business plan writing 101 wharton entrepreneurship series

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Knowledge at Wharton Podcast

How entrepreneurs can create effective business plans, march 2, 2010 • 16 min listen.

When an entrepreneur has identified a potential business opportunity, the next step is developing a business plan for the new venture. What exactly should the new plan contain? How can the entrepreneur ensure it has the substance to find interest among would-be investors? In this installment of a series of podcasts for the Wharton-CERT Business Plan Competition, Wharton management professor Ian MacMillan explains that business plans must contain several crucial elements: They must articulate a market need; identify products or services to fill that need; assess the resources required to produce those products or services; address the risks involved in the venture; and estimate the potential revenues and profits.

An edited transcript of the interview appears below:

Knowledge at Wharton: Professor MacMillan, thank you for speaking with us about the necessity of entrepreneurs writing business plans. To start with a basic question, what exactly is a business plan?

Ian MacMillan: A business plan to me is a 25-page, maximum 30-page, document, which is a description, analysis and evaluation of a venture that you want to get funded by somebody. It provides critical information to the reader — usually an investor — about you, the entrepreneur, about the market that you are going to enter, about the product that you want to enter with, your strategy for entry, what the prospects are financially, and what the risks are to anybody who invests in the project.

Knowledge at Wharton: Could you explain some of these elements in a little more detail and describe how entrepreneurs can develop an effective business plan?

MacMillan: Let me start by saying that you probably want to avoid developing a detailed business plan unless you have done some initial work. Basically what happens is that by doing a little bit of work, you earn the right to do more work. The first thing I would do before you start a business plan is think about a concept statement. A concept statement is about three to five pages that you put together and share with potential customers or investors just to see if they think it’s worth the energy and effort of doing more detailed work.

The concept statement has a few pieces to it. You are going to have a description of the market need that has to be fulfilled; a description of the products or services that you think are going to fulfill that need; a description of the key resources that you think are going to be needed to provide that product or service; a specification of what resources are currently available; an articulation of what you think the risks are; and then a sort of rough and ready estimate of what you think the profits and profitability will be.

The idea is to put together this concept document and begin to share it around with people who are going to have to support your venture if you take it forward. This allows you to rethink as a result of feedback that you get. You might get word back from the various stakeholders — like potential customers or distributors — that this really wasn’t such a good idea after all. That saves you the energy and effort of putting together a big business plan.

Knowledge at Wharton: Assuming the concept statement works out and you want to move towards the business plan, what else would you need? And where can you find the information? Some information can be hard to locate, especially about your competitors.

MacMillan: It’s really important to go out and speak to your potential customers. You need to find the people who you think will buy your product and talk to them about what dissatisfies them with their current offerings. You should get a sense from them about who is providing the alternative at the moment. Remember, the world has gone for maybe 100,000 years without your idea — and people are getting by; they’re not dying. Something out there is servicing their need. So what is the closest competitive alternative to what you want to offer?

That is what you need to find out — and that involves talking and listening. And for all the enthusiasm you have for your venture or your idea, you really need to listen to people who are eventually going to write a check for it.

Before you go on to write a business plan, you have to do some more work. If the concept statement looks good, then the next step is to do a 15- to 20-page feasibility analysis. This means we are now going to take this idea to the next level. We’ve learned from potential customers and distributors. We’ve learned who the major competitors are. We’ve shaped the idea more clearly, and now we’re digging deeper.

The next challenge you face is to say, well, if you start this business, what evidence do you have that the market actually wants it? Who do you think would write a check for your product? You need to articulate what makes your product or your service feasible. What has to be done in order to make this thing real? You need a description of how you intend to enter the market, a description of who the major competitors are, a preliminary plan — a very rough plan — which specifies what you think your revenues and profits are going to be, and an estimate of what you think the required investment will be. And only then, once you have articulated that, and once again shared it with your stakeholder community, will you perhaps be able to go and write a business plan.

