Should You Format a Business Plan Cover Page?

The cover page is the first thing the readers will see when they open your business plan. Thus, your business plan cover should be neat , clean , attractive , and professional enough to draw your readers’ attention , make a good first impression and set the tone for your business plan’s content.

Cover page that is messy, dated, unattractive or in any way unprofessional can create negative preconceptions in the recipients’ minds before they even start reading the business plan.

Your design should be clean and professional, which can be accomplished by observing the following best practices:

Visual Identity

Most successful businesses have a strong association with their brand identity , including a company logo, typeface and color scheme. Visual identity helps to establish recognition, familiarity, trust and confidence in customers by evoking the right emotions and sending the right message.

As a result, companies take care to develop a brand identity and keep consistent across all marketing collateral and business materials.

Likewise, your brand identity should be integrated into all parts of your business plan, including the cover page. The best practice is to make the plan consistent with the logo, font type and color scheme as they appear across your other company’s documents.

If you do not have a brand identity created yet, keep the color scheme of the plan cover simple.

The easiest is to have a logo designed, which is inexpensive and easy to do nowadays, and then use your logo colors across the business plan. Alternatively, consider using an online color scheme generator to select colors that go well together.

To stay on the safe side, use maximum of two to three colors, one of which should be black. You can use different shades of the same color (e.g., light blue and dark blue).

First and foremost, the fonts you use in the business plan, including its cover, need to be readable .

The most important information should be displayed in a way that it stands out from the rest of the elements on the business plan cover page, for example, differentiated by font size , weight or color .

Ideally, the typefaces and their color(s) should be consistent with the brand identity used in all of the other company’s marketing materials.

Do not combine more than two typefaces. It is ok to combine a sans-serif (e.g., Times New Roman) with a sans-serif (e.g., Arial) typeface.

Again, less is definitely more here. Refrain from cluttering the business plan cover sheet with photos and graphics.

If you do use a visual element, make sure to leave enough white space around it so the page does not look too busy.

The resolution of any images, including the company logo, should be of high enough quality to not look pixelated.

There is no need for a fancy over-designed cover page, unless you are a large corporation or perhaps a design agency. Equally, beware of any templates with outdated designs that will make your cover look like it was created back in 1999.

Professional designers often combine different alignments (left / right / center) of elements on a page (text, images) to achieve a desired design effect. However, a design novice should play it safe and keep the alignment simple and consistent , especially when it comes to professional documents, such as a business plan.

You should be able to comfortably fit all of the recommended elements on the cover sheet (e.g., company name and logo, document title, contact details, date, disclaimer), and still leave enough white space on the page.

Making a great first impression does not equal to creating a cover that is graphically busy and cluttered with unimportant details. Instead, set yourself up for success by keeping the business plan cover sheet neat , clean , simple and concise .

Proofreading

Carefully proofread the cover page to avoid, at all costs, any mistakes and typos , which would do you a great disservice in the eyes of the reader. Even better, have someone else to look it over.

Finally, make sure that the cover page looks good in every format you will be distributing the business plan in, probably including a PDF electronic file and a printed hard copy.

Some common issues include:

• Photos look pixelated due to low image resolution
• Colors do not print well (e.g., dark font color on a dark background)
• White space left at the edges of a printout because and image does not stretch (i.e., “bleed” in designer terms) enough into the edges of the page

Most importantly, the cover page should look professional and stand out from the crowd so that your business plan has a better chance of being read.

Finally, remember that these aren’t rigid rules. The overall goal for a cover page is to look neat and professional so that it stands out from the crowd and your business plan has a better chance of being read. In the end, that’s the most important outcome.

The cover sheet is the first thing the readers of your business plan will see. Make a good first impression.

Examples: Sample Images

Here are some examples to further illustrate the structure and format of a business plan cover page:

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How to Design a Cover Page for a Business Plan?

Free Business Plan Cover Pages

• April 12, 2024

Many entrepreneurs spend hours preparing and writing their business plans. However, do not pay much attention to the cover page. This is a big mistake.

The business plan cover page can create a strong first impact. It sets the platform for how investors or readers will engage with your document.

In this article, we will understand the importance of a cover page and how you can design one yourself.

What is a Business Plan Cover Page & Why is it Necessary to Design it?

The cover page is an integral part of the business plan. It is the first page of your business plan that highlights the key information of your company like a company logo, company name, address, and other key information.

By looking at the business plan cover page, a banker or investor can get a quick idea about the purpose of the presented document.

Your business plan cover should be neat, clean, attractive, and professional enough to draw your reader’s attention.

Whether you are writing a business plan, marketing plan, or business proposal , the cover page is an essential part of all.

Need a captivating cover page for your business plan?

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What to include in the Business Plan Cover Page?

There is no specific rule about what to include and what not on your cover page. But we have prepared some essential information that you should not miss including in it.

1. Company Logo

Your company logo will be the first and most essential section that will draw your reader’s attention immediately, so you must include your company logo on your cover page.

A neat-clean, high-quality logo should be used to make your business plan cover page look like a professional cover page. It should be placed at the top of your business plan cover page.

Placing the logo on the business plan cover page sets a strong brand association that focuses a reader’s attention throughout the document.

2. Company Name

The second most important section of the cover page after the company logo is your company name. You will always want your reader to remember your company name through the document reading process.

Your company name font should be readably bold and should be the largest font on the page so that it stands out from the rest of the information on the business plan cover page.

3. Business Tagline or Motto

A business tagline is a short catchy marketing slogan that is usually written with a company name or brand and is also sometimes used to indicate key features of your business. Some businesses use a tagline to show what they do and how they are different from the competition.

If you want your readers to understand your business, then a tagline plays a crucial role. Usually, a memorable tagline can excite an investor or reader that they will take a special interest while reading your business plan.

4. Branding Color

Brand color is most important in establishing trust and confidence in your customers. Your brand color will speak more than you can think about your business. Also, the right use of colors can increase your brand value by creating a strong visual identity in the industry.

Most successful companies have a strong association with their logos and brand colors. Their colors always tend to reflect their branding, even when they don’t include any text on them.

Brand color can help in establishing trust and familiarity by evoking the right emotions in your reader’s brains and sending the right message to them. Also, your brand color should be integrated into your business plan everywhere, like titles, subtitles, features, images, etc to make your business plan template more attractive.

5. Plan Title and Plan Year

The plan title will give a clear idea about what the presented document is about, whether it is a business plan, marketing plan, business expansion plan, recovery plan, or anything else.

The plan title is the notable feature of the cover page and should be in large font size. Immediately, the reader should know the purpose of the presented document.

There is no rule about which should be of the largest font size, “Company Name” or “Plan Title” as both have their benefits. It is the owner’s choice to decide what they want to highlight on the cover page for their document.

Also, readers will want to learn about what is the business plan creation time or what will be the execution time for the presented document. Thus it is important to specify the plan year on your cover page.

It should be written relatively in a smaller size and frequently below the plan title.

6. Prepared By

The “Prepared By” section is used to specify who is presenting the document and it should be the name of the company CEO, President, Owner, or sometimes another key person.

This information will help the reader to know about the key person in the company and whom they should contact in the case for more information.

7. Contact Information

Contact information contains the information reader can use to contact the person specified in the “Prepared By” section. This information includes the company’s physical address, phone number, email address, and company website .

Contact information should always be on the business plan cover page. It lets the reader learn who is presenting the document and how to contact that person.

8. Confidentiality Statement

While it is not required, you may want to include a confidentiality statement on the cover page. Or just state “Confidential” to let the reader know that this document is confidential and not directed to share with others without the owner’s consent.

The confidentiality statement on your cover page will look like this:

Example of Confidentiality Statement

Tips to make a cover page remarkable.

Now, that you know what to include in a cover page of the business plan, let’s see how to make it memorable:

Check the formatting

Before presenting or submitting your business plan to the readers, make sure the formatting (spacing, fonts, size, color) everything is consistent. This will increase the readability and help your audience to understand the things you want to deliver.

Keep it all simple

Keep your cover page for a business plan free from any clutters. The design should be classy and elegant. It should sync with the goals of your business. Ensure consistency by using the same brand color for both your business’ branding and cover page.

Review—Re-review

Double-check the cover page for any typos or grammatical errors. The better option is to have another person review it. This way, he/she will find the mistakes that you might be missing out on.

How to Design a Business Plan Cover Page?

Upmetrics gives you a beautifully designed business plan cover page template with no work on your side. Industry experts recommend our cover pages. Thus, you can trust us for your cover page without any doubts.

You can use a cover page theme that suits the personality of you and your business. Upmetrics comes with professionally designed cover pages that immediately transform the reader’s plain business plan reading experience into an interesting opening.

Upmetrics provides a feature where you can control which information and section you want to highlight on the cover page. Also, you can remove any section that you feel is not necessary for your cover page.

We also allow you to upload your own custom cover page design, so you can personalize your business plan with the cover page of your choice. So, wait no more, and start designing your cover page!

Upmetrics Business Plan Cover Page Examples

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with step-by-step Guidance & AI Assistance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does a business proposal have a cover page.

Yes, a business proposal includes a cover page. The cover page is the first impression of your proposal and should include key information, such as the title, company name, date, and logo.

The cover page can make your business proposal look more professional as it sets the tone for the proposal. 

What three aspects must be included in the cover page?

The three main things to include in a cover page of a business plan are:

• Clear title: It should be focused on the main topic of the plan & business idea.
• Contact information: Include the name of your company and the ways to contact you.
• Date: Readers would want to know the execution time and the timeline of the business plan.

What is the best format for a cover page?

A business plan cover page is the first thing that your potential investors will see. So, the best format for a cover page is to keep it simple & clean so that it draws your audience’s attention to read the whole business plan.

About the Author

Upmetrics Team

Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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How to write a business plan cover page: 5 essential tips.

Writing a comprehensive business plan is a great first step in making a successful business.

It’s a good idea to create a business plan, even if you are writing the plan just for yourself. 

If you are writing the plan for potential investors, you’ll want to include a strong business proposal cover page. This helps to entice the recipient to read through your plan.

We’ll break down the 5 steps to creating a successful cover page and some essential tips that will help you along the way.

Here’s What We’ll Cover:

1. Use a Business Cover Page Template 

2. use your business logo, 3. the document title, 4. company information and date, 5. write a confidentiality statement, key takeaways.

Writing a business plan cover page is relatively straightforward.

But when you’re staring at a blank page, the task may suddenly seem very daunting. 

That’s why we recommend using a cover page template. 

Even if you don’t end up using the template, it can inspire ideas and help you get over that initial writing block. 

When somebody looks at your cover letter, it needs to stand out and be unique.

What better way to be unique than by including your business’s logo?

Your logo should be at the top of the page so that it’s the first thing that they see. Make sure that it’s a high-resolution image of the logo, as a blurry or pixelated image will look unprofessional. 

