# Business Plan Outline

A one-page-to-ten-page working template for new founders. Fill each section in plain language.
Keep the whole plan under 10 pages. Update it every quarter.

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## 1. Executive Summary  (½ page, written last)
- Business name and one-sentence description
- The problem you solve and for whom
- Your solution and why it is different
- Stage (idea / prototype / revenue) and traction to date
- Funding ask and use of funds (if raising)

## 2. Company Overview
- Legal name, structure (sole prop, LLC, C-corp, FOP, etc.), country of registration
- Founding date and founding team (roles, %, time commitment)
- Mission statement (1 sentence)
- Vision (3-5 year outcome)

## 3. Problem & Customer
- Describe the problem in the customer's own words
- Who feels it most acutely? (job title, life stage, geography)
- How is it solved today? Why is that solution inadequate?
- Evidence: interviews conducted, surveys, waitlist signups

## 4. Solution / Product
- What you sell (feature list kept short)
- How the customer uses it (in 3 steps)
- Current status: idea, prototype, MVP, in-market
- Roadmap for the next 6 and 12 months

## 5. Market
- Total Addressable Market (TAM): how many people or businesses could use this
- Serviceable Addressable Market (SAM): how many you can reach
- Serviceable Obtainable Market (SOM): realistic 3-year target
- Show the math. Cite sources (World Bank, national stats office, industry report).

## 6. Competition
- Direct competitors (table: name, price, strength, weakness)
- Indirect competitors and substitutes (including "do nothing")
- Your defensible advantage (network, data, cost, brand, regulation)

## 7. Business Model
- Revenue streams (one-time, subscription, commission, licensing)
- Pricing and unit economics: price, COGS, gross margin
- Customer acquisition cost (CAC) and lifetime value (LTV) - estimated if pre-revenue
- Payment terms and cash conversion cycle

## 8. Go-to-Market Plan
- Ideal customer profile for the first 12 months
- Channels ranked by cost and speed (referrals, content, paid, partnerships, retail)
- First-90-day launch plan with weekly milestones
- Retention and referral loop

## 9. Operations
- Location, key equipment or suppliers
- Delivery workflow from order to fulfillment
- Key partners (manufacturers, platforms, distributors)
- Compliance, licenses, insurance

## 10. Team & Advisors
- Founders and full-time hires (name, role, experience)
- Advisory board and mentors
- Hiring plan for the next 12 months and roles you cannot fill yet

## 11. Financial Projections  (3 years, monthly for year 1)
- Revenue by product or segment
- Cost of goods sold and gross margin
- Operating expenses (salaries, marketing, rent, software, other)
- Cash flow and cash on hand
- Break-even month and key assumptions

## 12. Funding Ask (skip if bootstrapping)
- Amount, instrument (grant, SAFE, debt, equity), and valuation range
- Use of funds by category and time horizon
- Milestones this round will unlock
- Exit or repayment scenario (acquisition, dividends, buyback)

## 13. Risks & Mitigations
- Top 5 risks (market, execution, regulatory, financial, personal)
- What you are doing to reduce each one
- Kill criteria: what would make you stop?

## 14. Appendix
- Founder resumes
- Detailed financials
- Product screenshots or photos
- Letters of intent, pilot agreements, testimonials
- Legal documents (registration, IP, key contracts)

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## How to use this outline
1. Draft each section in bullet points first. Do not write prose yet.
2. Talk to 10 potential customers before finalizing sections 3-5.
3. Show the draft to two mentors and one skeptical friend. Revise.
4. Write the Executive Summary last, in under 250 words.
5. Update quarterly. A business plan is a living document, not a submission.

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