Knowledge at Wharton: Once you have done your feasibility analysis and assuming you get the go ahead from your stakeholders, what is the next step?

MacMillan: The idea of the business plan is to convince the stakeholders. First, what we need to do in a business plan is show that we understand the needs — the unmet needs — of potential customers. Second, we need to understand the strengths and weaknesses of the current most competitive offering out there. Third, we need to understand the skills and capabilities that you and your team have as entrepreneurs. Next we need to understand what the investors need to get out of their investment, because they have to put their money in and they need to have some kind of sense of what they are going to get in terms of returns. In addition, the investment needs to be competitive with alternative investments that the investors might make.

The most important idea in the business plan is to articulate and satisfy the different perspectives of various stakeholders. This process sets in motion some basic requirements in the business plan — to tee up right from the start — evidence that the customer will accept it. Probably a third of the ventures out there that fail are because some person came up with the right product that they thought the world would love and then found out that the customers couldn’t care less. What you want to try to do in a business plan is convince the reader that there are customers out there who will in fact buy the product — not because it’s a great product, but because they want it and they are willing to pay for it.

Moreover, you need to convince the reader that you have some kind of proprietary position that you can defend. You also need to convince your readers that you have an experienced and motivated management team and that you have the experience and the management capabilities to pull it off. You need to convince potential investors that they are going to get a better return than they could get elsewhere, so you need to estimate the net present value of this venture. You need to show that the risk they are taking will be accompanied by appropriate returns for that risk. If we look at the contents of a typical business plan, you need to be able to articulate all these issues in some 25 to 30 pages. People get tired if they have to read too much.

Now let’s look at the various components of the business plan document:

First, you need an executive summary that grabs the attention of the potential investor. This should be done in no more than two pages. The executive summary is meant to convince the potential investor to read further and say, “Wow! This is why I should read more about this business plan.”

Next, you need a market analysis. What is the market? How fast is it growing? How big is it? Who are the major players? In addition, you need a strategy section. It should address questions such as, “How are you going to get into this market? And how are you going to win in that marketplace against current competition?”

After that, you need a marketing plan. How are we going to segment the market? Which parts of the market are we going to attack? How are we going to get the attention of that market and attract it to our product or service?

You also need an operations plan that answers the question, “How are we going to make it happen?” And you need an organization plan, which shows who the people are who will take part in the venture.

You need to list the key events that will take place as the plan unfolds. What are the major things that are going to happen? If your plan happens to be about a physical product, are you going to have a prototype or a model? If it happens to be a software product, are you going to have a piece of software developed — a prototypical piece of software? What are the key milestones by which investors can judge what progress you are making in the investment? Remember that you will not get all your money up front. You will get your funds allocated contingent on your ability to achieve key milestones. So you may as well indicate what those milestones are.

You should also include a hard-nosed assessment of the key risks. For example, what are the market risks? What are the product risks? What are the financial risks? What are the competitive risks? To the extent that you are upfront and honest about it, you will convince your potential investors that you have done your homework. You need to also be able to indicate how you will mitigate these risks — because if you can’t mitigate them, investors are not going to put money into your venture.

After that, what you get down to is a financial plan where you basically do a five-year forecast of what you think the finances are going to be — maybe with quarterly data or projections for the first two years and annual for the next three years.

You need a pro forma profit and loss statement. You need a pro forma balance sheet if you have assets in the balance sheet. You need to have a pro forma cash flow. Your cash flow is important, because it is the cash flow that kills. You may have great profits on your books but you may run out of money — so you need a pro forma cash flow statement. And you need a financing plan that explains, as the project unfolds, what tranches of financing you will need and how will you go about raising that money.

Finally you need a financial evaluation that tells investors, if you make this investment, what is its value going to be to you as an investor. That is basically the structure of the plan.

Knowledge at Wharton: Let’s say you have written a business plan and presented it to your investors. How closely do you have to be tied to the plan? Does it mean that once you are executing against the plan, you should reject new opportunities you find because they are not part of your plan? Or should you build in some flexibility that allows you to explore emerging opportunities?