It’s also a good idea to keep the themes of your cover page consistent with your logo. So make sure your cover letter is using the same font type and color scheme as your logo. 

This will help your cover letter catch the eye of the reader and establish brand association.  It also helps them to start associating your logo with your business’s name. 

Next up is writing a short, yet strong document title. 

This is a short step, but it’s an important one. 

When choosing your document title you should be including your company name, and the duration the business plan will cover.

For example:

“Park Avenue Mechanics: A Five-Year Business Plan”

It’s short, simple, and tells the reader exactly what to expect. This should be placed below the logo in large print.  

Another simple, yet important step.

Underneath the title, you’ll need to write the physical business address. This is the address that your company is registered to. Then you should write the business’s contact information and the date. 

The physical address is where the investors or interested parties should send all their inquiries. 

The contact information should include the business phone number, email address and fax number. 

It is also a good idea to include your website address, if you have one, for people wanting to learn more about the public front of your business. 

Then directly below your contact information, write the date that the business plan was completed. This is so the reader can see when the information inside was relevant. Though it’s obviously important to keep your business plan as up-to-date as possible. 

Last but not least is your confidentiality statement. 

This is good legal practice as it can protect your business against anybody leaking the contents of your business plan. 

Your confidentiality statement should be along the lines of this: 

“This document contains confidential information created by [your company name]. This document is issued exclusively for informational purposes, and may not be reproduced or shared without the consent of [your company name].”

This should clear up any confusion that may arise as to the privacy of the document. 

Think of your business plan cover page as your first impression. Don’t put hours upon hours of effort into the business plan itself but then just throw together a quick cover page. 

You could well be shooting yourself in the foot. 

The entire job of the cover page is to make sure the reader not only picks up your business plan but turns the page over and starts reading. 

So once you’ve finished your business plan, make sure you write a good cover letter. 

It could just be the difference. 

Are you looking for more business advice on everything from starting a new business to new business practices? 

Head over to our resource hub .

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How to Design a Cover Page for Your Business Plan

Paula Kehoe

Reviewed by

December 22, 2021

This article is Tax Professional approved

If you're starting a new business or growing an existing one, it’s critical to have a successful business plan to guide your decisions.

I am the text that will be copied.

Why? A good plan helps you understand your business expenses and cash flow, and it can lay out your goals and track milestones along the way. It’s also important if you’re applying for a loan or approaching potential investors who may be interested in your future business.

That means when you’re writing your business plan, you have one chance to make a good first impression and catch your reader’s attention. It takes a lot of research and planning, but after you’ve finished the hard work of compiling the contents of your plan, you’re still not done. Your business plan’s cover page may seem like an afterthought, but it shouldn’t be. As they say, never judge a book by its cover, but that’s precisely what happens when it comes to business plan cover pages.

A glimpse at the cover page can be enough for someone to decide if they want to pay attention to your business or ignore it. So, before you distribute your business plan, design a cover that stands out and entices interested parties to find out more about your company.

Helpful resource: How to Write Your First Business Plan

What is a business plan cover page?

Think of the cover page (also called a title page) as a welcome mat that leads to your full business plan. It’s meant to be simple and highlight the legal information of your business like a company logo, company name, address, contact details, and other key information.

The quality and appearance of the cover page may influence the perception of the material that follows in your plan—and the credibility of your business. If you want to spark the interest of prospective investors or lenders, you need to make sure that it’s professional, informative, and easy to read.

What is the purpose of a business plan cover page?

The main purpose of any business plan cover page is to inform and enhance your report. Your cover page should communicate a little about the business plan itself and provide the necessary information for a reader to contact you about the business you’re spotlighting.

Keep the cover page concise and focus only on the introductory basics. There’s no need to get into the weeds here. Instead, save those details about how your business will operate for the executive summary, which underlines the most crucial pieces of your plan, such as your short-term and long-term goals.

What should you include on a business plan cover page?

There are no hard-and-fast rules about what to show on your business plan cover page. But there are a few standard elements you should consider adding. Once you know what information you want to use, you just have to arrange it.

1. Document title

Often, the title of these documents is merely “Business Plan.” But you can also customize it with “Five-Year Business Plan” or “Business Acquisition Plan” if you want to outline more explicit goals of your business plan.

Use a clear, bold font to increase readability, like Times New Roman, Garamond, or Arial. Avoid script lettering as it doesn’t come across as professional and may be challenging to read.

2. Business name

Add your company name below the title of the document. Use the same font of the title, but increase the font size slightly, so it stands out. Your company name is a significant part of the cover page, so use sharp, bold text that’s big enough to read clearly. Also, center your company name a few spaces below the title to continue a clean and consistent appearance.

3. Contact information

Below your company name, include a physical address, phone number, email, website, and other details about your business. You can also add a section titled “prepared by” to list your name and credentials, as well as the names of partners or collaborators, so readers know where to direct their inquiries.

To keep consistent formatting, center this information on the page. You can use a smaller font size than you used for your company name and title, as long as the information is clearly visible and legible.

4. Date of completion

Under your company’s contact information, include the month and year you completed your business plan. Use the same font size as your address and contact information, and center the text for consistency.

5. Company logo

Your logo is the foundation of your brand identity. It can draw interest and pique the curiosity of your audience. If you have a high-resolution thumbnail of your company’s logo, add and center it at the top of the page. The logo should be large enough that readers can easily see details, but not so big that it’s a distraction from the rest of the content.

6. Business tagline

Some businesses use a tagline to show what they do and how they’re different from the competition. Think Nike’s “Just Do It” or Dollar Shave Club’s “Shave Time. Shave Money.”

If you have a tagline, add it to your cover page under your company logo so readers understand straight away what you do or how you do it. A memorable tagline can excite an investor so that they’ll take a special interest while evaluating your business plan.

7. Confidentiality statement

At the bottom of your cover page, add a brief confidentiality statement to protect your business’s intellectual property or sensitive information. This may prevent others from disclosing your business plan without your permission.

For this section, use a slightly smaller font size, but try to make sure the text is still visible. Here’s an example of a typical confidentiality statement:

“This document contains confidential, proprietary information created by (your company’s name). It is issued exclusively for informational purposes and should not be reproduced without the consent of (your company’s name).”

Business plan cover page templates

Looking to create a standout cover page? There are dozens of professionally-designed business plan templates, including cover pages, available online. You can download and customize these in a matter of minutes.

If you need help getting started, try one of these:

• Microsoft Word
• Business in a Box
• MS Office Templates

You might even be able to adapt one of Canva’s proposal templates to suit your needs.

How to make your business plan cover page stand out

A cover page that’s messy or unprofessional in any way can create negative preconceptions in your reader’s minds before they even look at your business plan.

Set yourself up for success with a cover page that stands out by following these best practices:

Use consistent formatting

Inconsistent formatting can turn a stable document into chaos. Try to stay consistent when using styles and line spacing. Make sure your fonts are complementary, and don’t select too many—that could be overwhelming.

Proofread it

Because your cover is the first page of a business plan, it’s important to ensure there are zero spelling typos or mistakes within your content. Carefully proofread your document before distributing the final draft and ask someone else to read your work. Having a second set of eyes can smooth out any rough spots and save you potential embarrassment.

Show your brand’s personality

The design elements (color scheme, font type, images) you use can create a memorable, bold statement for your cover page that’ll make a positive impression on your audience. Still, do keep it professional. Coordinate the colors with your company’s logo or brand, and be sure the elements don’t distract from the important details on the cover page.

How Bench can help

While we can’t design a beautiful business plan cover page for you, we can help you out with the contents of that plan. Bench is America’s largest professional bookkeeping service for small businesses. We can handle your bookkeeping and tax filing for you while you focus on starting and running your business. Even if you’re pre-revenue , you need a solid bookkeeping setup—plus, reliable bookkeeping can give you the numbers you need to prove to investors that you’re a good bet.

Even if you aren’t using your business plan to seek funding, including your financial projections offers major benefits. By looking into the future of your business, you can make plans for growth and set realistic goals to reach along the way. Get started with our guide to financial forecasting .

Make a great first impression

Although your business plan cover page has a big job to do, it’s meant to be simple and straightforward. With just a few business details, like your company name, logo, and contact information, the cover page is your first opportunity to stand out and persuade readers that you’re worth the investment.

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Business Plan Cover Page Tips To Get an Investor’s Attention

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Below are the five keys to creating a formal business plan cover page.

To see what to include in the other sections of your plan, reference the best business plan template .

Be sure to include the following elements to create a great business plan cover page:

1. Company Name

First and foremost, your Company’s name should be included on the business plan cover page. This should be the most prominent feature of the cover page, and as such, is traditionally in the largest font setting. Immediately, the reader should know the name of your company.

2. Company Logo and Color Scheme

The best business plan covers are those that look like they are of professional quality. This can be accomplished by including a high-quality image of the company logo and the font type and color scheme for the company’s marketing materials. Like a book cover, a business plan cover page is intended to draw the reader’s attention immediately. Plans with an unattractive cover page can fall victim to incorrect preconceived notions.

Below is a sample of the professionally designed covers included in Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template .

3. Title and Date

When was this plan written? Readers need to know, so include the date (month and year are enough).

And what is it? The cover page should state if this is a Business Plan, Executive Summary, or Financial Projections. So, at this point, your business plan cover page may read as follows:

John’s Plumbing, Inc. Business Plan March 2021

Note that the title and date should be featured less prominently than your company name.

4. Less is More

Your business plan executive summary will summarize the contents of the plan. There is no need for the cover page to do so, as well. It is also inadvisable to create a business plan cover that is so graphically busy that the information is difficult to discern. Simple, clean, and powerful are the three goals of a strong business plan cover page.

5. CEO/Owner/Key Contact Information

Who should the reader contact if they wish to know more information? The name and contact information for the CEO, President, Owner, or another key contact should not be located at the end of the document. It should be on the first page, letting the reader know who is presenting the document.

6. Confidentiality Statement

While it is not essential, you may want to include a Confidentiality Statement on your cover, such as the following:

This document includes confidential and proprietary information of and regarding [Company Name]. This document is provided for informational purposes only. You may not use this document except for informational purposes, and you may not reproduce this document in whole or in part or divulge any of its contents without the prior written consent of [Company Name]. By accepting this document, you agree to be bound by these restrictions and limitations.

Suggested Resources:

Download Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template here that not only has ten pre-built and professionally designed cover pages but quickly guides you through creating your entire business plan and financial model.

Your business plan title page is critical since it’s the first thing readers will see, and it will give them an immediate impression as to whether you are professional or not. As such, the page is one of the critical components of a business plan . As part of your initial business plan outline , you should think about how you want others to perceive your business. Not only should this perception be established throughout your plan but be sure to do so on your business plan cover page.

