Henry Abbey

Henry Abbey , a talented author who has a knack for creating stories that captivate and engage readers. He’s been writing since he was a child and tasted success with his first novel at only 19. His works are available to read on the businessdoom website, where readers can find stories of romance, mystery, and adventure from the mind of Henry Abbey.

The Complete Guide to BDO in India: How to Apply, What Qualifications Do You Need, and How Much Does It Cost!

This guide will provide all the information you need to know about the BDO in India. It will cover everything from how to apply, what qualifications do you need, and how much does it cost.

The Complete Guide to BDO in India:

  • How to Apply
  • What Qualifications Do You Need
  • How Much Does It Cost?

Introduction: What Exactly is BDO and Why is it Important?

In the Digital Age, it is important to have a platform that can help you to grow your business. One of the ways to do this is by using Business Development Online or BDO. BDO is an online platform that helps you to connect with other companies in your industry and share ideas with them in order to grow your business.

BDO provides a lot of opportunities for businesses and entrepreneurs looking for ways on how they can improve their business. It also provides a platform for companies wanting to expand their market share by reaching out to other companies or industries.

Read More : How to Identify Your Strengths and Weaknesses

What’s the Difference Between BDO and Other Banks?

BDO is a bank that is headquartered in the Philippines, and it is one of the largest banks in Asia. It has close to 10,000 branches across the country and over 20 international offices.

BDO offers a wide range of banking services such as retail banking, commercial banking, investment banking, credit cards, insurance products and more. The bank also offers various financial services such as savings accounts, loans, mortgages and investments.

BPO Companies vs. Bank-Owned Platforms (BPO vs. BOI): Which One is Better for Your Business?

The question of which is better for your business, a bank-owned platform or a BPO company, is an important one. These types of companies offer different services and have different levels of expertise.

BPO companies are more cost-effective than bank-owned platforms (BOI) because they have lower overhead costs and can provide more personalized service. They also tend to be more flexible in terms of billing, as BOI’s are often limited by the number of hours they can bill their customers in a month.

The key difference between these two types of companies is that BOI’s are owned by banks and therefore have access to the same financial resources that banks do. This allows them to offer better rates on loans and other financial products for their customers.

How to Apply for a Bank Account if You’re Living Outside India But Want One Here in India

If you are living outside India and want to open a bank account in India, you’ll need to apply for a new account. If you don’t have any of the required documents, it can be difficult to get a bank account in India. But if you have all the documents needed, it’s easy!

The best way to apply for a bank account is by opening an account online through the internet banking portal of your home country’s bank. This is because banks often offer free accounts for customers from abroad.

What to Consider Before Applying For a Bank Account with BDO

BDO is a bank that is not only offering its customers an easy-to-use banking experience but also one that is compliant with international standards. If you are thinking of applying for a bank account with BDO, there are some important things to consider before doing so.

The following are some of the things to consider before applying for a bank account with BDO:

  • The type of account you want
  • The location of your branch
  • The fees associated with the account.

BDO is one of the leading banks in the Philippines. One of its main branches is located in Taguig City and it has over 1,000 employees.

Before applying for a bank account with BDO, there are some things that must be considered. These include the type of bank account you want, your income, and the location you want to open an account in.

Read More : Survey Junkie Reviews, a Comprehensive Review of the Site with Pros & Cons and How to Find More Benefits!

Survey Junkie Reviews, a Comprehensive Review of the Site with Pros & Cons and How to Find More Benefits!

This is a comprehensive review of Survey Junkie, the site that promises to help you make more money and get more surveys.

Survey Junkie is a popular survey site that has been around for over ten years. They offer a wide range of surveys and opportunities to earn money.

Pros

  • You can earn up to $2,000 per month on this site!
  • There are different types of surveys available including product reviews, health and fitness, shopping, and much more!
  • The company offers bonuses like cash back on purchases or free credit when you refer friends.
  • It’s easy to navigate through the website because it’s user-friendly.
  • Surveys are quick and easy to complete!

