how to write a business plan for a foundation

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The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Nonprofit Business Plan

A business plan can be an invaluable tool for your nonprofit. Even a short business plan pushes you to do research, crystalize your purpose, and polish your messaging. This blog shares what it is and why you need it, ten steps to help you write one, and the dos and don’ts of creating a nonprofit business plan.

Nonprofit business plans are dead — or are they?

For many nonprofit organizations, business plans represent outdated and cumbersome documents that get created “just for the sake of it” or because donors demand it.

But these plans are vital to organizing your nonprofit and making your dreams a reality! Furthermore, without a nonprofit business plan, you’ll have a harder time obtaining loans and grants , attracting corporate donors, meeting qualified board members, and keeping your nonprofit on track.

Even excellent ideas can be totally useless if you cannot formulate, execute, and implement a strategic plan to make your idea work. In this article, we share exactly what your plan needs and provide a nonprofit business plan template to help you create one of your own.

What is a Nonprofit Business Plan?

A nonprofit business plan describes your nonprofit as it currently is and sets up a roadmap for the next three to five years. It also lays out your goals and plans for meeting your goals. Your nonprofit business plan is a living document that should be updated frequently to reflect your evolving goals and circumstances.

A business plan is the foundation of your organization — the who, what, when, where, and how you’re going to make a positive impact.

The best nonprofit business plans aren’t unnecessarily long. They include only as much information as necessary. They may be as short as seven pages long, one for each of the essential sections you will read about below and see in our template, or up to 30 pages long if your organization grows.

Why do we need a Nonprofit Business Plan?

Regardless of whether your nonprofit is small and barely making it or if your nonprofit has been successfully running for years, you need a nonprofit business plan. Why?

When you create a nonprofit business plan, you are effectively creating a blueprint for how your nonprofit will be run, who will be responsible for what, and how you plan to achieve your goals.

Your nonprofit organization also needs a business plan if you plan to secure support of any kind, be it monetary, in-kind , or even just support from volunteers. You need a business plan to convey your nonprofit’s purpose and goals.

It sometimes also happens that the board, or the administration under which a nonprofit operates, requires a nonprofit business plan.

To sum it all up, write a nonprofit business plan to:

Layout your goals and establish milestones.
Better understand your beneficiaries, partners, and other stakeholders.
Assess the feasibility of your nonprofit and document your fundraising/financing model.
Attract investment and prove that you’re serious about your nonprofit.
Attract a board and volunteers.
Position your nonprofit and get clear about your message.
Force you to research and uncover new opportunities.
Iron out all the kinks in your plan and hold yourself accountable.

Before starting your nonprofit business plan, it is important to consider the following:

Who is your audience? E.g. If you are interested in fundraising, donors will be your audience. If you are interested in partnerships, potential partners will be your audience.
What do you want their response to be? Depending on your target audience, you should focus on the key message you want them to receive to get the response that you want.

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10-Step Guide on Writing a Business Plan for Nonprofits

Note: Steps 1, 2, and 3 are in preparation for writing your nonprofit business plan.

Step 1: Data Collection

Before even getting started with the writing, collect financial, operating, and other relevant data. If your nonprofit is already in operation, this should at the very least include financial statements detailing operating expense reports and a spreadsheet that indicates funding sources.

If your nonprofit is new, compile materials related to any secured funding sources and operational funding projections, including anticipated costs.

Step 2: Heart of the Matter

You are a nonprofit after all! Your nonprofit business plan should start with an articulation of the core values and your mission statement . Outline your vision, your guiding philosophy, and any other principles that provide the purpose behind the work. This will help you to refine and communicate your nonprofit message clearly.

Your nonprofit mission statement can also help establish your milestones, the problems your organization seeks to solve, who your organization serves, and its future goals.

Check out these great mission statement examples for some inspiration. For help writing your statement, download our free Mission & Vision Statements Worksheet .

Step 3: Outline

Create an outline of your nonprofit business plan. Write out everything you want your plan to include (e.g. sections such as marketing, fundraising, human resources, and budgets).

An outline helps you focus your attention. It gives you a roadmap from the start, through the middle, and to the end. Outlining actually helps us write more quickly and more effectively.

An outline will help you understand what you need to tell your audience, whether it’s in the right order, and whether the right amount of emphasis is placed on each topic.

Pro tip: Use our Nonprofit Business Plan Outline to help with this step! More on that later.

Step 4: Products, Programs, and Services

In this section, provide more information on exactly what your nonprofit organization does.

What products, programs, or services do you provide?
How does your nonprofit benefit the community?
What need does your nonprofit meet and what are your plans for meeting that need?

E.g. The American Red Cross carries out its mission to prevent and relieve suffering with five key services: disaster relief, supporting America’s military families, lifesaving blood, health and safety services, and international service.

Don’t skimp out on program details, including the functions and beneficiaries. This is generally what most readers will care most about.

However, don’t overload the reader with technical jargon. Try to present some clear examples. Include photographs, brochures, and other promotional materials.

Step 5: Marketing Plan

A marketing plan is essential for a nonprofit to reach its goals. If your nonprofit is already in operation, describe in detail all current marketing activities: any outreach activities, campaigns, and other initiatives. Be specific about outcomes, activities, and costs.

If your nonprofit is new, outline projections based on specific data you gathered about your market.

This will frequently be your most detailed section because it spells out precisely how you intend to carry out your business plan.

Describe your market. This includes your target audience, competitors, beneficiaries, donors, and potential partners.
Include any market analyses and tests you’ve done.
Outline your plan for reaching your beneficiaries.
Outline your marketing activities, highlighting specific outcomes.

Step 6: Operational Plan

An operational plan describes how your nonprofit plans to deliver activities. In the operational plan, it is important to explain how you plan to maintain your operations and how you will evaluate the impact of your programs.

The operational plan should give an overview of the day-to-day operations of your organization such as the people and organizations you work with (e.g. partners and suppliers), any legal requirements that your organization needs to meet (e.g. if you distribute food, you’ll need appropriate licenses and certifications), any insurance you have or will need, etc.

In the operational plan, also include a section on the people or your team. Describe the people who are crucial to your organization and any staff changes you plan as part of your business plan.

Pro tip: If you have an organizational chart, you can include it in the appendix to help illustrate how your organization operates. Learn more about the six types of nonprofit organizational charts and see them in action in this free e-book .

Example of a top-down organizational chart.

Step 7: Impact Plan

For a nonprofit, an impact plan is as important as a financial plan. A nonprofit seeks to create social change and a social return on investment, not just a financial return on investment.

Your impact plan should be precise about how your nonprofit will achieve this step. It should include details on what change you’re seeking to make, how you’re going to make it, and how you’re going to measure it.

This section turns your purpose and motivation into concrete accomplishments your nonprofit wants to make and sets specific goals and objectives.

These define the real bottom line of your nonprofit, so they’re the key to unlocking support. Funders want to know for whom, in what way, and exactly how you’ll measure your impact.

Answer these in the impact plan section of your business plan:

What goals are most meaningful to the people you serve or the cause you’re fighting for?
How can you best achieve those goals through a series of specific objectives?

E.g. “Finding jobs for an additional 200 unemployed people in the coming year.”

Step 8: Financial Plan

This is one of the most important parts of your nonprofit business plan. Creating a financial plan will allow you to make sure that your nonprofit has its basic financial needs covered.

Every nonprofit needs a certain level of funding to stay operational, so it’s essential to make sure your organization will meet at least that threshold.

To craft your financial plan:

Outline your nonprofit’s current and projected financial status.
Include an income statement, balance sheet , cash flow statement, and financial projections.
List any grants you’ve received, significant contributions, and in-kind support.
Include your fundraising plan .
Identify gaps in your funding, and how you will manage them.
Plan for what will be done with a potential surplus.
Include startup costs, if necessary.

If your nonprofit is already operational, use established accounting records to complete this section of the business plan.

Knowing the financial details of your organization is incredibly important in a world where the public demands transparency about where their donations are going.

Pro tip : Leverage startup accelerators dedicated to nonprofits that can help you with funding, sponsorship, networking, and much more.

Step 9: Executive Summary

Normally written last but placed first in your business plan, your nonprofit executive summary provides an introduction to your entire business plan. The first page should describe your non-profit’s mission and purpose, summarize your market analysis that proves an identifiable need, and explain how your non-profit will meet that need.

The Executive Summary is where you sell your nonprofit and its ideas. Here you need to describe your organization clearly and concisely.

Make sure to customize your executive summary depending on your audience (i.e. your executive summary page will look different if your main goal is to win a grant or hire a board member).

Step 10: Appendix

Include extra documents in the section that are pertinent to your nonprofit: organizational chart , current fiscal year budget, a list of the board of directors, your IRS status letter, balance sheets, and so forth.

The appendix contains helpful additional information that might not be suitable for the format of your business plan (i.e. it might unnecessarily make it less readable or more lengthy).

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Do’s and Dont’s of Nonprofit Business Plans – Tips

Write clearly, using simple and easy-to-understand language.
Get to the point, support it with facts, and then move on.
Include relevant graphs and program descriptions.
Include an executive summary.
Provide sufficient financial information.
Customize your business plan to different audiences.
Stay authentic and show enthusiasm.
Make the business plan too long.
Use too much technical jargon.
Overload the plan with text.
Rush the process of writing, but don’t drag it either.
Gush about the cause without providing a clear understanding of how you will help the cause through your activities.
Keep your formatting consistent.
Use standard 1-inch margins.
Use a reasonable font size for the body.
For print, use a serif font like Times New Roman or Courier. For digital, use sans serifs like Verdana or Arial.
Start a new page before each section.
Don’t allow your plan to print and leave a single line on an otherwise blank page.
Have several people read over the plan before it is printed to make sure it’s free of errors.

Nonprofit Business Plan Template

To help you get started we’ve created a nonprofit business plan outline. This business plan outline will work as a framework regardless of your nonprofit’s area of focus. With it, you’ll have a better idea of how to lay out your nonprofit business plan and what to include. We have also provided several questions and examples to help you create a detailed nonprofit business plan.

Download Your Free Outline

Image showing the title page of the Nonprofit Business Plan Outline e-book.

At Donorbox, we strive to make your nonprofit experience as productive as possible, whether through our donation software or through our advice and guides on the Nonprofit Blog . Find more free, downloadable resources in our Library .

Many nonprofits start with passion and enthusiasm but without a proper business plan. It’s a common misconception that just because an organization is labeled a “nonprofit,” it does not need to operate in any way like a business.

However, a nonprofit is a type of business, and many of the same rules that apply to a for-profit company also apply to a nonprofit organization.

As outlined above, your nonprofit business plan is a combination of your marketing plan , strategic plan, operational plan, impact plan, and financial plan. Remember, you don’t have to work from scratch. Be sure to use the nonprofit business plan outline we’ve provided to help create one of your own.

It’s important to note that your nonprofit should not be set in stone—it can and should change and evolve. It’s a living organism. While your vision, values, and mission will likely remain the same, your nonprofit business plan may need to be revised from time to time. Keep your audience in mind and adjust your plan as needed.

Finally, don’t let your plan gather dust on a shelf! Print it out, put up posters on your office walls, and read from it during your team meetings. Use all the research, data, and ideas you’ve gathered and put them into action!

If you want more help with nonprofit management tips and fundraising resources, visit our Nonprofit Blog . We also have dedicated articles for starting a nonprofit in different states in the U.S., including Texas , Minnesota , Oregon , Arizona , Illinois , and more.

Learn about our all-in-one online fundraising tool, Donorbox, and its simple-to-use features on the website here .

Raviraj heads the sales and marketing team at Donorbox. His growth-hacking abilities have helped Donorbox boost fundraising efforts for thousands of nonprofit organizations.

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how to write a business plan for a foundation

Raise More & Grow Your Nonprofit.

The complete guide to writing a nonprofit business plan.

August 14, 2019

Leadership & Management

July 7, 2022

Statistics from the National Center for Charitable Statistics (NCCS) show that there are over 1.5 million nonprofit organizations currently operating in the U.S. alone. Many of these organizations are hard at work helping people in need and addressing the great issues of our time. However, doing good work doesn’t necessarily translate into long-term success and financial stability. Other information has shown that around 12% of non-profits don’t make it past the 5-year mark, and this number expands to 17% at the 10-year mark.

12% of non-profits don’t make it past the 5-year mark and 17% at the 10-year mark

There are a variety of challenges behind these sobering statistics. In many cases, a nonprofit can be sunk before it starts due to a lack of a strong nonprofit business plan. Below is a complete guide to understanding why a nonprofit needs a business plan in place, and how to construct one, piece by piece.

The purpose of a nonprofit business plan

A business plan for a nonprofit is similar to that of a for-profit business plan, in that you want it to serve as a clear, complete roadmap for your organization. When your plan is complete, questions such as "what goals are we trying to accomplish?" or "what is the true purpose of our organization?" should be clear and simple to answer.

Your nonprofit business plan should provide answers to the following questions:

1. What activities do you plan to pursue in order to meet the organization’s high level goals?

2. What's your plan on getting revenue to fund these activities?

3. What are your operating costs and specifically how do these break down?

Note that there’s a difference between a business plan and a strategic plan, though there may be some overlap. A strategic plan is more conceptual, with different ideas you have in place to try and meet the organization’s greater vision (such as fighting homelessness or raising climate change awareness). A business plan serves as an action plan because it provides, in as much detail as possible, the specifics on how you’re going to execute your strategy.

Creating a nonprofit business plan

With this in mind, it’s important to discuss the individual sections of a nonprofit business plan. Having a proper plan in a recognizable format is essential for a variety of reasons. On your business’s end, it makes sure that as many issues or questions you may encounter are addressed up front. For outside entities, such as potential volunteers or donors, it shows that their time and energy will be managed well and put to good use. So, how do you go from conceptual to concrete?

Step 1: Write a mission statement

‍ Having a mission statement is essential for any company, but even more so for nonprofits. Your markers of success are not just how the organization performs financially, but the impact it makes for your cause.

One of the easiest ways to do this is by creating a mission statement. A strong mission statement clarifies why your organization exists and determines the direction of activities.

At the head of their ethics page , NPR has a mission statement that clearly and concisely explains why they exist. From this you learn:

The key point of their mission: creating a more informed public that understands new ideas and cultures
Their mechanism of executing that vision: providing and reporting news/info that meets top journalistic standards
Other essential details: their partnership with their membership statement

You should aim for the same level of clarity and brevity in your own mission statement.

The goal of a mission statement isn’t just about being able to showcase things externally, but also giving your internal team something to realign them if they get off track.

For example, if you're considering a new program or services, you can always check the idea against the mission statement. Does it align with your higher level goal and what your organization is ultimately trying to achieve? A mission statement is a compass to guide your team and keep the organization aligned and focused.

Step 2: Collect the data

‍ You can’t prepare for the future without some data from the past and present. This can range from financial data if you’re already in operation to secured funding if you’re getting ready to start.

Data related to operations and finances (such as revenue, expenses, taxes, etc.) is crucial for budgeting and organizational decisions.

You'll also want to collect data about your target donor. Who are they in terms of their income, demographics, location, etc. and what is the best way to reach them? Every business needs to market, and answering these demographic questions are crucial to targeting the right audience in a marketing campaign. You'll also need data about marketing costs collected from your fundraising, marketing, and CRM software and tools. This data can be extremely important for demonstrating the effectiveness of a given fundraising campaign or the organization as a whole.

Then there is data that nonprofits collect from third-party sources as to how to effectively address their cause, such as shared data from other nonprofits and data from governments.

By properly collecting and interpreting the above data, you can build your nonprofit to not only make an impact, but also ensure the organization is financially sustainable.

Step 3: Create an outline

Before you begin writing your plan, it’s important to have an outline of the sections of your plan. Just like an academic essay, it’s easier to make sure all the points are addressed by taking inventory of high level topics first. If you create an outline and find you don’t have all the materials you need to fill it, you may need to go back to the data collection stage.

Writing an outline gives you something simple to read that can easily be circulated to your team for input. Maybe some of your partners will want to emphasize an area that you missed or an area that needs more substance.

Having an outline makes it easier for you to create an organized, well-flowing piece. Each section needs to be clear on its own, but you also don’t want to be overly repetitive.

As a side-note, one area where a lot of business novices stall in terms of getting their plans off the ground is not knowing what format to choose or start with. The good news is there are a lot of resources available online for you to draw templates for from your plan, or just inspire one of your own.

Using a business plan template

You may want to use a template as a starting point for your business plan. The major benefit here is that a lot of the outlining work that we mentioned is already done for you. However, you may not want to follow the template word for word. A nonprofit business plan may require additional sections or parts that aren’t included in a conventional business plan template.

The best way to go about this is to try and focus less on copying the template, and more about copying the spirit of the template. For example, if you see a template that you like, you can keep the outline, but you may want to change the color scheme and font to better reflect your brand. And of course, all your text should be unique.

When it comes to adding a new section to a business plan template, for the most part, you can use your judgment. We will get into specific sections in a bit, but generally, you just want to pair your new section with the existing section that makes the most sense. For example, if your non-profit has retail sales as a part of a financial plan, you can include that along with the products, services and programs section.

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Nonprofit business plan sections

The exact content is going to vary based on the size, purpose, and nature of your nonprofit. However, there are certain sections that every business plan will need to have for investors, donors, and lenders to take you seriously. Generally, your outline will be built around the following main sections:

1. Executive summary

Many people write this last, even though it comes first in a business plan. This is because the executive summary is designed to be a general summary of the business plan as a whole. Naturally, it may be easier to write this after the rest of the business plan has been completed.

After reading your executive summary a person should ideally have a general idea of what the entire plan covers. Sometimes, a person may be interested in learning about your non-profit, but doesn’t have time to read a 20+ page document. In this case, the executive summary could be the difference between whether or not you land a major donor.

As a start, you want to cover the basic need your nonprofit services, why that need exists, and the way you plan to address that need. The goal here is to tell the story as clearly and and concisely as possible. If the person is sold and wants more details, they can read through the rest of your business plan.

2. Products/Services/Programs

This is the space where you can clarify exactly what your non-profit does. Think of it as explaining the way your nonprofit addresses that base need you laid out earlier. This can vary a lot based on what type of non-profit you’re running.

This page gives us some insight into the mechanisms Bucks County Historical Society uses to further their mission, which is “to educate and engage its many audiences in appreciating the past and to help people find stories and meanings relevant to their lives—both today and in the future.”

They accomplish this goal through putting together both permanent exhibits as well as regular events at their primary museum. However, in a non-profit business plan, you need to go further.

It’s important here not only to clearly explain who benefits from your services, but also the specific details how those services are provided. For example, saying you “help inner-city school children” isn’t specific enough. Are you providing education or material support? Your non-profit business plan readers need as much detail as possible using simple and clear language.

3. Marketing

For a non-profit to succeed, it needs to have a steady stream of both donors and volunteers. Marketing plays a key role here as it does in a conventional business. This section should outline who your target audience is, and what you’ve already done/plan on doing to reach this audience. How you explain this is going to vary based on what stage your non-profit is in. We’ll split this section to make it more clear.

Nonprofits not in operation

‍ Obviously, it’s difficult to market an idea effectively if you’re not in operation, but you still need to have a marketing plan in place. People who want to support your non-profit need to understand your marketing plan to attract donors. You need to profile all the data you have about your target market and outline how you plan to reach this audience.

Nonprofits already in operation

‍ Marketing plans differ greatly for nonprofits already in operation. If your nonprofit is off the ground, you want to include data about your target market as well, along with other key details. Describe all your current marketing efforts, from events to general outreach, to conventional types of marketing like advertisements and email plans. Specific details are important. By the end of this, the reader should know:

What type of marketing methods your organization prefers
Why you’ve chosen these methods
The track record of success using these methods
What the costs and ROI of a marketing campaign

4. Operations

This is designed to serve as the “how” of your Products/Services/Programs section.

For example, if your goal is to provide school supplies for inner-city schoolchildren, you’ll need to explain how you will procure the supplies and distribute them to kids in need. Again, detail is essential. A reader should be able to understand not only how your non-profit operates on a daily basis, but also how it executes any task in the rest of the plan.

If your marketing plan says that you hold community events monthly to drum up interest. Who is in charge of the event? How are they run? How much do they cost? What personnel or volunteers are needed for each event? Where are the venues?

This is also a good place to cover additional certifications or insurance that your non-profit needs in order to execute these operations, and your current progress towards obtaining them.

Your operations section should also have a space dedicated to your team. The reason for this is, just like any other business plan, is that the strength of an organization lies in the people running it.

For example, let’s look at this profile from The Nature Conservancy . The main points of the biography are to showcase Chief Development Officer Jim Asp’s work history as it is relevant to his job. You’ll want to do something similar in your business plan’s team section.

Equally important is making sure that you cover any staff changes that you plan to implement in the near future in your business plan. The reason for this is that investors/partners may not want to sign on assuming that one leadership team is in place, only for it to change when the business reaches a certain stage.

The sections we’ve been talking about would also be in a traditional for profit business plan. We start to deviate a bit at this point. The impact section is designed to outline the social change you plan to make with your organization, and how your choices factor into those goals.

Remember the thoughts that go into that mission statement we mentioned before? This is your chance to show how you plan to address that mission with your actions, and how you plan to track your progress.