Many people ask about business plan cover letters to accompany their plans.

Most plans are emailed to investors or lenders nowadays. As such, business plan cover letters are often not needed. Instead, in the body of your email, you can include text such as the following: “Attached please find my business plan. I am available to discuss this at your convenience. I look forward to hearing from you.” Such an email will typically suffice if you seek a bank loan, VC funding, or funding from angel investors .

However, if you’d like a more formal cover letter, reference our sample business plan cover letter here .

To answer any additional questions you might have regarding your plan, see our business plan help page or download our small business plan template pdf to get started today.

The World’s #1 Business Plan Template

Would you like to know the quickest and easiest way to create a winning business plan?

And how to use it to raise funding, improve your strategy, or both?

Well, we’ve developed the ultimate business plan template to help you do this. Simply click below to learn more.

Other Helpful Business Plan Articles & Templates

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How to Write a Business Plan (Plus Examples & Templates)

May 24, 2021

Have you ever wondered how to write a business plan step by step? Mike Andes, told us: 

This guide will help you write a business plan to impress investors.

Throughout this process, we’ll get information from Mike Andes, who started Augusta Lawn Care Services when he was 12 and turned it into a franchise with over 90 locations. He has gone on to help others learn how to write business plans and start businesses.  He knows a thing or two about writing  business plans!

We’ll start by discussing the definition of a business plan. Then we’ll discuss how to come up with the idea, how to do the market research, and then the important elements in the business plan format. Keep reading to start your journey!

What Is a Business Plan?

A business plan is simply a road map of what you are trying to achieve with your business and how you will go about achieving it. It should cover all elements of your business including: 

• Finding customers
• Plans for developing a team
•  Competition
• Legal structures
• Key milestones you are pursuing

If you aren’t quite ready to create a business plan, consider starting by reading our business startup guide .

Get a Business Idea

Before you can write a business plan, you have to have a business idea. You may see a problem that needs to be solved and have an idea how to solve it, or you might start by evaluating your interests and skills. 

Mike told us, “The three things I suggest asking yourself when thinking about starting a business are:

• What am I good at?
• What would I enjoy doing?
• What can I get paid for?”

If all three of these questions don’t lead to at least one common answer, it will probably be a much harder road to success. Either there is not much market for it, you won’t be good at it, or you won’t enjoy doing it. 

As Mike told us, “There’s enough stress starting and running a business that if you don’t like it or aren’t good at it, it’s hard to succeed.”

If you’d like to hear more about Mike’s approach to starting a business, check out our YouTube video

Conduct Market Analysis

Market analysis is focused on establishing if there is a target market for your products and services, how large the target market is, and identifying the demographics of people or businesses that would be interested in the product or service. The goal here is to establish how much money your business concept can make.

Product and Service Demand

A search engine is your best friend when trying to figure out if there is demand for your products and services. Personally, I love using presearch.org because it lets you directly search on a ton of different platforms including Google, Youtube, Twitter, and more. Check out the screenshot for the full list of search options.

With quick web searches, you can find out how many competitors you have, look through their reviews, and see if there are common complaints about the competitors. Bad reviews are a great place to find opportunities to offer better products or services. 

If there are no similar products or services, you may have stumbled upon something new, or there may just be no demand for it. To find out, go talk to your most honest friend about the idea and see what they think. If they tell you it’s dumb or stare at you vacantly, there’s probably no market for it.

You can also conduct a survey through social media to get public opinion on your idea. Using Facebook Business Manager , you could get a feel for who would be interested in your product or service.

 I ran a quick test of how many people between 18-65  you could reach in the U.S. during a week. It returned an estimated 700-2,000 for the total number of leads, which is enough to do a fairly accurate statistical analysis.

Identify Demographics of Target Market

Depending on what type of business you want to run, your target market will be different. The narrower the demographic, the fewer potential customers you’ll have. If you did a survey, you’ll be able to use that data to help define your target audience. Some considerations you’ll want to consider are:

• Other Interests
• Marital Status
• Do they have kids?

Once you have this information, it can help you narrow down your options for location and help define your marketing further. One resource that Mike recommended using is the Census Bureau’s Quick Facts Map . He told us,  

“It helps you quickly evaluate what the best areas are for your business to be located.”

How to Write a Business Plan

Now that you’ve developed your idea a little and established there is a market for it, you can begin writing a business plan. Getting started is easier with the business plan template we created for you to download. I strongly recommend using it as it is updated to make it easier to create an action plan. 

Each of the following should be a section of your business plan:

• Business Plan Cover Page
• Table of Contents
• Executive Summary
• Company Description
• Description of Products and Services

SWOT Analysis

• Competitor Data
• Competitive Analysis
• Marketing Expenses Strategy 

Pricing Strategy

• Distribution Channel Assessment
• Operational Plan
• Management and Organizational Strategy
• Financial Statements and/or Financial Projections

We’ll look into each of these. Don’t forget to download our free business plan template (mentioned just above) so you can follow along as we go. 

How to Write a Business Plan Step 1. Create a Cover Page

The first thing investors will see is the cover page for your business plan. Make sure it looks professional. A great cover page shows that you think about first impressions.

A good business plan should have the following elements on a cover page:

• Professionally designed logo
• Company name
• Mission or Vision Statement
• Contact Info

Basically, think of a cover page for your business plan like a giant business card. It is meant to capture people’s attention but be quickly processed.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 2. Create a Table of Contents

Most people are busy enough that they don’t have a lot of time. Providing a table of contents makes it easy for them to find the pages of your plan that are meaningful to them.

A table of contents will be immediately after the cover page, but you can include it after the executive summary. Including the table of contents immediately after the executive summary will help investors know what section of your business plan they want to review more thoroughly.

Check out Canva’s article about creating a  table of contents . It has a ton of great information about creating easy access to each section of your business plan. Just remember that you’ll want to use different strategies for digital and hard copy business plans.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 3. Write an Executive Summary

An executive summary is where your business plan should catch the readers interest.  It doesn’t need to be long, but should be quick and easy to read.

Mike told us,

How long should an executive summary bein an informal business plan?

For casual use, an executive summary should be similar to an elevator pitch, no more than 150-160 words, just enough to get them interested and wanting more. Indeed has a great article on elevator pitches .  This can also be used for the content of emails to get readers’ attention.

It consists of three basic parts:

• An introduction to you and your business.
• What your business is about.
• A call to action

Example of an informal executive summary 

One of the best elevator pitches I’ve used is:

So far that pitch has achieved a 100% success rate in getting partnerships for the business.

What should I include in an executive summary for investors?

Investors are going to need a more detailed executive summary if you want to secure financing or sell equity. The executive summary should be a brief overview of your entire business plan and include:

• Introduction of yourself and company.
• An origin story (Recognition of a problem and how you came to solution)
• An introduction to your products or services.
• Your unique value proposition. Make sure to include intellectual property.
• Where you are in the business life cycle
• Request and why you need it.

Successful business plan examples

The owner of Urbanity told us he spent 2 months writing a 75-page business plan and received a $250,000 loan from the bank when he was 23. Make your business plan as detailed as possible when looking for financing. We’ve provided a template to help you prepare the portions of a business plan that banks expect.

Here’s the interview with the owner of Urbanity:

When to write an executive summary?

Even though the summary is near the beginning of a business plan, you should write it after you complete the rest of a business plan. You can’t talk about revenue, profits, and expected expenditures if you haven’t done the market research and created a financial plan.

What mistakes do people make when writing an executive summary?

Business owners commonly go into too much detail about the following items in an executive summary:

• Marketing and sales processes
• Financial statements
• Organizational structure
• Market analysis

These are things that people will want to know later, but they don’t hook the reader. They won’t spark interest in your small business, but they’ll close the deal.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 4. Company Description

Every business plan should include a company description. A great business plan will include the following elements while describing the company:

• Mission statement
• Philosophy and vision
• Company goals

Target market

• Legal structure

Let’s take a look at what each section includes in a good business plan.

Mission Statement

A mission statement is a brief explanation of why you started the company and what the company’s main focus is. It should be no more than one or two sentences. Check out HubSpot’s article 27 Inspiring Mission Statement for a great read on informative and inspiring mission and vision statements. 

Company Philosophy and Vision

The company philosophy is what drives your company. You’ll normally hear them called core values.  These are the building blocks that make your company different. You want to communicate your values to customers, business owners, and investors as often as possible to build a company culture, but make sure to back them up.

What makes your company different?

Each company is different. Your new business should rise above the standard company lines of honesty, integrity, fun, innovation, and community when communicating your business values. The standard answers are corporate jargon and lack authenticity. 

Examples of core values

One of my clients decided to add a core values page to their website. As a tech company they emphasized the values:

•  Prioritize communication.
•  Never stop learning.
•  Be transparent.
•  Start small and grow incrementally.

These values communicate how the owner and the rest of the company operate. They also show a value proposition and competitive advantage because they specifically focus on delivering business value from the start. These values also genuinely show what the company is about and customers recognize the sincerity. Indeed has a great blog about how to identify your core values .

What is a vision statement?

A vision statement communicate the long lasting change a business pursues. The vision helps investors and customers understand what your company is trying to accomplish. The vision statement goes beyond a mission statement to provide something meaningful to the community, customer’s lives, or even the world.

Example vision statements

The Alzheimer’s Association is a great example of a vision statement:

A world without Alzheimer’s Disease and other dementia.

It clearly tells how they want to change the world. A world without Alzheimers might be unachievable, but that means they always have room for improvement.

Business Goals

You have to measure success against goals for a business plan to be meaningful. A business plan helps guide a company similar to how your GPS provides a road map to your favorite travel destination. A goal to make as much money as possible is not inspirational and sounds greedy.

Sure, business owners want to increase their profits and improve customer service, but they need to present an overview of what they consider success. The goals should help everyone prioritize their work.

How far in advance should a business plan?

Business planning should be done at least one year in advance, but many banks and investors prefer three to five year business plans. Longer plans show investors that the management team  understands the market and knows the business is operating in a constantly shifting market. In addition, a plan helps businesses to adjust to changes because they have already considered how to handle them.

Example of great business goals

My all time-favorite long-term company goals are included in Tesla’s Master Plan, Part Deux . These goals were written in 2016 and drive the company’s decisions through 2026. They are the reason that investors are so forgiving when Elon Musk continually fails to meet his quarterly and annual goals.

If the progress aligns with the business plan investors are likely to continue to believe in the company. Just make sure the goals are reasonable or you’ll be discredited (unless you’re Elon Musk).

You did target market research before creating a business plan. Now it’s time to add it to the plan so others understand what your ideal customer looks like. As a new business owner, you may not be considered an expert in your field yet, so document everything. Make sure the references you use are from respectable sources. 