MacMillan: Is this an opportunity for me to speak about discovery-driven planning?

Knowledge at Wharton: Of course.

MacMillan: Okay. The thing about most entrepreneurial ventures is that your outcome is uncertain — because what you are doing is very new. It is very, very hard to predict what the actual outcome is going to be. One of the most fundamental flaws is that in the face of unfolding uncertainty, you single-mindedly and bloody-mindedly pursue the original objective.

The reality is that the true opportunity will emerge over time. What venture capitalists do is they will put a small amount of money into the project, allow the entrepreneur to enter that market space and then — contingent on performance and contingent on what apparent traction you can get in that market space — completely re-plan to find out what the true opportunity really is. It is insanity to insist that people actually meet their plan as it was originally written.

This doesn’t mean you compromise your objectives. The idea is that I want to keep on trying to meet my objectives, but how I meet them must change as the plan unfolds. That’s basically what led to all the work that Wharton has done in the last few years on discovery driven planning. It’s a way of thinking about planning that says, “I’m going to make small investments. If I’m wrong early, I can fail fast, fail cheap and move on. But as I find out what the true opportunity is, I can aggressively invest in what this opportunity is.”

Knowledge at Wharton: Could you give an example of a company that has used this discovery-driven planning process to take its business to the next level?

MacMillan: One company that has done the most in this area is Air Products. What they have been able to do is use discovery-driven planning to unfold completely different businesses from the ones that they were in. Air Products makes things like carbon dioxide and oxygen and nitrogen. It is a very old-line company. Using discovery-driven planning, they have been able to move aggressively into, for instance, the service sector. Once they recognized that they were able to deliver reliably and predictably in the face of uncertain demand, they developed a set of skills that allowed them to enter the service business where the return on investment and return on assets are far higher than putting a huge plant in place.

Knowledge at Wharton: Professor MacMillan, thanks so much.

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Entrepreneurship Series – Business Plan Writing 101

This is a great lecture worth watching from Wharton. It’s 48 minutes long but still pretty condensed and up to the minute. Other important questions are when to write a full blown business plan and why write a business plan but when you do have to have one this will show you how.

Another key element of a business plan is actually having it be read by those you need to do so, the first stage in that process is too write an executive summary .

Wharton Entrepreneurship Workshop, “Business Plan Writing 101,” featuring Patrick FitzGerald, C’97, Managing Director of DreamIt Ventures. FitzGerald discusses what is required to write an effective business plan.

The video below is a punchy (literally) and fun overview of writing a plan.

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JOANNA TROJAK BLOG

Essential Guide to Writing a Business Plan: Insights from the Wharton Entrepreneurship Series and MIT Nuts and Bolts of Bussiness Plan

Updated: Apr 21

Ever thought about what makes a business plan not just good, but great? In the whirlwind world of entrepreneurship, having a solid business plan is like having a roadmap in the wild—it can mean the difference between getting lost in the woods and finding your way to success. Drawing lessons from the prestigious Wharton Entrepreneurship Series, I am diving deep into the essence of crafting a business plan that speaks volumes. This isn't just about putting your ideas on paper; it's about creating a shared vision that excites, persuades, and propels your business forward.

In this comprehensive guide, we'll explore the crucial components of a business plan, from your elevator pitch to the executive summary, and from market analysis to your financial strategy. whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting, these insights from wharton's experts will arm you with the knowledge you need to draft a business plan that stands out. ready to roll up your sleeves and dive in.

I must admit I haven't been a big fan of bussiness plans and such for a long time. I thought that writing all the essential details of your bussiness are completely unnecessary and what is going to get me to success is just acting. Oh boy, how was I wrong.

My first bussiness was a complete chaos and as you can imagine, it failed. Talking with my tutor at the university, I understood that preparing a plan is not only necessary but crucial.

So let's dive into the nitty-gritty of crafting a business plan that not only captures attention but also wins hearts and investments. Pull up a chair, grab your notebook, and let's break down the art of business plan writing, as inspired by the Wharton Entrepreneurship Series.