Cons

  • Survey Junkie is a platform that provides a comprehensive survey tool. It has been around for more than 10 years and has helped millions of people to take surveys and receive monetary rewards.
  • Survey Junkie is an online survey platform that provides users with the opportunity to take surveys, earn rewards, and share their feedback with others.
  • This platform offers an extensive list of surveys in various categories such as movies, food, family life, work life, etc. Users can also create their own questions for custom content.

What are the 5+ Benefits of Survey Junkie?

Survey Junkie is a software that helps businesses create surveys and get responses. It can be used to collect data from users, customers, or employees.

Here are 5+ Benefits of SurveyJunkie:

  • It’s easy to use – survey software designed for the average person.
  • The software is free – no hidden fees or subscriptions.
  • The surveys are customizable – you can customize questions and response options as needed.
  • You can create multiple surveys and share them with others in your company for collaboration purposes.
  • It’s easy to share your survey results with others through a variety of ways including emails, live chat, and more!

Read More: Are Survey Junkies Satisfied with the Results?

How to Make the Most out of Surveys on Survey Junkie

Surveys are a great way to collect insights and data. However, they can be a time-consuming process. SurveyJunkie is an online survey tool that makes it easy for you to create surveys and gather information from your audience.

This article provides tips on how to make the most out of surveys on SurveyJunkie, including how to set up a survey, what questions to ask, and what steps you should take in order to maximize the results of your survey.

The article also includes an example of a marketing survey that was created using SurveyJunkie.

The Cons & Drawbacks on Survey Junkie

SurveyJunkie is a free survey software that was created in 2003. It has a user-friendly interface and has been used by over 3 million people.

One of the most popular features of SurveyJunkie is its ability to generate surveys based on keywords, topics, or phrases. This feature is beneficial for marketers who need to create surveys on the fly and get instant feedback.

The downside of SurveyJunkie is that it does not have an easy way to export your data in a usable format. You have to export it manually which can be time-consuming and tedious.

Conclusion for Users Who Want More from Surveys on SurveyJunkie.com

This article is meant to inform users who want more from Surveys on SurveyJunkie.com.

This article will provide a conclusion for those who want more from their surveys on SurveyJunkie.com. This article will also provide some of the best practices that we recommend when using this tool as well as some tips and tricks that we have found to be helpful in our own experiences with the tool.

What are the best practices for using Survey Junkie?

There are many ways in which you can use SurveyJunkie, but these are the most common and effective ones:

  • Ask questions about your target audience or product/service usage.
  • Ask questions about your competitors or industry trends.

Read More: Compelling Reasons to Start a Business

Are Survey Junkies Satisfied with the Results?

Surveys are a popular way to get feedback and collect data. They are often used for market research, customer satisfaction surveys, etc.

A recent study in the UK found that most survey respondents were satisfied with the results of the survey.

However, it’s not always true that people are satisfied with their responses. The study found that only 57% of respondents were satisfied with their responses and only 45% felt they answered all questions accurately.

Introduction: What is a Survey Junkie?

A survey junkie is someone who takes the time to fill out surveys. They are often people who are looking for work, want to make extra cash, or just want to know what people think about a certain topic.

This person might not be the most well-rounded individual because they tend to only have one skill and that’s filling out surveys. They might be a bit more introverted and shy than someone who has many skills.

How to Gain and Keep Your Customer’s Attention with Online Surveys

Online surveys are an effective way to gather customer insights and gain their trust. However, they need to be well-designed in order to make sure that your customers can answer them. Here are a few tips on how to design an online survey that will keep your customers engaged and provide the information you need.

Read More: The Different Types of Business Plans

Make it easy for your customers to take the survey

  • Make sure it’s clear what the survey is about and what you’ll be using the data for
  • Use clear language, graphics, and visuals to help guide your customers through the questions
  • Provide a link or email address at the end of a survey so that they can share their feedback with you later

Include a call-to-action

  • How to Increase & Turn Responses into Sales
  • The key to increasing and turning responses into sales is to build trust with your audience.