Use information from the specific lender when you are applying for lending. Most lenders provide industry research reports and using their data can strengthen the position of your business plan.

A small business plan should include a section on the external environment. Understanding the industry is crucial because we don’t plan a business in a vacuum. Make sure to research the industry trends, competitors, and forecasts. I personally prefer IBIS World for my business research. Make sure to answer questions like:

• What is the industry outlook long-term and short-term?
• How will your business take advantage of projected industry changes and trends?
• What might happen to your competitors and how will your business successfully compete?

Industry resources

Some helpful resources to help you establish more about your industry are:

• Trade Associations
• Federal Reserve
• Bureau of Labor Statistics

Legal Structure

There are five basic types of legal structures that most people will utilize:

• Sole proprietorships
• Limited Liability Companies (LLC)

Partnerships

Corporations.

• Franchises.

Each business structure has their pros and cons. An LLC is the most common legal structure due to its protection of personal assets and ease of setting up. Make sure to specify how ownership is divided and what roles each owner plays when you have more than one business owner.

You’ll have to decide which structure is best for you, but we’ve gathered information on each to make it easier.

Sole Proprietorship

A sole proprietorship is the easiest legal structure to set up but doesn’t protect the owner’s personal assets from legal issues. That means if something goes wrong, you could lose both your company and your home.

To start a sole proprietorship, fill out a special tax form called a  Schedule C . Sole proprietors can also join the American Independent Business Alliance .

Limited Liability Company (LLC)

An LLC is the most common business structure used in the United States because an LLC protects the owner’s personal assets. It’s similar to partnerships and corporations, but can be a single-member LLC in most states. An LLC requires a document called an operating agreement.

Each state has different requirements. Here’s a link to find your state’s requirements . Delaware and Nevada are common states to file an LLC because they are really business-friendly. Here’s a blog on the top 10 states to get an LLC.

Partnerships are typically for legal firms. If you choose to use a partnership choose a Limited Liability Partnership. Alternatively, you can just use an LLC.

Corporations are typically for massive organizations. Corporations have taxes on both corporate and income tax so unless you plan on selling stock, you are better off considering an LLC with S-Corp status . Investopedia has good information corporations here .

There are several opportunities to purchase successful franchises. TopFranchise.com has a list of companies in a variety of industries that offer franchise opportunities. This makes it where an entrepreneur can benefit from the reputation of an established business that has already worked out many of the kinks of starting from scratch.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 5. Products and Services

This section of the business plan should focus on what you sell, how you source it, and how you sell it. You should include:

• Unique features that differentiate your business products from competitors
• Intellectual property
• Your supply chain
• Cost and pricing structure 

Questions to answer about your products and services

Mike gave us a list  of the most important questions to answer about your product and services:

• How will you be selling the product? (in person, ecommerce, wholesale, direct to consumer)?
• How do you let them know they need a product?
• How do you communicate the message?
• How will you do transactions?
• How much will you be selling it for?
• How many do you think you’ll sell and why?

Make sure to use the worksheet on our business plan template .

How to Write a Business Plan Step 6. Sales and Marketing Plan

The marketing and sales plan is focused on the strategy to bring awareness to your company and guides how you will get the product to the consumer.  It should contain the following sections:

SWOT Analysis stands for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Not only do you want to identify them, but you also want to document how the business plans to deal with them.

Business owners need to do a thorough job documenting how their service or product stacks up against the competition.

If proper research isn’t done, investors will be able to tell that the owner hasn’t researched the competition and is less likely to believe that the team can protect its service from threats by the more well-established competition. This is one of the most common parts of a presentation that trips up business owners presenting on Shark Tank .

SWOT Examples

Examples of strengths and weaknesses could be things like the lack of cash flow, intellectual property ownership, high costs of suppliers, and customers’ expectations on shipping times.

Opportunities could be ways to capitalize on your strengths or improve your weaknesses, but may also be gaps in the industry. This includes:

• Adding offerings that fit with your current small business
• Increase sales to current customers
• Reducing costs through bulk ordering
• Finding ways to reduce inventory
•  And other areas you can improve

Threats will normally come from outside of the company but could also be things like losing a key member of the team. Threats normally come from competition, regulations, taxes, and unforeseen events.

The management team should use the SWOT analysis to guide other areas of business planning, but it absolutely has to be done before a business owner starts marketing. 

Include Competitor Data in Your Business Plan

When you plan a business, taking into consideration the strengths and weaknesses of the competition is key to navigating the field. Providing an overview of your competition and where they are headed shows that you are invested in understanding the industry.

For smaller businesses, you’ll want to search both the company and the owners names to see what they are working on. For publicly held corporations, you can find their quarterly and annual reports on the SEC website .

What another business plans to do can impact your business. Make sure to include things that might make it attractive for bigger companies to outsource to a small business.

Marketing Strategy

The marketing and sales part of business plans should be focused on how you are going to make potential customers aware of your business and then sell to them.

If you haven’t already included it, Mike recommends:

“They’ll want to know about Demographics, ages, and wealth of your target market.”

Make sure to include the Total addressable market .  The term refers to the value if you captured 100% of the market.

Advertising Strategy

You’ll explain what formats of advertising you’ll be using. Some possibilities are:

• Online: Facebook and Google are the big names to work with here.
• Print : Print can be used to reach broad groups or targeted markets. Check out this for tips .
• Radio : iHeartMedia is one of the best ways to advertise on the radio
• Cable television : High priced, hard to measure ROI, but here’s an explanation of the process
• Billboards: Attracting customers with billboards can be beneficial in high traffic areas.

You’ll want to define how you’ll be using each including frequency, duration, and cost. If you have the materials already created, including pictures or links to the marketing to show creative assets.

Mike told us “Most businesses are marketing digitally now due to Covid, but that’s not always the right answer.”

Make sure the marketing strategy will help team members or external marketing agencies stay within the brand guidelines .

This section of a business plan should be focused on pricing. There are a ton of pricing strategies that may work for different business plans. Which one will work for you depends on what kind of a business you run.

Some common pricing strategies are:

• Value-based pricing – Commonly used with home buying and selling or other products that are status symbols.
• Skimming pricing – Commonly seen in video game consoles, price starts off high to recoup expenses quickly, then reduces over time.
• Competition-based pricing – Pricing based on competitors’ pricing is commonly seen at gas stations.
• Freemium services –  Commonly used for software, where there is a free plan, then purchase options for more functionality.

HubSpot has a great calculator and blog on pricing strategies.

Beyond explaining what strategy your business plans to use, you should include references for how you came to this pricing strategy and how it will impact your cash flow.

Distribution Plan

This part of a business plan is focused on how the product or service is going to go through the supply chain. These may include multiple divisions or multiple companies. Make sure to include any parts of the workflow that are automated so investors can see where cost savings are expected and when.

Supply Chain Examples

For instance, lawn care companies  would need to cover aspects such as:

• Suppliers for lawn care equipment and tools
• Any chemicals or treatments needed
• Repair parts for sprinkler systems
• Vehicles to transport equipment and employees
• Insurance to protect the company vehicles and people.

Examples of Supply Chains

These are fairly flat supply chains compared to something like a clothing designer where the clothes would go through multiple vendors. A clothing company might have the following supply chain:

• Raw materials
• Shipping of raw materials
• Converting of raw materials to thread
• Shipping thread to produce garments
• Garment producer
• Shipping to company
• Company storage
• Shipping to retail stores

There have been advances such as print on demand that eliminate many of these steps. If you are designing completely custom clothing, all of this would need to be planned to keep from having business disruptions.

The main thing to include in the business plan is the list of suppliers, the path the supply chain follows, the time from order to the customer’s home, and the costs associated with each step of the process.

According to BizPlanReview , a business plan without this information is likely to get rejected because they have failed to research the key elements necessary to make sales to the customer.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 7. Company Organization and Operational Plan

This part of the business plan is focused on how the business model will function while serving customers.  The business plan should provide an overview of  how the team will manage the following aspects:

Quality Control

• Legal environment

Let’s look at each for some insight.

Production has already been discussed in previous sections so I won’t go into it much. When writing a business plan for investors, try to avoid repetition as it creates a more simple business plan.

If the organizational plan will be used by the team as an overview of how to perform the best services for the customer, then redundancy makes more sense as it communicates what is important to the business.

Quality control policies help to keep the team focused on how to verify that the company adheres to the business plan and meets or exceeds customer expectations.

Quality control can be anything from a standard that says “all labels on shirts can be no more than 1/16″ off center” to a defined checklist of steps that should be performed and filled out for every customer.

There are a variety of organizations that help define quality control including:

• International Organization for Standardization – Quality standards for energy, technology, food, production environments, and cybersecurity
• AICPA – Standard defined for accounting.
• The Joint Commission – Healthcare
• ASHRAE – HVAC best practices

You can find lists of the organizations that contribute most to the government regulation of industries on Open Secrets . Research what the leaders in your field are doing. Follow their example and implement it in your quality control plan.

For location, you should use information from the market research to establish where the location will be. Make sure to include the following in the location documentation.

• The size of your location
• The type of building (retail, industrial, commercial, etc.)
• Zoning restrictions – Urban Wire has a good map on how zoning works in each state
• Accessibility – Does it meet ADA requirements?
• Costs including rent, maintenance, utilities, insurance and any buildout or remodeling costs
• Utilities – b.e.f. has a good energy calculator .

Legal Environment

The legal requirement section is focused on defining how to meet the legal requirements for your industry. A good business plan should include all of the following:

• Any licenses and/or permits that are needed and whether you’ve obtained them
• Any trademarks, copyrights, or patents that you have or are in the process of applying for
• The insurance coverage your business requires and how much it costs
• Any environmental, health, or workplace regulations affecting your business
• Any special regulations affecting your industry
• Bonding requirements, if applicable

Your local SBA office can help you establish requirements in your area. I strongly recommend using them. They are a great resource.

Your business plan should include a plan for company organization and hiring. While you may be the only person with the company right now, down the road you’ll need more people. Make sure to consider and document the answers to the following questions:

• What is the current leadership structure and what will it look like in the future?
• What types of employees will you have? Are there any licensing or educational requirements?
• How many employees will you need?
• Will you ever hire freelancers or independent contractors?
• What is each position’s job description?
• What is the pay structure (hourly, salaried, base plus commission, etc.)?
• How do you plan to find qualified employees and contractors?

One of the most crucial parts of a business plan is the organizational chart. This simply shows the positions the company will need, who is in charge of them and the relationship of each of them. It will look similar to this:

Our small business plan template has a much more in-depth organizational chart you can edit to include when you include the organizational chart in your business plan.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 8. Financial Statements 

No business plan is complete without financial statements or financial projections. The business plan format will be different based on whether you are writing a business plan to expand a business or a startup business plan. Let’s dig deeper into each.

