This is the second of a multi-part series that will help prospective entrepreneurs to develop the tools they need for a successful business venture.

Now that you’ve completed your market research and determined that you have a solid concept with the potential for success, it’s time to move on to the next step of the process: creating your business plan.

So, you might ask, just what is a business plan and why is it important? According to Investopedia, it’s a written document that describes in detail how a business defines its objectives and how it will go about achieving its goals. Essentially, it’s a written roadmap for the marketing, financial, and operational objectives of the firm.

A business plan isn’t just for the company’s internal use, although that is certainly important. It’s also for the external audience–having a solid business plan will make potential investors much more eager to risk their income on a new venture.

The U.S. Small Business Administration provides five reasons why a business plan is necessary:

It will help you steer your business as you start and grow. Like a GPS, it’ll guide you through each stage of starting and managing your business, allowing you to think through and detail each of the key elements of how your business will run from human resources planning to creating value for your customers.
It’s easier than you think. A business plan is a written tool that projects 3-5 years into the future, outlining the path your business intends to take to make money and grow revenue.

Rather than a one-time document, a business plan is a living project. Break it down into mini-plans for each element of your business from sales and marketing to pricing to operations and so on.

It will help you to reach your business milestones. A carefully thought-out business plan allows you to view the key elements of your business objectively, informing your decision making as you move forward.
It can help you get funding. Having a business plan in place will help investors feel confident that they will see a return on their investment. Your business plan is the tool you will use to persuade others that working with you or investing in your business is a smart decision.
There’s no right or wrong way to write a business plan. You can use whichever format works best for you. The important thing is that your business plan suits your specific needs and provides sufficient information to start your business off on the right foot.

You’ve determined that a business plan is necessary, but now what? Fear not, you don’t have to go this alone: there are plenty of local and online resources available. The U.S. Small Business Administration (www.sba.gov) and other websites provide a wealth of guides and business plan

templates for those who want to handle everything on their own, but if you’re a first-time business owner who wants to ensure that you’re ready to face the challenges of starting your own venture, Huntsville’s business community is here to help guide you through the process.

Both the Catalyst Center for Business & Entrepreneurship and the UAH Small Business Development Center (SBDC)/Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) will help budding entrepreneurs through the process of creating a business plan, providing workshops and personal coaching at no cost.

Although the Catalyst Center and the UAH SBDC/PTAC may seem like competitors, they can be used in conjunction to give hopeful entrepreneurs an even greater advantage. Each offers free workshops that target different aspects of starting and running a business, as well as one-on-one business coaching with subject matter experts. The idea of “the more, the merrier” comes into play here–why talk to just one expert when you can gain insight from multiple perspectives?

If you’re a woman seeking to start a new business, the Catalyst Women’s Business Center of North Alabama provides specialized resources to help you create a solid business plan. In addition, the Huntsville Metro Black Chamber of Commerce also provides networking events and free coaching for prospective Black-owned Business owners.

You wouldn’t navigate a new city for the first time without using a GPS to guide you, and starting a new business venture is no different. Go in with a roadmap, and enlist the assistance of a navigator to guide you around the potholes and dead ends.

In addition to a map, another critical thing you’ll need to bring along on your journey is money. The next step: securing financing. We’ll cover this in the next installment of our guide to starting a small business.