I have been looking through some archives on www.businessplanarchive.org and a lot of the business plans I have seen are like 3-4 pages in length.. Brief and to the point.

My first draft is 17 pages. It has detailed information on my product, market strategies, sales strategies, everything.

My question is, if these guys got by on such small business plans, am I taking WAAAAY too much time doing mine? I guess I wanted it to be perfect and show as much information as possible. I figured if when I go to a bank, and they see that a lot of thought and effort went into it they would be at least more willing to talk to me.

However, I guess if it is too long they will fall asleep. What about everyone else? What does your BP look like? Short? Long? How many pages?

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Chris Horne
Enterprise Data Management Solutions
http://www.edmscorp.com

Hmm I dont think there is any set rule as to length, but for example mine comes in at 15 pages. Which includes a cover page and contents page and as yet doesnt include financial projections(this will add 3 or 4 more).

I carnt really say if a lengthy business plan is of any use but i would imagine if you have a very detailed business plan and know it inside out then it will benifit you when you go to the bank for a loan if you do. Being able to answer a question and specifically refer to where the question is answered in the business plan should give the impression you know your business very well.

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Joel Brown - Orion Networks
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You are both right on the money - 15-20 pages for a business plan is really the right length (and this includes a front cover and index page !)

So long as it explains why you are going to become successful and has the right financials (cashflow, balance sheet, P&L - another 3 pages) then you are OK

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If you need a business plan for your small business then write a business plan with ease at Teneric Business Plans

Those who say that a business plan should be only "x" number of pages are fools and one should stay away from them. Why? Because the reality if that good business plan needs to be just as long as it is, and no longer. No concern should be made about the length, other than attention paid to writing style, because the key is to indicate the management strength of the company in the plan.

Those who sell "software" and fill in the blank services are fine for simple sole propreitorships seeking low amounts of funding. However, for businesses seeking "signficant" funding ($250k plus) through loans or equity financing especially, a plan specifically prepared for the business is the only way to go.

My consultancy has written hundreds of business plans over the years, and by far the vast majority have been funded. I generally don't say much about the success because in fact there's only been two out of hundreds that haven't worked. Very few have come in under 120 pages words and projections included. I looked at some of the plans on the archive and the projections for most are unacceptable for use in the United States for any amount of significant funding. Why? Because they aren't prepared according to GAAP and are merely pro formas.

I don't need to give the details of the differences here, however, let me just say anyone with a spreadsheet software can do pro formas, but do they mean anything? Generally they do not. The numbers used are generally anal extractions and not based on research and reality. GAAP projections for a five year period are a minimum requirement in my experience and opinion.

Hope this helps.

Kent Capener

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http://www.capenerconsulting.com
Solutions For Small Business

You're absolutely correct.

Each plan is different and just for that business alone.

Depending on what the plan is for will to a degree depend on the length.

I know here in the UK for small businesses requiring funding from banks (as you say <$250k) a 20 page plan is probably sufficient depending on the business and what the specific bank manager requires.

What I was attempting to suggest is that small businesses requiring this type of lowish funding do not need to spend weeks writing war and peace because it is just not needed.

Even when I was writing corporate business plans we rarely went over 40 pages - and these were for businesses with > $1billion turnover

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If you need a business plan for your small business then write a business plan with ease at Teneric Business Plans

Business Plan Arcive typically only has the executive summaries posted, its a l;ittle frustrating, but there is some good insight non the less. A lot depends on the entity. If you need $50 million, and your market research is all secondary, it will be extremely long. The IP section can take up 100 pages alone, its usually an appendix. For most though 20-25 seems typical.

Ron

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Inventors Garage Forum
Inventors Blog

There is really no set amount of pages that a business plan should be. Over at my firm Growthink, 70% of our plans come in around 25-30 pages. Even for a small business 17 pages is not a large number as long as your plan is not gets the job of getting the vision of the company on paper correctly.

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http://www.growthink.com
Growthink offers strategic business plan development, investment banking, and market research services to emerging and middle market companies.

No investor likes to read Business Plans that are very winded, if it is a long plan make sure it is easy to navigate to all the selling points.

A commercial lending bank in my area hands one out to prospective borrowers, and it's only four or five pages long. They consider it a model plan. Get to know several prospective lenders, and ask them what they want to see.

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Eileen Coale, Copywriter
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I agree with Eileen. The process of getting financed is very similiar to an author trying to get a book contract with a publisher. Sometimes they submit the complete copy of the work and leave it to the person looking at it to base their opinion on the entire work; and sometimes the authors submit an "intro" look into the story, so as to give the advisor a general idea of what the book is about. If the advisor likes what he's reading, he'll throw the author a contact and say "finish the book for ***,***."

Intro BP's aren't unheard of, at least form what I understand, but are generally frowned upon and should only be used if you are very comfortable with your ability to condense information in a compelling manner. WWcap1 is the most correct here, though, in my opinion. The proper business plan length is whatever it needs to be - no more, no less.

With that in mind, I would suggest you no think of the length at all, instead, think of these three sectinos that are considered the "make or break me" sections:

1) The Executive Summary: It's what investors read first - if it isn't good, too wordy, TOO promising, or even "too good to be true," they will often dump it. Make sure you are very straight foward and do not be afraid to include your slow seasons along with your goods. Make this precise, professiona, and very well thought out.

2) The Management Team: The second most important aspect of a business plan is the management section. You should have very credible and impressive persons as your management/advisor team. Financers are very adament about this section simply because you could have the most promising concept ever, but without proper management and business staff, it could fail faster than the business plan they dumped just before getting to yours.

3) Finance and Proejctions: This is the third most important part. Many people sell themselves short and get to this point only to be rejected for one simple reason: their projections are not realistic and; even worse, are always making money. There is a reason why some 70+% of start-up businesses fail -- they over-project their sales which leads to a financial deficit within the company, which leads to not having a sufficient budget for long term bill paying, the launching of new marketing campaigns, and the company's inability to purchase new products to satisfy the industries demand.

Like I said earlier, make sure you be realistic with your projections. Do NOT be afraid to include slow periods expected in your business venture - if anything it makes you look like you've done all of your homework and that you have a backup plan incase that does happen. It also makes you appear most honest and less deceitful, which is something investors and banks are always looking for.

Good luck, my friend.

Matthew