The Heart of Your Business: The Company

1. What's Your Story? Imagine introducing your company with a pitch so compelling it sticks in people's minds like a catchy tune. Start with two sentences that encapsulate the essence of your business. This isn't just any pitch; it's the story of your dream, neatly packaged into words that roll off the tongue effortlessly. It's about who you are, what problem you solve, and why it matters.

The Art of Selling: You're Always on Stage

2. Selling Isn't Optional As an entrepreneur, you're the main character in your business's story, constantly on stage. If selling isn't your forte, it's crucial to find someone who can take on this role with gusto. Selling is more than a transaction; it's about selling your vision, your team, and ultimately, yourself.

The Blueprint: What Makes a Stellar Business Plan?

3. Industry Savvy and Team Dynamics Your business plan should scream expertise and team synergy. Highlight your industry experience, the unique blend of skills your team brings to the table, and the intriguing uniqueness of your business. Don't forget to mention your advisory board, especially if it includes experts who compensate for any gaps in your experience or knowledge.

4. The Transformation Describe the world before your company and how it changes with your business in it. Use a frontend or backend approach to detail this transformation, supported by a six-step process and screenshots that visualize your vision.

5. Roadmap to Success Lay out your strategic roadmap. From marketing tactics to partnerships and initial customer interactions, your plan should detail how you'll draw people in. Include predictions on customer growth and key milestones, painting a picture of a thriving future.

6. Knowing the Competition Acknowledge your competitors but don't dwell. Present a balanced view of 4 to 5 key players, their strengths, and weaknesses. Consider potential acquisition targets, subtly hinting at your company's valuable position in the market landscape.

7. Financials: The Growth Engine Clear, concise details on how you'll generate revenue and manage costs are paramount. Outline your financial projections and growth strategy for the coming years, setting realistic yet ambitious goals.

8. The Ask Your business plan should conclude with a straightforward ask. Specify the amount of funding you need, what it will be used for, and the projected return on investment. This is your moment to be bold and confident in your vision's value.

The Philosophy Behind Successful Ventures

9. Flexibility and Vision Remember, a business plan is a living document, reflecting a shared vision rather than a static set of instructions. It's about showing you understand your business inside out, can create value, and know how to capture it. Your executive summary and team presentation will be the first (and possibly the most critical) components scrutinized by investors.

10. The Foundation of Happiness The formula H=R/E, where Happiness equals Reality divided by Expectations, serves as a reminder to set realistic goals and manage expectations. Planning is everything, but be prepared to adapt your plans as you gather feedback and learn more about your market.

In Conclusion: Crafting a Winning Business Plan

Writing a business plan is an art form that requires clarity, conviction, and the ability to tell a compelling story. From your elevator pitch to the financials and the "ask," every element should be carefully crafted to convey the value and vision of your business. Drawing on the wisdom from the Wharton Entrepreneurship Series, this guide has equipped you with the tools to create a business plan that not only stands out but also lays the groundwork for a successful venture.

Remember, your business plan is more than a document; it's a reflection of your passion, perseverance, and potential. With these insights and a dash of entrepreneurial spirit, you're ready to turn your vision into reality. So go ahead, chart your course, and let the world see what you're made of. Your journey to entrepreneurship just got a whole lot clearer.

Would you like to explore any specific section in more detail or have any other questions on crafting your winning business plan?

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Home » Learn » Writing a Business Plan

Writing a Business Plan

Writing a business plan is an essential part of building a successful business. At its core, a business plan is a road map for your project: it establishes your purpose, it sets goals and expectations, and it forecasts the relationship between cost and revenue. Business plans exist in many forms: some formal and some informal.