This article will cover the following topics:

  • What is trust?
  • Why do buyers need trust?
  • How can you build trust with your audience?
  • How can you increase response rates and turn responses into sales?
  • What are some strategies for increasing response rates and turning responses into sales?

Why are Online Surveys Bad for Customer Relationships?

Online surveys can be a great tool for customer relations. However, they can also be a bad tool that leads to negative customer experiences

Online surveys are good for collecting data from customers that is hard to get otherwise. They are also good for testing out new ideas and gathering feedback before implementing them.

However, online surveys have some disadvantages that make them less reliable than face-to-face interactions. Online surveys are more likely to lead to negative customer experiences because they don’t provide the same type of engagement as face-to-face interactions do.

Conclusion: Are You a Survey Junkie or Would You Rather Keep Customers Happy and Loyal

This conclusion will discuss whether you are a survey junkie or would rather keep customers happy and loyal. The answer is that you should be a survey junkie as long as you are also a loyal customer. That way, you can get to know your customers better and make them happy by providing them with the best possible service.

Nowadays, companies are using surveys for business development, marketing, or customer satisfaction. They use them to understand their customers better and make their services more efficient. This conclusion is a reflection on the previous section and what it has to say about the future of writing. The conclusion discusses why this article is written and what it hopes to achieve.

Read More: How to Come up with Hundreds of Business Ideas

How to Get a Top Ranking in Google Fast – You Can!

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How to Get a Top Ranking in Google Fast – You Can!

If you have a business online and want people to discover it, you need to make sure that your site has visibility in Google\’s SERPs or Search Engine Results Pages. This is where you rank in Google! There is a lot of debate as to which of the many ways to rank in Google is best. Some people would say that you need to do whatever is easiest and fastest for you while others feel that you can rank high in Google if you follow certain rules.

The most important factor of how to rank in Google is to create as many backlinks as you can to each of your pages on the web. These backlinks will be what helps you rank high in Google. In other words, add a good keyword-rich title tag to your site as well as keyword rich content. Google Business listings (previously Google+ pages) were the top most factor of search engine optimization when searching for a subject matter. Therefore, when looking for your topic, Google will look at both of these items: your title and your content.

The next step on how to rank in Google is to optimize your site for the particular search results that you are expecting to appear. If you want your site to appear on the first page of Google for a particular term, then you need to first start building links pointing to your site. To do this, go to Google\’s main Google page and scroll down until you see \”Organization > links\”. Select each of the links to add them to your Google profile page so that Google knows that you are willing to tackling your sites to theirs.

There are other methods that can help you rank higher on Google, but some are more difficult to understand than others. One of these difficult methods is content marketing or keyword stuffing. This method of getting high Google rankings is actually very easy. In fact, it is probably the easiest way for you to get high rankings on Google. In short, all you need to do is find long tail keywords and cram as many of them into your content as possible.

Long tailed keywords are much harder to come by but are certainly worth the effort if you have the time. One of the best ways to ΠΡΩΤΗ ΘΕΣΗ GOOGLE for your chosen long tail keywords is to post relevant blogs on your site and join forum discussions as well. All of these will not only provide you with a place to post your backlinks but also provide you with legitimate interaction with others in your niche. The more interaction you have, the better chance that someone is going to click on a link and land on your first page. It\’s just that simple.

If you\’re unfamiliar with how to do this, it is rather simple. Basically, all you need to do is get involved in discussions, create good content and post links to your site on the various discussion forums as well as participate in the forum itself. It is an excellent way to rank high in Google for your chosen keywords and it doesn\’t cost you anything at all. I would recommend this particular strategy to anyone wanting to take their business online and really rank on the first page of Google.

 

How do the Bank Loans Work ?

Nowadays, opting for a bank loan is more and more common among citizens, as this has proven to be the most effective method to put an end to liquidity problems.