Let’s revisit the idea of helping inner-city school children by providing school supplies. What exactly is the metric you’re going to use to determine your success? For-profit businesses can have their finances as their primary KPI, but it’s not that easy for non-profits. Let’s say that your mission is to provide 1,000 schoolchildren in an underserved school district supplies for their classes. Your impact plan could cover two metrics:

How many supplies are distributed
Secondary impact (improved grades, classwork completed, etc).

The primary goal of this section is to transform that vision into concrete, measurable goals and objectives. A great acronym to help you create these are S.M.A.R.T. goals which stands for: specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and timely. ‍

Vitamin Angels does a good job of showing how their action supports the mission. Their goal of providing vitamins to mothers and children in developing countries has a concrete impact when we look at the numbers of how many children they service as well as how many countries they deliver to. As a non-profit business plan, it’s a good idea to include statistics like these to show exactly how close you are to your planned goals.

6. Finances

Every non-profit needs funding to operate, and this all-important section details exactly how you plan to cover these financial needs. Your business plan can be strong in every other section, but if your financial planning is flimsy, it’s going to prove difficult to gather believers to your cause.

It's important to paint a complete, positive picture of your fundraising plans and ambitions. Generally, this entails the following parts:

Current financial status, such as current assets, cash on hand, liabilities
Projections based off of your existing financial data and forms
Key financial documents, such as a balance sheet, income statements, and cash flow sheet
Any grants or major contributions received
Your plan for fundraising (this may overlap with your marketing section which is okay)
Potential issues and hurdles to your funding plan
Your plans to address those issues
How you'll utilize surplus donations
Startup costs (if your non-profit is not established yet)

In general, if you see something else that isn’t accounted for here, it’s better to be safe than sorry, and put the relevant information in. It’s better to have too much information than too little when it comes to finances, especially since there is usually a clear preference for transparent business culture.

‍ How to Make a Five-Year Budget Plan for a Nonprofit ‍
Financial Transparency - National Council of Nonprofits

7. Appendix

Generally, this serves as a space to attach additional documents and elements that you may find useful for your business plan. This can include things like supplementary charts or a list of your board of directors.

This is also a good place to put text or technical information that you think may be relevant to your business plan, but might be long-winded or difficult to read. A lot of the flow and structure concerns you have for a plan don’t really apply with an appendix.

In summary, while a non-profit may have very different goals than your average business, the ways that they reach those goals do have a lot of similarities with for-profit businesses. The best way to ensure your success is to have a clear, concrete vision and path to different milestones along the way. A solid, in-depth business plan also gives you something to refer back to when you are struggling and not sure where to turn.

Alongside your business plan, you also want to use tools and resources that promote efficiency at all levels. For example, every non-profit needs a consistent stream of donations to survive, so consider using a program like GiveForms that creates simple, accessible forms for your donors to easily make donations. Accounting and budgeting for these in your plans can pay dividends later on.

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Business Planning for Nonprofits

Business planning is a way of systematically answering questions such as, “What problem(s) are we trying to solve?” or “What are we trying to achieve?” and also, “Who will get us there, by when, and how much money and other resources will it take?”

The business planning process takes into account the nonprofit’s mission and vision, the role of the board, and external environmental factors, such as the climate for fundraising.

Ideally, the business planning process also critically examines basic assumptions about the nonprofit’s operating environment. What if the sources of income that exist today change in the future? Is the nonprofit too reliant on one foundation for revenue? What happens if there’s an economic downturn?

A business plan can help the nonprofit and its board be prepared for future risks. What is the likelihood that the planned activities will continue as usual, and that revenue will continue at current levels – and what is Plan B if they don't?

Narrative of a business plan

You can think of a business plan as a narrative or story explaining how the nonprofit will operate given its activities, its sources of revenue, its expenses, and the inevitable changes in its internal and external environments over time. Ideally, your plan will tell the story in a way that will make sense to someone not intimately familiar with the nonprofit’s operations.

According to Propel Nonprofits , business plans usually should have four components that identify revenue sources/mix; operations costs; program costs; and capital structure.

A business plan outlines the expected income sources to support the charitable nonprofit's activities. What types of revenue will the nonprofit rely on to keep its engine running – how much will be earned, how much from government grants or contracts, how much will be contributed? Within each of those broad categories, how much diversification exists, and should they be further diversified? Are there certain factors that need to be in place in order for today’s income streams to continue flowing?

The plan should address the everyday costs needed to operate the organization, as well as costs of specific programs and activities.

The plan may include details about the need for the organization's services (a needs assessment), the likelihood that certain funding will be available (a feasibility study), or changes to the organization's technology or staffing that will be needed in the future.

Another aspect of a business plan could be a "competitive analysis" describing what other entities may be providing similar services in the nonprofit's service and mission areas. What are their sources of revenue and staffing structures? How do their services and capacities differ from those of your nonprofit?

Finally, the business plan should name important assumptions, such as the organization's reserve policies. Do your nonprofit’s policies require it to have at least six months of operating cash on hand? Do you have different types of cash reserves that require different levels of board approval to release?

The idea is to identify the known, and take into consideration the unknown, realities of the nonprofit's operations, and propose how the nonprofit will continue to be financially healthy. If the underlying assumptions or current conditions change, then having a plan can be useful to help identify adjustments that must be made to respond to changes in the nonprofit's operating environment.

Basic format of a business plan

The format may vary depending on the audience. A business plan prepared for a bank to support a loan application may be different than a business plan that board members use as the basis for budgeting. Here is a typical outline of the format for a business plan:

Table of contents
Executive summary - Name the problem the nonprofit is trying to solve: its mission, and how it accomplishes its mission.
People: overview of the nonprofit’s board, staffing, and volunteer structure and who makes what happen
Market opportunities/competitive analysis
Programs and services: overview of implementation
Contingencies: what could change?
Financial health: what is the current status, and what are the sources of revenue to operate programs and advance the mission over time?
Assumptions and proposed changes: What needs to be in place for this nonprofit to continue on sound financial footing?

More About Business Planning

Budgeting for Nonprofits

Strategic Planning

Contact your state association of nonprofits for support and resources related to business planning, strategic planning, and other fundamentals of nonprofit leadership.

Additional Resources

Components of transforming nonprofit business models (Propel Nonprofits)
The matrix map: a powerful tool for nonprofit sustainability (Nonprofit Quarterly)
The Nonprofit Business Plan: A Leader's Guide to Creating a Successful Business Model (David La Piana, Heather Gowdy, Lester Olmstead-Rose, and Brent Copen, Turner Publishing)
Nonprofit Earned Income: Critical Business Model Considerations for Nonprofits (Nonprofit Financial Commons)
Nonprofit Sustainability: Making Strategic Decisions for Financial Viability (Jan Masaoka, Steve Zimmerman, and Jeanne Bell)

Disclaimer: Information on this website is provided for informational purposes only and is neither intended to be nor should be construed as legal, accounting, tax, investment, or financial advice. Please consult a professional (attorney, accountant, tax advisor) for the latest and most accurate information. The National Council of Nonprofits makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy or timeliness of the information contained herein.

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How to write a nonprofit business plan: A comprehensive guide

Steps to write a nonprofit business plan.

Start with research
Define your mission and vision
Outline your programs and services
Determine your organizational structure
Conduct a market analysis
Craft your marketing strategy
Develop financial projections
Write and refine

Business plans aren’t only for startups and corporations; they’re equally crucial for nonprofit organizations. A well-drafted nonprofit business plan not only provides direction but also attracts donors and other stakeholders. In this article, we’ll delve into the hows and whys of writing a nonprofit business plan and walk you through the process step by step.

The purpose and importance of a nonprofit business plan

A business plan is like a roadmap. It charts the course, setting clear goals and detailing the strategies needed to reach your destination (e.g., business goals). Given the unique challenges nonprofits face — competing for funding, demonstrating impact, and managing resources efficiently — a business plan is indispensable for staying on track.

What is a nonprofit business plan?

A nonprofit business plan is a document that outlines an organization’s operational and financial objectives, and details the strategies and resources (both human and capital) required to achieve those objectives. It serves as an internal guide for the organization’s leadership and a tool for communicating with external stakeholders.

Why do nonprofits need a business plan?

At its core, a nonprofit organization thrives on clarity of purpose, and a business plan offers just that. It establishes a clear mission and vision, serving as a guiding light for every strategic decision and action.

Beyond this foundational benefit, a business plan fosters operational efficiency. Meticulously outlining processes and delineating roles and responsibilities ensures a streamlined workflow, preventing any overlaps or omissions that could hamper the organization’s effectiveness.

In a competitive landscape where nonprofits vie for funding, a well-articulated business plan attests to the organization’s seriousness, structure, and transparency. Donors and sponsors are more inclined to invest when they see a clear roadmap detailing how an organization will use their contributions.

Last, a business plan serves as a robust framework for performance evaluation. Setting benchmarks and expectations drives the organization toward its goals and creates a culture of accountability — ensuring that every stakeholder is aligned and contributing to the collective mission.

Key components of a nonprofit business plan

Like a blueprint, a business plan has several elements that are indispensable to its structure. But depending on your organization’s goals and purpose, there may be elements unique to you. Let’s consider the pillar elements of every plan:

The executive summary provides an overview of the organization, including its mission, vision, goals, and achievements to date.
An organization description details the history, structure, and values of the organization.
A market analysis provides a detailed examination of the community or population the nonprofit serves as well as a description of their needs and the ways the organization meets them.
The organizational structure outlines the roles and responsibilities of team members, the board of directors, and other key personnel.
The services and programs section provides details on the services the organization provides or the programs it runs.
The marketing plan explains how the organization will raise awareness about its work. It includes strategies for donor engagement, fundraising events, and promotional campaigns.
The financial projections section provides an estimate of the organization’s financial outlook for the next three to five years. It includes expected income, expenses, and milestones to reach financial sustainability.

A step-by-step guide to writing a nonprofit business plan

Creating a nonprofit business plan can seem daunting, but it can be rewarding if you take the right approach. Follow this step-by-step guide to help you navigate the process:

Start with research. Understand the needs of your target community. This knowledge forms the foundation of your business plan.
Define your mission and vision. Clearly state what your organization aims to achieve and the change it wants to bring about.
Outline your programs and services. Detail how you plan to achieve your mission. Break down your offerings, explaining the impact and benefit of each.
Determine your organizational structure. Establish the hierarchy, roles, and responsibilities to help in operations and decision-making processes.
Conduct a market analysis. Identify key trends in the nonprofit sector and analyze your competitors. Determine what sets you apart.
Craft your marketing strategy. Consider how you’ll communicate your mission and raise funds. You might include events, online campaigns, and collaborations.
Develop financial projections. While predicting donations is challenging, try to provide a realistic financial outlook. Base projections on past data, if available, or make educated guesses using your market analysis.
Write and refine. Draft the business plan, integrating all the components. Use clear, concise language. Once your draft is complete, review and refine it for clarity and coherence. It’s a good idea to have another professional review it too, as they may see things that you’ve missed.

Tips and best practices

Stay realistic. While optimism is great, your projections and plans should be grounded in reality.
Engage stakeholders. Consult team members, board members, and even potential donors when drafting the plan.
Regularly review and update. A business plan isn’t a static document. As your organization evolves, make sure your business plan does too.
Use visuals. Graphs, charts, and infographics can make your plan more engaging and easier to understand.

How Jotform can help you create a nonprofit business plan

Crafting a nonprofit business plan requires meticulous organization and seamless data collection. As you dive into the process, Jotform can help you create customized forms that streamline various aspects of your planning.

Whether you’re gathering initial research and feedback, managing donor information, registering volunteers, or even tracking impact metrics, Jotform ensures that every piece of data is organized and accessible.

Jotform’s intuitive interface and templates make it easy to design forms tailored to your nonprofit’s specific needs. Use Jotform’s business plan templates to give yourself a head start. From soliciting feedback on a new program idea to managing donor relationships to reporting on the tangible impact of your efforts, Jotform simplifies the process. You can even use the business proposal template to collect grantor signatures.

Nonprofit organizations are eligible for a 50-percent discount on paid Jotform plans.

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How to Write a Non-Profit Business Plan

Sylvia Okoye

Last updated on January 29, 2024 5 mins read

So you’re starting a non-profit business but haven’t sat down to craft a business plan?

Many entrepreneurs venture into non-profit with a truckload of impactful ideas they intend to achieve. Along the way these ideas begin to wither away due to poor planning and execution.

To manage and grow a non-profit business, you must outline your strategies, goals and objectives. A clear, non-profit business plan is the first of many steps to getting this done.

Table of Contents

What is a Non-Profit Business Plan?

A non-profit business plan is a strategic document outlining the mission, objectives, operational structure and financial projection of an organization.

It serves as a blueprint for achieving the organization’s goals, guiding the decision-making processes, and showcasing its viability to stakeholders, donors, and grant-making entities.

Whether launching a new non-profit business or seeking to strengthen an existing one, having a comprehensive plan is fundamental to your success.

Why Write a Non-Profit Plan?

A non-profit business plan differs from a for-profit business plan in that a for-profit business plan also clarifies how a business will grow in the market and in revenue.

Beyond securing funding, a well-written non-profit business plan offers several benefits:

Clarity and Focus – The plan is a roadmap for movement and aligning everyone to the business’s missions and goals.
Strategic Decision-Making – It helps you make informed decisions about resource allocation, program development, and fundraising strategies.
Improved Communication – It serves as a communication tool, showcasing your organization’s credibility and professionalism to potential donors, partners and volunteers.
Impactful Measurement – It establishes benchmarks for measuring your impact and demonstrating the effectiveness of your programs.
Organizational Growth – It lays the foundation for sustainable growth and expansion, enabling you to reach more people and make a greater impact.

Crafting Your Non-Profit Business Plan

Every non-profit business plan has specified components attached to it that describe your business and what you do. Below are some components:

Executive Summary

The executive summary is a concise overview of your organization. It usually appears first in the business plan, however, it’s often the last thing you write because it encapsulates the essence of the entire document.

A good summary should include in brief the mission of your business, its key objectives, target audience and a summary of your financial projections. It needs to be well-structured such that it is easily comprehensible to anyone who reads it. Writing a poor summary negatively affects your business and its reputation around sponsors.

Mission, Vision, and Values

Whether you are a human service, educational, environmental or religious non-profit organization, you should have a clear mission and vision. Let us know why you do what you do and how you intend to positively impact the world.

Define the mission statement that encapsulates your organization’s purpose, followed by a clear vision outlining the future you aim to create. Incorporate the core values that guide your actions and decisions, reflecting the principles on which your non-profit stands.

For example, the Epileptic Foundation a Humanitarian non-profit organization for epileptic people clearly defines their mission statements, visions and core values.

Your mission and vision statements should be boldly and clearly articulated to represent your business and cause.

Organizational Structure and Management

Sponsors, donors and benefactors are more likely to give to nonprofits with organizational structure than those without. This is because a hierarchical structure shows that the business wants to be a business.

Keep this structure as detailed as possible. Include board members, key personnel, and their role in the company. Highlight their qualifications and experiences, emphasizing their relevance to the organization’s mission.

Programs and Services

Every non-profit is created for a cause. This is the same as services or the product of a for-profit business. Let your donors know what you offer by reading your business plan.

In a clear concise manner, describe the programs and services your non-profit offers. Explain how these initiatives align with your mission, their anticipated impact, and how they address the needs of your target beneficiaries or community.

Target Audience and Market Analysis

Identify and analyze your target audience or beneficiaries. Conduct market research to understand the needs, demographics and challenges of your intended community or beneficiaries. Clearly articulate how your programs meet those needs.

Marketing and Fundraising Strategies

As you know your non-profit is solely based on donations and contributions to a cause. This step is crucial to writing a spectacular non-profit business plan. You need to state clearly your marketing and fundraising strategies. These tips need to answer some of the questions like?

What are your marketing strategies?
How to create and promote awareness about your non-profit organization?
How to reach your potential donors, volunteers and stakeholders?
What social media channels do you use to communicate with your target audience and benefactors?
What fundraising initiatives and events have you designed to generate revenue for the organization?
What are the eligibility criteria for potential donors and partners?

Financial Projections and Budget

Show your initial capital, how much you were worth, how much you are worth now and your future financial projection. Distill the reports to a fifth-grade level, such that anyone who picks it up knows the state of things.

Include your income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Present a clear budget that outlines anticipated expenses and revenue sources, demonstrating fiscal responsibility and sustainability.

Evaluation and Measurement Metrics

Define key performance indicators and metrics to evaluate the success of your programs and initiatives. Establish a framework for regular assessment and adjustment to ensure you’re effectively meeting your goals.

Risk Management and Contingency Plans

Identify potential risks and challenges that could impact your organization’s operations. Develop contingency plans to mitigate these risks, ensuring the continuity of your programs and services.

Tips for Writing a Compelling Non-Profit Business Plan

Focus on your impact – Clearly articulate the positive change your non-profit is making and the lives you are touching. Use compelling stories and data to showcase your impact.
Keep it concise and comprehensible – Aim for a clear and concise writing style, avoid jargon and technical terms. Your business plan should be easy for anyone to understand regardless of their background.
Tailor your plan to your Audience – Adapt your language and content to resonate with specific audiences such as potential donors, grantmakers, or volunteers.
Be realistic and Data-Driven – Base your plans on realistic assumptions and support your claims with data and research.
Get Feedback and Revise – Share your draft plan with key stakeholders and incorporate their feedback to refine and improve it.

Remember your non-profit business plan is a living document. It should be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect changes in your organization, the needs of your community and the funding landscape.

By following these tips and resources, you can create a compelling non-profit business plan that will guide your organization towards a sustainable and impactful future.

The world will continue to need difference makers in the form of non-profit organizations. If you’d do the work, you might as well do it with a business plan.

How To Write A Business Plan For A Nonprofit Organization

Dodd Caldwell

July 21, 2020.

Writing a business plan for a new nonprofit is essential, and this guide will show you exactly what to include and how to put it together. Without a business plan, it’s easy to lose direction, harder to recruit quality personnel, and nearly impossible to successfully apply for funding.

Your business plan, once complete, should not only help you achieve those goals, but also provide you with a clear pathway to success. It should frequently be referenced during key decision-making times to stay on track and to make sure your not for profit organization always adheres to its stated vision. This guide will help you to create a business plan that fulfills all those roles.

Your Basic Nonprofit Business Plan Template

The best business plans aren’t unnecessarily long, but do include as much information as necessary. They may be as short as seven pages long, one for each of these essential sections, or up to 30 pages long as your organization grows and becomes more complicated.

Don’t worry if your business plan seems too short. Here, brevity is a virtue. If your plan has these seven sections and all the details mentioned here, you should be well on your way to meeting your nonprofit goals.

1. Title Page

This is the easiest part but should not be overlooked. This is like the title page of a resume. You should make sure your nonprofit’s name about is 2-3 inches from the top of the page. Below it, you need to have the following details:

Business Plan – Just under your Nonprofit’s Name should be the words “business plan” to show exactly what the document is.
The Date Your Plan was Finalized – You can write it any way you want, from September 2017 to 09/2017.
Contact Information – Name, Address, Email and Phone Number all go below.

2. Executive Summary

You can draft this up first, but it should be the last thing you work on. This is the most important part of your business plan. Here you must summarize, on one page, every critical aspect of your nonprofit. This summary will determine if someone, be it an investor or potential staff member, will continue reading.

The Executive Summary is where you sell your organization and its ideas. Here you need to describe your organization.

What makes your organization stand out?
What is your ultimate vision?
Which problems are you solving?

Then talk about how you are achieving those goals.

What accomplishments have you made?
What are your next steps?
How financially stable are you?

And, if you are applying for funding there are some things you need to think about.

Why do you need funding?
What are good sources for funding?
How will you seek funding from those sources?
What will you do to try and turn the funding into recurrent funding?
What grants are available?
What work is involved in obtaining grants?
What work is involved in maintaining the grants?

You should be able to answer all these questions in your executive summary.

3. Nonprofit Description – Details of Previous Accomplishments

If your nonprofit organization has a significant list of achievements and needs a dedicated space for them, this is the place to do it. At its best, this section will demonstrate how past goals were met on-time. It can also show real examples of how funding challenges were met or goals were exceeded. This should go directly after your Executive Summary.

4. Product, Service, and Program Details

As a nonprofit, you more than likely won’t be producing a product. (If you do, the complexities regarding your tax status and whether it is or is not eligible should be discussed with a qualified accountant or attorney.) As such, you should focus on what services you offer and how you plan to offer them. This section should be able to answer the following questions:

How do your programs and services make a positive change?
How can the effects of your accomplishments be measured?
Is there a chance of achieving this goal?

5. Management Team Summary

This is where you introduce the key players in your organization. List names, credentials, and relevant experience. You can go on to talk about their role in your nonprofit, too.

Then, if you have space, you can discuss any gaps you may have and your plans to fill them. For example, if you have a growing volunteer community and require a dedicated staff member, say that you are looking for one and what their qualifications should be.

6. Marketing Strategy

This section is where you detail how you plan to raise awareness for your cause.

Do you already have local traction?
Do you have a plan for acquiring media attention?
Is someone on your team a master of social media marketing tactics?
Do you plan on doing community outreach?
What is your impact potential and how do you plan to reach it?

Your marketing section should include examples of past campaigns and their effectiveness, if possible, and as space allows.