Ultimately you’re seeking to answer the same basic set of questions—either for yourself, your team or an outside investor. The following list of questions, which is adapted from The Wharton School Entrepreneurship Workshop “Business Plan Writing 101,” serves as a good starting point:

 Take a look at the video below as well as the guide & infographic for more insights 🙂

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Business Plan Writing 101: Wharton Entrepreneurship Series

Wharton Entrepreneurship Workshop, “Business Plan Writing 101,” featuring Patrick FitzGerald, C’97, Managing Director of DreamIt Ventures. FitzGerald discusses what is required to write an effective business plan. #entrepreneur #businessplan #wharton ----- Founded in 1881 as the world’s first collegiate business school, the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is shaping the future of business by incubating ideas, driving insights, and creating leaders who change the world. With a faculty of more than 235 renowned professors, Wharton has 5,000 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students. Each year 18,000 professionals from around the world advance their careers through Wharton Executive Education’s individual, company-customized, and online programs. More than 99,000 Wharton alumni form a powerful global network of leaders who transform business every day. Learn more about Wharton: https://www.wharton.upenn.edu/ Subscribe to the Wharton YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/t....hewhartonschool/?sub

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Business Plans 101

Whether you're in startup mode or your need financing to expand your business, writing a business plan is essential. Here's how.

Whether you’re thinking about starting a business or looking for financing to expand one you’re already running , you’ll find writing a business plan beneficial, if not essential.

Many lenders won’t give you money unless they know you have a well-thought out strategy for where you’re going and how you’ll get there. Even if you’re approaching friends and family for money, people who won’t require you to have a plan, it will be helpful to write one. Simply by going through all the necessary steps to put one together, you’ll wind up with a clearer idea of what you’re trying to accomplish and many of the challenges you might face along the way. Certainly, if you’re going to try to get money from a bank, a government-backed lender, a venture capitalist, or a community development financial institution (CDFI), you will need a formal business plan.

This article is part of a series that will teach you how to write the perfect business plan – discussing why you should have one, the different types of business plans you can develop, and what goes into each section. Before we get into the how-to, let’s take a deeper look into what writing a plan will do for you.

The first clue comes right in the description of what a business plan is: a roadmap for your business that outlines your goals and spells out how you aim to achieve them. In other words, it’s a guide for how to set up your business and run it on a daily basis to help you reach your long term goals. And as we said, it’s a worthwhile investment of time and effort even if you don’t need to present it to potential investors.

Nine Benefits of Writing a Business Plan

Writing a business plan will help you gather all of your ideas in one place, hone your message and crystallize your vision. This will keep you from getting scattered, sidetracked, or pulled away from what’s likely to make you the most successful.

2) Research

The knowledge you’ll gain as you explore the industry you’re working in will be invaluable. You’ll get a much better understanding of the niche you hope to fill and where you fit into the market.

3) Commitment

Taking a look at expense projections, sales and revenue forecasts, and all the other dollars and cents aspects of your business will help keep you on track as you move forward, and serve as a built-in warning system if you’re not where you’re supposed to be.

4) Exploration

It’s easy to get so focused on the nuts and bolts of your business that you lose sight of the bigger picture. A business plan will help ground you, but also figure out where you fit within the greater whole, things you may not have taken the time to consider.

5) Objectivity

Talking to friends and family about your great idea can make it seem like a can’t-miss proposition. The supportive environment can make it difficult to anticipate real-world bumps and business realities. Doing the actual math while putting your plan together will help you see whether your idea is truly sustainable or needs some work. It’s vitally important to catch things early before you invest too much time or money.

6) Teamwork

Even solo businesses have team members, whether it’s a supportive spouse or a professional accountant or attorney. Larger companies may have someone to manage sales, another person for marketing, and one for operations. No matter how many people are on your team, it’s important to share the same goals and values as you work toward the future. A business plan will serve to get everyone on the same page as you move forward.

7) Accountability

Business plans have a fairly standardized set of components. Doing the work to put the plan together will make sure you think about all of the important facets you need to cover, and give you standards to hold yourself to as you start to put the plan into effect.