Loans are banking operations, through which a financial institution agrees to supply a certain amount of money to an applicant.

This, in exchange, undertakes to pay interest with the return thereof, being received in the form of periodic installments. In general, the amount of money requested in a personal or bank loan is destined to the purchase of a specific good or service.

As expected, prior to the granting of a loan, the applicant must meet a series of requirements, since it depends on this that the financial institution agrees to grant the amount demanded.

In addition to previously establishing the loan signature, it is important to know that punctuality represents a fundamental element, since by being strict in payments, we will avoid complications that can trigger the seizure of assets.

Personal loans are quick and easy to have.

With http://bankrakyatpersonalloan.info/ you can request unsecured personal loans of up to 10,000 euros, if you do not need a high amount of capital perhaps an online loan is a more feasible solution, taking into account the process time and the requirements are lower.

If, on the other hand, you are interested in applying for a bank loan but are still not sure how they work, then we will explain what they consist of, what type of credits there are and the operating structure they use, as well as other topics of interest, that you they will help you make an objective decision.

Types of bank loans

When we talk about types of bank loans, it is possible to identify a wide list, among which stand out personal loans, consumer loans, study loans, and the most popular, mortgage loans.

As for online personal loans, it is possible to say that this type of credit tool is used to solve specific liquidity problems.

Generally, they are approved for small quantities, which must be returned in a short period of time. A characteristic of this type of credit is that they are quickly approved and the requirements are simple and easy to obtain. Also due to its short term, its interest rates are quite affordable.

For their part, consumer loans are financial products used to manage the acquisition of an asset or durable consumer good, such as a car, certain machinery, an electrical appliance or a motorcycle.

Another financial product offered by banks is student loans, which differ in that they are used exclusively to cover professional training expenses. These credits have lower interest rates than conventional loans, as they are aimed at students who want to finance university tuition, graduate studies or trips abroad.

Similarly, home loans are also presented as a type of bank credit. These are characterized by requiring the applicant to present broad guarantees that serve as collateral to the financial institution.

This type of tool is used to manage the purchase of a home, and the development of investment businesses, as is the case with entrepreneurships.

What is the operating structure of a bank loan

The operating structure of a bank loan is simple. When applying for a loan, the first thing that the financial institution performs is the evaluation of the applicant\’s ability to pay.

This with the intention of knowing if the person has sufficient financial guarantee to face the payment of the corresponding fees. Since the bank\’s profit is in the interest it receives each time the debtor amortizes the payment of a fee.

Once the applicant\’s payment capacity has been verified, the financial institution designs the payment structure, which will aim to guarantee the total return of the borrowed capital together with the obligations contracted with the entity, such as interest, commissions or any associated expense.

Generally the form of payment used is the amortization of periodic installments. Among the most common fees are the one-time fee, variable fees, and constant fees.

The former are used to manage the payment of short-term loans, since the settlement of interest and the return of capital occurs at maturity through a single payment.

The second, the variable installments, are amortized through variable payments in geometric or arithmetic progression. And finally, the constant quotas used for their calculation by the well-known system.

The Different Types of Business Plans

This article is part of our Business Planning Guide—a curated list of our articles that will help you with the planning process!

Business plans go by many names: Strategic plans, operational plans, internal plans, Lean Plans, and many others.

Lately, I’ve been focusing on the Lean Plan. There are also one-page business plans, although those are really more summaries. Of course, there are traditional business plans, which can also be called formal business plans, or wow-do-I-really-have-to-do-all-that business plans.

You might need different kinds of business plans depending on what you plan to use to accomplish. Like so many other things in business, the principle of form follows function applies. Different situations call for different types of business plans. An effective business plan will match its intended use. Knowing the specific use of a particular type of plan will help you build a better roadmap for the future of your business.

Let’s take a look at the types of business plans and their differences. You can click on the link to be taken directly to the section on that specific business plan if you’d like to jump ahead.

