SBA loans require a good amount of documentation about your business and personal finances. You will need to compile your previous tax returns, bank statements and various application forms, depending on the type of SBA loan you are applying for. A great way to start your business plan is to start with a simple one-page business plan that provides a brief and compelling overview of your business. A good one-page plan is easy to read and visually appealing. Once you have your one-sided plan, you can develop the ideas to develop your complete written business plan and use the one-page plan as a summary. The goal of market analysis is to show the reader that you have done your research in the current market for your product or service. This section discusses the viability of your business in today`s market, the amount of competition, and how you will position your business to succeed in the industry. Like any good business plan, a business plan for an SBA loan covers the basics: SBA loans are also usually for companies that have at least 2 years of history and solid finances. If your business is a start-up or has problems, an SBA loan may not be right for you. A good SBA business plan increases your chances of success with your lender.
Of course, you also need the necessary assets for the personal guarantee and your business needs to be in good shape overall. But a business plan that clearly explains your business and includes solid financial forecasts will help your bank decide if it will grant you an SBA loan. Every business is structured differently. Discover the best organizational and management structure for your business. Small businesses looking for financing, especially in the form of SBA 7(a) loans, will find that SBA lenders require the submission of a business plan with their SBA loan application. Lenders want to be sure that you have a viable plan to succeed. Your business plan, if properly researched and prepared, can provide this security. This is where an SBA business plan comes into play. In addition to all the other documents required for the loan, you need to create a business plan that accompanies the rest of the loan application.
If you`ve just started a business, you don`t have much information to put into the above areas. Instead, focus on your experience and background, as well as the decisions that led you to start that particular business. Add information about the problems in your target market and the solutions you offer. Show how the expertise you have allows you to make significant progress in the market. Convince your reader of what you will do differently or better, and there is a real need for your service or product. In the Market Analysis section of your SBA business plan, describe the market in which your company is competing. This analysis explains to your readers your overall understanding of the current market and how your business fits into that market. Many new entrepreneurs believe that the bank`s president, or BDO, will actually read the plan. You`ll find that most don`t and give a superficial review or “pre-qualified assessment” and focus on summarizing the plan while forwarding the full business plan to a subscriber. These people are your “target groups” when analyzing the details of the plan – and they need details to make an informed recommendation. Companies applying for a loan through the Small Business Administration (SBA) can benefit from a well-prepared business plan.
An SBA business plan is a strategic document that outlines your company`s goals and the steps you will take to achieve those goals. Using an SBA business plan template can make it easier to create your business plan and potentially improve the chances of financing your loan application. To support you, we have defined the key elements that should be included in your SBA business plan. There is a wealth of information on the SBA website that can be of great use to current and future small business owners. Each eGazette gateway number focuses on the information available on the SBA website. This information is free of charge and has been compiled by experts. If there`s a topic that interests you as a current or potential small business owner, www.sba.gov/ should always be at the top of your search list. Check out our comprehensive business plan to make sure you have everything you need to write your plan. Be sure to document in your summary how much money you are asking for. It`s better to display your number in advance rather than trying to bury it deep into your business plan. A description of the business you operate in and the problem you solve for your customers.
Your business description contains information about what you do, what sets your business apart from others and the markets your business serves. If you need funding, it is crucial to provide financial forecasts to support your application. Find out what information you need to include in your financial forecast for your small business. Some people feel that a multi-page plan is too complex to be described in 25 to 50 pages, especially if the business model is very simple, for example. B a one-person landscaping company. While this is sometimes true, the business plan is meant to tell the whole story. However, the contractor must “summarize” the plan in its essential elements. Remember: business plans, like any correspondence, are written to the target audience.
And in many cases, the SBA lender needs comprehensive information to decide whether or not to finance the new business. Nothing can be further from the truth, as business plans are written for a specific audience and may have other factors that affect how long it will take. From the SBA`s perspective, a business plan must have the length to steal the source of funding, prove that management truly understands the market, and describe the execution strategy in detail. Based on various surveys conducted by many different organizations, it has been found that 25 to 100 pages of information is the minimum length to achieve this, depending on various factors. These include target markets (1-2 pages), difficult assumptions or non-sector data (1-3 pages), industry risks (1 page), bad credit factors that require additional explanation or documentation (2-4 pages), and funding source (1/2-1 page). With the SBA template at the bottom of page two, a business plan can range from 38 to 50 pages for a baseline to 80 to 100 pages for complex plans. The marketing and sales part of your business plan describes how you want to attract business and generate revenue. This section should include the following: The “Financial Forecasts” section of your business plan is designed to convince potential funders that your business is financially stable and should remain solvent. The information that should be covered in this part of your business plan includes: Without going into details, this section should look in a general way at how all the different elements of your business fit together. The business description section should include information about the nature of your business and list the main factors that you think will make your business a success. A summary is an introduction to your business plan.
This summary should not exceed two pages. Aspects of your business that should be mentioned in the summary include: Providing additional information on how you want to protect intellectual property gives funders peace of mind that you have a plan to secure these intangible assets for your business. In addition, research and development efforts show that you are continuously developing and improving your product or service. While the body of the business plan can contain up to 50 pages or more (and even more for complex structures or needs), using an appendix to get additional information is invaluable. The Annex should include, inter alia, a comprehensive set of financial projections and, where appropriate, technical and/or operational subscriptions, partnership and/or customer agreements, extensive competitor assessments and lists of key customers. Need more information? Visit www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/plan/writeabusinessplan/index.html How do you plan to market your business? What is your sales strategy? Learn more about how to include this information in your plan. Use just a few sentences to address all aspects of your business. You will explain them in more detail in the sections that follow the summary. This section of your SBA business plan is an opening overview that defines the rest of your plan. A business plan is an essential roadmap for the success of the company. This living document usually projects 3 to 5 years in advance and describes the path a company wants to take to increase sales.
The abstract should be the last section you write. After working out all the details of your plan, you`ll be in a better position to summarize it – and it should be a summary of no more than 4 pages. We suggest that 1-2 pages should suffice. Summary content To help the reader find specific sections in your business plan, add a table of contents right after your summary. .