8) Measurement

Laying out your goals and ideas in advance gives you something to check in with along the way to see how you’re doing. Where are you exceeding your expectations? In which areas might you be falling short? While it’s important to see your business plan as flexible, it’s great to have something in writing that helps keep you honest with yourself about your performance.

9) Recruitment

When you’re looking to attract top talent, your business plan will help give potential employees an overview of what you’re all about, and their reaction to the plan will help you know if they’re a good fit. Do they grasp the key issues involved with your business? Fill a slot you need to move forward? Great employees will appreciate how you’ve taken the time to assess your place in the market — as will lenders and investors when you need to raise money.

What Are the Different Types of Business Plans?

Okay, you’re sold. You understand the benefits of having a business plan and you’re committed to writing one. What comes next? Decide on what type to create.

Just as your goals and business will not look exactly the same as someone else’s, your business plan will be unique to you. Some elements belong in each one, and we’ll explain each of those below, but your presentation might be completely different. Most importantly, think about who the audience is and what the goals are for the plan. Most business plans will take one of the following shapes:

As its name suggests, a miniplan isn’t a lengthy document. It can be as short as two to 10 pages, as long as it covers your concept for the business, how you’ll finance and market it, and financial information such as operating expenses, cash flow, income projections and a balance sheet. It’s a great way to lay out your concept or have basic information to show to potential partners or investors. Know your audience, though. A miniplan isn’t a substitute for a longer, full-length document. If it’s for your own personal use, this might suffice. An investor or lender may be looking for something more.

Internal Working Plan

If the primary purpose of your plan is to use it to run your business, it doesn’t have to be nearly as formal as a traditional, full-scale business plan. You’ll want it chock full of details about your finances and objectives, but you can leave out the parts that would mostly be necessary for outsiders, like resumes of key executives and photos of products or prototypes.

Your final presentation can also be a bit less fancy. No need to print it out on nice stock and put it in a beautiful binder. You don’t even have to print it at all, if it’s on your computer. What’s in the plan is far more important than what it looks like. Like the old, oft-folded road maps we kept in the glove compartment before the days of smartphone GPS apps, this is a document you’ll live with, something that will help guide you and keep you on the right path.

A Formal Presentation Plan

This is likely the kind document that originally came to mind when we started talking about business plans. This is the real deal, the one that’ll take the longest, probably be the longest, and will be suitable for showing to lenders, investors and anyone else you need to impress outside the company. When we detail the components below, plan to include all of them in your final document. And pay attention to presentation, spelling and grammar. As opposed to your own in-house plan, a formal presentation plan requires recognized business language and should avoid slang, jargon and shorthand only you will understand. It must be well-written and consistent, especially where numbers and finances are concerned.

Your presentation plan should be printed on high-quality paper, with color, especially if you’ve included product photographs. It should include charts, graphs, tables and illustrations, and be professionally bound.

While having a printed document is still recommended, and may even be required by a potential lender or investor, many business documents are transmitted electronically today, so it’s smart to have a version of your plan that looks great as an electronic document. This could be a simple PDF of what you’ve had printed or something more elaborate, with clickable spreadsheets to manipulate projections. As with each of the above plans, let your needs dictate what kind of document you create.

Elements of a Business Plan

A formal plan will include all of the following items, and less formal plans, like mini or working plans, will include many of them. We’ll touch on them briefly here, and expand on each throughout the series in its own separate article.

Click on each header to open the full article.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

An overview of what you want to accomplish. This is usually the first page of your plan after the title page. However, you might want to save writing it until last, as it sums up all you’ve presented.

BUSINESS DESCRIPTION

A description of your company and its industry, along with the current outlook and possibilities for the future.

ORGANIZATION AND MANAGEMENT

Explain how your company will be structured. What does the management team look like? How many employees will you need? Will you have other individuals in charge of certain functions, or run everything yourself? Which tasks will be assigned to each division? What are the expenses related to operating the business?

PRODUCTS AND SERVICES

What, exactly, are you selling or providing? This is where you fully explain your concept. Include a description, the suppliers you’ll use (if any), what your costs are, how you determined them, and how your product or service is different from what’s already available.