In this article, I’ll cover these different types of business plans:
The Lean Plan that every business ought to have
The standard business plan for those that need to present a plan to outsiders, such as banks or investors
One-page business plans
Business plans for startups
Feasibility plans, internal plans, operations plan, annual plans, and strategic plans

The Lean Plan: Track and grow
All businesses can use a Lean Plan to manage strategy, tactics, dates, milestones, activities, and cash flow.

The Lean Plan is faster, easier, and more efficient than a formal business plan because it doesn’t include summaries, descriptions, and background details that you and your partners or employees already know.

It’s most useful if you’re trying to grow your business and want to use it as a tool to track your financials and milestones against what you projected so you can respond to opportunity and react to challenges quickly.

A Lean Plan includes specific deadlines and milestones, and the budgets allotted for meeting them, so your team is up to speed.

A Lean Plan includes four essential elements—all of them functions of general business management:

  1. Your guiding strategy
    Use simple bullet points to define your target market, business offering, underlying business identity, and long-term goals. No additional text is needed. These serve as a reminder for owners and managers.
  2. Tactics you’ll use to execute strategy
    Use bullet points again. These include marketing decisions such as pricing, channels, website, social media, promotion, and advertising.

Product or service tactics also apply here, including pricing, launch dates, bundles, configuration, new versions, and delivery or packaging. Other tactics might define positions to recruit, training required, and so forth.

  1. Concrete specifics to measure your progress
    List of assumptions, milestones, objective measurements of performance, task responsibilities, and what numbers to track.
  2. Essential numbers
    This is your company’s basic financial plan, including your sales forecast, spending budget, and cash flow.

You can monitor each of these areas using basic excel spreadsheets, but a business dashboard that quickly and easily shows you the difference between your forecast and your actuals can save you time. Ideally, you have software that compares your plan to actual results automatically.

The value of the Lean Plan starts with the plan, but that’s just the beginning. Real management is steering your business with a Lean Plan that you review and revise regularly, tracking progress and performance, and making regular course correction.

You can download our free Lean Plan Template for a jump start on the Lean Planning process.

How to Become an Entrepreneur Overnight

A couple of weeks ago I tasked myself with writing this post. Unlike my recent musings on business cards, the idea didn’t spring full-formed from something that had happened, but was instead a question I personally wanted an answer to.

Is it possible to become an entrepreneur overnight? By that, I mean, is there a switch you can flick? And if so, how do you do it?

Prior to writing this post, I had always been under the impression that “entrepreneurship” was hardwired into a person. You either had what it took to become one or you didn’t.

Through thinking and writing I’ve not only been able to correct my inaccurate assumption, but have been able to answer the question. I’ve seen entrepreneurship for what it is—nothing more than a switch. A switch than anyone can flip at any time, providing they’ve got what it takes.

Let me show you how the entrepreneurship switch might be flicked. I will follow these three examples with a list of ingredients I believe essential to the “make up” of an entrepreneur.

Example One—The young and crazy serial entrepreneur
I have a friend—let’s call him Mike—who has been in and out of the business of starting businesses since graduating high school. His first company was an import-export operation, run mostly online. With little experience and almost no business know-how, it wasn’t long before the business tanked. With anyone less blinkered, this might have deterred them from another venture. Not Mike—is experience had flicked a switch. He’d caught the entrepreneurship bug and there was no going back. Full-time employment held little interest for him, and although he worked in a couple of jobs before starting his own digital agency, he was always scheming and launching side operations—some that worked for a while, others that didn’t, and still others that he simply lost interest in. However, there was no doubt about it: with his drive, and with a passion for starting out on his own, sooner or later he was bound to succeed. Today, not 4 years after we first met, Mike is running his own digital agency. His clients include Coca-Cola, Blackberry, and other big names. No one would argue that he is not an entrepreneur, but they might have done two years ago when in the midst of a half-thought out insurance venture. The truth is, Mike became an overnight entrepreneur the moment he started his first business. He had desire, he took action and even though he perpetually failed through taking risks, he learned and he adapted. There’s just no going back for him.