Provide All Financial Income from an Existing Business

An existing business should use their past financial documents including the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement to find trends to estimate the next 3-5 years.

You can create easy trendlines in excel to predict future revenue, profit and loss, cash flow, and other changes in year-over-year performance. This will show your expected performance assuming business continues as normal.

If you are seeking an investment, then the business is probably not going to continue as normal. Depending on the financial plan and the purpose of getting financing, adjustments may be needed to the following:

• Higher Revenue if expanding business
• Lower Cost of Goods Sold if purchasing inventory with bulk discounts
• Adding interest if utilizing financing (not equity deal)
• Changes in expenses
• Addition of financing information to the cash flow statement
• Changes in Earnings per Share on the balance sheet

Financial modeling is a challenging subject, but there are plenty of low-cost courses on the subject. If you need help planning your business financial documentation take some time to watch some of them.

Make it a point to document how you calculated all the changes to the income statement, balance sheet, and cash flow statement in your business plan so that key team members or investors can verify your research.

Financial Projections For A Startup Business Plan

Unlike an existing business, a startup doesn’t have previous success to model its future performance. In this scenario, you need to focus on how to make a business plan realistic through the use of industry research and averages.

Mike gave the following advice in his interview:

Financial Forecasting Mistakes

One of the things a lot of inexperienced people use is the argument, “If I get one percent of the market, it is worth $100 million.” If you use this, investors are likely to file the document under bad business plan examples.

Let’s use custom t-shirts as an example.

Credence Research estimated in 2018 there were 11,334,800,000 custom t-shirts sold for a total of $206.12 Billion, with a 6% compound annual growth rate.

With that data,  you can calculate that the industry will grow to $270 Billion in 2023 and that the average shirt sold creates $18.18 in revenue.

Combine that with an IBIS World estimate of 11,094 custom screen printers and that means even if you become an average seller, you’ll get .009% of the market.

Here’s a table for easier viewing of that information.

The point here is to make sure your business proposal examples make sense.

You’ll need to know industry averages such as cost of customer acquisition, revenue per customer, the average cost of goods sold, and admin costs to be able to create accurate estimates.

Our simple business plan templates walk you through most of these processes. If you follow them you’ll have a good idea of how to write a business proposal.

How to Write a Business Plan Step 9. Business Plan Example of Funding Requests

What is a business plan without a plan on how to obtain funding?

The Small Business Administration has an example for a pizza restaurant that theoretically needed nearly $20k to make it through their first month.

In our video, How to Start a $500K/Year T-Shirt Business (Pt. 1 ), Sanford Booth told us he needed about $200,000 to start his franchise and broke even after 4 months.

Freshbooks estimates it takes on average 2-3 years for a business to be profitable, which means the fictitious pizza company from the SBA could need up to $330k to make it through that time and still pay their bills for their home and pizza shop.

Not every business needs that much to start, but realistically it’s a good idea to assume that you need a fairly large cushion.

Ways to get funding for a small business

There are a variety of ways to cover this. the most common are:

• Bootstrapping – Using your savings without external funding.
• Taking out debt – loans, credit cards
• Equity, Seed Funding – Ownership of a percentage of the company in exchange for current funds
• Crowdsourcing – Promising a good for funding to create the product

Keep reading for more tips on how to write a business plan.

How funding will be used

When asking for business financing make sure to include:

• How much to get started?
• What is the minimum viable product and how soon can you make money?
• How will the money be spent?

Mike emphasized two aspects that should be included in every plan, 

How to Write a Business Plan Resources

Here are some links to a business plan sample and business plan outline. 

• Sample plan

It’s also helpful to follow some of the leading influencers in the business plan writing community. Here’s a list:

• Wise Plans –  Shares a lot of information on starting businesses and is a business plan writing company.
• Optimus Business Plans –  Another business plan writing company.
• Venture Capital – A venture capital thread that can help give you ideas.

How to Write a Business Plan: What’s Next?

We hope this guide about how to write a simple business plan step by step has been helpful. We’ve covered:

• The definition of a business plan
• Coming up with a business idea
• Performing market research
• The critical components of a business plan
• An example business plan

In addition, we provided you with a simple business plan template to assist you in the process of writing your startup business plan. The startup business plan template also includes a business model template that will be the key to your success.

Don’t forget to check out the rest of our business hub .

Have you written a business plan before? How did it impact your ability to achieve your goals?

80% of businesses fail... Learn how not to.

Learn from business failures and successes in 5 min or less. The stories, frameworks, and tactics that will make you a 10x better founder.

Brandon Boushy

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27 Best Home Business Ideas (for 2024)

Ever wondered how some small businesses are making millions even though the small business owner appears to be on a never-ending vacation?

They are making a living participating in some of the best small business ideas from home. Home-based business ideas can be extraordinarily successful. We’ve interviewed small business owners who’ve made millions in all types of businesses.

By the end of this article, you’ll have dozens of ideas for businesses you can run from your own home and be ready to take your first steps toward launching your successful home-based business.

[su_note note_color="#dbeafc"]

We’re going to share some of the most successful work-from-home ideas and answer some commonly asked questions, including the following. (Click any of the links to jump to the section that interests you most.)

Work-From-Home Business Benefits

Work-from-home business drawbacks, training required, initial investment, managing inventory, web-based potential, 27 profitable home business ideas, how to start a home business.

• Choose Your Own Business Idea [/su_note]

According to Indeed , home businesses are beneficial because they:

• Streamline communication: When you work from home, you will have documentation of all business communication at your fingertips all the time.
• Increase productivity: You won’t waste time driving to work every day.
• Expand your talent pool: Provides access to a global workforce if you hire employees who can work remotely.
• Save time: Driving to work, getting dressed, preparing a lunch then taking a lunch break all take time that can be reduced or eliminated with at-home businesses.
• Removes job barriers: Some people don’t have cars. Those without cars have more opportunities with work-from-home businesses.
• Provides more comfort: People buy what makes them comfortable, while businesses buy what gets the job done. A business from home combines the two.
• Increases freedom: Running your business from home means you can set your work hours or even work while on vacation. Local businesses without employees are an exception to this point.
• Increase job satisfaction: All the things I listed above increase job satisfaction.
• Reduce turnover rate: Small business owners with remote employees will have lower turnover because the employees have more freedom.
• Reduce overhead costs: Combine lower turnover with less space requirements and the ability to deduct part of your home expenses as business expenses to reduce overhead costs.
• Improve brand reputation: A more satisfied workforce will make customers happier and improve your brand.
• Provide global insights: Employees from all over the world can share their experiences.
• Enhance sustainability goals: Working from home reduces almost all carbon dioxide emissions compared to the average commute to a place of business.
• Increase business hours: If you have employees, they’ll likely be in different time zones, meaning you can support your customers more hours of the day.

Meanwhile, there are some disadvantages of working at home that we’ll discuss next.

While we all love the freedom to work when and where we want, home business owners may face:

• Reduced learning opportunities: Interacting with people often means learning new things. When you run a business from home, your interactions with others decrease.
• Missed social interactions: Many people make friends with their employees and coworkers, but you might never meet them if you run a home business.
• Lost innovation opportunities: The dynamics when people with different expertise get in the same room can lead to huge jumps in innovation, and that’s unlikely to happen when you start a home business.
• At-home distractions: People at home are hopefully fun to be around, so they’ll probably distract you.

What Makes Successful Home-Based Businesses?

Home business ideas need to have certain characteristics to be successful. The main things you need to consider are:

• Training required
• Initial investment
• Managing inventory
• Web-based potential

Starting a home-based business idea that you don’t have any experience in can be difficult. The more training you need, the more it will cost and the longer it will take to start a business from home.

When you start your own business from home, you want it to be inexpensive to start. Low startup costs make it easier to become profitable. Ideally, you should be able to start a new home business idea by purchasing a website and building your company from there.

You don’t want a small business idea that requires a lot of space for inventory. If you’re going to sell products, consider a dropshipping business and have a fulfillment center manage the inventory. Alternatively, use print-on-demand.

A home business idea will normally be an online business that relies heavily on digital marketing skills. As long as you have a computer, you should be able to start your home business idea for under $1,000.

A home-based business idea that needs people to work collaboratively will often be problematic because of how disconnected employees may be from each other.

Local service businesses are commonly the exception because all employees have to be in the same location. Neel Parekh found a way to run a $1.5M remote cleaning business. Find out how.

Get ready to learn about the best at-home business ideas.

Job #1. Business Consultant

• Average Annual Revenue: $364K • Average Profit Margins: 6.4% • Startup Costs: $1K-$3.5M • Time To Revenue: 6-18 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 2.2% • Best for: Executives and business leaders, entrepreneurs with management or business expertise, people with strong analytic, problem-solving, and communication skills

According to Business Insider's 2022 report, being a business consultant ranks as the fourth most lucrative side gig. With the potential to rake in as much as $98 per hour, it stands out as one of the top-paying self-employed occupations.

A consultant's main responsibility is to assist business owners in optimizing their operations. This necessitates a solid grasp of effective business management. Many successful consultants transition into freelancing roles after amassing experience in the corporate sector or as accomplished business proprietors.

In this field, hands-on experience carries more weight than formal education. If you possess a wealth of business knowledge, a bachelor's degree (or even a high school diploma) is not a prerequisite for flourishing as an independent consultant.

Idea #2. Social Media Management

• Average Annual Revenue: $82K • Average Profit Margins: 6.9% • Startup Costs: $100+ • Time To Revenue: 1-6 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.3% • Best for: Entrepreneurs skilled in social media, marketing strategies, data analysis, and similar areas

Social media managers will perform tasks like creating and scheduling posts, interacting with customers, and other tasks that help you interact with customers more effectively.

Idea #3. Nanny or Childcare Services

• Average Annual Revenue: $143K+ • Average Profit Margins: 0.9% • Startup Costs: $0-$1K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 51.7% • Best for: Teachers, tutors, babysitters, parents, caregivers, compassionate and patient entrepreneurs with strong organization and multitasking skills

Childcare services are experiencing a surge in popularity, particularly in rural regions, where nearly 60% of families lack necessary access. Even in urban settings, parents can have trouble finding dependable childcare options. This escalating demand is anticipated to fuel a Compound Annual Growth Rate ( CAGR ) of 12.8% for the overall childcare market until 2027.

Since its inception in 2011, Twinkle Toes Nanny Agency has expanded to encompass over 20 locations, boasting a combined annual revenue of $11.2 million. Learn about the journey of its founder, who transitioned from a role as a surgeon's assistant to achieving multi-million-dollar annual earnings.

Idea #4. Cleaning Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $74K+ • Average Profit Margins: 6.7% • Startup Costs: $500-$30K • Time To Revenue: 1-6 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.2% • Best for: Self-motivated, independent, and detail-oriented entrepreneurs

If you've set aside around $1,000 for investment, consider diving into the cleaning industry. In terms of both success rate and the ease of initiation with no prior experience, it surpasses many other self-employment concepts.