Business Plan For A Nonprofit Organization

7. Capitalization and Finances

Here you need to list where your finances stand today as well as a 3-to-5 year projection. As you will update your business plan at least every two years, these number should stay relatively current. Make sure to keep your projections realistic and in-line with current or reasonably expected growth. This section is a prime space for charts, graphs, and other visual material.

Once you have provided all the basics, talk about what you plan to do if there is a surplus from any activity. What will you do if individual financial goals fall short? What fund-raising methods will you use? How will you seek out or process donations?

8. Appendix – Supporting Documents

This is the place to put any miscellaneous supporting documents like financial statements, endorsements or agreements. As a brand, new nonprofit, you might not have much to put here, and that’s okay.

Remember, you only need to include what is most relevant, and you can leave out anything you may have covered in another section.

Don’t cram this section with unnecessary documents – a maximum of 5 pages is more than enough.

Additional Sections

In the above section, you learned about the eight essential components of your business plan. Now you can add any of the additional sections below. Though not necessary, they may be useful to attempt if you’re still trying to nail down all aspects of your organization.

As your nonprofit grows, or if it’s already been active for some years, these sections may be essential to providing readers with a comprehensive look at your organization.

Problem Statement

Sometimes called “Market Research” or a “Needs Analysis,” this is where you put what you have learned about other nonprofits in this area.

Is anyone else trying to solve this same problem?
Does your organization do a better job or have a different angle?
Is your goal open-ended or do you have a defined objective that you can finish?
Will that goal evolve?

If you have any strategies or research to your credit or benefit that have not been mentioned elsewhere that will be an essential part of your nonprofit, include them in this section of your business plan.

Organizational Structure and Personnel Plan

This section would go after your “Management Team” or “Key Roles” summary. Here you will go into further detail about what positions you need to fill and how you plan to go about doing that.

You may also include examples of staffing schedules. This is also the place to go in-depth about how you will handle volunteers and which tasks you should reserve for them. Effective volunteer management is a valuable skill for any nonprofit.

Operational Plan

Depending on which other sections you have chosen to include, your operational plan should show a brief outline of your current typical operating procedures as well as any changes you intend to make as your organization grows.

If the information you would put here is repeated in any other section, leave this section out.

Putting it All Together

Before you finalize your business plan, here are five things to keep in mind.

The Title Page goes first, followed by the Executive Statement. The Appendix always goes last. Everything else goes in between, in order of most relevant to least, however you feel that applies to your nonprofit.

You may use visuals in your business plan to underline important points. Financial charts and visual projections are always appreciated. Images of your successes may be, too.

Not only will they make it easier for others to skim over your plan (and many people will do that before deciding to read it in-depth) but it helps break up the monotony of plain text. However, don’t let them stretch your document beyond recommended levels.

Keep it simple. A business plan that includes all the necessary information is more impressive than one with fancy formatting. There are, however, a few things to keep in mind.

Keep your formatting consistent.
Use standard 1-inch margins.
Use a reasonable font size for the body, such as 12 point.
For print, use a serif font like Times New Roman or Courier. For digital, use sans serifs like Verdana or Arial. The font does make a difference.
Do start a new page before each section.
Don’t allow your plan to print and leave a single line on an otherwise blank page. Find a way to fit it in appropriately.

Edit your work or ask someone to do it for you, maybe another board member. Writing your business plan should be fun, but it does have a purpose. Check each page and make sure every line supports whatever section you happen to be explaining.

Cut anything that is unnecessary. If you still feel like you need help, consider finding a mentor. You could approach a local nonprofit owner or contact a reputable organization like SCORE.

You should be able to write a business plan that is, excluding the Appendix, no more than 15 to 20 pages long. Being thorough is admirable, but the people who ask for your business plan may not read past your executive summary and if they do they expect to find only the information they need to support their decision, no more.

Planning for the Future

Your business plan must evolve with your nonprofit. At a minimum, it should be revised every two years. Changes should reflect staffing updates, new accomplishments, revised policies or goals, and updates financial data, etc. Keeping your business plan up-to-date can help remind you and the board of what your nonprofit stands for as well as ease the burden of making rushed corrections if a significant change has occurred and you must apply for financing.

Plan to Write a Lot of Thank You Notes

As a nonprofit, paying attention to your donors is critical to your success. It is much easier to get recurring donations than it is to find new donors. Further, given your nonprofit status, you must provide receipts for gifts of $250 or more.

Personalized notes, whether digital or hand-written, are valued by your community so make sure you collect enough information to make those thank-yous personal and include the right receipts. If you can do that, your nonprofit has a much better chance of growing from a handful of supporters to a thriving community.

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Sample Business Plans
Nonprofit & Community

Charity Business Plan

Starting a charity business is a huge responsibility. To make a positive impact in society, you will need to build your charity business strong, for which you will need a detailed business plan.

Need help writing a business plan for your charity business? You’re at the right place. Our charity business plan template will help you get started.

Free Business Plan Template

Download our free business plan template now and pave the way to success. Let’s turn your vision into an actionable strategy!

Fill in the blanks – Outline
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How to Write A Charity Business Plan?

Writing a charity business plan is a crucial step toward the success of your business. Here are the key steps to consider when writing a business plan:

1. Executive Summary

An executive summary is the first section planned to offer an overview of the entire business plan. However, it is written after the entire business plan is ready and summarizes each section of your plan.

Here are a few key components to include in your executive summary:

Introduce your Business:

Start your executive summary by briefly introducing your business to your readers.

Market Opportunity:

Highlight the charity programs you offer your clients. The USPs and differentiators you offer are always a plus.

Marketing & Sales Strategies:

Financial highlights:, call to action:.

Ensure your executive summary is clear, concise, easy to understand, and jargon-free.

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2. Business Overview

The business overview section of your business plan offers detailed information about your company. The details you add will depend on how important they are to your business. Yet, business name, location, business history, and future goals are some of the foundational elements you must consider adding to this section:

Business Description:

Describe your business in this section by providing all the basic information:

Describe what kind of charity company you run and the name of it. You may specialize in one of the following charity businesses:

Humanitarian charities
Public charity
Private charity
Health charities
Educational charities
Environmental charities
Animal welfare charities
Describe the legal structure of your charity company, whether it is a sole proprietorship, LLC, partnership, or others.
Explain where your business is located and why you selected the place.

Mission Statement:

Business history:.

If you’re an established charity service provider, briefly describe your business history, like—when it was founded, how it evolved over time, etc.

Future Goals

This section should provide a thorough understanding of your business, its history, and its future plans. Keep this section engaging, precise, and to the point.

3. Market Analysis

The market analysis section of your business plan should offer a thorough understanding of the industry with the target market, competitors, and growth opportunities. You should include the following components in this section.

Target market:

Start this section by describing your target market. Define your ideal customer and explain what types of services they prefer. Creating a buyer persona will help you easily define your target market to your readers.

Conduct SWOT analysis:

Competitive analysis:, market trends:.

Analyze emerging trends in the industry, such as technology disruptions, changes in customer behavior or preferences, etc. Explain how your business will cope with all the trends.

Regulatory Environment:

Here are a few tips for writing the market analysis section of your charity business plan:

Conduct market research, industry reports, and surveys to gather data.
Provide specific and detailed information whenever possible.
Illustrate your points with charts and graphs.
Write your business plan keeping your target audience in mind.

4. Products of Your Bicycle Shop

The product and services section should describe the specific services and products that will be offered to customers. To write this section should include the following:

Describe your programs:

Mention the charity programs your business will offer. This list may include:

Direct assistance
Education and training
Healthcare & medical services
Social services
Advocacy and awareness

Describe the objectives behind programs:

Supportive services:.

In short, this section of your charity plan must be informative, precise, and client-focused. By providing a clear and compelling description of your offerings, you can help potential investors and readers understand the value of your business.

5. Sales And Marketing Strategies

Writing the sales and marketing strategies section means a list of strategies you will use to attract and retain your clients. Here are some key elements to include in your sales & marketing plan:

Unique Selling Proposition (USP):

Define your business’s USPs depending on the market you serve, the equipment you use, and the unique services you provide. Identifying USPs will help you plan your marketing strategies.

Marketing Mix:

Marketing channels:, fundraising strategies:.

Describe the fundraising strategies you plan on implementing to generate revenue for your nonprofit. Your nonprofit may generate income from grants, major gifts, individual giving, charity events, online fundraising, corporate sponsorship, etc.

Donor Retention:

Overall, this section of your charity business plan should focus on customer acquisition and retention.

Have a specific, realistic, and data-driven approach while planning sales and marketing strategies for your charity business, and be prepared to adapt or make strategic changes in your strategies based on feedback and results.

6. Operations Plan

The operations plan section of your business plan should outline the processes and procedures involved in your business operations, such as staffing requirements and operational processes. Here are a few components to add to your operations plan:

Staffing & Training:

Operational process:, equipment & software:.

Include the list of equipment and software required for charity, such as office equipment, software & IT infrastructure, communication & presentation tools, fundraising equipment, vehicles & transportation, etc.

Adding these components to your operations plan will help you lay out your business operations, which will eventually help you manage your business effectively.

7. Management Team

The management team section provides an overview of your charity business’s management team. This section should provide a detailed description of each manager’s experience and qualifications, as well as their responsibilities and roles.

Founders/CEO:

Key managers:.

Introduce your management and key members of your team, and explain their roles and responsibilities.

Organizational structure:

Compensation plan:, advisors/consultants:.

Mentioning advisors or consultants in your business plans adds credibility to your business idea.

This section should describe the key personnel for your charity, highlighting how you have the perfect team to succeed.

8. Financial Plan

Your financial plan section should provide a summary of your business’s financial projections for the first few years. Here are some key elements to include in your financial plan:

Profit & loss statement:

Cash flow statement:, balance sheet:, break-even point:.

Determine and mention your business’s break-even point—the point at which your business costs and revenue will be equal.

Financing Needs:

Be realistic with your financial projections, and make sure you offer relevant information and evidence to support your estimates.

9. Appendix

The appendix section of your plan should include any additional information supporting your business plan’s main content, such as market research, legal documentation, financial statements, and other relevant information.

Add a table of contents for the appendix section to help readers easily find specific information or sections.
In addition to your financial statements, provide additional financial documents like tax returns, a list of assets within the business, credit history, and more. These statements must be the latest and offer financial projections for at least the first three or five years of business operations.
Provide data derived from market research, including stats about the industry, user demographics, and industry trends.
Include any legal documents such as permits, licenses, and contracts.
Include any additional documentation related to your business plan, such as product brochures, marketing materials, operational procedures, etc.

Use clear headings and labels for each section of the appendix so that readers can easily find the necessary information.

Remember, the appendix section of your charity business plan should only include relevant and important information supporting your plan’s main content.

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This sample charity business plan will provide an idea for writing a successful charity plan, including all the essential components of your business.

After this, if you still need clarification about writing an investment-ready business plan to impress your audience, download our charity business plan pdf .

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Frequently asked questions, why do you need a charity business plan.

A business plan is an essential tool for anyone looking to start or run a successful charity business. It helps to get clarity in your business, secures funding, and identifies potential challenges while starting and growing your business.

Overall, a well-written plan can help you make informed decisions, which can contribute to the long-term success of your charity company.

How to get funding for your charity business?

There are several ways to get funding for your charity business, but self-funding is one of the most efficient and speedy funding options. Other options for funding are:

Bank loan – You may apply for a loan in government or private banks.
Small Business Administration (SBA) loan – SBA loans and schemes are available at affordable interest rates, so check the eligibility criteria before applying for it.
Crowdfunding – The process of supporting a project or business by getting a lot of people to invest in your business, usually online.
Angel investors – Getting funds from angel investors is one of the most sought startup options.

Apart from all these options, there are small business grants available, check for the same in your location and you can apply for it.

Where to find business plan writers for your charity business?

There are many business plan writers available, but no one knows your business and ideas better than you, so we recommend you write your charity business plan and outline your vision as you have in your mind.

What is the easiest way to write your charity business plan?

A lot of research is necessary for writing a business plan, but you can write your plan most efficiently with the help of any charity business plan example and edit it as per your need. You can also quickly finish your plan in just a few hours or less with the help of our business plan software .

How do I write a good market analysis in a charity business plan?

Market analysis is one of the key components of your business plan that requires deep research and a thorough understanding of your industry. We can categorize the process of writing a good market analysis section into the following steps:

Stating the objective of your market analysis—e.g., investor funding.
Industry study—market size, growth potential, market trends, etc.
Identifying target market—based on user behavior and demographics.
Analyzing direct and indirect competitors.
Calculating market share—understanding TAM, SAM, and SOM.
Knowing regulations and restrictions
Organizing data and writing the first draft.

Writing a marketing analysis section can be overwhelming, but using ChatGPT for market research can make things easier.

How detailed should the financial projections be in my charity business plan?

The level of detail of the financial projections of your charity business may vary considering various business aspects like direct and indirect competition, pricing, and operational efficiency. However, your financial projections must be comprehensive enough to demonstrate a complete view of your financial performance.

Generally, the statements included in a business plan offer financial projections for at least the first three or five years of business operations.

What key components should a charity business plan include?

The following are the key components your charity business plan must include:

Executive summary
Business Overview
Market Analysis
Products and services
Sales and marketing strategies
Operations plan
Management team
Financial plan

Can a good charity business plan help me secure funding?

Indeed. A well-crafted charity business will help your investors better understand your business domain, market trends, strategies, business financials, and growth potential—helping them make better financial decisions.

So, if you have a profitable and investable business, a comprehensive business plan can certainly help you secure your business funding.

What's the importance of a marketing strategy in a charity business plan?

Marketing strategy is a key component of your charity business plan. Whether it is about achieving certain business goals or helping your investors understand your plan to maximize their return on investment—an impactful marketing strategy is the way to do it!

Here are a few pointers to help you understand the importance of having an impactful marketing strategy:

It provides your business an edge over your competitors.
It helps investors better understand your business and growth potential.
It helps you develop products with the best profit potential.
It helps you set accurate pricing for your products or services.

About the Author

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Upmetrics is the #1 business planning software that helps entrepreneurs and business owners create investment-ready business plans using AI. We regularly share business planning insights on our blog. Check out the Upmetrics blog for such interesting reads. Read more

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How to Write a Charity Business Plan in 5 Easy Steps

Read Time: 3 Minutes

Posted: 16 Dec 2020

16 Dec 2020

Starting up your own charity or non-profit organisation can be extremely rewarding, but it’s important to set up a strong foundation before you even think about diving into fundraising. Planning ahead is the best way to ensure you’re having the biggest impact on your cause.

Although not run like a business in the traditional sense, charities definitely benefit from having a sound business plan – plus, it’ll make it easier to launch your charity and secure funding in the long run. Here’s exactly how to write your charity business plan in 5 easy steps.

Why Do Charities Need a Business Plan?

Ultimately, a business plan is an important document for a charity because it sets out your goals and the strategies you’ll be using to achieve these goals. Like a business makes a business plan to ensure it will be profitable, a charity makes a business plan to ensure it can benefit those it sets out to benefit.

Step 1: Say Who You Are

The first two sections of your business plan are your executive summary and charity description. In the executive summary, you’ll need to outline:

Your personal details
Your charity idea
Your mission, goals and aims
The type of organisation you’d like to set up

You’ll then go into more detail in your charity description, where you can talk about where your charity idea came from and why you believe it’s important to raise funds for this untapped cause.

You’ll also need to think about where you’ll be based and the advantages and disadvantages of this location.

Describe what you hope to achieve in the first, second and third years of your charity running, showing both ambition for your organisation but also that you know what is realistic to be able to achieve.

You may also want to brush on some of your unique selling points (USPs), explaining why your charity is necessary in the current climate and what makes you stand out from similar charities who may be raising awareness and funds for similar or the same cause.

Step 2: Understanding Your Market

It’s important to show that you’ve completed the necessary market research to understand how feasible your goals actually are. As well as knowing that there’s a community or group of people who would benefit from the funds raised for your charity, you also need to know that people will be willing to donate to you to create those funds in the first place.

Use polls or ask people face-to-face about their opinion on your cause, asking how much or how often (if at all) they’d be willing to donate to support you.

Furthermore, it’s important to know who else is raising awareness or funds for the same or a similar cause – in the business world, these would be known as your competitors. Check out what they’re doing and how you could do it better or target a more niche demographic of donors. It’s also great to look at other kinds of successful charities, who may not necessarily be supporting the same cause as you, for inspiration as to what works and what doesn’t.

We recommend completing a SWOT analysis as part of your market research. This helps you to identify yours and your competitors’ strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, giving a well-rounded view on where exactly you’d sit in the current market.

Step 3: Day-to-Day Operations

Next, you’ll need to get into the specifics of the day-to-day running of your charity. For this section, you should outline:

Any resources you’ll need to run your charity
Suppliers and other organisations you’ll work with
Premises of your charity
Equipment you’ll use
Your process for taking payments from donors
Any legal requirements like licenses you’ll need, e.g. for preparing food
Any insurance you have or will need

You’ll also need to write a small biography for each person who is important to the running of your charity, including their role and their experience showing why they’re perfect for the role. Important people include the management team and any trustees. If this is set to change in the immediate future, make sure to include an overview of any planned changes to your management structure.

Finally, using your SWOT analysis, write down any skills gaps you have in your team and how you plan to fill these gaps.

Step 4: Social Impact

Whereas a regular business would need to see a financial return, a charity also needs to show a social impact. This is the difference you make for the communities and people you work with, and one of the most important parts of your charity business plan.

As well as saying what kind of impact you want to achieve for your chosen cause, you’ll also need to state what you’re going to measure to prove this impact and how you’re going to measure it. And, not forgetting, how you’ll use your learnings to keep adapting your processes.

Another important question to ask yourself for this section is: how are people going to find out about your charity? Luckily, we’ve come up with 20 budget-friendly charity marketing ideas to help give you some inspiration!

Step 5: Finances

In this section, you’ll need to outline your costs and expenditure. As great as your charity idea is, it’s nothing without a well-thought-out financial forecast.

You’ll need to include:

Predicted costs and expenditure (using research to back this up)
Main source of income (donors, trustees etc. and what you’d expect them to give)
Pricing strategy if you plan on selling products or services to fund your charity
Cash flow forecasts
Costs table

By preparing for all eventualities with your business plan, you’re turning your charity idea into a reality - and that’s something you should be really proud of. We hope this guide has given you plenty of information to include in your business plan, and you can always view our 10-step checklist for writing a business plan for more information on this.

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Build a Strategic Plan for Your Nonprofit (with template)

Every organization needs a strategic plan—even if you’re a nonprofit. A strategic plan helps you define who you are, what you want to achieve, and how you’ll get there.

Before you build your strategic plan, you’ll need to assess your organization’s current situation, so that you can develop your strategy and then your strategic plan.

But how do you build a strategic plan? Who should you involve in the process? What are SMART goals and KPIs? Do you need to include your vision and mission statements ? Read this resource written by Asana to learn how to build a strategic plan for your social impact organization.

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A business plan is a crucial document that is required for several purposes. Charity organizations too produce such documents while starting a new venture, to secure fundings and also for expansion projects and more. The document provides elaborate details on the goals and objectives of the organization or a project as well as the budget plan and the estimated outcomes of the undertaking. We have prepared our professional plan templates to help you make such important documents conveniently.

Step 1: Provide the Executive Summary

Step 2: give an introduction to the organization, step 3: define your market and operational plans, step 4: provide summary of your finances, step 5: understand the risks.

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Table of contents, reasons to write a business plan.

3 May, 2024

Importance of a Business Plan

A well-crafted business plan plays a vital role in the success of any business venture. It serves as a roadmap, guiding entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners through each stage of their journey. By outlining the path the business intends to take to make money and grow revenue, a business plan provides a clear long-term vision and acts as a living project for the business to follow ( SBA ).

Guiding the Business Journey

One of the primary reasons to write a business plan is to have a guiding document that outlines the business’s goals, strategies, and objectives. It acts as a GPS, providing direction and clarity for decision-making. Whether you are starting a new business or expanding an existing one, a well-structured business plan helps you stay focused on your mission and navigate potential challenges along the way.

Long-Term Vision and Revenue Growth

A business plan is not just a document for the present; it is a projection of the future. It projects 3-5 years ahead, outlining how the business intends to make money and grow revenue over time. This long-term vision is crucial for setting measurable goals, identifying key milestones, and charting the course for sustainable growth ( SBA ).

By creating a comprehensive and carefully thought-out business plan, entrepreneurs and business managers can communicate their vision to stakeholders, secure funding, and align their teams towards a common objective ( Harvard Business Review ). It acts as a reference tool, providing a clear roadmap for the business to follow and helping stakeholders understand the company’s direction and potential.

A well-structured business plan also assists in creating a marketing roadmap. It enables businesses to define their target markets, identify their ideal customers, and develop effective strategies for promoting and placing their products or services in the market. By outlining marketing objectives and strategies, businesses can maximize their chances of reaching their target audience and achieving sales targets.

In addition to guiding the business journey and fostering revenue growth, a business plan brings clarity to the decision-making process. It helps entrepreneurs and managers identify critical priorities and key milestones to focus on. Whether it’s making capital investments, negotiating leases, or allocating resources, a solid business plan ensures that decisions align with the overall strategic direction of the business.

