Creating a professional business plan for your service business is just as important as the business itself. It is a sales tool as well as a possible means for getting financing. If you are a novice, there are many free templates on the internet. Search for “free business plan service business. Microsoft also has free templates on their website.

When you finish writing, carefully read and spell check your plan, look for and add keywords to make your plan easy to read and remember. Include all of the sections below then add some of your own.

Get help from Better Business Bureau
Get to know your local Better Business Bureau. Apply for Accreditation. Being accredited with the BBB shows you meet specific standards of truth and honesty, and automatically instills a trust for your customers. Be sure to include the BBB logo in all of your advertisements.

Small Business Association
The Small Business Administration has many free resources including “Free Online Courses”.

Mission Statement
The mission statement should be a very specific description of the reason you are doing this business. The mission statement should be a very specific description of the reason you are doing this business. For example:

“Our services are designed to help the elderly, disabled or anyone who needs a little assistance to stay in their home, be more independent of family and friends.”

Services Offered
List and describe the types of services and the cost of services you will provide. Include current and new services that will be offered in the future and the projected dates. This section should start with a summary of services followed by a very detailed list including: description, your cost to perform service, fees, and profit.

The People
This is a list and a short description of the each person who will be part of the business. Include a list of accomplishments if any of each person. Also include an organizational chart and detailed job descriptions.

Competition
Know who your competition is! Detail the advantages your business will have over theirs. What services do they offer? How much do they charge? This should be a detailed list of all the competition.

Market Research & Plan
Is there a market for your service? What will your costs be to get started? How has the industry changed in the last ten years? What are the new ideas and trends? What type of marketing will you do now, in one year?

Goals & Objectives
List short term and longer term goals. Where should the service business be in one year, in five years? Make a list of objectives and how they will be measured. These should include: finances, customer base, equipment and so on.

Financial Plan
Estimate the cost of doing business and how much income will be needed for the first, second and third years. This should be a detailed estimate that includes all income and expenses. You should have at least one year’s worth of cash in the bank before you get started if you plan to hire several employees. They expect to be paid no matter how much money the business makes or does not make.

Resource
List the required equipment both computerized and other equipment needed to provide the services. Include any equipment that you may need to rent or purchase. Also include personnel and financial needs.

Risks
Be sure to check into business insurance for you and any employees. Property, liability, workers compensation, and auto insurance are good places to start. Do a Google search on “Business Insurance” or check with the company who insures your home or car to get some referrals.

Key Issues
Are there any short or long term problems that will need to be resolved? Issues may be funding, business location, marketing or changes in the industry.

To Grow (Catapult) Your Business That’s Why.

When it’s in your head it’s not as likely to happen–too much missed.

Before becoming an executive business coach, in my previous career as an electrical engineer I discovered some key practical things about business planning that showed me how to explode the growth of a business.

When I was in college if I was asked to design something my designs always worked….on paper.

When I got out of college, my boss would frequently come to me and ask if I knew how to design this or that. I always answered confidently, “Sure, I know how. Pointing to that space between my ears.”

Then I would design it on paper. And the first aha I learned was that once written down I could see more than I could when it resided between the ears. This piece just didn’t come together with that piece….and that one….and that one….

So, I would gradually work out all of the gotcha’s until all of the pieces worked on paper.

Then I’d go build one…..

And it almost never worked. I had made an assumption about something in the real world that wasn’t quite right. I’d missed something about the real world. So, I’d work back and forth from the ideal paper design to the real world result until it started working in the real world. Then I’d go back and document that on paper.

Now the real BIG AHA!

I don’t believe there is a self-respecting engineer anywhere in the world that is ready to release his design to production when production is screaming for it. The reason??? Once the engineer has a real working example on paper things start jumping off the paper at you. You can see things you didn’t even think of before. There are new concepts there.

“Gee, I didn’t see that. If I change this…it’ll work better.” Or..”Wow, over here, if I do ____ then it’ll be cheaper to produce” Actually, once it’s on paper and working it’s almost never ending what you keep finding.

Business Planning Between the Ears Doesn’t Allow You to Find the Opportunities or the Gotcha’s That Paper Planning Shows You Clearly

I had said to my boss, “Sure I know how” when he asked me if I knew how. But it was between my ears. I learned that you have to get it on paper to start seeing the gotcha’s before you can fix them, and once you build a real one you start learning new things about how to optimize, how to make it cheaper, how to make it work better, and it never ends. There are so many opportunities to make it better.
Now, let me ask you one more question:

How many people do you know that are running their business “between their ears?” How many are saying “I know how”?

I actually have had companies tell me “Get out of my way, I don’t have time to plan. I have to produce NOW” Then they call me back in a few months asking for help after they have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

That’s when the real aha hit me. After putting it on paper I’ve seen those same business jump 5 times, 10 times in revenues in just weeks.

So, how many do you know that are running their business between their ears and have never put it on paper? Or, some may have put it on paper, but it’s setting somewhere on the shelf.

The opportunity to grow your business, BIG TIME, is

When you first start up a business and you are looking to get funding of any kind, you will need to have a well written business plan in order to get anywhere and if you are not confident in writing one yourself a great alternative is a professional business plan service. Even if you are a talented and well versed writer, unless your occupation is as a current or former plan writer, than you are probably better served seeking help.

Perhaps you doubt this sentiment and feel as though you can tackle a plan all by yourself. Here are some reasons why a professional business writing service will write a better plan than you:

• Experience: Many business plan services employ business plan writers who have been writing plans for years. This is simply a skill that can’t be learned overnight. Just as you may be the best at what you do, a plan writer is the best at what they do. A professional plan writer will not only be able to write well, but they will also know what potential investors are looking for in regards to the plan itself.

• Time: In business you can never have enough time. By hiring a professional business plan service to write your plan, you will be able to focus on the many other things that come with owning a business. Even if you could effectively write your own business plan, with everything else that is likely to be on your plate, you would probably not complete your plan in a very timely manner.

• Complexity: Okay, say you get though the actual writing of the plan. You still have to deal with the financials. This can make even the most level head absolutely spin. However, the financial section is probably the most important part of your plan and will be the part that many investors flip right to.

• Guarantee: Any quality writing service will offer you a guarantee of some sort. Typically, if you are not happy with the way that your business plan turns out, then it will be re-written until it is to your liking. If you write your own plan and then end up with something you don’t like, you are stuck, unless you want to write it again.

Yes, you can go about writing your plan on your own, but is it really worth it? You can also pull your own teeth if you have a toothache, but you are probably better off by going to a dentist and seeing what they have to say.

By hiring a professional business plan service you can be sure that your plan will be the best it can possibly be. While it will cost you money to do so, in business, you have to spend money to make money. Though in this case it may be that you have to spend money in order to borrow money.