What's even better is that you can kickstart this venture solo, but you'll have the option to expand once the money starts rolling in. Picture shedding your everyday duties and running a business with the confidence of a leader. This isn't just another run-of-the-mill 9-to-5 grind.

A former guest of ours, Chris Mondragon, generated $18,220 in his second month after launching a cleaning business. He's now boasting an annual revenue of well over $1.5 million. If you're interested in learning how he achieved this, take a look at this resource .

View our interview with Chris below:

Idea #5. Software Developer

• Average Annual Revenue: $400K-$1M+ • Average Profit Margins: 14.5% • Startup Costs: $100-$50K, depending on size and scope • Time To Revenue: 3 months to 2 years • Annual Market Growth Rate: 3.1% • Best for: Coders and developers adept in programming languages, independent and self-motivated entrepreneurs with strong communication and project management skills

In 2021, the average income for a software developer exceeded $120,000 . With the demand for these skills on a steady rise, there are numerous job prospects available for developers seeking conventional employment.

That said, as a developer, you can work from home for yourself by selling your programs and services directly to users and clients. Pursuing this path can lead to additional streams of passive income.

Workello initially operated as an agency connecting business leaders with freelance writing talent. However, their true potential was unlocked when they transitioned into a SaaS (Software as a Service) company. Discover the story behind their software business in this podcast episode.

Idea #6. Vending Machine Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $182K+ • Average Profit Margins: 4.3% • Startup Cost: $2K-$10K • Time To Revenue: 3+ months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 0.5% • Best for: Those who like to tinker with machines and understand mechanics and those who enjoy driving

After placing your vending machines, you'll only need a few hours per week for maintenance. Right now, our friend Adam Hill is successfully running his vending machine business, which generates six figures, while dedicating just two days a week to it.

He's achieved such remarkable success that we pestered him until he agreed to craft an insightful masterclass exclusively for our UpFlip audience. It lays out precisely how he accomplished this feat.

Check out our interview with Adam below:

Idea #7. Virtual Assistant

• Average Annual Revenue: $35K-$50K • Average Profit Margins: 10.5% • Startup Costs: $100-$200 • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.9% • Best for: People with strong organization and communication skills, those who want to work from home and set their own hours

Your tasks as a virtual assistant may encompass activities such as responding to emails, coordinating meetings and travel plans, overseeing and posting on social media accounts, and similar responsibilities.

Initiate a virtual assistant venture online by creating a profile on a freelance platform like Upwork or 24/7 Virtual Assistant . While having fundamental computer proficiency and a dependable internet connection is essential, the most crucial attributes for virtual assistants are soft skills like dependability, effective communication, and adept multitasking. A formal education, including a bachelor's degree, is not a prerequisite for this role.

Idea #8. eCommerce Reseller Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $60K-$120K • Average Profit Margins: 5-15% • Startup Costs: $100-$1K • Time To Revenue: 30-90 days • Annual Market Growth Rate: -9.3% (based on eBay annual reports) • Best for: People with sales and marketing skills, collectors who can spot valuable items, those seeking flexibility and the potential for passive income

Opening an online store costs less than starting a brick-and-mortar retail store. It also gives you more scheduling flexibility than many home business ideas since it doesn’t involve working with clients.

The inventory you sell will be the main cost of starting an eCommerce business as a reseller. If you have an eye for spotting hidden gems at flea markets, thrift stores, and garage sales, you can make a consistently high profit with this kind of business.

Mike Wilson started Golden State Picker with $1,000 worth of inventory and has grown that into a $30,000-a-month business. Hear how he started in this podcast interview:

Idea #9. Freelance Writer

• Average Annual Revenue: $46K • Average Profit Margins: 14.6% • Startup Costs: $100-$200 • Time To Revenue: 1 month to 3 years • Annual Market Growth Rate: -1.5% • Best for: Writers, editors, and language experts, people with SEO, marketing, and advertising knowledge, creative entrepreneurs

Are you a strong writer? Create a home business writing about the things that interest you.

Independent writers have the flexibility to engage in diverse writing projects. This spectrum includes fiction and imaginative work under your own name or as a ghostwriter. A notably lucrative avenue in freelance writing is technical writing, which boasted an average income of $75,700 in 2023.

Additionally, there's substantial demand for online content such as blog articles and promotional copy.

Idea #10. Digital Marketing

• Average Annual Revenue: $817K • Average Profit Margins: 6.9% • Startup Costs: $100-$10K • Time To Revenue: 1-6 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.3% • Best for: Marketing and advertising pros, entrepreneurs with social media and data analysis skills, content creators

Maintaining an effective presence on social media has become imperative for many businesses today. However, not all entrepreneurs are well-versed in social media marketing. Consequently, the digital marketing industry has seen an average annual growth rate of 28.2% over the past five years.

This abundance of opportunities is what makes digital marketing stand out as one of the top home-based business concepts for those seeking flexible hours. Digital marketing extends to niches like SEO-centric web design, proficiency in Google Ads, and aiding clients in launching successful blogs.

Explore our interview with Eric, the owner of Single Grain, who acquired a social media marketing agency for just $2 and has grown it to make millions every year:

Idea #11. Makeup Artist

• Average Annual Revenue: $47K+ • Average Profit Margins: 7.1% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 0.9% • Best for: Creative and artistic entrepreneurs knowledgeable about fashion, style, and trends, people who are detail-oriented with strong communication and collaboration skills

If your friends often seek your expertise for makeup or Halloween costume advice, you might want to explore a freelance career as a makeup artist.

On average, makeup artists earn around $66,000 annually , though this figure can vary widely. Beginners in the field may start with as little as $30,000 a year, while seasoned makeup artists can command $120,000 or even more.

While a bachelor's degree isn't a prerequisite for launching a home-based makeup artistry business, specific types of makeup application may require a cosmetology or esthetician license. To establish your own venture, you might also need to be a Certified Makeup Artist. State regulations for this profession may vary, so it's important to familiarize yourself with the specific requirements in your area.

Idea #12. Painter

• Average Annual Revenue: $76K+ • Average Profit Margins: 7.2% • Startup Costs: $1K-$100K • Time To Revenue: 6-18 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: -2% • Best for: Home improvement pros, construction workers and contractors, people who enjoy physical work and have a sharp eye for detail

Launching a house painting business is a great business idea, particularly for those interested in a scalable niche. Joshua Douglas initiated his venture, A Painter’s Touch, with an initial investment of just $6,000. It has since flourished, with five crews generating over $25,000 in monthly revenue.

While Joshua's initial objective was to achieve a better work-life balance, he ended up surpassing his previous income levels. Discover more about his journey in this enlightening podcast interview:

Idea #13. Graphic Designer

• Average Annual Revenue: $123K+ • Average Profit Margins: 13.5% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 3+ months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 2% • Best for: Visual artists, designers, creative and artistic entrepreneurs

According to a recent Upwork report , graphic design emerged as the most sought-after creative skill in 2023. Graphic designers play a pivotal role in crafting business identities, a crucial factor in attracting clientele and bolstering sales. Given this significance, it's hardly surprising that this service is in high demand in today's market.

The average hourly wage for a graphic designer stands at $24. However, an experienced freelance graphic designer can command rates of $100 or more per hour for their expertise.

Idea #14. Lawn Care and Landscaping Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $272K+ • Average Profit Margins: 8.7% • Startup Costs: $2K-$10K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 8.1% • Best for: People who love green spaces and working outside, gardeners and plant experts, detail-oriented entrepreneurs who excel at customer service

Engaging in landscaping and lawn care services presents an excellent home business idea for individuals who have a passion for the outdoors. The United States has witnessed a consistent annual increase of 3.2% in the number of landscaping businesses over the past five years, and the demand for such services continues to surge.

Landscaping not only ranks among the top home business ideas but also offers the potential for significant scalability and profitability. Mike Andes, for example, propelled Augusta Lawn Care to over $1 million in revenue by the age of 24 and further expanded it into a franchise. Learn more about his service-based business journey in this YouTube interview.

Idea #15. Event Planner

• Average Annual Revenue: $94K+ (wedding planner-specific) • Average Profit Margins: 12.2% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 3+ months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1% • Best for: Organized and social entrepreneurs who are strong networkers and planners, creative problem-solvers

Projections indicate that the event-planning market is poised to exceed $1.5 trillion in value by 2028, marking an impressive growth rate of 11.2%.

Event planning encompasses a range of niches. While wedding planning and corporate events consistently yield high profits, there's potential for substantial revenue in organizing various types of events. This spans from social occasions like parties and reunions to professional gatherings such as product launches and conferences.

Establishing connections with local businesses, including event venues, caterers, and entertainment providers, is paramount for success as a self-employed event planner.

This aspect positions it as one of the most promising home business ideas, especially for individuals with backgrounds in hospitality, food service, and related industries. Drawing upon this expertise allows for rapid business growth.

Idea #16. Photography Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $50K • Average Profit Margins: 7.3% • Startup Costs: $1K-$10K • Time To Revenue: 1-6 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 0.3% • Best for: Visual artists, photographers and videographers, creative entrepreneurs with strong customer service skills

Photography offers numerous avenues for income generation. You can capture events, create family or school portraits, or collaborate with businesses to provide images for their product listings and advertisements.

Idea #17. Proofreader Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $25K+ • Average Profit Margins: 9% • Startup Costs: $100-$1K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.9% • Best for: Grammar and writing experts, people with a sharp eye for detail

Another excellent home-based business concept in the realm of content creation is proofreading. Proofreaders provide written materials with a professional finish, meticulously identifying and rectifying errors in books, blog posts, marketing materials, and other types of written content.

Though proofreading generally commands lower compensation compared to writing, a seasoned proofreader can earn up to $25 per hour . Additionally, you have the opportunity to augment your income by offering additional services like fact-checking or content editing through your business.

Idea #18. Online Tutoring Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $389.5K+ (when an agency has multiple employees) • Average Profit Margins: 13.10% • Startup Costs: $100-$1K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 8.5% • Best for: Educators, people who are compassionate, empathetic, and can explain complex concepts in straightforward terms

If you possess expertise in subjects such as math, English, or history, consider tutoring as one of the top home-based business ideas. It’s also one of the best online business ideas.

The emergence of online tutoring platforms like Skooli and TutorMe has simplified the process of connecting with students and instructing them directly from your home. Beyond your subject knowledge, all you require to begin is a dependable internet connection.

Your earnings as a tutor hinge on your level of experience and areas of proficiency. The standard rate averages around $24 per hour , and you have the potential to command higher fees if you're able to provide college-level tutoring or specialized services like standardized test preparation.