In summary, writing a business plan is essential for entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners. It provides guidance, clarity, and a long-term vision for the business. By outlining objectives, strategies, and milestones, a well-structured business plan sets the foundation for success and helps secure the resources needed to turn a vision into reality.

Decision-Making and Financing

When it comes to running a business, decision-making and securing financing are crucial aspects that can greatly impact its success. A well-thought-out business plan plays a vital role in both of these areas, enabling objective thinking and facilitating the process of securing loans and attracting investors.

Objective Thinking

A comprehensive business plan serves as a valuable tool for thinking objectively about key aspects of the business. By outlining the business’s goals, target market, competitive landscape, and financial projections, entrepreneurs can make informed decisions based on concrete data and analysis. This objective thinking helps in identifying potential risks, opportunities, and areas that require improvement.

When developing a business plan, it’s essential to conduct thorough market research and gather relevant data. This information enables entrepreneurs to make informed decisions, such as choosing the right marketing strategies, product pricing, and operational processes. By basing decisions on objective analysis, entrepreneurs can increase the chances of making sound choices that align with the long-term vision of the business.

Securing Loans and Investors

A well-crafted business plan is often required by financial institutions and investors before they consider providing loans or capital to new businesses. The plan showcases the potential return on investment and instills confidence in lenders and investors about the viability and profitability of the business. According to the SBA , a business plan is valuable for securing funding or attracting new business partners.

When presenting the business plan to potential lenders and investors, it’s crucial to provide realistic financial forecasts and demonstrate substantial market interest. The plan should clearly outline when and how investors can expect to liquidate their holdings. It should also include a comprehensive five-year profitability forecast that justifies a strong return on investment. Investors typically seek a return of 35 to 40% for mature companies and up to 60% for less mature ventures, as noted in Harvard Business Review .

By showcasing a well-structured and thoroughly researched business plan, entrepreneurs can increase their chances of securing the necessary funding to start or expand their business. The plan serves as evidence of the entrepreneur’s commitment, expertise, and understanding of the market, which can instill confidence in potential lenders and investors.

In summary, a business plan plays a vital role in decision-making and financing. It allows entrepreneurs to think objectively about their business, make informed decisions, and present a compelling case to lenders and investors. By investing time and effort in creating a comprehensive business plan, entrepreneurs increase their chances of success and pave the way for the growth and development of their business.

Tailored Business Plans

When it comes to writing a business plan, there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Business plans can be tailored to different formats, depending on the specific needs and goals of the entrepreneur. In this section, we will explore two common formats: traditional and lean startup.

Traditional vs. Lean Startup

Traditional business plans are comprehensive and provide a detailed overview of various aspects of the business. These plans typically include sections such as an executive summary, company description, market analysis, organization and management structure, product or service line details, marketing and sales strategies, funding requests, financial projections, and appendices for supporting documents ( SBA ).

A traditional business plan is beneficial when seeking funding from investors, applying for loans, or presenting a comprehensive roadmap to stakeholders. Its detailed nature allows for a thorough analysis of the business and its potential.

On the other hand, lean startup plans are more streamlined and succinct. These plans focus on summarizing key elements, allowing entrepreneurs to quickly communicate their business model and strategy. Lean startup plans can take as little as one hour to create and are particularly useful for entrepreneurs who are looking to launch their business quickly or test their ideas in the market ( SBA ).

Lean startup plans typically encompass key elements such as partnerships, activities, resources, value proposition, customer relationships, customer segments, channels, cost structure, and revenue streams. This format is often favored by startups and businesses in fast-paced industries where agility and adaptability are crucial.

Quick and Detailed Formats

Choosing between a traditional or lean startup format depends on the specific needs and goals of the entrepreneur. If seeking external funding or presenting the business plan to potential investors, a traditional business plan may be the preferred choice due to its comprehensive nature and ability to provide in-depth insights.

For entrepreneurs who value flexibility and agility, a lean startup plan can be a great option. This format allows for quick iterations and adjustments as the business evolves, making it ideal for startups or businesses in rapidly changing industries.

Regardless of the format chosen, it’s important to remember that the purpose of a business plan is to outline the goals, strategies, and financial projections of the business. Whether the plan is detailed or streamlined, it serves as a valuable reference tool for guiding the entrepreneur’s decision-making process and ensuring that the business stays on track.

To explore the benefits of writing a business plan in more detail, visit our article on the importance of writing a business plan .

Structuring Business Objectives

When it comes to writing a business plan, one of the key benefits is that it helps in structuring business objectives. A well-designed business plan serves as a reference tool, providing guidance and direction for the entire organization. In this section, we will explore two aspects of structuring business objectives within a business plan: using it as a reference tool and setting sales targets and milestones.

Reference Tool

A business plan acts as a roadmap for the organization, outlining the goals and objectives that need to be achieved. It serves as a reference tool that can be consulted at any time to ensure that the business is on track and aligned with its strategic direction. By referring to the business plan, entrepreneurs and business owners can make informed decisions, evaluate progress, and assess whether they are meeting their desired outcomes.

The reference tool aspect of a business plan helps in keeping the entire team focused and aligned. It provides clarity on the overall mission, vision, and values of the business, ensuring that everyone is working towards common goals. Additionally, the business plan can be a valuable tool when communicating with stakeholders, investors, or potential partners, as it clearly articulates the business’s objectives and strategies.

Sales Targets and Milestones

One of the essential elements of a business plan is setting realistic sales targets and milestones. These targets provide a benchmark for measuring the business’s performance and progress over time. By including specific sales goals and milestones in the business plan, entrepreneurs can track their achievements and make informed adjustments to their strategies if necessary.

Sales targets can be set based on various factors, such as market analysis, competitive landscape, and past performance. It is important to ensure that the sales targets are challenging yet attainable. By regularly monitoring sales performance against these targets, businesses can identify areas of improvement, adjust their marketing and sales strategies, and make necessary changes to increase revenue and profitability.

Milestones are significant events or achievements that mark important stages in the business’s growth. These milestones can include product launches, expansion into new markets, reaching a certain number of customers, or achieving specific financial goals. By setting milestones within the business plan, entrepreneurs can track their progress and celebrate key achievements along the way, providing a sense of motivation and accomplishment.

By structuring business objectives within a business plan, entrepreneurs and business owners can create a clear roadmap for success. The business plan serves as a reference tool, guiding decision-making and ensuring that the organization stays on track. Additionally, setting sales targets and milestones within the plan allows for effective measurement of progress and helps in identifying areas for improvement. A well-structured business plan not only provides a solid foundation but also acts as a catalyst for growth and success in the business.

Clarity in Decision-Making

When it comes to running a business, having clarity in decision-making is crucial. A well-written business plan can provide this clarity by outlining critical priorities and capital investments, allowing businesses to make informed choices that align with their long-term goals and objectives. Let’s explore two key aspects of decision-making clarity in the context of a business plan: critical priorities and capital investments and resourcing.

Critical Priorities

A business plan acts as a reference tool, ensuring that businesses stay on track with their sales targets and operational milestones. By clearly defining critical priorities, businesses can focus their resources and efforts on the most essential aspects of their operations. This helps them make informed choices and take actions that drive growth and success ( Business Agility Pty Ltd ).

By identifying and prioritizing critical objectives, businesses can allocate their resources effectively. Whether it’s investing in product development, marketing strategies, or customer acquisition, having a clear understanding of these priorities helps businesses make strategic decisions that maximize their chances of success.

Capital Investments and Resourcing

Another aspect of decision-making clarity provided by a business plan is the identification of capital investments and the allocation of resources. By outlining the necessary investments and resource requirements, businesses can make informed choices regarding their financial decisions.

A business plan helps in determining the financial needs of the business, such as funding for equipment, inventory, marketing campaigns, or expansion plans. It provides a roadmap for acquiring the necessary capital and ensures that businesses allocate their resources wisely. By having a clear understanding of their financial requirements, businesses can approach lenders or investors with confidence, increasing their chances of securing the necessary funding ( Investopedia ).

Additionally, a business plan helps businesses assess their resource needs, such as staffing requirements, technology, or operational infrastructure. By understanding these needs in advance, businesses can plan and allocate resources efficiently. This ensures that the right resources are available at the right time, supporting the smooth operation and growth of the business.

In summary, a well-structured business plan brings clarity to the decision-making process by identifying critical priorities and capital investments and resourcing. By having a clear understanding of these aspects, businesses can make informed choices, allocate resources effectively, and stay focused on their long-term goals and objectives. A business plan serves as a valuable tool that guides businesses on their path to success.

Marketing and Talent Acquisition

A well-crafted business plan serves as a strategic roadmap for entrepreneurs and aspiring business owners. In addition to guiding the overall direction of the business, a business plan can also play a crucial role in marketing and talent acquisition efforts. Let’s explore two key aspects in this regard: defining target markets and attracting skilled workers.

Defining Target Markets

Market research is an essential component of a comprehensive business plan. It allows startups to gain valuable insights into their target markets, including customer needs, preferences, and behavioral patterns. By conducting thorough market research, entrepreneurs can identify their target audience, understand their pain points, and tailor their marketing strategies accordingly.

Understanding the target market through market research enables businesses to create products or services that best meet the needs of their customers. This knowledge helps in designing offerings that are more likely to succeed and be profitable. For startups, market research is a top priority for validating business ideas and planning for future growth ( LinkedIn ).

By incorporating market research into their business plans, entrepreneurs can develop focused brand positioning that resonates with their target market. This leads to improved efficiency, faster results, and better overall campaign performance ( BDC ).

Attracting Skilled Workers

Another important aspect of a business plan is outlining the human resources strategy, including talent acquisition. A well-defined business plan can attract skilled workers by showcasing the vision, mission, and growth opportunities of the business.

When potential employees review a business plan that clearly articulates the company’s goals and values, they gain a better understanding of what the organization stands for. This can enhance the appeal for talented individuals who align with the company’s vision and want to contribute to its success.

In the business plan, entrepreneurs can highlight the unique aspects of their business that make it an attractive place to work. This can include the company culture, employee benefits, career development opportunities, and any specific attributes that differentiate the organization from its competitors.

By presenting a compelling business plan that demonstrates a clear vision, growth potential, and a strong company culture, entrepreneurs can attract skilled workers who are not only qualified but also share the passion and commitment to contribute to the success of the business.

In conclusion, a well-written business plan is not only essential for guiding the business journey and making objective decisions but also plays a vital role in marketing and talent acquisition efforts. By defining target markets through market research and showcasing the company’s vision and values, entrepreneurs can position their businesses for success in the marketplace and attract talented individuals who can contribute to their growth and development.

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How to Write a Nonprofit Business Plan

Female entrepreneur speaking with an employee of a nonprofit at their computer. Chatting about planning for nonprofit donors.

Angelique O'Rourke

13 min. read

Updated May 10, 2024

Believe it or not, creating a business plan for a nonprofit organization is not that different from planning for a traditional business.

Nonprofits sometimes shy away from using the words “business planning,” preferring to use terms like “strategic plan” or “operating plan.” But, the fact is that preparing a plan for a for-profit business and a nonprofit organization are actually pretty similar processes. Both types of organizations need to create forecasts for revenue and plan how they’re going to spend the money they bring in. They also need to manage their cash and ensure that they can stay solvent to accomplish their goals.

In this guide, I’ll explain how to create a plan for your organization that will impress your board of directors, facilitate fundraising, and ensures that you deliver on your mission.

Why does a nonprofit need a business plan?

Good business planning is about setting goals, getting everyone on the same page, tracking performance metrics, and improving over time. Even when your goal isn’t to increase profits, you still need to be able to run a fiscally healthy organization.

Business planning creates an opportunity to examine the heart of your mission , the financing you’ll need to bring that mission to fruition, and your plan to sustain your operations into the future.

Nonprofits are also responsible for meeting regularly with a board of directors and reporting on your organization’s finances is a critical part of that meeting. As part of your regular financial review with the board, you can compare your actual results to your financial forecast in your business plan. Are you meeting fundraising goals and keeping spending on track? Is the financial position of the organization where you wanted it to be?

In addition to internal use, a solid business plan can help you court major donors who will be interested in having a deeper understanding of how your organization works and your fiscal health and accountability. And you’ll definitely need a formal business plan if you intend to seek outside funding for capital expenses—it’s required by lenders.

Creating a business plan for your organization is a great way to get your management team or board to connect over your vision, goals, and trajectory. Even just going through the planning process with your colleagues will help you take a step back and get some high-level perspective .

A nonprofit business plan outline

Keep in mind that developing a business plan is an ongoing process. It isn’t about just writing a physical document that is static, but a continually evolving strategy and action plan as your organization progresses over time. It’s essential that you run regular plan review meetings to track your progress against your plan. For most nonprofits, this will coincide with regular reports and meetings with the board of directors.

A nonprofit business plan will include many of the same sections of a standard business plan outline . If you’d like to start simple, you can download our free business plan template as a Word document, and adjust it according to the nonprofit plan outline below.

Executive summary

The executive summary of a nonprofit business plan is typically the first section of the plan to be read, but the last to be written. That’s because this section is a general overview of everything else in the business plan – the overall snapshot of what your vision is for the organization.

Write it as though you might share with a prospective donor, or someone unfamiliar with your organization: avoid internal jargon or acronyms, and write it so that someone who has never heard of you would understand what you’re doing.

Your executive summary should provide a very brief overview of your organization’s mission. It should describe who you serve, how you provide the services that you offer, and how you fundraise.

If you are putting together a plan to share with potential donors, you should include an overview of what you are asking for and how you intend to use the funds raised.

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Opportunity

Start this section of your nonprofit plan by describing the problem that you are solving for your clients or your community at large. Then say how your organization solves the problem.

A great way to present your opportunity is with a positioning statement . Here’s a formula you can use to define your positioning:

For [target market description] who [target market need], [this product] [how it meets the need]. Unlike [key competition], it [most important distinguishing feature].

And here’s an example of a positioning statement using the formula:

For children, ages five to 12 (target market) who are struggling with reading (their need), Tutors Changing Lives (your organization or program name) helps them get up to grade-level reading through a once a week class (your solution).

Unlike the school district’s general after-school homework lab (your state-funded competition), our program specifically helps children learn to read within six months (how you’re different).

Your organization is special or you wouldn’t spend so much time devoted to it. Layout some of the nuts and bolts about what makes it great in this opening section of your business plan. Your nonprofit probably changes lives, changes your community, or maybe even changes the world. Explain how it does this.

This is where you really go into detail about the programs you’re offering. You’ll want to describe how many people you serve and how you serve them.

Target audience

In a for-profit business plan, this section would be used to define your target market . For nonprofit organizations, it’s basically the same thing but framed as who you’re serving with your organization. Who benefits from your services?

Not all organizations have clients that they serve directly, so you might exclude this section if that’s the case. For example, an environmental preservation organization might have a goal of acquiring land to preserve natural habitats. The organization isn’t directly serving individual groups of people and is instead trying to benefit the environment as a whole.

Similar organizations

Everyone has competition —nonprofits, too. You’re competing with other nonprofits for donor attention and support, and you’re competing with other organizations serving your target population. Even if your program is the only one in your area providing a specific service, you still have competition.

Think about what your prospective clients were doing about their problem (the one your organization is solving) before you came on this scene. If you’re running an after-school tutoring organization, you might be competing with after school sports programs for clients. Even though your organizations have fundamentally different missions.

For many nonprofit organizations, competing for funding is an important issue. You’ll want to use this section of your plan to explain who donors would choose your organization instead of similar organizations for their donations.

Future services and programs

If you’re running a regional nonprofit, do you want to be national in five years? If you’re currently serving children ages two to four, do you want to expand to ages five to 12? Use this section to talk about your long-term goals.

Just like a traditional business, you’ll benefit by laying out a long-term plan. Not only does it help guide your nonprofit, but it also provides a roadmap for the board as well as potential investors.

Promotion and outreach strategies

In a for-profit business plan, this section would be about marketing and sales strategies. For nonprofits, you’re going to talk about how you’re going to reach your target client population.

You’ll probably do some combination of:

Advertising: print and direct mail, television, radio, and so on.
Public relations: press releases, activities to promote brand awareness, and so on.
Digital marketing: website, email, blog, social media, and so on.

Similar to the “target audience” section above, you may remove this section if you don’t promote your organization to clients and others who use your services.

Costs and fees

Instead of including a pricing section, a nonprofit business plan should include a costs or fees section.

Talk about how your program is funded, and whether the costs your clients pay are the same for everyone, or based on income level, or something else. If your clients pay less for your service than it costs to run the program, how will you make up the difference?

If you don’t charge for your services and programs, you can state that here or remove this section.

Fundraising sources

Fundraising is critical for most nonprofit organizations. This portion of your business plan will detail who your key fundraising sources are.

Similar to understanding who your target audience for your services is, you’ll also want to know who your target market is for fundraising. Who are your supporters? What kind of person donates to your organization? Creating a “donor persona” could be a useful exercise to help you reflect on this subject and streamline your fundraising approach.

You’ll also want to define different tiers of prospective donors and how you plan on connecting with them. You’re probably going to include information about your annual giving program (usually lower-tier donors) and your major gifts program (folks who give larger amounts).

If you’re a private school, for example, you might think of your main target market as alumni who graduated during a certain year, at a certain income level. If you’re building a bequest program to build your endowment, your target market might be a specific population with interest in your cause who is at retirement age.

Do some research. The key here is not to report your target donors as everyone in a 3,000-mile radius with a wallet. The more specific you can be about your prospective donors —their demographics, income level, and interests, the more targeted (and less costly) your outreach can be.

Fundraising activities

How will you reach your donors with your message? Use this section of your business plan to explain how you will market your organization to potential donors and generate revenue.

You might use a combination of direct mail, advertising, and fundraising events. Detail the key activities and programs that you’ll use to reach your donors and raise money.

Strategic alliances and partnerships

Use this section to talk about how you’ll work with other organizations. Maybe you need to use a room in the local public library to run your program for the first year. Maybe your organization provides mental health counselors in local schools, so you partner with your school district.

In some instances, you might also be relying on public health programs like Medicaid to fund your program costs. Mention all those strategic partnerships here, especially if your program would have trouble existing without the partnership.

Milestones and metrics

Without milestones and metrics for your nonprofit, it will be more difficult to execute on your mission. Milestones and metrics are guideposts along the way that are indicators that your program is working and that your organization is healthy.

They might include elements of your fundraising goals—like monthly or quarterly donation goals, or it might be more about your participation metrics. Since most nonprofits working with foundations for grants do complex reporting on some of these, don’t feel like you have to re-write every single goal and metric for your organization here. Think about your bigger goals, and if you need to, include more information in your business plan’s appendix.

If you’re revisiting your plan on a monthly basis, and we recommend that you do, the items here might speak directly to the questions you know your board will ask in your monthly trustee meeting. The point is to avoid surprises by having eyes on your organization’s performance. Having these goals, and being able to change course if you’re not meeting them, will help your organization avoid falling into a budget deficit.

Key assumptions and risks

Your nonprofit exists to serve a particular population or cause. Before you designed your key programs or services, you probably did some research to validate that there’s a need for what you’re offering.

But you probably are also taking some calculated risks. In this section, talk about the unknowns for your organization. If you name them, you can address them.

For example, if you think there’s a need for a children’s literacy program, maybe you surveyed teachers or parents in your area to verify the need. But because you haven’t launched the program yet, one of your unknowns might be whether the kids will actually show up.

Management team and company

Who is going to be involved and what are their duties? What do these individuals bring to the table?

Include both the management team of the day-to-day aspects of your nonprofit as well as board members and mention those who may overlap between the two roles. Highlight their qualifications: titles, degrees, relevant past accomplishments, and designated responsibilities should be included in this section. It adds a personal touch to mention team members who are especially qualified because they’re close to the cause or have special first-hand experience with or knowledge of the population you’re serving.

There are probably some amazing, dedicated people with stellar qualifications on your team—this is the place to feature them (and don’t forget to include yourself!).

Financial plan

The financial plan is essential to any organization that’s seeking funding, but also incredibly useful internally to keep track of what you’ve done so far financially and where you’d like to see the organization go in the future.

The financial section of your business plan should include a long-term budget and cash flow statement with a three to five-year forecast. This will allow you to see that the organization has its basic financial needs covered. Any nonprofit has its standard level of funding required to stay operational, so it’s essential to make sure your organization will consistently maintain at least that much in the coffers.

From that point, it’s all about future planning: If you exceed your fundraising goals, what will be done with the surplus? What will you do if you don’t meet your fundraising goals? Are you accounting for appropriate amounts going to payroll and administrative costs over time? Thinking through a forecast of your financial plan over the next several years will help ensure that your organization is sustainable.

Money management skills are just as important in a nonprofit as they are in a for-profit business. Knowing the financial details of your organization is incredibly important in a world where the public is ranking the credibility of charities based on what percentage of donations makes it to the programs and services. As a nonprofit, people are interested in the details of how money is being dispersed within organizations, with this information often being posted online on sites like Charity Navigator, so the public can make informed decisions about donating.

Potential contributors will do their research—so make sure you do too. No matter who your donors are, they will want to know they can trust your organization with their money. A robust financial plan is a solid foundation for reference that your nonprofit is on the right track.

Business planning is ongoing

It’s important to remember that a business plan doesn’t have to be set in stone. It acts as a roadmap, something that you can come back to as a guide, then revise and edit to suit your purpose at a given time.