Example Two—The entrepreneur that needs a little push
Molly has been working the same job for going on eight years. She’s done well and has risen in her company. She’s still being “managed,” but now has others who report to her. She considers herself a fairer boss than the one who directs her day-to-day activities. In fact, over the past 6 months, Molly has had to actively stop herself from getting into arguments with her boss. There are just things she believes should be executed differently; for example Molly believes in a work-life balance. Her boss does not. Molly’s boss has some very old-school notions, and thinks that if you’re going to get ahead in life you should stay two hours later than your colleagues and you should work on weekends. Face-time is all that matters to her.

Not Molly. Molly gets that pursuing outside interests is important to personal happiness and can actually bring new ideas into the company. Then of course, there’s her boss’s stance on relationships at work—a definite no-no! Molly finds herself thinking that if she were the manager, she’d do so many things differently. One day, she comes into work and is told that if she is going to wear jeans, they need to at least be black. They shouldn’t look like jeans. The switch flips. Molly realizes she cannot work like this forever. She will never be truly happy following petty rules or being told what to do. She’s tired of helping others achieve their dreams. She like to take a stab at achieving her own. Over the next few months, she continues to work her day-job. In the evenings she heads to the SBA, she speaks with her bank about start up loans and she begins setting up her business. Then, when she is ready, she hands in her resignation. Molly is an entrepreneur. She became one the moment her desire prompted her to take action.

Compelling Reasons to Start a Business

Are you toying with an idea for a business? A lot of people think about starting a business, but for whatever reason the idea never becomes a reality. If you’re an entrepreneur who is on the fence about starting a business, we have the encouragement you need to take the first step.

We asked 30 business owners to offer persuasive reasons for entrepreneurs to launch a business.

Reason #1: Work on things that matter to you
When you own your own business, you get the freedom to work on projects that have meaning in your life, says Sarah O’Toole, owner of The Seasonal Diet, a business that helps people eat healthy.

“Being an entrepreneur means that I get to work on things that really light me up inside,” she explains. “I’m not stuck doing busy work or tasks that no one else wants to do.”

Connect on Twitter: ‪@TheSeasonalDiet‪

Reason #2: Get a personal education
Starting a business comes with a lot of on-the-go lessons, but Jeremiah Boehner, a serial entrepreneur and senior director of sales at MyLikes, an advertising platform, says the most important lessons are those that teach you about yourself.

“As an entrepreneur, you’ll learn what kind of work you enjoy and start to understand how you can make a difference in your community,” he says.

Connect on Twitter: @sfboehner @MyLikes

Reason #3: Make more money
As an employee, there are limits to how much money you’ll make. You are defined by a line item in an accounting ledger, says Matthew Reischer, CEO of the website Lawyer Reviews, a site that welcomes feedback on lawyers across the country.

“An entrepreneur who starts his own business can break free from this actuarial perspective and redefine the value he brings to the market,” he says.

Connect on Twitter: @LegalAdvice

Reason #4: Job security
While some people would argue that working an office job in the 9-5 world has more security than starting your own business, Nick Loper, owner of Side Hustle Nation, a company that helps people earn money outside of their day jobs, says diversifying your income with various clients is a smart play.

“Is starting your own business really any riskier than relying on one source of income for your livelihood?” he asks.

Connect on Twitter: @nloper

Reason #5: Flexible schedule
Want to go to a baseball game in the afternoon? Does your child have a doctor’s appointment in the morning? If you start your own business, you’ll have the flexibility to do all of these things. For Will von Bernuth, co-founder of Block Island Organics, a family-run sun care startup, the flexible schedule allows him to help his parents.

“With our parents getting older, living far away, and one of them having health difficulties, the ability to work from wherever we want on our own schedule is a huge benefit,” he says.