Idea #19. Real Estate Agent

• Average Annual Revenue: $298K+ • Average Profit Margins: 44.6% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: -0.3% • Best for: Skilled negotiators, friendly people with strong sales and communication skills

Becoming a real estate agent is a great home business idea. Agents typically have the ability to dictate their own schedules and select the clients they want to work with, making a career in real estate one of the most suitable options for those considering home-based business ideas.

Real estate agents have the option to represent the buyer or the seller in property transactions. Some agents may alternate between these roles, while others may specialize in one.

Regardless of your focus, obtaining a license is a prerequisite for becoming a real estate agent. The specific licensing criteria vary from state to state, but the process is typically straightforward and swift. Additionally, a high school diploma or GED is the minimum educational requirement to qualify.

Idea #20. Voiceover Business

• Average Annual Revenue: $50K-$110K • Average Profit Margins: 19.8% • Startup Cost: $3K-$5K • Time To Revenue: 1-6 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 0.7% • Best for: Strong readers and performers

If you've ever been complimented on your radio-ready voice, consider a voiceover business as a fantastic home-based business venture.

Voiceover artists are compensated for narrating scripts, audiobooks, or various written materials. Notably, you don't require acting prowess or formal training for this role—what's essential is the capacity to articulate and accurately deliver a written text aloud.

Platforms like Backstage and voices.com provide accessible avenues for honing your skills and establishing a clientele. This enables you to kickstart your journey in the field of voiceover artistry.

Idea #21. Property Manager

• Average Annual Revenue: $372K+ • Average Profit Margins: 10.1% • Startup Costs: $100K-$3.5M • Time To Revenue: 6-18 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.3% • Best for: Home maintenance and repair experts, organized and system-focused entrepreneurs who are great communicators

Another home-based business idea is to venture into independent property management. Property managers are frequently contracted independently by individuals who own rental properties or commercial real estate.

Property managers handle the day-to-day responsibilities associated with a property, including rent collection, organizing or overseeing repairs, and addressing tenant inquiries and concerns.

One particularly lucrative niche involves overseeing Airbnb properties on behalf of their owners. For instance, Nicasa, an Airbnb business, not only manages properties for others but also handles its own real estate investments, generating an impressive annual revenue of $3 million.

To gain insight into their successful strategies, watch this video:

Idea #22. Accounting and Bookkeeping

• Average Annual Revenue: $244K per employee • Average Profit Margins: 18% • Startup Cost: $500-$2.5K • Time To Revenue: 3-12 months (plus accounting degree) • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1% • Best for: Certified accountants, entrepreneurs with strong math and financial skills

Accounting is an amazingly profitable home business idea, but you will need a degree. Breaking into the virtual bookkeeping space can be a challenge even with these credentials since you’ll be competing against large, well-known corporations that provide these services.

Even so, for someone who has accounting experience, this is a great small business idea that pays well.

Idea #23. Life Coach

• Average Annual Revenue: $63K+ • Average Profit Margins: 10.5% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 1.5% • Best for: Excellent motivators, empathetic active listeners, people with strong time management, organization, and problem-solving skills

As a life coach, your role is to empower clients to reach their full potential. This encompasses aiding them in resolving challenges spanning various aspects of their lives, including personal relationships, physical and mental well-being, and broader life objectives.

Becoming a life coach doesn't necessitate specific licensing or formal education requirements. However, similar to other home-based business ventures, acquiring some training can instill confidence in your clients, particularly when you're just starting out.

For comprehensive information on the best life coaching programs, check out this Forbes review of top-notch life coaching certifications. Additionally, holding a bachelor's degree in fields like psychology, social work, or another social science can equip you with the skills needed to enhance your clients' lives.

Idea #24. eBay Reselling

• Average Annual Revenue: $60K-$120K • Average Profit Margins: 5-15% • Startup Cost: $100-$1K • Time To Revenue: 30-90 days • Annual Market Growth Rate: -9.3% (based on eBay annual reports) • Best for: Thrifters and collectors

An eBay store is fast and inexpensive to open. Once it’s set up, all you’ll need to start an online store is the inventory you’ll sell.

When Mike Wilson opened Golden State Picker, he started by selling items he already had. Then, he used those profits to get more inventory from thrift stores, storage unit auctions, and online marketplaces.

He explains how he grew that into a $30,000-a-month business in the podcast below.

Idea #25. Career Coach

• Average Annual Revenue: $64K+ • Average Profit Margins: 2.8% • Startup Costs: $500-$5K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 0.8% • Best for: Recruiting and human resources professionals, strong networkers with industry and job market expertise, effective writers, communicators, and motivators

Career coaches play a critical role in guiding individuals toward their dream jobs. Their responsibilities encompass tasks such as refining resumes and cover letters, conducting interview preparation and practice sessions, and assisting clients in developing the skills necessary for career progression.

Typically, a career coach charges between $100 to $150 per session . With a full roster of clients, this equated to an average annual income of $63,300 in 2023. Offering specialized services, such as executive coaching or aiding individuals through career transitions, can lead to even higher earnings.

Idea #26. Affiliate Marketing

• Average Annual Revenue: $60K-$160K • Average Profit Margins: 8% • Startup Cost: $500-$2K • Time To Revenue: 1-3 months • Annual Market Growth Rate: 10.5% • Best for: Bloggers, YouTubers, those with a large social media presence

Affiliate marketers advocate for products and services offered by other businesses and earn commissions for every sale generated by their promotional efforts.

This not only serves as an excellent supplementary income for blogs or YouTube channels but can also stand as a highly profitable independent venture. It's worth noting that you don't necessarily need to be a prominent social media influencer to thrive in affiliate marketing.

Matt Diggity, for instance, began as an SEO specialist and went on to build a seven-figure affiliate marketing enterprise. You can delve into Matt's journey and gain valuable insights in this podcast .

Idea #27. Print-on-Demand Business

A print-on-demand (POD) business is responsible for designing products and marketing to their target market. When customers buy a product, the POD business owner pays for the cost of production and shipping, then the manufacturer will print the design and ship it directly to the customer.

This profitable business model can be used with t-shirts, mugs, and in conjunction with an existing eCommerce business or subscription box business.

When you have decided what business to start at home, you’ll need to understand the process to start your business. Steps to follow include:

• Decide on a home business idea
• Write a home-based business plan
• Name your home-based business
• Get an LLC for your at-home business
• Get business licenses for your home business
• Get a home business bank account
• Set up your home office
• Market your home-based business
• Serve your customers

You can learn more in our blog about how to start a small business at home.

Choose Your Own Business Idea

We’ve provided a list of online business ideas , work-from-home business ideas, and service business ideas to help you choose small business ideas you can do from home.

The rest is up to you. Once you’ve chosen your idea, you’re on your way to joining the ranks of successful home-based businesses. Which business idea do you want to start?

How to Run a Successful Small Business (2024)

Why Do Businesses Fail?

• Poor financial decisions
• Failure to grow sales
• Inability to manage inventory and growth
• Lack of Experience

How to Run a Business Well

#1. use a business plan.

• Purpose of the company
• Business goals
• Mission statement and values
• Industry outlook including major and local competitors
• Identify the target audience
• Identify ways to reach your ideal customers
• Identify the customer acquisition costs
• Marketing plan 
• Financial projections for one year, three years, five years, and ten years
• Funding needed and how the company will get it
• Necessary roles
• Employee benefits
• How to build company culture

#2. Use Profit Goals as Benchmarks for Success

• Look up the net income ratio for your industry on NYUs Margins by Sectors chart.
• Divide your profit target by the net income ratio.
• That’s how much revenue you’ll need unless you can figure out ways to get a higher profit margin.

#3. Mission Statement

#5. key performance indicators (kpis).

#6. Show an Interest in Your Customers’ Problems (and a Desire to Solve Them)

#7. providing a reliable service is crucial, #8. deliver more than is promised to every customer.

• Providing worst-case time and price estimates and delivering for less.
• Throw in a small gift like a sticker, a coupon, or pieces of candy.
• Provide free bread or chips & salsa at restaurants.
• Fix something small that you can do quickly without charging.

#9. Reward Customer Loyalty

#10. handle customer complaints immediately.

• Hear them out.
• Apologize for the inconvenience.
• Ask what you can do to make it right.
• Do what they ask (within reason).

#11. Operate Lean

• Limiting the amount of inventory and equipment you buy to what is currently needed
• Finding ways to remove waste
• Focusing on continuous improvement
• Making everything easier for employees and the business owner

#12. Avoid Unnecessary Loans 

#13. manage your margins.

#14. Cut Underperforming Lines

#15. outsource as many functions as possible.

• Bookkeeping
• Administrative work

#16. Offer Industry-Leading Pay and Benefits

#17. hire passionate employees , #18. maintain a marketing budget.

#19. Hire an Agency 

• High-quality content marketing specialists.
• Social media management specialists.
• Graphic designers create content such as infographics, videos, and memes.
• People who specialize in optimizing search engines.
• Paid ads experts.
• Google My Business Experts.

#20. A Successful Business Tells a Story

#21. stop wasting time and money on marketing that doesn’t work.

Closing Thoughts on How to Run a Business 

Best Networking Groups for Small Business Owners

Are you curious about the best networking groups for small business owners?

We looked for all the places a small business owner can network with other entrepreneurs to share knowledge. Whether you’re looking for in-person events or small business communities online, you’ll find a small business group that’s perfect for you as you start or grow your business.

[su_note note_color="#dbeafc"] Check out the links below to jump straight to a professional networking group that looks interesting to you.

American Marketing Association (AMA)

Linkedin groups, network after work, facebook groups, local trade associations, women in business, local development associations, the national association for the self-employed (nase), global entrepreneurship network (gen), minority business development agency (mbda), chamber of commerce, entrepreneurs’ organization (eo), business networking international (bni), young entrepreneur council (yec), social enterprise alliance (sea), 4networking, federation of small businesses, consider volunteering, how to network effectively, how to find the right small business networking group.

• Go Out and Sharpen Your Networking Skills [/su_note]

Get ready to learn about the best business networking groups.

We’re creating a business networking and mentorship group to bring together successful business owners, consultants, and prospective business owners to help everyone succeed.

Given we’ve interviewed hundreds of successful business owners and have over a million people who look to us for business insights, we think you’ll love our online networking group. Make sure you’re signed up for updates.

Let’s be real here: Every business owner needs to be educated on marketing for business success. One of the best small business networking organizations for marketing is the American Marketing Association .

Network with professional marketers, learn from online and in-person meetups, and get certified on the most updated marketing strategies.

LinkedIn is a great place to network online, interact with other professionals, and learn skills in your industry. You can join community groups for free or you can subscribe to LinkedIn Premium to get advanced insights and online courses.