I recommend that you review your financial plan once a month to see if your organization is on track, and then revise your plan as necessary .

Angelique is a skilled writer, editor, and social media specialist, as well as an actor and model with a demonstrated history of theater, film, commercial and print work.

Table of Contents

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How to Write a Growth-Oriented Business Plan

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How to Create a Social Media Marketing Strategy in 9 Easy Steps [Free Template]

Creating your social media marketing strategy doesn’t need to be painful. Create an effective plan for your business in 9 simple steps.

A social media marketing strategy is a summary of everything you plan to do and hope to achieve on social media. It guides your actions and lets you know whether you’re succeeding or failing.

The more specific your plan is, the more effective it will be. Keep it concise. Don’t make it so lofty and broad that it’s unattainable or impossible to measure.

In this post, we’ll walk you through a nine-step plan to create a winning social media strategy of your own. We’ve even got expert insights from Amanda Wood, Hootsuite’s Senior Manager of Social Marketing.

How to create a social media strategy:

Bonus: Get a free social media strategy template to quickly and easily plan your own strategy. Also use it to track results and present the plan to your boss, teammates, and clients.

What is a social media marketing strategy?

A social media strategy is a document outlining your social media goals, the tactics you will use to achieve them and the metrics you will track to measure your progress.

Your social media marketing strategy should also list all of your existing and planned social media accounts along with goals specific to each platform you’re active on. These goals should align with your business’s larger digital marketing strategy.

Finally, a good social media plan should define the roles and responsibilities within your team and outline your reporting cadence.

Create. Schedule. Publish. Engage. Measure. Win.

Creating your own social media marketing strategy (video guide)

No time to read the whole article? Let Amanda, Hootsuite’s own Senior Manager of Social Media Marketing, guide you through our free social media marketing strategy template in less than 10 minutes:

How to create a social media marketing strategy in 9 steps

Step 1. choose goals that align to business objectives, set s.m.a.r.t. goals.

The first step to creating a winning social media strategy is to establish clear objectives and goals. Without goals, you have no way to measure success and return on investment (ROI) .

Each of your social media marketing goals should be SMART : s pecific, m easurable, a ttainable, r elevant and t ime-bound.

Psst: Need help getting started? We’ve got social strategy guides for small businesses , financial services , government , higher education , healthcare , real estate , law firms , and non-profits .

Oh, and if you need examples of smart social media goals , we’ve got you covered there too.

track your social media goals in a social media strategy doc, like this one.

Once you’ve decided on your goals, track them in a social media strategy doc — grab our free template if you don’t have one already.

Track meaningful metrics

Vanity metrics like number of followers and likes are easy to track, but it’s hard to prove their real value. Instead, focus on things like engagement, click-through, and conversion rates.

For inspiration, take a look at these 19 essential social media metrics .

You may want to track different goals for different social media networks, or even different uses for each network.

For example, if you use LinkedIn to drive traffic to your website, you would measure click-throughs. If Instagram is for brand awareness, you might track the number of Instagram Story views. And if you advertise on Facebook, cost-per-click (CPC) is a common success metric.

Social media goals should align with your overall marketing objectives. This makes it easier to show the value of your work and secure buy-in from your boss.

Screenshot of chart showing how social media goals should align to business objectives for an effective social media marketing strategy.

Start developing a successful social media marketing plan by writing down at least three goals for social media.

“ It’s easy to get overwhelmed by deciding what to post and which metrics to track, but you need to focus on what you want to get out of social media to begin with,” says Amanda Wood, Hootsuite’s Senior Manager of Social Marketing. “Don’t just start posting and tracking everything: match your goals to your business, and your metrics to your goals.”

Step 2. Learn everything you can about your audience

Get to know your fans, followers, and customers as real people with real wants and needs, and you will know how to target and engage them on social media.

When it comes to your ideal customer, you should know things like:

Average income
Typical job title or industry

Here’s a simple guide and template for creating audience/buyer personas .

Document important information about your target customers in your social media strategy doc

Don’t forget to document this information in your strategy doc!

Social media analytics can also provide a ton of valuable information about who your followers are, where they live, and how they interact with your brand on social media. These insights allow you to refine your strategy and better target your audience.

Jugnoo, an Uber-like service for auto-rickshaws in India, used Facebook Analytics to learn that 90% of their users who referred other customers were between 18- and 34-years-old, and 65% of that group was using Android. They used that information to target their ads, resulting in a 40% lower cost per referral.

Check out our guide to using social media analytics and the tools you need to track them .

Step 3. Get to know your competition

Odds are your competitors are already using social media, and that means you can learn from what they’re doing.

Conduct a competitive analysis

A competitive analysis allows you to understand who the competition is and what they’re doing well (and not so well). You’ll get a good sense of what’s expected in your industry, which will help you set social media targets of your own.

It will also help you spot opportunities and weaknesses you can document in your social strategy doc.

track essential information about your competitors in your social strategy doc

Maybe one of your competitors is dominant on Facebook, for example, but has put little effort into X (Twitter) or Instagram. You might want to focus on the social media platforms where your audience is underserved, rather than trying to win fans away from a dominant player.

Use social media listening

Social listening is another way to keep an eye on your competitors.

Do searches of the competition’s company name, account handles, and other relevant keywords on social media. Find out what they’re sharing and what other people are saying about them. If they’re using influencer marketing, how much engagement do those campaigns earn them?

Pro tip : Use Hootsuite Streams to monitor relevant keywords, hashtags and accounts in real-time.

Try Hootsuite for free. You can cancel anytime.

As you track, you may notice shifts in how your competitors and industry leaders are using social media. You may come across new, exciting trends. You might even spot specific social content or a campaign that really hits the mark—or totally bombs.

Use this kind of intel to optimize and inform your own social media marketing strategy.

Just don’t go overboard on the spy tactics, Amanda advises. “ Make sure you aren’t ALWAYS comparing yourself to the competition — it can be a distraction. I’d say checking in on a monthly basis is healthy. Otherwise, focus on your own strategy and results.”

Step 4. Do a social media audit

If you’re already using social media, take stock of your efforts so far. Ask yourself the following questions:

What’s working, and what’s not?
Who is engaging with you?
What are your most valuable partnerships?
Which networks does your target audience use?
How does your social media presence compare to the competition?

Once you collect that information, you’ll be ready to start thinking about ways to improve.

We’ve created an easy-to-follow social media audit guide and template to walk you through each step of this process.

Screenshot of a social media audit spreadsheet for building an effective social media marketing strategy

Your audit should give you a clear picture of what purpose each of your social accounts serves. If the purpose of an account isn’t clear, think about whether it’s worth keeping.

To help you decide, ask yourself the following questions:

Is my audience here?
If so, how are they using this platform?
Can I use this account to help achieve my goals?

Asking these tough questions will keep your social media strategy focused.

Look for impostor accounts

During the audit, you may discover fake accounts using your business name or the names of your products.

These imposters can be harmful to your brand—never mind that they’re capturing followers that should be yours.

You may want to get your accounts verified too to ensure your fans know they are dealing with the real you.

Here’s how to get verified on:

X (Twitter)

Step 5. Set up accounts and improve profiles

Decide which networks to use.

As you decide which social networks to use, you will also need to define your strategy for each.

Benefit Cosmetics’ social media manager, Angela Purcaro, told eMarketer : “For our makeup tutorials … we’re all about Snapchat and Instagram Stories. [X], on the other hand, is designated for customer service.”

Hootsuite’s own social team even designates different purposes for formats within networks. On Instagram, for example, they use the feed to post high-quality educational infographics and product announcements and Stories to cover live events or quick social media updates.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Hootsuite 🦉 (@hootsuite)

Pro tip : Write out a mission statement for each network. A one-sentence declaration to keep you focused on a specific goal.

Example: “We will use X for customer support to keep email and call volumes down.”

Or: “We will use LinkedIn for promoting and sharing our company culture to help with recruitment and employee advocacy.”

One more: “We will use Instagram to highlight new products and repost quality content from influencers.”

If you can’t create a solid mission statement for a particular social media channel, you may want to ask yourself if it’s worth it.

Note : While larger businesses can and do tackle every platform, small businesses may not be able to — and that’s ok! Prioritize social platforms that will have the most impact on your business and make sure your marketing team has the resources to handle content for those networks. If you need help focusing your efforts, check out our 18-minute social media plan .

Set up your profiles

Once you’ve decided which networks to focus on, it’s time to create your profiles. Or improve existing ones so they align with your strategy.

Make sure you fill out all profile fields
Include keywords people would use to search for your business
Use consistent branding (logos, images, etc.) across networks so your profiles are easily recognizable

Pro tip : Use high-quality images that follow the recommended dimensions for each network. Check out our always-up-to-date social media image size cheat sheet for quick reference.

We’ve also got step-by-step guides for each network to walk you through the process:

Create a Facebook business page
Create an Instagram business account
Create a TikTok account
Create a X (Twitter) business account
Create a Snapchat account
Create a LinkedIn Company Page
Create a Pinterest business account
Create a YouTube channel

Don’t let this list overwhelm you. Remember, it’s better to use fewer channels well than to stretch yourself thin trying to maintain a presence on every network.

Optimize your profiles (and content) for search

Never heard of social SEO ? It’s time to learn.

44% of Gen Z consumers use social platforms to research their purchase decisions, which means it’s extra critical that your channels are optimized for social search.

That means making sure your profile names are clear and descriptive, you’re including relevant hashtags and keywords in your bio and on every post, and you’re using features like alt text and captions to include your target keywords as naturally as possible.

Step 6. Find inspiration

While it’s important that your brand be unique, you can still draw inspiration from other businesses that are great on social.

“ I consider it my job to stay active on social: to know what’s trending, which campaigns are winning, what’s new with the platforms, who’s going above and beyond,” says Amanda. “This might be the most fun step for you, or the hardest one, but it’s just as crucial as the rest of them.”

Social media success stories

You can usually find these on the business section of the social network’s website. ( Here’s Facebook’s , for example.)

Case studies can offer valuable insights that you can apply to your own social media plan.

Award-winning accounts and campaigns

You could also check out the winners of The Facebook Awards or The Shorty Awards for examples of brands that are at the top of their social media game.

For learning and a laugh, check out Fridge-Worthy, Hootsuite’s bi-weekly awards show highlighting brands doing smart and clever things on social media.

Your favorite brands on social media

Who do you enjoy following on social media? What do they do that compels people to engage and share their content?

National Geographic, for example, is one of the best on Instagram, combining stunning visuals with compelling captions.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by National Geographic (@natgeo)

Then there’s Shopify. The ecommerce brand uses Facebook to sell themselves by showcasing customer stories and case studies.

And Lush Cosmetics is a great example of superior customer service on X. They use their 280 characters to answer questions and solve problems in an extremely charming and on-brand way.

Source: lushcosmetics on X

Notice that each of these accounts has a consistent voice, tone, and style. That’s key to letting people know what to expect from your feed. That is, why should they follow you? What’s in it for them?

Consistency also helps keep your content on-brand even if you have multiple people on your social media team.

For more on this, read our guide on establishing a compelling brand voice on social media .

Ask your followers

Consumers can also offer social media inspiration.

What are your target customers talking about online? What can you learn about their wants and needs?

If you have existing social channels, you could also ask your followers what they want from you. Just make sure that you follow through and deliver what they ask for.

Step 7. Create a social media content calendar

Sharing great content is essential, of course, but it’s equally important to have a plan in place for when you’ll share content to get the maximum impact.

Your social media content calendar also needs to account for the time you spend interacting with the audience (although you need to allow for some spontaneous engagement as well).

Set your posting schedule

Your social media content calendar lists the dates and times at which you will publish types of content on each channel. It’s the perfect place to plan all of your social media activities—from images, link sharing, and re-shares of user-generated content to blog posts and videos. It includes both your day-to-day posting and content for social media campaigns.

Your calendar also ensures your posts are spaced out appropriately and published at the best times to post .

Pro tip: You can plan your whole content calendar and get recommended best times to post on every network based on your past engagement rate, impressions, or link click data in Hootsuite.

Hootsuite’s Best Time to Publish feature

Determine the right content mix

Make sure your content strategy and calendar reflect the mission statement you’ve assigned to each social profile, so that everything you post is working to support your business goals.

(We know, it’s tempting to jump on every meme, but there should always be a strategy behind your social media marketing efforts!)

You might decide that:

50% of content will drive traffic back to your website
25% of content will be curated from other sources
20% of content will support lead-generation goals (newsletter sign-ups, ebook downloads, etc.)
5% of content will be about your company culture

Placing these different post types in your content calendar will ensure you maintain the right mix.

If you’re starting from scratch and you’re not sure what types of content to post, try the 80-20 rule :

80% of your posts should inform, educate, or entertain your audience
20% can directly promote your brand.

The 80-20 rule of social media publishing

You could also try the social media content marketing rule of thirds :

One-third of your content promotes your business, converts readers, and generates profit.
One-third of your content shares ideas and stories from thought leaders in your industry or like-minded businesses.
One-third of your content is personal interactions with your audience

The social media marketing rule of thirds

Whatever you decide on, be sure to document it in your strategy doc.

document your content pillars in your strategy doc

Don’t post too much or too little

If you’re starting a social media marketing strategy from scratch, you may not have figured out how often to post to each network for maximum engagement yet.

Post too frequently and you risk annoying your audience. But, if you post too little, you risk looking like you’re not worth following.

Start with these posting frequency recommendations:

Instagram (feed): 3-7 times per week
TikTok: 3-5 times per week
Facebook: 1-2 times per day
X (Twitter): 1-5 times per day
LinkedIn: 1-5 times per day

How often to publish on social media by each platform

Pro tip : Once you have your social media content calendar planned out, use a scheduling tool to prepare messages in advance rather than updating constantly throughout the day.

We might be biased, but we think Hootsuite is the best social media management tool. You can schedule social media posts to every network and the intuitive calendar view gives you a full picture of all your social activity each week.

Try It Free

Step 8. Create compelling content

Remember those mission statements you created for each channel in Step 5? Well, it’s time to go a bit deeper, a.k.a. provide some examples of the type of content you’ll post to fulfill your mission on each network.

If you’re not sure what to post, here’s a long list of social media content ideas to get you started. Or (to make it even easier) you can use an AI tool like OwlyWriter to generate on-brand content in a flash.

The idea here is to:

Keep your content aligned with the purpose of each network;
Show other stakeholders (if applicable) what kind of content they can expect to see on each network.

This last point especially will help you avoid any tension when your colleagues want to know why you haven’t posted their case study/whitepaper/blog post to TikTok yet. It’s not in the strategy, Linda!

Ideally, you will generate content types that are both suited to the network and the purpose you’ve set out for that network.

For example, you wouldn’t want to waste time posting brand awareness tweets if you’ve designated X/Twitter for primarily customer support. And you wouldn’t want to post super polished corporate video ads to TikTok, as users expect to see short, unpolished videos on that platform.

It might take some testing over time to figure out which type of content works best on which type of network, so prepare to update this section frequently.

We won’t lie: content creation isn’t as easy as everyone not on the social team seems to think. But if you’re struggling, Amanda suggests going back to basics.

The first question to ask is: is there cohesion between your content types? Is your content providing value? Do you have a good mix of entertaining, or educational content? What does it offer that makes a person stop and spend time? Creating a few different content pillars or categories that encompass different aspects of storytelling for your brand, and what you can offer your audience is a good start.

This brings us to Step 9.

Step 9. Track performance and make adjustments

Your social media marketing strategy is a hugely important document for your business, and you can’t assume you’ll get it exactly right on the first try.

As you start to implement your plan and track your results, you may find that some strategies don’t work as well as you’d anticipated, while others are working even better than expected.

That’s why it’s important to document your progress along the way.

Look at performance metrics

In addition to the analytics within each social network (see Step 2), you can use UTM parameters to track social visitors as they move through your website, so you can see exactly which social posts drive the most traffic to your website.

Benchmark your results

You’ve got your numbers, but how do they stack up to the competition in your industry? Industry benchmarks are a great way to evaluate your performance against other businesses in your category.

If you’ve got Hootsuite Analytics , you can use our built-in social media benchmarking tool to compare the performance of your social accounts against the average of brands in your industry with just a couple of clicks.

You can set up custom timeframes, switch between networks — Instagram, Facebook, X (Twitter), LinkedIn, and TikTok — and look up benchmarks for metrics like followers, audience growth rate, engagement rate, clicks, shares, and much more.

You’ll also find resources to improve your performance right in the summary section:

Industry benchmarking in Hootsuite Analytics: Performance summary with dedicated resources for improvement

Re-evaluate, test, and do it all again

Once this data starts coming in, use it to re-evaluate your strategy regularly. You can also use this information to test different posts, social marketing campaigns, and strategies against one another. Constant testing allows you to understand what works and what doesn’t, so you can refine your social media marketing strategy in real time.

You’ll want to check the performance of all your channels at least once a week and get to know the basics of social media reporting so you can track your growth over time.

Pro tip: If you use Hootsuite, you can review the performance of all your posts on every network in one place. Once you get the hang of checking your analytics, you may even want to customize different reports to show specific metrics over a variety of different time periods.

Surveys can also be a great way to find out how well your social media strategy is working. Ask your followers, email list, and website visitors whether you’re meeting their needs and expectations, and what they’d like to see more of. Then make sure to deliver on what they tell you.

Finalizing your social media strategy

Spoiler alert: nothing is final.

Social media moves fast. New networks emerge, others go through demographic shifts.

Your business will go through periods of change as well.

All of this means that your social media marketing strategy should be a living document that you review and adjust as needed. Refer to it often to stay on track, but don’t be afraid to make changes so that it better reflects new goals, tools, or plans.

When you update your social strategy, make sure to watch our 5-step video on how to updating your social media strategy for 2024:

Social media strategy template

Ready to start documenting? Grab your free social media strategy template below!

What’s next? When you’re ready to put your plan into action, we’re here to help…

Save time managing your social media marketing strategy with Hootsuite. From a single dashboard you can easily:

Plan, create, and schedule posts to every network
Track relevant keywords, topics, and accounts
Stay on top of engagement with a universal inbox
Get easy-to-understand performance reports and improve your strategy as needed

Try Hootsuite for Free

With files from Shannon Tien .

Do it better with Hootsuite , the all-in-one social media tool. Stay on top of things, grow, and beat the competition.

Become a better social marketer.

Get expert social media advice delivered straight to your inbox.

Christina Newberry is an award-winning writer and editor whose greatest passions include food, travel, urban gardening, and the Oxford comma—not necessarily in that order.

Amanda Wood is a senior social marketing professional who combines analytical and creative thinking to build brands.

As head of social at Hootsuite, Amanda oversees the global social strategy encompassing organic and paid social on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and LinkedIn, a social engagement and listening strategy, and an employee advocacy program.

As the leader of a high-performing social team, she has extensive experience collaborating with creatives to bring campaigns to life on social and drive business results.

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Peak Plans - Business Plan Writers & Consulting

Crafting the Perfect Pilates Studio Business Plan: A Blueprint for Success

Starting a Pilates studio can be a fulfilling and profitable venture for fitness enthusiasts and professionals alike. To ensure the success and longevity of your business, it’s essential to create a comprehensive business plan. This article will walk you through the key components of an effective Pilates studio business plan, providing a solid foundation for your new enterprise.

Executive Summary

The executive summary is a concise overview of your business plan. It should provide a snapshot of your Pilates studio, its mission, and objectives. Include the following elements:

Business name and location
Date of establishment (if applicable)
Ownership structure (sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, etc.)
Brief description of services offered
Target market
Competitive advantages
Financial projections

2. Company Description

In this section, provide a detailed description of your Pilates studio, including its vision, goals, and objectives. Explain the legal structure, the experience and qualifications of the management team, and the core values that set your studio apart from the competition.

3. Market Analysis

A thorough market analysis helps you understand the industry landscape, potential clients, and competitors. Include the following elements:

Market size and growth potential
Target customer segments (beginners, advanced practitioners, specialized groups, etc.)
Key competitors (local and regional)
Market trends (wellness, virtual classes, etc.)
SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats)

4. Services and Pricing

Clearly define the services your Pilates studio offers, such as group classes, private sessions, workshops, and teacher training programs. Detail any specialties or unique offerings that set your studio apart. Include pricing strategies and how they compare to competitors.

5. Marketing and Sales Strategy

Outline your plans to attract and retain clients, focusing on how to differentiate your Pilates studio from the competition. Consider the following:

Branding and positioning
Advertising methods (online, print, local events, etc.)
Promotions and discounts (introductory offers, membership incentives, etc.)
Customer service approach
Networking and referral partnerships (with healthcare providers, fitness centers, etc.)
Online presence (website, social media, online booking, etc.)

6. Operations and Management

Describe the day-to-day operations of your Pilates studio, including:

Staffing and organizational structure
Recruitment and training procedures
Studio layout and equipment maintenance
Class scheduling and management
Client management and communication systems

7. Financial Projections

A critical component of any business plan is the financial analysis. This section should include:

Startup costs (leasehold improvements, equipment, initial inventory, etc.)
Break-even analysis
Projected income statement (monthly and annual)
Cash flow projections
Balance sheet
Three to five-year financial projections, including growth assumptions

8. Appendix (Optional)

Include any additional information, such as resumes, industry reports, or client testimonials, that supports your business plan.