MARKET ANALYSIS AND STRATEGIES

A look at who your competitors are, how you are different, your strengths and weaknesses compared to the competition, what kind of market share you’re hoping for, and how you will position yourself to get there.

SALES AND MARKETING

Given what you know about the existing business conditions, how will you market your product or company? How will you sell? Will you have a sales force or use outside representatives? How will you build the company, handle expansion, and recruit and compensate your employees?

FUNDING REQUEST

If the main purpose of the plan is to help you raise money, whether from investors or through a loan, this is where you’ll spell out what you need. How much are you looking for right now? How might that change over the next five years? What do you plan to do with the money?

FINANCIAL PLAN

This section will be imperative if you’re looking for money, but it’s important no matter what. Spelling out your sales projections for the future will help you closely examine costs, decide how you’ll allocate your resources, and whether you actually have a viable idea.

This is optional, but would be the place to include information like the resumes of your key management team, reference letters, product photos, copies of major contracts and other pertinent legal documents.

How to Best Use Your Business Plan

Most importantly, actually USE it, even if it’s not being submitted to a financial institution. You’ve done all the research, the thinking, the projecting, and the writing. Don’t just toss it all in a drawer and forget about it. Take it out on a regular basis, read it, and see how you’re doing.

Remember, it’s called a plan, and things don’t always go as planned, so if you see you’re veering off course, whether intentionally or inadvertently, now is the time to make whatever adjustments are necessary. A business plan is only a snapshot of where you were at the time you wrote it, and it needs regular attention and revising to stay relevant and valuable.

With all the work you did to put it together, you’re already a giant step ahead of most of your competitors. Keep it current to reflect what’s going on now, along with the knowledge about your market you’ve picked up along the way. If a sales strategy isn’t working, eliminate it and find another. When a particular marketing tool produces gangbuster results, allocate more resources that way. As the plan grows and changes with you, it will be an even better guide to your future strategy and success.

Now that you have the gist of a business plan, start working on it and revisit us over the next few weeks for a better understanding of the elements that go into it. There is more to come so stay-tuned!

Next Article: Business Plan Section 1 – Executive Summary

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“How to Develop Your First Business Plan” with Patrick Fitzgerald, Angel Investor, Startup Advisor, and Lecturer at The Wharton School of Business The Transition by Bunker Labs

• Entrepreneurship

I sat down with Patrick Fitzgerald, an Angel Investor, Startup Advisor, and Lecturer at The Wharton Business School, where he’s taught entrepreneurship to MBAs and undergraduates for the last eleven years. In the following episode, Patrick takes us through his business planning framework for first-time entrepreneurs and how you can leverage apply to achieve entrepreneurial success. Be sure to subscribe to the Transition Newsletter on Substack here: https://bit.ly/37Bb8Ne Pre-order a copy of my book “Black Veteran Entrepreneur: Validate Your Business Model, Build Your Brand, And Step Into Your Greatness,” here: https://bit.ly/36TNtuI Check out Patrick’s legendary lecturer on Business Plan Writing 101 here: https://bit.ly/3E4FU0l Follow Patrick on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/PatrickKFitz

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Entrepreneurship Series - Business Plan Writing 101

Zversity Team

00:48:28 Hours

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Last updated

Fri, 03-May-2024

Course description

Wharton Entrepreneurship Workshop, “Business Plan Writing 101,” featuring Patrick FitzGerald, C’97, Managing Director of DreamIt Ventures. FitzGerald discusses what is required to write an effective business plan.

What will i learn?

• FitzGerald discusses what is required to write an effective business plan.

Requirements

Section 1 - full course 1 lessons 00:48:28.000000 hours.

• Entrepreneurship Series - Business Plan Writing 101 00:48:28

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Business Plan Writing 101: Wharton Entrepreneurship Series

TLDR: Explore the world of blogging, from choosing a niche to building an audience and monetizing your content.