A Simpler Plan for Startups

This article is part of our Business Planning Guide—a curated list of our articles that will help you with the planning process!

Business advisors, experienced entrepreneurs, bankers, and investors generally agree that you should develop a business plan before you start a business. A plan can help you move forward, make decisions, and make your business successful.

However, not all business plans are the same, and not every business needs the same level of detail.

You might develop a fairly simple business plan first as you start a small business, and that might be enough for you. You can also start simple and then elaborate as you prepare to approach bankers or investors. This is an excellent use of the Lean Business Planning methodology, based on a simple Lean Plan combined with regular updates and revisions.

A simple business plan example
For a simple business plan example, imagine a woman making jewelry at home and selling it at a local flea market on the weekend. A business plan could give her a chance to step back from the normal flow and look at ways to develop and improve the business.

The planning process should help her understand her business. It should help her define what she wants from the business, understand what her customers want, and decide how to optimize her business on her own terms.

She might benefit from developing a simple sales and expense forecast, maybe even a profit and loss, so she can plan how to use and develop her resources. She might not need to create detailed cash flow, balance sheet, and business ratios. A simple business plan may be just what she needs to get going.

This first stage of a plan, what we call the pitch, focuses only on a few starter elements. The mission statement, the problem you’re solving for your customers, your solution, and market analysis, give you a critical head start toward understanding your business.

However, not all startups are that simple. Many of them need product development, packaging, retail fittings and signage, office equipment, websites, and sometimes months or even years of payroll before the sales start. Unless you’re wealthy enough to finance these expenditures on your own, then you’ll need to deal with bank loans or investors or both—and for that, you’ll need a more extensive business plan.

Startup company or not, the plan has to meet expectations.

What kind of business plan do you need?
One suggestion for getting started is to develop your plan in stages that meet your real business needs.

A few key topics might be enough to discuss the plan with potential partners and team members, as a first phase. You may well want to add a basic sales and expense forecast, leading to profit and loss, as next phase. Adding business numbers helps you predict business flow and match spending to income.

Ultimately, the choice of plan isn’t based as much on the stage of business as it is on the type of business, financing requirements, and business objective.

Here are some important indicators of the level of business plan you’ll need, even as a startup:
Some of the simpler businesses keep a plan in the head of the owner, but every business has a plan. Even a one-person business can benefit from creating a plan document with ideas written down, because the process of producing a plan is useful and valuable. And you can do a simple Lean Business Plan in less than an hour.
As soon as a second person is involved, the need for planning multiplies. The plan is critical for communicating values, goals, strategies, and detailed implementation.
As soon as anybody outside the company is involved, then you have to provide more information. When a plan is for internal use only, you may not need to describe company history and product features, for example. Stick to the topics that add value, that make you think, that help support decisions. When you involve people outside the company, then you need to provide more background information as part of the plan.
For discussion purposes, simple bullet point lists are enough to get a plan started. Try describing your mission, objective, keys to success, target market, competitive advantage, and basic strategies. How well does this cover your business idea? Try using a Lean Plan template to get you started. Or you can use bullet point lists of strategy, tactics, and milestones, as in a Lean Business Plan. Be flexible and adapt what feels right to you.
Can you live without a sales and expense forecast? Sometimes the one-person business keeps numbers in the owner’s head. However, it’s much easier to use some tools that can put the numbers in front of you, and add and subtract them automatically. That’s where a plan helps.
Do you really know your market? A good market analysis can help you see opportunities that might not otherwise be obvious. Understand why people buy from you. What are the needs being served? How many people are out there, as potential customers?
Do you manage significant amounts of inventory? That makes your cash management more complicated and usually requires a more sophisticated plan. You need to buy inventory before you sell it.
Do you sell on credit? If you are a business selling to businesses, then you probably do have to sell on credit, and that normally means you have to manage money owed to you by your customers, called accounts receivable. Making the sale is no longer the same thing as getting the money. That usually requires a more sophisticated plan.
Do you do your taxes on a cash basis or accrual basis? If you don’t know, and you are a very small business (one person, or maybe two to three people), then you’re likely to be on a cash basis. That makes your planning easier. However, most businesses big enough to work with a CPA and have separate tax statements use accrual accounting because they want to deduct expenses as they are incurred, even if they aren’t fully paid for. By the time you are using accrual accounting, you’ll probably need more sophisticated cash flow tools, and a more extensive business plan.
As you approach banks and other lending institutions, expect to provide more detail on personal net worth, collateral, and your business’ financial position. Some banks will accept a very superficial business plan as long as the collateral looks good. Others will demand to see detailed monthly projections. No bank can lend money on a business plan alone; that would be against banking law. A good bank wants to see a good plan.
If you’re looking for venture investment, take a good look at your plan. Professional investors will expect your plan to provide proof, not just promises. They’ll want to see market data, competitive advantage, and management track records. They’ll want to see robust and comprehensive financial projections. True, you’ll hear stories about investors backing new companies without a plan, but those are the exceptions, not the rule.
So, however you cut it, your business plan is very important, even at the early startup stage, and even if you can keep it in your head. Before you purchase business stationery, rent a location, or get started on any other similar logistics, you should have a business plan.