A comprehensive Pilates studio business plan serves as a blueprint for establishing and growing your venture. By addressing each component — from the executive summary to the financial projections — you’ll be better equipped to make informed decisions, secure funding, and achieve your goals. With a solid plan in place, you’re one step closer to launching a successful Pilates studio.

Visit us at : https://peakplans.co/ and Schedule a free of charge consultation if you need a well written, Professional business plan. At Peak Plans, we understand that a solid business plan is the foundation of any successful venture. Contact us today to learn more about our business planning services and how we can help you achieve success.

Written by Peak Plans - Business Plan Writers & Consulting

Peak Plans is a professional business plan writing pitch, deck writing and a strategic & management consulting company. www.peakplans.co

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Write Your Business Plan | Part 1 Overview Video
The Basics of Writing a Business Plan
How to Use Your Business Plan Most Effectively
12 Reasons You Need a Business Plan
The Main Objectives of a Business Plan
What to Include and Not Include in a Successful Business Plan
The Top 4 Types of Business Plans
A Step-by-Step Guide to Presenting Your Business Plan in 10 Slides
6 Tips for Making a Winning Business Presentation
3 Key Things You Need to Know About Financing Your Business
12 Ways to Set Realistic Business Goals and Objectives
How to Perfectly Pitch Your Business Plan in 10 Minutes
Write Your Business Plan | Part 2 Overview Video
How to Fund Your Business Through Friends and Family Loans and Crowdsourcing
How to Fund Your Business Using Banks and Credit Unions
How to Fund Your Business With an SBA Loan
How to Fund Your Business With Bonds and Indirect Funding Sources
How to Fund Your Business With Venture Capital
How to Fund Your Business With Angel Investors
How to Use Your Business Plan to Track Performance
How to Make Your Business Plan Attractive to Prospective Partners
Is This Idea Going to Work? How to Assess the Potential of Your Business.
When to Update Your Business Plan
Write Your Business Plan | Part 3 Overview Video
How to Write the Management Team Section to Your Business Plan
How to Create a Strategic Hiring Plan
How to Write a Business Plan Executive Summary That Sells Your Idea
How to Build a Team of Outside Experts for Your Business
Use This Worksheet to Write a Product Description That Sells
What Is Your Unique Selling Proposition? Use This Worksheet to Find Your Greatest Strength.
How to Raise Money With Your Business Plan
Customers and Investors Don't Want Products. They Want Solutions.
Write Your Business Plan | Part 4 Overview Video
5 Essential Elements of Your Industry Trends Plan
How to Identify and Research Your Competition
Who Is Your Ideal Customer? 4 Questions to Ask Yourself.
How to Identify Market Trends in Your Business Plan
How to Define Your Product and Set Your Prices
How to Determine the Barriers to Entry for Your Business
How to Get Customers in Your Store and Drive Traffic to Your Website
How to Effectively Promote Your Business to Customers and Investors
Write Your Business Plan | Part 5 Overview Video
What Equipment and Facilities to Include in Your Business Plan
How to Write an Income Statement for Your Business Plan
How to Make a Balance Sheet
How to Make a Cash Flow Statement
How to Use Financial Ratios to Understand the Health of Your Business
How to Write an Operations Plan for Retail and Sales Businesses
How to Make Realistic Financial Forecasts
How to Write an Operations Plan for Manufacturers
What Technology Needs to Include In Your Business Plan
How to List Personnel and Materials in Your Business Plan
The Role of Franchising
The Best Ways to Follow Up on a Buisiness Plan
The Best Books, Sites, Trade Associations and Resources to Get Your Business Funded and Running
How to Hire the Right Business Plan Consultant
Business Plan Lingo and Resources All Entrepreneurs Should Know
How to Write a Letter of Introduction
What To Put on the Cover Page of a Business Plan
How to Format Your Business Plan
6 Steps to Getting Your Business Plan In Front of Investors

Write Your Business Plan | Part 2 Overview Video Learn the key questions to ask yourself early in the process.

By Dan Bova May 1, 2024

This is part 1 / 11 of Write Your Business Plan: Section 2: Putting Your Business Plan to Work series.

Funding for your startup can come from a wide variety of sources: friends and family, venture capital, angel investors and SBA loans, just to name a few. And a good business plan is going to help investors understand your vision.

But before you start raising money, one of the most valuable uses of a business plan is to help you figure out if this idea is worth it. While it can't exactly act as a crystal ball, a well-executed plan is going to illustrate if this is a viable idea before you spend a penny.

There are financial and lifestyle realities you'll need to contend with to launch and run a business, and here are some key questions to ask yourself to see if this is a realistic endeavor:

What initial investment am I going to need to launch?
What are the projected profits of the business in the first few years?
What kind of salary or profit distribution can I expect to take home?
Do I have evidence that I'm providing a solution that customers actually want?
Can I hold onto my day job while I get this business up and running?
Do I have a financial and emotional support system to help me through the startup years?
Is this a concept I'm truly passionate about?

Be honest with yourself as you answer these questions to help gain clarity if this is an idea that you really want to go all-in on. Entrepreneurship takes a good amount of fearlessness and risk-taking and luck, but taking time to ask yourself the tough questions and arming yourself with as much information as possible is going to give you the best chance of success.

Continue reading this section to learn about building out your plan or order a copy of Write Your Business Plan from the Entrepreneur Bookstore .

More in Write Your Business Plan

Section 1: the foundation of a business plan, section 2: putting your business plan to work, section 3: selling your product and team, section 4: marketing your business plan, section 5: organizing operations and finances, section 6: getting your business plan to investors.

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When starting a business, you must answer an important question: How much money do you need? Here’s what you need to know about funding your startup.

Starting a business may be an exciting process, but it costs money. When determining business startup costs, it’s important to be realistic. Things like office space, legal fees, payroll, business credit cards and other organizational expenses can really add up.

If you’re thinking about launching a new business, you should understand the startup costs you might encounter. Here’s how much cash you will likely need to start your company.

How much money it costs to start a business

It’s possible to start a business with a small initial investment (as little as $100) depending on what it is. For example, if you’re starting an online shop or freelancing service, you likely won’t have many upfront costs.

However, other businesses, like brick-and-mortar shops or those with W-2 employees, could cost thousands of dollars (even hundreds of thousands) for location, inventory, payroll, equipment, rent and more. [Read related article: Best Payroll Services ]

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, most microbusinesses cost around $3,000 to start, while most home-based franchises cost $2,000 to $5,000.

While every type of business has its own financing needs, experts have some tips to help you figure out how much cash you’ll require. Drew Gerber, CEO of the PR firm Wasabi Publicity, estimates that an entrepreneur will need six months’ worth of fixed costs on hand at startup.

“Have a plan to cover your expenses in the first month,” he said. “Identify your customers before you open the door so you can have a way to start covering those expenses.”

Editor’s note: Need a loan for your business? Fill out the below questionnaire to have our vendor partners contact you with free information.

When planning your costs, don’t underestimate the expenses, and remember that they can rise as the business grows, Gerber said. It’s easy to overlook costs when you’re thinking about the big picture, but you should be more precise when planning for your fixed expenses, he added.

Indeed, underestimating costs can decimate your company, said Cynthia McCahon, founder and CEO of business plan software company Enloop.

“One of the main reasons most small businesses fail is that they simply run out of cash,” she said. “ Writing a business plan without basing your forecasts on reality often leads to an unfortunate, and often unnecessary, business failure. Without the benefit of experience or actual historical financials, it’s easy to overestimate a new company’s revenue and underestimate costs.”

How to plan for startup costs

1. start small..

You most likely have high expectations for your company. However, blind optimism may cause you to invest too much money too quickly. At the very beginning, it’s smart to keep an open mind and prepare for issues that may arise later.

McCahon said business owners should start with a bit of healthy skepticism.

“A prospective business owner should start planning a small business by simply understanding the potential of the business idea,” she said. “What this means is not assuming your idea will be successful.”

The best approach is to test your idea in a small, inexpensive way that gives you a good indication of whether customers need your product and how much they’re willing to pay for it, McCahon said. If the test seems successful, then you can start planning your business based on what you learned. [Read related article: Small Business Financing Options That Bypass Traditional Banks ]

2. Understand what types of costs you’ll have.

The SBA states that there are various types of expenses to consider when starting your business. You need to differentiate between these costs to properly manage your business’s cash flow for the short and long term, said Eyal Shinar, former CEO of cash flow management company Fundbox. Here are a few types of costs for new business owners to consider. [Read related article: The Small Business Owner’s Guide to Getting an SBA Loan ]

One-time vs. ongoing costs

One-time expenses will be relevant mostly in the startup process, such as the expenses for incorporating a company. If there’s a month when you must make a one-time equipment purchase, your money going out will likely be greater than the money coming in, Shinar said.

This means your cash flow will be disrupted that month, and you will need to make up for it the following month.

Ongoing costs, by contrast, are paid on a regular basis and include expenses such as utilities. These generally do not fluctuate as much from month to month.

Essential vs. optional costs

Essential costs are expenses that are absolutely necessary for the company’s growth and development. Optional purchases should be made only if the budget allows.

“If you have an optional and nonurgent cost, it may be best to wait until you have enough cash reserves for that purchase,” Shinar said.

Fixed vs. variable costs

Fixed expenses, such as rent, are consistent from month to month, whereas variable expenses depend on the direct sale of products or services. This is a reason that comparing the best credit card processing providers is so important. Processing rates are a variable cost that you’ll want to regularly review to ensure you’re getting the best deal. Shinar noted that fixed costs may eat up a high percentage of revenue in the early days, but as you scale up, their relative burden will become negligible. [Read related article: Direct Costs vs. Indirect Costs ]

Most common startup expenses

It’s important to understand the different types of costs you’ll have as a new business. Theoretically, it’s good to take note of what costs are fixed, variable, essential and optional. But let’s get concrete. Here’s a short list of costs you’ll likely have as a new business:

Web hosting and other website costs
Rental space for an office
Office furniture
Basic supplies
Basic technology
License or permit fees
Advertising or promotions
Business plan costs

Typical costs for startups

The following table estimates basic fixed costs for a hypothetical startup company with five employees. Variable costs will depend on each business’s situation and are not included in this table.

Item	Details	Estimated cost
Rent	Coworking space membership	$2,750
Website	Design and hosting	$2,000
Payroll	5 employees with a $35K/year salary	$175,000
Advertising/promotion	PPC buys in your sector	$5,000
Basic office supplies	Paper, pens, etc.	$80
Total (annualized)		$184,830

3. Project your cash flow.

Another critical aspect of a startup’s financial planning is to project the business’s cash flow. William Brigham, director of the New York Small Business Development Center in Albany, advises new business owners to project their cash flow for at least the first three months of the business’s life. He said to add up not only fixed costs, but also the estimated costs of goods and best- and worst-case revenues.

“If you borrow money, make sure you know not only how much you borrowed, but also the interest you owe,” Brigham said. “Calculating these costs puts a floor on the revenues needed to keep the business viable and provides a good picture of the cash necessary to start it up.”

This is an essential step in maintaining your business’s financial health. Without being realistic about your cash flow and debt, you won’t be able to get your business off the ground, especially as other costs begin to build.

Gerber recommends starting a business without borrowing at all, if possible. He said that borrowing puts a lot of pressure on any business and its owners, as it leaves less room for error. Do your best to explore all of your funding options. If borrowing is your only option, work closely with your lender to ensure your business is financially able to handle the commitment. Keep in mind that when it comes to small businesses, personal assets are also often on the line.

Once you get your business going, Shinar recommends using Freshbooks [See our FreshBooks review ] or Quickbooks accounting software [See our QuickBooks review ] , which can connect directly to your bank account to track your expenses throughout each month and during tax season. [Looking for accounting software for your small business? Check out our best picks for small business accounting software .]

4. Figure out your financing methods.

Once you’ve determined your costs and projected your cash flow, you’ll need to consider how to pursue financing. How you obtain funds will affect the future of your business for years to come. Personal savings, loans from family and friends, government and bank loans , and government grants are just a few potential funding sources. Many companies use a combination of different sources. [Check out our reviews of the best small business loans .]

According to Herndon Davis, mortgage loan officer and real estate agent at Mortgage Real Estate Services, most startups are self-funded. However, there are other options.

“Additional funding can come through establishing business credit and different lines of credit through piggybacking scenarios,” Davis said. “There are also small business loans and angel investors willing to step in at certain stages. At this point, your startup should show established clients/customers, growth since inception, a unique positioning in the marketplace and a clear business plan on how to grow with the additional funding.”

How much cash will you need?

As you’ve learned above, the money you’ll need to start your business depends on various factors. Opening a brick-and-mortar store with expensive rent requiring high-quality equipment might cost hundreds of thousands more than offering freelance services online with no initial investment. Before pursuing your business, analyze your potential costs and determine whether you’re financially ready and committed to the journey of entrepreneurship you desire.

Matt D’Angelo contributed to this article. Source interviews were conducted for a previous version of this article.

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How to Start a Foundation for Your Nonprofit Organization

Nonprofits operate in a continuous cycle involving donor acquisition , fundraising efforts, and mission-driven work. As a nonprofit leader, you may be looking for new ways to give to your community and break out of your organization’s cyclical operations.

By forming a private foundation , you can continue your nonprofit’s work while supporting other organizations that address a cause you care about. In this guide, we’ll cover the five necessary steps to start a foundation:

Understand nonprofit foundation basics
Determine the legal structure
Fill your foundation’s board
Establish a fundraising plan
Budget your foundation’s money separately

With the right funding and approach, you can create a foundation that takes your community service a step further. We’ll give you all the tools you need to start a foundation, and, more importantly, maintain it.

1. Understand nonprofit foundation basics

Before you get started, you should be able to answer one question: What is a nonprofit foundation?

Organizations that qualify as 501(c)(3) tax-exempt are automatically defined as private foundations by the IRS unless they satisfy certain exceptions, such as being organized as a church, hospital, school, or other specifically named entity type. These private, nongovernmental organizations are usually organized by a single source—like a family or corporation—which then distributes grants to help fund other nonprofits, most often public charities.

There are three key differences between a public charity and a private foundation:

Funding: A foundation is generally sustained through private monetary donations, securities, and other funds, not donations from the public, though that is allowed.
Activities: While public charities provide some kind of charitable good or service to the people they assist, a private foundation exists primarily to grant funds. Although their grants usually support charitable activities, foundations don’t usually participate directly in the programs or services.
Taxes: Private foundations are exempt from income tax, just like other nonprofits. However, they are subject to a 1-2% excise tax on income generated by investments.

With the unique role of a foundation also comes different legal requirements. For example, foundations must give 5% of their net assets in grants each year for charitable purposes. These are most often grants to public charities, but other charitable recipients can be included. Understanding how foundations work will give you the necessary context to begin planning the structure and operations of your foundation.

2. Determine the legal structure

The logistics of organizing and operating a private foundation require legal supervision. To avoid legal obstacles when starting a foundation, you’ll need to:

Double-check your proposed name. Do a quick search to make sure that the name you’ve picked out for your foundation is not registered with another corporation.
Fill out the Articles of Incorporation. These are essentially the legal documents that make your foundation legitimate—like a business plan, but for nonprofits. You can find plenty of templates online if you’re doing this without an attorney.
Create bylaws for your foundation. These rules will outline how you plan to select your board, avoid conflicts of interest, manage your funds, etc. Some states don’t require bylaws, but it’s always smart to have them anyway for contractual and organizational purposes.

There are numerous legal steps to follow, and you’ll need to contact your Secretary of State’s business office to make sure you don’t leave anything out. If you’re confident in your ability to navigate these legal requirements and want to save money, you can do this all yourself. However, hiring an attorney can help you avoid the risk of noncompliance penalties.

You should be prepared to pay a few legal fees during this process and can plan for the investment in an attorney in your legal fee budget. Decide whether or not you want to hire an attorney, then complete the necessary paperwork and submit it to the IRS.

3. Fill your foundation’s board

After receiving tax-exempt status from the IRS, start planning the structure and operations of your foundation. Much like you’d hire employees upon starting a business, you’ll need board members to manage and operate your foundation. Board members will be responsible for many tasks, including:

Accountability: Board members will ensure the foundation’s operations advance its mission.
Advocacy: Board members will be ambassadors for the foundation, representing your organization and its work in their social circles.
Governance: Board members will steward assets in the best interest of the foundation and address any conflicts of interest as they arise.
Networking: Board members will make connections with other community leaders.

As you select board members, keep these tasks in mind and consider who would fill these roles most effectively. As the leader of your foundation, you should also be a board member (or heavily involved with this team.)

Your board should include a variety of close-knit and resourceful members. The team members with whom you have personal connections will help cultivate a strong sense of community, while outsiders can provide the connections that bring in bigger donations and networking opportunities.

To achieve this balance, some foundations turn to close friends, family members, experts within the field, and independently wealthy people who are passionate about their cause. Determine your foundation’s specific needs and choose your board accordingly.

4. Establish a fundraising plan

Although foundations typically have a steady funding source or a principal investment, such as an endowment, you may also need to fundraise to keep your foundation afloat. As a nonprofit leader, you likely have a solid background in fundraising strategies. You can leverage these tried-and-true techniques, such as:

Crowdfunding campaigns
Events, like galas or auctions
Handwritten donation appeals

However, raising money for your private foundation isn’t as simple as just choosing a fundraising idea. To publicly solicit donations for your foundation, you may need to register for charitable solicitations in your state. Also, contributions to a private foundation will have different requirements than those to your nonprofit. Fundraising is another area of foundation management in which an attorney or budgeting expert will be helpful.

5. Budget your foundation’s money separately

However you choose to fundraise, make sure you’re always budgeting and planning for the months ahead. You’ll have different fundraising goals, expenses, and tax requirements with your foundation, so it’s important that you keep it entirely separate from your nonprofit’s budget. For example, your foundation will need to:

Create two types of grants—general support and specific project grants.
Keep a record of all grants given throughout the year.
File annual tax returns, such as Form 990-PF .

Your private foundation and nonprofit are separate entities with different goals and requirements. To ensure both organizations maintain compliance with their different legal structures, you’ll need to keep their budgets completely independent from each other. Ask an attorney for help if you’re concerned they might be overlapping.

Once you know how to create and sustain a foundation for your nonprofit, you’ll be able to expand the impact of your work and give back to your community more than ever before.

Keep up with the requirements of private foundation operation, but don’t be afraid to enlist the help of an expert if you’re able to! Compliance is their job, and social good is yours. Focus on your mission and leverage the power of private foundations to accomplish your goals.

This guide explains how nonprofit leaders can start a foundation.

Hannah Trull

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The 5 Best Tools to Write a Business Plan

Last Updated on June 3, 2024 by Owen McGab Enaohwo

When you start a business , it’s crucial to set clear, realistic goals and think about how you will achieve them. You also need to research the market and your competition, define your target audience, and create a unique value proposition (UVP). That’s where a business plan comes in.

This document serves as a roadmap to success, making it easier to accomplish your objectives. It can also help you secure funding, uncover new opportunities, and mitigate risks, such as building a product no one wants. Think of it as an action plan for your business .

Generally, it’s best to write a business plan before launching your venture. So without further ado, here’s how to get started.

Why Does Every Business Need a Business Plan?

A business plan is a living document that outlines each stage of starting and running a company. It highlights your mission and values, as well as your goals and the steps needed to accomplish them.

According to CB Insights , 38% of startups fail because they run out of money. More than one-third go out of business because their products don’t sell, and 20% get outcompeted.

With a business plan, you can anticipate and avoid these pitfalls and increase your chances of success. What’s more, companies that plan experience 30% faster growth and better business performance than those without a plan.

For example, market research—an essential component of business planning —can help you find the right customers and, hence, increase sales. You may also realize there’s no market for your products, in which case you can step back and chase other opportunities.

Every market and business is unique, and what works for one company may not work for another. A sound business plan will give you clarity and a sense of direction, leading to better decision-making.

What to Include in a Business Plan

There are no hard rules on how to write a business plan. This document can be as short as two or three pages or as long as 12-20 pages and will look different from one company to the next.

No matter its length or format, it should cover the following:

Executive summary
Company description
Products and services
Unique value proposition
Short- and long-term goals
Organization and management
Market research
Competitive analysis
Sales and marketing strategy
Financial projections
Funding requirements
Appendices (additional data, credit histories, etc.)

The executive summary provides a brief overview of your business, its UVP and goals. The company description goes into detail about these aspects and the problem(s) your product or service can solve.

Moving forward, you’ll focus on each aspect of the business, from its positioning in the market to funding requirements.

However, this format isn’t set in stone. For example, a feasibility business plan will focus on one product or service to assess its validity.

By comparison, internal business plans revolve around organizational alignment. An operational plan , on the other hand, defines the steps you need to take on a weekly or daily basis to accomplish your goals.

Use These Tools to Craft a Compelling Business Plan

Writing a business plan is like putting the pieces of a puzzle together. Each idea leads to the next, filling the gaps to bring your vision to life.

The challenge lies in figuring out where each piece fits in. For example, how does the competitive landscape impact your chances of success? And how does it relate to product pricing, marketing, customer demand, or other aspects?

The right tools can help you make sense of all this data and craft a compelling business plan. Here are our favorite picks.

Sweet Process

Use this cloud-based documentation tool to gather all your files in one place, create and share policies, or manage tasks effortlessly. Business planning involves extensive paperwork, making it difficult to keep track of everything. With Sweet Process , you can store, organize, and share business documents effortlessly.