Jan 16 2024

📍 Article Source

Introduction to blogging.

Hey everyone! Today, I want to share with you the incredible journey of starting a blog. Blogging has completely changed my life and I can't wait to inspire you to start your own blog too. So, let's dive into the world of blogging together!

Choosing a Niche

The first step in creating a successful blog is choosing the right niche. Your niche is essentially the topic or focus of your blog. It's important to pick something you are passionate about and that has the potential to attract readers. Think about your interests, expertise, and what you want to share with the world.

Creating Quality Content

Now that you have your niche, it's time to focus on creating high-quality content. Content is king in the blogging world, so make sure your posts are valuable, engaging, and well-written. Don't be afraid to showcase your personality and unique perspectives in your writing. This is what will set your blog apart and keep readers coming back for more.

Building an Audience

Building an audience for your blog takes time and effort. Utilize social media platforms, SEO strategies, and collaborations with other bloggers to expand your reach. Engage with your audience through comments, emails, and social media interactions. Consistency is key, so make sure to regularly post new content and stay connected with your readers.

Monetization Strategies

Once you have established a loyal following, consider monetizing your blog. There are various ways to make money from blogging, such as affiliate marketing, sponsored posts, selling digital products, and offering services. Choose the monetization strategies that align with your values and goals for your blog.

Blogging is a fulfilling and rewarding journey that allows you to share your passion with the world. Remember, success in blogging takes time and dedication, so stay committed to your blog and enjoy the process. Start your blog today and let your creativity flourish in the online world!

Timestamped Summary

Writing a business plan is extremely valuable for any entrepreneur.

• A well-prepared business plan helps with investor meetings, customer meetings, and hiring new employees.
• Having a clear and concise two-sentence pitch for your company is crucial and something you will agonize over.

First thing to sell is yourself

• Selling yourself is crucial before selling your business idea
• Building a strong and experienced team is essential for the success of the business

Develop a concise, six-step process for social enterprise.

• Identifying struggling high school kids and connecting with them one-on-one.
• Helping them find a mentor, a location for a two-year relationship, and an internship before watching them graduate.

Key elements of a business plan

• Business plan should focus on what you've built, how you're going to build it, and the future impact
• It's crucial to become an expert in the industry and provide detailed information about your industry in the business plan

Identify major urban site and source schools

• Identify schools with below average graduation rate in the region
• Build an interface to source mentors and students for matching

Limit the number of competitors to four to five in your business plan.

• Highlight competitors' strengths and weaknesses in your business plan.
• Include potential future competitors in your business plan if you have limited current competitors.

Understanding and presenting financials in a business plan

• Financial details are important to include in a business plan, but typically not the main focus for readers
• Clearly articulate the ask for funding at the end of the business plan, including the amount and purpose

Build a slow and fire fast approach for hiring in startups

• Consider bringing people on board with options instead of hiring them outright
• Surround yourself with a team and seek validation from the market to determine the viability of your ideas

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Business Plan Writing 101- Wharton School

• Post author: Mr Mentor
• Post published: October 24, 2020
• Post category: Uncategorized

How can the most remarkable tool that provides the ultimate benefit to business owners be one of the most dreaded? What are we referring to? The Business Plan! This is one area that seems to befuddle, strike anxiety into, and often stumps many Entrepreneurs.

Amazingly, if you surveyed college students enrolled in Business 101 classes across the country, you would find a high percentage who complete those classes unable to write a Business Plan that garners the attention of investors, financiers, potential employees, and business partners.

In this session, Patrick FitzGerald, the Managing Director of DreamIt Ventures, breaks down what it takes and what is required to write a successful Business Plan. Watch this video in its entirety; you will thank yourself, and your Business Plan will be AWESOME!

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Business Plan Writing 101: Wharton Entrepreneurship Series

[Wharton School]. (2015, June 16).  Business Plan Writing 101: Wharton Entrepreneurship Series  [Video]. YouTube.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zlrb_X6fYZ0

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