Need help writing your business plan? Read this article on how to write a business plan, download a free business plan template, or look at some business plan examples. Want your business plan written for you? Have an MBA write your plan in five business days with LivePlan’s business plan consulting.

What Is a Business Plan?

This article is part of our “Business Planning Guide“—a curated list of our articles that will help you with the planning process!

What is a business plan? In its simplest form, a business plan is a guide—a roadmap for your business that outlines goals and details how you plan to achieve those goals.

In this article, I’ll explore the sections of a business plan, as well as:
Who needs a business plan
How to choose the right kind of business plan
The key components that every business plan should include
How to use your plan to achieve faster growth than your competition
To start, don’t swallow the obsolete idea that the business plan must be a long, formal document as if it were some term paper you have to write. That’s not true anymore. While every business has huge benefits to gain from going through the business planning process, only a small subset needs the formal business plan document required for seeking investors or supporting a commercial loan.

Most of us need just a Lean Business Plan, for internal use, with just bullet point lists and important projections. Good businesses always keep their Lean Plan up to date.

The lean business plan is great news because it makes the planning process much less daunting. You start simple and grow it organically. You don’t do anything that doesn’t have a business purpose, so you don’t describe your management team (to name one example) unless you need that section for outsiders. More on that in the section on the Lean Plan.

And furthermore, even for those of you who do need to produce a business plan document, the task of writing a formal business plan today is much less daunting than it used to be. These days, business plans are simpler, shorter, and easier to produce than they have ever been. Gone are the days of 30- and 40-page business plans—modern business plans are shorter, easier to write, and—thankfully—easier to read (and you could always have our MBA business plan consulting experts write a business plan for you if you so choose).

Let’s start with the basics.

What is a business plan?
If you’ve ever jotted down a business idea on a napkin with a few tasks you need to accomplish, you’ve written a business plan—or at least the very basic components of one. At its heart, a business plan is just a plan for how your business is going to work, and how you’re going to make it succeed.

How long should your plan be?
Typically, a business plan is longer than a list on a napkin (although, as you’ll see below, it is possible—and sometimes ideal—to write your entire business plan on one page). For me in practice, and for most real businesses, it can be as simple as the Lean Plan that has a few bullet points to focus strategy, tactics, milestones to track tasks and responsibilities, and the basic financial projections you need to plan: cash flow, budget, expenses.

How should you present your business plan?
A note on format: business plans should only become printed documents on select occasions, like when you need to share information with outsiders or team members. Otherwise, they should be dynamic documents that you maintain on your computer.

The plan goes on forever, meaning that you’re constantly tweaking it, because you’re regularly evaluating your business health, so the printed version is like a snapshot of what the plan was on the day that it was printed.