Sweet Process also enables users to edit images, print documents, and collaborate with others in real-time. For example, you can add graphs or product videos to your business plan while gathering data from other team members. Once your company is up and running, you can use Sweet Process to document your policies, workflows, and procedures.

SCORE Business Planning Templates

SCORE offers customizable business plan templates for startups and established companies. Pick one, download it to your computer, and then fill it out with your company’s data. It’s that simple.

Each template contains instructions, real-world examples, and guiding questions. If, say, you’re not sure how to formulate your mission statement, go to that respective section and see the examples provided.

The templates from SCORE also include worksheets, tables, and other helpful tools for planning things out. Plus, they have a user-friendly format and cover just about any aspect you can think of.

Canva isn’t just for design work. It actually offers quite a few tools for starting and running a business, including SWOT analysis templates.

This acronym stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Companies can conduct a SWOT analysis to identify the factors influencing their success. Strengths and weaknesses are internal factors, whereas opportunities and threats come from the outside.

With Canva, you can generate SWOT charts, brainstorm ideas, and create engaging graphics. Include this information in your business plan to make it more impactful and visually appealing.

D&B Hoovers

As discussed earlier, any business plan should include a competitive analysis. That means you must gather data on other companies in your industry to understand their strengths, weaknesses, and strategies.

One way to get this information is to use a B2B database. For example, D&B Hoovers provides data on over 500 million companies worldwide, including public, private, and non-profit organizations.

With just a few clicks, you can see a company’s size, number of employees, SEC filings, sales volume, and other figures. This data can help you determine where you stand against your competitors, what they do well, and what you could do better.

LivePlan features over 550 sample business plans and other tools, such as an AI-powered assistant. Users can also get help via live chat or attend webinars for further insights.

The platform is intuitive and easy to use, offering everything you need to write a business plan. Your only job is to bring in data and fill out the templates provided.

Users can choose from two subscription plans at different price points. The premium one includes access to cutting-edge tools for generating “What if” scenarios, making financial forecasts, and setting business milestones.

Write a Business Plan That Drives Results

Business planning is both an art and a science and often takes months of research. If done right, it can pave your way to success and help you avoid costly mistakes.

For starters, make sure you have access to accurate data. Next, use a business plan template to organize your ideas. Manage your documents with Sweet Process, and turn to a design tool like Canva to create diagrams, graphics, or infographics.

Note that your work doesn’t stop here. Your business plan is a living document, and you’ll need to review and update it as your company grows.

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The 7 Best Business Plan Examples (2024)

As an aspiring entrepreneur gearing up to start your own business , you likely know the importance of drafting a business plan. However, you might not be entirely sure where to begin or what specific details to include. That’s where examining business plan examples can be beneficial. Sample business plans serve as real-world templates to help you craft your own plan with confidence. They also provide insight into the key sections that make up a business plan, as well as demonstrate how to structure and present your ideas effectively.

Example business plan

To understand how to write a business plan, let’s study an example structured using a seven-part template. Here’s a quick overview of those parts:

Executive summary: A quick overview of your business and the contents of your business plan.
Company description: More info about your company, its goals and mission, and why you started it in the first place.
Market analysis: Research about the market and industry your business will operate in, including a competitive analysis about the companies you’ll be up against.
Products and services: A detailed description of what you’ll be selling to your customers.
Marketing plan: A strategic outline of how you plan to market and promote your business before, during, and after your company launches into the market.
Logistics and operations plan: An explanation of the systems, processes, and tools that are needed to run your business in the background.
Financial plan: A map of your short-term (and even long-term) financial goals and the costs to run the business. If you’re looking for funding, this is the place to discuss your request and needs.

7 business plan examples (section by section)

In this section, you’ll find hypothetical and real-world examples of each aspect of a business plan to show you how the whole thing comes together.

Executive summary

Your executive summary offers a high-level overview of the rest of your business plan. You’ll want to include a brief description of your company, market research, competitor analysis, and financial information.

In this free business plan template, the executive summary is three paragraphs and occupies nearly half the page:

Company description

You might go more in-depth with your company description and include the following sections:

Nature of the business. Mention the general category of business you fall under. Are you a manufacturer, wholesaler, or retailer of your products?
Background information. Talk about your past experiences and skills, and how you’ve combined them to fill in the market.
Business structure. This section outlines how you registered your company —as a corporation, sole proprietorship, LLC, or other business type.
Industry. Which business sector do you operate in? The answer might be technology, merchandising, or another industry.
Team. Whether you’re the sole full-time employee of your business or you have contractors to support your daily workflow, this is your chance to put them under the spotlight.

You can also repurpose your company description elsewhere, like on your About page, Instagram page, or other properties that ask for a boilerplate description of your business. Hair extensions brand Luxy Hair has a blurb on it’s About page that could easily be repurposed as a company description for its business plan.

Market analysis

Market analysis comprises research on product supply and demand, your target market, the competitive landscape, and industry trends. You might do a SWOT analysis to learn where you stand and identify market gaps that you could exploit to establish your footing. Here’s an example of a SWOT analysis for a hypothetical ecommerce business:

You’ll also want to run a competitive analysis as part of the market analysis component of your business plan. This will show you who you’re up against and give you ideas on how to gain an edge over the competition.

Products and services

This part of your business plan describes your product or service, how it will be priced, and the ways it will compete against similar offerings in the market. Don’t go into too much detail here—a few lines are enough to introduce your item to the reader.

Marketing plan

Potential investors will want to know how you’ll get the word out about your business. So it’s essential to build a marketing plan that highlights the promotion and customer acquisition strategies you’re planning to adopt.

Most marketing plans focus on the four Ps: product, price, place, and promotion. However, it’s easier when you break it down by the different marketing channels . Mention how you intend to promote your business using blogs, email, social media, and word-of-mouth marketing.

Here’s an example of a hypothetical marketing plan for a real estate website:

marketing section template for business plan

Logistics and operations

This section of your business plan provides information about your production, facilities, equipment, shipping and fulfillment, and inventory.

Financial plan

The financial plan (a.k.a. financial statement) offers a breakdown of your sales, revenue, expenses, profit, and other financial metrics. You’ll want to include all the numbers and concrete data to project your current and projected financial state.

In this business plan example, the financial statement for ecommerce brand Nature’s Candy includes forecasted revenue, expenses, and net profit in graphs.

It then goes deeper into the financials, citing:

Funding needs
Project cash-flow statement
Project profit-and-loss statement
Projected balance sheet

You can use Shopify’s financial plan template to create your own income statement, cash-flow statement, and balance sheet.

Types of business plans (and what to write for each)

A one-page business plan is a pared down version of a standard business plan that’s easy for potential investors and partners to understand. You’ll want to include all of these sections, but make sure they’re abbreviated and summarized:

Logistics and operations plan
Financials

A startup business plan is meant to secure outside funding for a new business. Typically, there’s a big focus on the financials, as well as other sections that help determine the viability of your business idea—market analysis, for example. Shopify has a great business plan template for startups that include all the below points:

Market research: in depth
Financials: in depth

Your internal business plan acts as the enforcer of your company’s vision. It reminds your team of the long-term objective and keeps them strategically aligned toward the same goal. Be sure to include:

Market research

Feasibility

A feasibility business plan is essentially a feasibility study that helps you evaluate whether your product or idea is worthy of a full business plan. Include the following sections:

A strategic (or growth) business plan lays out your long-term vision and goals. This means your predictions stretch further into the future, and you aim for greater growth and revenue. While crafting this document, you use all the parts of a usual business plan but add more to each one:

Products and services: for launch and expansion
Market analysis: detailed analysis
Marketing plan: detailed strategy
Logistics and operations plan: detailed plan
Financials: detailed projections

Free business plan templates

Now that you’re familiar with what’s included and how to format a business plan, let’s go over a few templates you can fill out or draw inspiration from.

Bplans’ free business plan template

Bplans’ free business plan template focuses a lot on the financial side of running a business. It has many pages just for your financial plan and statements. Once you fill it out, you’ll see exactly where your business stands financially and what you need to do to keep it on track or make it better.

PandaDoc’s free business plan template

PandaDoc’s free business plan template is detailed and guides you through every section, so you don’t have to figure everything out on your own. Filling it out, you’ll grasp the ins and outs of your business and how each part fits together. It’s also handy because it connects to PandaDoc’s e-signature for easy signing, ideal for businesses with partners or a board.

Miro’s Business Model Canvas Template

Miro’s Business Model Canvas Template helps you map out the essentials of your business, like partnerships, core activities, and what makes you different. It’s a collaborative tool for you and your team to learn how everything in your business is linked.

Better business planning equals better business outcomes

Building a business plan is key to establishing a clear direction and strategy for your venture. With a solid plan in hand, you’ll know what steps to take for achieving each of your business goals. Kickstart your business planning and set yourself up for success with a defined roadmap—utilizing the sample business plans above to inform your approach.

Business plan FAQ

What are the 3 main points of a business plan.

Concept. Explain what your business does and the main idea behind it. This is where you tell people what you plan to achieve with your business.
Contents. Explain what you’re selling or offering. Point out who you’re selling to and who else is selling something similar. This part concerns your products or services, who will buy them, and who you’re up against.
Cash flow. Explain how money will move in and out of your business. Discuss the money you need to start and keep the business going, the costs of running your business, and how much money you expect to make.

How do I write a simple business plan?

To create a simple business plan, start with an executive summary that details your business vision and objectives. Follow this with a concise description of your company’s structure, your market analysis, and information about your products or services. Conclude your plan with financial projections that outline your expected revenue, expenses, and profitability.

What is the best format to write a business plan?

The optimal format for a business plan arranges your plan in a clear and structured way, helping potential investors get a quick grasp of what your business is about and what you aim to achieve. Always start with a summary of your plan and finish with the financial details or any extra information at the end.

Want to learn more?

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Written by Assya Barrette | February 28, 2024

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Your brilliant idea has no startup funding to back it up.

Sound familiar?

Maybe you’ve chosen the right business model, locked down a co-founder, and drawn up a goal pyramid to outline your first steps.

But there’s still that one big problem: you lack funding.

You need to learn your best options on how to fund a startup . Here’s a quick guide to get you started on getting funding for a startup business.

If you’re just not sure where to begin, and always wanted to see a clear-cut menu of funding options out there in this modern world of startups, this post is for you.

Types of Startup Funding

1. Self-Funded (Bootstrapped)

2. friends and family, 3. crowdfunding platforms, 4. government grants or loans, 5. business loans, 6. accelerators, 7. corporate partners, 8. investors.

Which Should You Choose?

The Basic Categories of Funding

There are two models for funding a startup: that which costs you equity, and that which costs you debt.

There is a third, grants, and gifts, but this is less common for profit-seeking businesses.

Foundr plus dollar trail build business banner

Debt as a Form of Funding

Debt, a form of funding so many of us are unfortunately familiar with, is money that you’re obligated to pay back with interest over an agreed-upon time period.

This can be in the form of a bank loan or just racking up a bunch of money on credit cards. The latter is probably the easiest and fastest way to scare up some money, but there’s a reason it’s a bad idea.

Rates are usually terrible, and if you don’t have a lot of cash flow, you can end up saddled with that burden for years. Small business loans are one traditional avenue for funding, but they are often restricted to people with existing cash flow or some kind of collateral to put up.

Offering Equity in Exchange for Funding

Equity, on the other hand, means a percentage of ownership in your business offered up at market value in exchange for money.

This is what investors will typically deal with. Clearly, to offer equity to an investor, you need to have some perceived value or proof of concept to instill confidence.

Grants and Gift Grants

Grants are much more common for endeavors like charities, nonprofits, or social enterprises. Don’t be envious, though, it’s hard work to get a foot in the door with a grantmaker, and often funds come with stringent requirements and oversight.

As far as grand gifts go, well, here’s hoping a bag of money lands on your doorstep. If you’ve ever watched the show Shark Tank this will be familiar to you, as the sharks will often haggle over what kind of stake they get in exchange for the money they’re going to sink into the business.

Entrepreneurs tend to want to reduce the amount of equity they give away because this means lower profits for them in the future. This can also be risky because if more than half of a company’s equity is sold, that means a potential loss of control.

Now, how do you get your entrepreneurial paws on this cash? On to the juicy bits:

Don’t Skip: How to Start a Startup (Advice from Those Who’ve Done It)

8 Funding Options for Your Startup

There are costs and benefits for each of the 8 most common types of startup funding. Let’s break them down.

We know that’s not what you wanted to hear, nor is it quite on point with the purpose of this article. Technically, this isn’t really a source of funding. You’re just paying for it yourself with your hard-earned cash, minimizing expenses such that you can still cover bills.

But this hard medicine is what you need to accept when it comes to funding: It will be much harder to convince someone, to take a chance with their money on your idea if you haven’t done the same first.

That means working on your project as a side hustle , self-funding it as much as possible, and burning the midnight oil to cover labor yourself. Or, that might mean saving up enough money so you can have a few months of runway, building out the basis for your idea before seeking out external funding.

And in doing this, you’re certainly not alone. Alongside the burgeoning generation of young entrepreneurs has come a sharp decline in reliance on investors. This means more young entrepreneurs have started building their value through bootstrapping as a primary source of initial funding for their startups.

A lot of people swear by bootstrapping, and for good reason. In fact, foundr itself was a bootstrapped business run by our CEO, who moonlighted in the early days and gradually scaled up the business over time.

Bootstrapping can be extremely gratifying, like building something with your bare hands. And it’s great for first-time entrepreneurs because it proves you can hack it, making it easier to land funds as you launch future businesses.

This is not to say you can’t get your startup funding after you’ve bootstrapped. As Chris Strode of Invoice2go once told foundr:

What I’d tell…every other early entrepreneur out there, is to bootstrap your startup for as long as possible. Founders are often eager to raise funding and take their businesses to the next level, but if you can build a profitable business on your own, you’ll be better positioned to have a favorable conversation with VCs when the time is right. Focus on getting your product right where you want it for your users, and grow it from there.

This method is advantageous as it lets you grow an audience and a user base that will serve as awesome validation and possibly even lead to revenue or profit before you seek out additional funding.

And, of course, you get to keep all the equity.

Want to self-fund your business (or fund it with a business partner) ? Follow these steps to fund your startup online business yourself:

Sacrifice and save: If you’re self-funding, you will need to sacrifice in order to save the funds you need. This looks different for every entrepreneur, but many sell assets such as cars or even homes to help free up cash to start their businesses.
Find a co-founder you can trust: Regardless of how good you are at saving, sometimes you may simply need more funds. A problem shared is a problem halved, so to solve this, consider bringing on a co-founder. If you’re both investing significantly in the business, though, you’ll need to find someone you can trust. Try friends or business connections, but if you can’t find anyone suitable, consider using websites such as CoFoundersLab .
Freelance on the side: Starting a business can be an all-consuming, full-time commitment. But if you’re self-funding and you’re concerned you’ll run out of funds, consider freelancing on the side so you can continue to earn an income.

A great piece of startup advice is to start with your inner circle and branch out when it comes to selling your business. In other words, start seeking funding for your business from family and friends.

We know this might send chills down some of your spines. And depending on your relationships with certain friends and family, it’s clearly not an option for everyone.

But the important thing here is taking stock of your existing support network. So often, entrepreneurs try to build something utterly from scratch, as if they have to concoct success within a vacuum. The truth is, most of us have a lifetime of connections all around us, many of whom may have tremendous confidence in us and may even be part of our target audience.

Friends and family are one of the most common sources of funding. Over 38% of entrepreneurs report raising money for their ideas from loved ones’, and over $60BB is raised in startups from family and friends each year. Although these people may not have endless cash to throw your way, the money they are able to support you with may come with many advantages:

Those close to you’re much more likely to take a chance on you and your idea in good faith and lend you money at a low-interest rate or even no interest rate or may ask for a lower amount of equity.
Money coming from people you know makes you much more committed to success and providing a good return for their money.
There is a better chance that your friends and family will stay at a supportive distance instead of breathing hungrily down your neck as some investors might.

Remember that you’re looking for a kind of partnership with like-minded people you have an existing connection with. If they truly believe in you and your business, they’ll be excited to get on board, and you couldn’t ask for a better backer than that. And if they’d use your product or service themselves, you’ve also got a potential test market, and early adopter rolled up in one.

At the end of the day, though, this is a very personal decision that needs to be taken seriously. Some of the best startups in the world resulted from friendships… as did some classic disasters. Tread carefully.

Even if you’re looking for funding options for a startup online business (which can cost less money in many cases), if the issue is that you’re simply embarrassed to ask your family and friends to back your startup, then maybe it’s time to rethink your business idea. If you’re shy about going to people who know and love you, it’s not going to be any easier approaching investors.

Crowdfunding has rapidly become a premier way for entrepreneurs to get their startups funded. Since platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo came on the scene, it has cracked open virtually infinite possibilities for companies to get started.

Long story short, crowdfunding involves getting a large group of people to back your company with relatively small individual contributions. These backers will not always get a say in how your business is operated, depending on the platform, and they collectively share a relatively small risk each, because together they enthusiastically want the project in question to exist.

Even veteran investors like Shark Tank star Barbara Corcoran told Foundr she’s been blown away by the potential of crowdfunding:

The access to capital isn’t at your local bank—it’s online. I would say that at least 40 percent of all the entrepreneurs we met on Shark Tank had already raised a lot of money online through crowdfunding. You can teach yourself how. Analyze successful campaigns. Figure out what works.

This funding model can not only be used to gather up some initial funding but can be used for subsequent fundraising for future products and services. Just for one example chosen completely at random, there’s our first print publication, Founder Version 1.0, which we funded with our first Kickstarter campaign. It went great!

While earning funding through these platforms is incredibly convenient for both financial purposes and public exposure, it can be even more successful if you have a little something already saved up. According to Forbes , having around 25% of your monetary goal already raised before approaching the crowd can help account for relevant fees, while also enticing potential investors to keep the momentum going and the funding coming.

Crowdfunding is a great way to land some cash, but it’s not for the faint of heart. It’s both art and science, and now that it’s such a widespread practice, it takes some real work and even investment of its own to build up and execute a successful campaign.

If you’re interested in using crowdfunding for your startup, start by researching which crowdfunding platform best suits your needs. Look for:

What types of campaigns was the website designed for
Whether you have to hit a goal to receive the contributions
Cost of using the crowdfunding platform
How the platform integrates with social media

This is an often-overlooked way to get your startup funded.

Many people don’t know that their government may be offering convenient loans or full-on grants for aspiring entrepreneurs in their midst. Because new businesses are a large source of economic growth in industrialized economies, governments have it in their best interests to support the individuals looking to throw their chip into the ring.

Mission-driven organizations are also well-suited to pursuing grant funding, as there are more and more grant programs popping up to support sustainable and socially conscious businesses that have the potential to fuel a regenerative economy.

The downside of grants is that they are highly competitive, and it’s often time-consuming to apply. If you decide to seek out grant funding, choose a grant program that matches your business. It’s better to take a targeted approach rather than casting a wide net. You may also want to consider hiring a consultant who specializes in grant writing to give you the best shot of securing a grant. If you go this route, make sure to ask the consultant for examples of grants they’ve secured for other businesses. You may even want to ask what the grant amounts were relative to what the consultant billed for help writing the grant, so you can decide if the investment is worth the return.

If you’re young (say, under 35 years old) or if you’re creating a new business in science or technology especially, you’ll have a decent shot at landing some funding. What’s more, governments at various levels tend to have their own individual loans available. To find this funding, search at the city, province/state, and federal levels.

Starting a $150 Billion Company from a Bedroom | Ray Dalio

Business loans provide you with a sum of money that then has to be repaid to the lender with interest. Business loans allow you to maintain equity and control of your business without having to worry about answering to an investor or giving up equity. The downside of business loans is that they come with a short-term cost of capital that needs to be repaid and depending on what type of business loan it is, that cost can get high.

A bank or lender typically makes their decisions based on 3 factors: your time in business, your revenue, and your personal or business credit score. Because a startup by definition doesn’t have much time in business and doesn’t have established business credit, your loan options are more limited.

The Loans You Might Qualify For as a Startup

SBA loans are backed by the US Small Business Administration, which means the government agency guarantees the loans with the lender in case you default on the loan (think of it like having the US government co-sign your loan). In terms of startup loans, you’re not going to find better terms or interest rates than an SBA loan. There are several different SBA loan options, but the most common is the SBA 7(a).

The tradeoff of these rare and majestic loans is that they come with government-level paperwork and they’re highly competitive. If you choose to go the loan route, it’s worth rolling up your sleeves and trying for an SBA loan.

Short Term Loans

Short term loans are best used when your burn rate is going to put you into a short-term bind. You can use a short term loan to cover inventory for large purchase orders or to make payroll while you wait on payment from a client. Short term payments come with pretty high interest rates because they’re designed to be repaid quickly and that structure allows the lender to still make money from the loan. This small business loan type can be an asset if used wisely, but if you wait to pay it off it can get very expensive very quickly.

Line of Credit

A line of credit allows you to borrow against a predetermined amount of money, repay it, and borrow again as many times as you like over the term of the loan. A line of credit can be a tremendous asset for a startup founder. It gives you the capital you need to finance your startup growth , and you only pay interest on what you borrow. That gives you flexibility and control.