The Network After Work community offers four levels of networking opportunities:

• Basic: Virtual networking events and three 1-to-1 meetings per month for free.
• Connection Builder: For $9 per month or $49 annually, you’ll get in-person networking events, 1:1 community messaging, and masterclasses on marketing and business growth.
• Community Builder: The $29 monthly plan includes curated peer groups and member profiles to help small business owners network and improve their business strategies.
• Lead Finder: Small business owners can use the $99 monthly plan to help find leads. It includes everything in the lower-level plans and provides contact information to turn professional networking into lead generation.

Meetup is a platform where people can create local meetups and join groups of like-minded people. The networking opportunities are mostly in your physical location (or somewhere you’re visiting). It’s free for both personal and small business networking groups, too (unless you wish to host your own events, in which case, you will need to invest in a paid membership).

Eventbrite is best known in the event management industry because it helps concert promoters and other event planners manage their ticket sales. Like Meetup, it also has a directory of business events you can check out.

Business leaders can network with customers, other business professionals, and vendors in local and industry-specific Facebook online networks. Remember your messaging will need to be slightly different for each group.

There are thousands of local trade associations you can join to improve your business network, improve your knowledge of your field, and meet possible mentors. Check out this directory of associations for some ideas of where you can meet like-minded individuals.

Women in Business is a networking group that supports women by offering masterclasses, features about your business, mentoring groups, and other materials. Lifetime membership is $397, or you can pay $47 per month.

The Small Business Administration provides leadership development through local chapters. Many small business owners find the Small Business Development Centers a valuable resource for learning more about:

• Business planning
• Capital investments
• Financial management
• Human resources
• New technology

Chief is a women’s-only organization of executives and founders of small businesses. Entry requirements vary depending on the size of your organization, your position, and business revenue. Those with fewer than 30 employees need:

• $2 million in annual revenue
• Prior experience at larger-sized companies
• Reporting levels under CEO in previous roles

Chief provides mentor relationships and professional development on inclusionary practices, media interactions, and technology disruption. There are also other networking groups inside the group. Learn more about Chief membership .

The National Association for the Self-Employed is for self-employed people and offers monthly grants, discounts, business profiles, expert advice on a range of subjects, and even life insurance. They have a variety of plans ranging from $25 annually for students to $540 a year for the most life insurance and other benefits.

This international organization helps people who are building businesses understand the entrepreneurial process, including ways to get different types of funding. You also get a member profile and can compete in global awards competitions for business. Check out GEN .

The MBDA helps minorities, women, and formerly incarcerated individuals grow as entrepreneurs by providing access to information, grants, and events. This is a government agency; as such, you may require some assistance to best navigate the resources it offers for entrepreneurs.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the largest business networking group in the States. The organization has thousands of local Chamber of Commerce groups across the country to help you meet other business owners and develop your business.

You’ll benefit from in-person and online networking groups hosted by SCORE , plus you can use the platform to find a mentor and even volunteer opportunities. Check out their site to learn more.

Entrepreneurs’ Organization has 18,000 members across 220 local chapters in 78 countries. They offer local and regional events, education, and mentorship. You’ll have to apply and get approved to join the network.

There are over 318,000 people in more than 11,000 local BNI chapters . Members create economic activity equal to $22 billion each year. One of the most notable things about these business networking groups is that they are referral-based, meaning the small business owners who suggest new members are already part of the organization.

Small business owners under the age of 45 who make over $1 million in revenue, have received more than $1 million in funding, or have sold a business for more than $2 million in the last three years should apply for the Young Entrepreneur Council . You’ll be able to network with other young business professionals who are at the top of their game.

If you’re trying to make the world a better place, joining this vetted community shows your business is committed to placing the good of the world over your business profits. There are three membership levels with fees that range from $150 to $275 per year. All the plans get you included in the member database so you can network with other members. Learn more about SEA .

Vistage is a mentorship group that is over 65 years old and claims more than 45,000 members and an average of 4.6% increased revenue during 2020. There are applications for guest speakers, chairpeople, sponsors, and licensees as well.

If you’re looking to build business networks in the United Kingdom, check out 4N . They have online and local networking groups, plus a free online directory you can use to help your business grow.

The Federation of Small Businesses is another UK small business group. There are more than 500,000 members and rates range from £ 97.5 to £ 1,195 depending on the size of your organization. It gives access to:

• Business banking
• Business insurance quotes
• Debt recovery service
• Free networking and events
• Legal, tax, and employment advice
• Legal templates
• Payroll and pensions
• Tax investigation protection
• Training courses

Organizations like the Rotary Club (focused on doing good in the local community and internationally) and the Kiwanis Club (an international nonprofit organization that helps kids) offer great opportunities for business owners. Contribute to the cause financially or volunteer with a local chapter.

While volunteer events aren’t technically local business networking groups, as a small business owner, they can provide a great opportunity to build your professional network and meet potential clients. Doing good in the community never hurt a small business!

Networking is an essential part of business success. It can help you build relationships, generate leads, and learn from others. Here are a few tips to help you network effectively:

• Set goals for your networking activities. What do you hope to achieve by networking? Do you want to generate leads, find a job, or learn about a new industry? Having specific goals in mind will help you focus your efforts and make the most of your time.
• Identify your target audience. Who do you want to network with? Potential customers, clients, or referral partners? Once you know your target audience, you can tailor your networking activities accordingly.
• Choose the right networking events. There are many different types of networking events, so it's important to choose the ones that are right for you. Consider the goals of the event, the target audience, and the cost.
• Be prepared. Before you attend a networking event, take some time to prepare. This includes researching the other attendees, practicing your elevator pitch, and bringing plenty of business cards.
• Be yourself. When you're networking, it's important to be yourself. People can spot a fake from a mile away, so don't try to be someone you're not. Just be genuine and let your personality shine through.
• Listen actively. When you're talking to someone, really listen to what they have to say. Ask questions and show that you're interested in their perspective and experience. This will help you build rapport and make a lasting impression.
• Follow up after the event. After you attend a networking event, follow up with the people you met. Send them a thank-you note or connect with them on LinkedIn. This will help you stay in touch and build relationships.

Networking can be a great way to grow your business and achieve your goals. By following these tips, you can network effectively and make the most of your time.

Pro Tip: Want to take your business to the next level? In addition to participating in networking events, you might want to commit to a mastermind group, too. New to the idea? Learn what you need to know in our blog on Best Mastermind Groups & Mastermind Pro Tips .

Once you’ve performed the steps from the previous section, there are a variety of terms you can search to find the best networking groups in your area. Try some of these search terms:

• Business networking groups near me
• Business networking near me
• Business clubs near me
• Business network near me
• Marketing groups near me
• Entrepreneur groups near me
• Small business networking events near me
• Networking events near me
• Free networking events near me
• Networking events today near me
• Professional networking events near me
• Networking opportunities near me
• Networking meetings near me
• Small business groups near me
• Local networking events near me

Go Out and Sharpen Your Networking Skills

We’ve provided you with a list of business network groups where you can interact with hundreds of thousands of people. It won’t always come easy building your small business network, but if you follow our networking tips and keep building relationships, you’ll get there.

What networking events for entrepreneurs have you gone to? Did you like them?

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Contents of a Business Plan: Everything You Need to Know

The contents of a business plan consist of a detailed description of what, when, why, where, and how the business's operations will be accomplished. 3 min read updated on January 01, 2024

Overview of a Business Plan

A business plan includes the cost of organizing the business, the anticipated sources of revenue, how the products and services are customer oriented, and anticipated profit margins. Business plans serve two main purposes. First, they are a guide business owners use to streamline management and planning/organization of the business. Second, they show potential venture capitalists, bankers, and other lenders a comprehensive plan to encourage them to invest in the business.

Sublevels of a business plan include:

• Marketing plan
• Financial plan
• Human resource plan
• Production plan

Elements of a Business Plan

A well-written business plan will include the following:

• Cover letter

Table of Contents

Executive Summary

• Mission statement
• Company background
• Products and services
• Competitive analysis

Marketing/Realization

• Location/Production/Administrative
• Management and international organization
• Risk analysis
• Financial planning

Summary/Conclusion

Cover Letter

The business plan's cover letter has the same purpose as a cover letter for a resume. The point is to engage prospective investors using the cover letter so they'll look at the entire plan. The cover letter should include the recipient's address, the date, and your address. Begin the cover letter with "Dear" followed by the person's name.

In the body of the cover letter, let the recipient know you're submitting a business plan with a short one-sentence description of the business and what the recipient can expect when reading the plan. In the next paragraph, indicate that you look forward to hearing from them and provide a phone number they can call at their convenience.

Thank them for their time. Sign off. Include your name in typewritten form along with your signature.

Keep this page short and to the point. Include your business logo, business name, if there is a founder, and the name. Add "Business Plan," an image (optional), and the date.

The table of contents is a roadmap to help the recipient peruse the list and easily find each section. Some people may choose to read sections one after the other while others may choose to skip around. Include every section and subsection that may be of interest to a potential investor.

This is an important section. Because you're targeting executives, the overview of your business should be top-quality information to entice them to read the complete plan. The focus should be a summary of the main facets of your business plan.

Mission Statement

This section is a short statement about your business's goal and what you plan to create through the enterprise.

Company Background

This is a short statement including the date the business was developed, its founders, stages of development, the date it was incorporated, and, for existing businesses, the level of success.

Also, include the key figures in the business and the ownership and legal structure.

Products and Services

Under this section, provide a detailed description of your customer needs, benefits to customers, marketing services, and advantages and disadvantages of any competitor services or products.

Marketing Plan

This will include an overview of the market in general with an emphasis on purchase incentives, market analysis, and customer structure. It will also include the position your business holds in the market using information from target customer groups, canvassed market segments, and sale channels.

Competitive Analysis

Provide information about your main competitors' names, locations, market positions, weaknesses, strengths, and target markets.

This section covers details about product range, services, and pricing strategies. Sales targets for the next five years should also be included.

Location/Production/Administration

Include the location of the business and the advantages and disadvantages of its location. The production should discuss in-house and/or outsourced production and material costs. The administration portion will discuss the office infrastructure, such as accounting and technical support.

Management and International Organization

This section could work written as an organizational chart outlining member functions and responsibilities, special skills, and salaries.

Risk Analysis

Provide information on anticipated internal risks such as marketing, production, management, and financing. External risks would include information on ecological, economic, social, and legal areas.

Financial Planning

Lay out your plan for short- and long-term financial planning.

This is a final wrap up of the business plan that binds the everything together.

If you need help with outlining the contents of a business plan, you can post your legal need on UpCounsel's marketplace. UpCounsel accepts only the top 5 percent of lawyers to its site. Lawyers on UpCounsel come from law schools such as Harvard Law and Yale Law and average 14 years of legal experience, including work with or on behalf of companies like Google, Menlo Ventures, and Airbnb.

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Content Approved by UpCounsel

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