Equipment Loan

An equipment loan is specifically for equipment and can be used for anything from computers to an espresso machine to Square card readers to robotic mining equipment. Because the loan is secured by the equipment itself, this loan is easier to qualify for than other small business loans, and it typically comes with lower interest rates.

Business Credit Cards

Okay, this might surprise you but business credit cards can be a pretty solid way to bootstrap a startup, especially if your capital needs are on the lower end of the spectrum. Business credit cards can be used to finance everything from office supplies to equipment purchases. If you need to make some large purchases and know you’ll have the funds to repay them within 6 months to a year, you could consider a 0% introductory APR credit card. These cards don’t collect any interest during the introductory period, which can make them a clutch option for entrepreneurs, especially those who don’t qualify for other forms of funding.

Now we’re getting into the fast lane. If you’re looking for much more than a simple bit of money tossed your way, accelerators are a great option to consider, especially if you’re interested in getting funding for a tech startup.

Accelerators focus on supercharging early-stage business growth by providing short programs (usually 2-4 months long).

They will take applications, dole out funding to those that pass in exchange for equity, plus usually welcome you, your business, and your small team (if you have one) into their program.

The program will often feature an enticing mixture of mentorship and office space. These programs are usually grueling affairs, but if you’re looking to speed up a stage in your business growth, these are the best option. One of the defining factors is their short-term timeframes (incubators, by contrast, tend to last a few years), often culminating in a big presentation session or “demo day.”

These accelerators also tend to present startups with great opportunities to network with other startups and mentors in the business world. In fact, it’s worth noting that accelerators are often much more focused on developing the entrepreneurs or founding teams themselves than a business’s idea.

Applications for accelerators tend to be very competitive, especially for “elite” accelerators such as TechStars and Y Combinator . These two accept only between 1% to 3% of their applicants.

But there are actually quite a few of them, something like 200, and more are always starting. Most of the top accelerators are based in California, including Alchemist , AngelPad , and 500 Startups . But not all of them, and TechStars actually has 20 programs all over the country. Sometimes they’re broad, others are industry-focused.

We suggest starting with local accelerators in your area or looking at niche accelerators targeted to your background or industry.

How Much Money do you Need to Start in Ecommerce? (Shopify Breakdown)

Big businesses aren’t what they used to be. The average lifespan of a corporation has plummeted from 24 years in the 1960s to just 12 now. Companies everywhere are looking at ways to transform and innovate, and partnering with your startup might just be the way they do so.

There’s actually a lot of corporate-partner sponsored startups, but you wouldn’t know it, as the partnership isn’t always obvious. One example of a hugely successful startup that began through a corporate sponsorship is Crowdz. Crowdz, which recently completed a Series A funding round for $5.5 million, was created in partnership with Barclays bank .

With corporate partnerships being so lucrative, how do you secure one? We spoke to Carrie Kwan, the founder of Mums & Co , to find out. Mums & Co, a business community for mothers, was created in partnership with IAG insurance.

Carrie was pregnant with her second child when she came across the idea for the company. Through a business connection, she was introduced to someone who would eventually become her corporate partner:

“I was introduced to Phuong Ly, the executive general manager of IAG, and it became evident that we had a mutual interest in reaching the small business community, particularly mothers.”

This mutual interest was extremely beneficial to Carrie, and after deciding it was something she wanted to pursue, she spent a frenetic few months developing an MCP with the backing of IAG. But during that time, she made it clear that it wasn’t just funding that she was after. She wanted a corporate partner who shared her values:

“I was halfway through my second pregnancy when I was in discussions with IAG. But when I raised this, they said, ‘Congratulations. You shouldn’t have to choose between your family and your career.’ This gave me assurance that they shared my values and understood my vision.”

Carrie signed on as a corporate partner for IAG, and the partnership remains strong today, over three years later.

Want to find a corporate partner to help fund your startup? Follow these steps:

Build out an MVP: Just like any other investor, a corporate partner will need to understand your vision before partnering with you.
Network, network, network: Meet everyone in your network, and pitch them our idea. Then ask them who they can refer you to. Repeat, repeat, repeat.
Connect with other founders who’ve secured a corporate partner: They will be able to provide guidance and possibly introductions.
Approach corporations directly: Many large companies that have innovation agendas will run incubators, demo days, pitch nights, or networking events. Research corporations that you think share your target audience and values, and see what they have to offer. You can also apply directly to corporate programs through websites such as CoVentured .

Before diving into the intricacies of how they operate, let’s look at the basic definition of an investor .

An investor is a person who has control over some pool of assets, and who invests money into a project in exchange for shares. This means they are not neutral actors in your business.

Investors will have expectations that you use the money in frugal and wise ways, such as for expanding market share through marketing, and not wasting funds on unnecessary expenditures. Second of all, investors by definition expect a return on their investments within a certain period—this return is often a 10x return within up to 5 years. This usually occurs either when your company goes “public” or is sold off.

These expectations can make dealing with investors difficult and stressful. The emphasis will often be placed on growth, and pressure to expand your business asset will be coming from outside you and your team. Still, just as with bootstrapping, there are entrepreneurs who swear by raising capital.

If you’re looking to grow a huge business, accepting investment is usually the only option. Companies that grow large and fast can usually only do so through accepting an injection of investor cash.

Onto the types of investors. They fall into three main groups: personal, venture, and angel investors.

Personal Investors

Personal investors or angel investors are typically in the form of friends and family, as described above.

Venture Capital

Venture Investors, or Venture Capitalists, usually come in the form of experienced investors looking to make large returns by investing in business ideas. Rather than a loan, which a recipient is legally bound to pay back, a VC accepts a certain amount of risk that they won’t make the money back, in hopes that some of their investments pay off huge. Although there is acceptance of risk, they are very selective of who they support.

They will rarely be interested in pouring money into a new/unproven idea and will demand a track record and some demonstrable value before placing money into a business endeavor. Venture capitalists don’t deal in 100s or 1,000s of dollars—we’re talking in terms of millions of dollars invested. If you’re just starting out, a VC is probably not the breed of investor you should seek out.

Angel Investors

Angel Investors are the investors that you’ll be looking for if you’re a burgeoning young business. These are investors who are looking to give relatively small amounts (usually tens or hundreds of thousands) into businesses in exchange for equity and will often be tolerant of other forms of growth besides revenue.

They are often other entrepreneurs who have wealth of their own, as opposed to huge pooled investment funds, and are looking to seed people or businesses they believe in at the early stages of their growth. They sometimes fill a gap between friends and family support and larger forms of investment such as venture capital.

In contrast to Venture capitalists, angel investors may not require a part-ownership of the company. Instead, he or she may request a percentage of return on her/his investment. But, as with venture capitalists, there will be situations where angel investors require ownership and management decisions in your company.

Understanding Startup Funding Stages

What the heck is a seed round? Will you need a Series A, B, and C? This financial mumbo jumbo (technical term) can feel intimidating for an aspiring entrepreneur, but it doesn’t need to be. The multiple funding round structure has become more common in recent years, especially in the tech industry. But as tech startups have seen wild success, the model has also spread to other industries as well.

You may not need to know anything about how a Series B works. Many small businesses find the funding they need without going this route. You’ll likely only encounter this if you plan to seek out external investors like an angel investor or venture capitalist.

Seed Funding

Seed capital is an outside investment in a startup during the nascent stages in exchange for equity in the company. The typical investment made during seed funding ranges from $10,000-$2,000,000. Seed funding is especially popular in tech. The benefit of seed money is that it gives you quick access to larger amounts of capital, allowing you to grow and scale a startup quickly and gain more traction. In the seed stage, these investments often come from friends and family members

Because the company doesn’t yet have a straightforward valuation, seed round investors typically receive a convertible note. A convertible note provides equity as repayment rather than interest or stock.

Series A Round

Series A funding is usually the first funding round to come from outside investors. A Series A typically comes after a startup has begun to generate revenue but isn’t yet profitable. In return for their investment, Series A investors are usually given preferred stock (which gives no voting rights to shareholders) that can be converted into common stock at a later time.

Because Series A investors are taking on substantial risk—the company isn’t’ profitable yet and a lot of startups fail—their stock will typically give them a pretty substantial payout if the company is successful.

Series B Round

Startups that seek a Series B round are more established. They’ve gone through the seed round and the Series A. They have either broken even, or they’re close, but they’re generating enough revenue that they carry a solid valuation. Series B investors again tend to receive preferred stock in return for their capital investment. Because there is (or theoretically should be) less risk during Series B funding, investors during this stage typically receive a smaller return than Series A investors.

Series C Round

Series C funding comes when a business is in the later stage of the funding cycle and growth process. It works similarly to the Series B round. Typically, investors want to see a higher valuation in the Series C than in previous rounds. That shows that the company is healthy, profitable, and growing. Because there is the least risk associated with Series C investment, it gives investors the smallest payout for their investment.

Keep Learning: Series Funding for Startups – Terms and Jargon Explained

Which Type of Funding Should You Choose?

Now that you understand funding a startup and the different routes you can choose, what’s next?

While there’s no one right way to fund a startup, there are mistakes to avoid.

Before you ask your family for cash or reach out to potential investors, follow these steps from Alexa von Tobel , founder of Inspired Capital, to avoid wasting time and potentially failing before you’ve even started.

Identify Your Goals: Where do you want to go, and what do you want your business to achieve?
Getting Organized: Make sure you’re covered and set up for success with the core essentials of a business, from bank accounts to financial staff and checking accounts.
The Basics: Familiarize yourself with the essentials of business finance so you can understand your financial statements.
Your Business Model: Build a business model that suits your business, helps you get the most from your resources and network, and guides your interactions with your accountant and CFOs.
Creating Good Habits: Create weekly, monthly, quarterly and yearly financial habits to stay ahead of your business’ finances.
Scaling Your Business: Know when and how funding can make your business more valuable, then reach out to investors.

If you have a solid financial plan for your startup, any funding search will be easier. Remember that the best startup funding is the one you have access to. Most entrepreneurs don’t know a guy who works at a Silicon Valley incubator, and that’s okay. The most successful startups pull from multiple funding sources as they scale.

Need more specifics? Here’s a rule of thumb when choosing the right startup funding.

Service Startup: Self-funded, friends and family, business loans, government grants or loans.
Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) Product Startup: Self-funded, friends and family, crowdfunding, accelerators, or seed funding (later in the journey).
Business-to-Business (B2B) Startup: Business loans, accelerators, corporate partners, or seed funding.
SaaS Startups: Crowdfunding, business loans, accelerators, corporate partners, or seed funding.
Niche Industry Startups (healthcare, civics): Business loans, accelerators, corporate partners, seed funding, government grants, or loans.

Keep Learning: Business Startup Costs Checklist: How Much and Where to Spend

You Know Your Way Around Startup Funding. What’s Next?

There are many different ways to get funding for a business, and a lot of it really varies based on your experience level and track record. For early entrepreneurs, we here at foundr are big fans of bootstrapping as long as possible, as attested by many of the entrepreneurs that foundr has featured. And we’ll show you how to do it.

Check out our trainings on everything from launching an ecommerce business to growing your online platform and making a killing with YouTube ads.

About Assya Barrette

Assya is a content strategist and consultant based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Her and her client's work have been featured in outlets including Yahoo!, Salon.com, Qz.com, and others. You can see her work and learn more here: Kangen Demo

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How to Write a Winning Business Plan: A Step-by-Step Guide to Build a Solid Foundation, Attract Investors & Achieve Success (Business 101)

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How to Write a Winning Business Plan: A Step-by-Step Guide to Build a Solid Foundation, Attract Investors & Achieve Success (Business 101) Kindle Edition

Discover how to craft a bulletproof business plan with minimal effort even it's your first time.

Having a great idea isn’t enough to launch a multi-million-dollar business.

Let’s face it, investors don’t put money in ideas . They need concrete evidence that they’ll get a return on their investment, and a good business plan gives them such information.

Do you have a hard time figuring out how to get a business plan down on paper?

Are you tired and confused by all the business jargon, just wanting a straightforward how-to guide outlining exactly what you need to do?

Business plans are the heart and soul of a successful company – they give you focus and operational clarity that can kick major mistakes to the curb. No matter how good your business idea is, you will need a plan to create a solid foundation before going on the market or trying to get investors on board.

Did you know that even science says you need a business plan to make your startup a success?

One study found out that companies with a business plan grow 30% faster than competitors! In addition, startups with a business plan achieve more sustainable success in the long run.

So, what’s the secret to writing a business plan like a seasoned pro or a Fortune 500 company CEO?

It’s not something you’ll learn in business school, as experience shows a completely different side of running a business. For best results, you need to learn from someone who’s already been there and who has conquered the almighty business plan.

In How to Write a Winning Business Plan , you will discover:

What a business model canvas is and 4 reasons why you should be using it
How a great idea dies in the absence of good organization and the one thing to do about it
9 business plan building blocks to put organizational specifics in place
Surefire ways to overcome financial conundrums and secure the investment needed to help your business thrive
Ways in which successful CEOs mitigate business startup risks
A bulletproof technique to write a killer value proposition
Tactics for pinpointing the right customers and reaching them through the power of marketing
A comprehensive guide to understand your business model in a structured way

And much more.

Most guides focusing on business plan creation are rather vague, abstract, and non-specific. By relying on those, you’ll never put together a tailored strategic document that will set you up for success from day one.

The methodology you’ll find in How to Write a Winning Business Plan is derived from reality and analysis of the best corporate organizational approaches out there.

It doesn’t matter what field you operate in or how big you want to grow. This methodology is the way to understand your business better, putting together realistic expectations and goals for the future.

If you want to learn the secrets to writing a winning business plan, then scroll up and click “Add to Cart” now.

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Starting a Business: A 7-Step System to Successfully Launch Your Own Business in 30 Days & Become a Great Entrepreneur (Business 101)

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ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08J82B1YG
Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 15, 2020
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 1215 KB
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About the author

Walter grant.

Walter Grant is an American entrepreneur and author. His specialty and expertise lie in business startups.

As a child, Walter was considered a creative type and was often "in his own world" with his vivid imagination. He kept building random things and designing the most unique creations with the materials he had around him. That creativity never left him, and so growing up, he knew he wanted to build his own business one day. His dream did not come to realization easily or quickly. After graduation, Walter landed a corporate job and worked there for five years until one day when he decided to quit.

Shortly thereafter, he went out on his own and started a business. After two years of hard work, the company still hadn't taken off as he had first expected. Eventually, things got worse, and he had to file for bankruptcy. Even though this was a major setback, he did not quit. After a short break, he got back on his feet and decided to start from zero. This time, after learning from his previous mistakes, he made quick progress, and after a few years, he moved on to selling his second company for multiple 8 figures.

Today, Walter Grant partners with industry experts to create educational resources such as books. Together they share their wisdom to help small business owners and beginner entrepreneurs achieve their business goals and become financially independent.

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What Is a Marketing Plan and How To Write One (+ Template)

Learn the key elements of a marketing plan, access templates to get started, and get tips on how to write an effective plan.

No matter how much you stick to a plan, things go wrong. As the famous quote by US President Dwight D. Eisenhower goes: “Plans are useless, but planning is indispensable.”

When it comes to ecommerce, consumer trends shift, circumstances change, and initial experiments don’t always go as planned. All of these things impact your marketing plan.

Research shows that marketers who proactively write a marketing plan are 356% more likely to report success. So, what does a realistic ecommerce marketing plan look like? And how do you handle unexpected obstacles and overestimations that threaten your company’s marketing strategy? This guide shares the answers.

What is a marketing plan?

A marketing plan is the strategy a business uses to get its products or services in front of its target customer. It includes who the target market is, the channels used to reach them, and the messaging that will help the business sell its products.

The purpose of a marketing plan isn’t to create a step-by-step, never-fail manual. Rather, it’s a roadmap to help you accomplish the best-case scenario, while also maintaining realistic expectations for your marketing initiatives and establishing backup plans if something doesn’t work.

Marketing plan vs. business plan

A business plan paints a bigger picture of how you plan to run your business. It includes a mission statement, products you’ll launch, and market research. A marketing plan, on the other hand, is a specific document that details how you plan to achieve these wider goals through marketing .

Marketing plan vs marketing strategy

An overarching marketing strategy details how marketing will drive business results. A marketing plan is the route you’ll use to get there. It’s more specific than a strategy and includes a practical roadmap on how you’ll put your marketing activities into play.

Free marketing plan template to help you get started

Creating your own marketing plan is no small job. You put hours into customer and competitor research to find the channels likely to have the biggest impact on your marketing goals. You can check out marketing plan examples , but when it comes to creating your own, you can save time with a template.

Ditch the intimidating blank screen by building a marketing plan using Shopify’s free marketing plan template. Use it to guide your marketing strategy, tweaking the template to meet your business needs.

Download the template now

Types of marketing plans

Digital marketing plan.

A digital marketing plan is a specific type of marketing plan that revolves solely around online channels like social media, email, and search engines. It doesn’t include offline channels like billboards or radio ads.

Social media marketing plan

A social media marketing plan focuses specifically on how a business will use social media to reach its target market. It gives you a framework of which channels you’ll use, the types of content you’ll create, whether you’ll invest in social media ads, and how you’ll drive product sales. This can take place either through your online store or a social media storefront such as Facebook and Instagram Shops .

Example Instagram checkout for a jewelry business that uses Shop Pay.

Content marketing plan

A content marketing plan details how you’ll produce content that turns people into paying customers. This can span multiple formats, including an email newsletter, infographics, product documentation, and user-generated content (such as social media posts).

Alongside the more traditional elements of a marketing plan, a content-marketing-specific strategy would include:

Keywords you plan to target
Who you’ll use to create the content (e.g., freelancers or in-house marketers)
How you’ll promote and repurpose your content

Offline marketing plan

An offline marketing plan details how a business will reach its target market without using digital channels. This might include billboards, radio ads, direct mail, event sponsorships, and outdoor advertising.

How to write a marketing plan

Detail your unique value proposition, outline your buyer personas, run a swot analysis, detail product features and benefits, set key performance indicators, outline your marketing funnel.

Define your marketing channels

Decide on your content formats

Plan your marketing resources

Create a measurement and optimization plan

A unique value proposition underlines your entire marketing plan. Regardless of the channels and formats you plan to use, consistency is key. Mixed messages on what you sell and what your brand stands for will only confuse potential customers.

A simple way to refine your messaging is to focus on your unique selling point. Costco, for example, is cheaper than its competitors. Harper Wilde’s products are comfier than any other bra retailer. Find the marketing channels each retailer uses and you’ll see messaging centered around its adjective.

Harper Wilde’s YouTube channel homepage with seven videos in tiled format.

Consult your customers if you’re unsure what your value proposition adjective should be. Research is the biggest part of any copywriting process . Survey people who’ve already bought from you, run an Instagram poll to discover why people follow your brand, and see where your competitors’ weaknesses lie. Look for adjectives that crop up frequently during the process.

What overarching goal are you trying to accomplish with the business? Why does it exist? Summarize it in one sentence, and you’ll have a mission statement to inform everything you do, which includes your marketing strategies .

Going overboard with assumptions is a common mistake among marketers. The end result is a marketing plan that doesn’t actually result in revenue.

While data won’t give you a foolproof plan, every assumption is one more bit of uncertainty you’re folding into your marketing goals . If an amazing plan has a 40% chance of holding up to real-world scenarios, one without much rigor—and lots of assumptions—might hold up 10% of the time.

Consult your customer segments and buyer personas to get as much information as you can about the person buying your products, such as:

Demographic data (location, age, and income level)
Interests, goals, and challenges
Channels they use to discover new products

Be careful not to confuse this with your target audience . Children would be the target audience of a toy brand; parents are the buyer persona. The latter is who you’ll be reaching out to with your marketing plan.

A SWOT analysis helps uncover your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats relative to your competitors. It’s useful to include one as part of your marketing plan because it can help anticipate problems you might encounter, make more data-driven decisions, and spot areas where you can get ahead of your competitors.

Example SWOT analysis template from Oberlo with four sections of bullet points.

Dive deep into the data you already have about your customer base by investigating marketing analytics , social media audiences, and customer surveys . It reiterates who you’re trying to reach—and more importantly, the triggers that would make them buy your product over a competitor’s.

Remind yourself of your unique selling proposition (USP) throughout this process. Tailor your marketing plan around key takeaways from these.

Include any special features, competitive advantages, or customer favorites your marketing plan will lean on.

You could have the best mattress in the world—one made with 100 springs and cotton stitching, vigorously tested by sleep experts. But you’d struggle to market it if you lean too heavily on product features. A customer cares more about getting a peaceful night’s sleep than detailed product specifications.

“Every great marketing plan needs one thing first: a product that is 10 times better than the next,” says Nick Saltarelli, co-founder of Mid-Day Squares . “Once you have that, marketing is about deep human connections.”

Mid-Day Squares product page with the title, “Functional chocolate squares that satisfy your sweet cravings”.

Nick says, “It felt obvious that there was a sweet spot somewhere in between: people who wanted to follow along, and a true behind-the-scenes look into building a massive chocolate business from the ground up.”

As a result, the Mid-Day Squares marketing plan doesn’t prioritize product promotion. The brand instead “focuses on getting people to fall in love with us, the founders, to scale the human connection,” Nick says.

What are you trying to achieve with your marketing plan? Create both short- and long-term business goals that relate to financial metrics like revenue growth, retention , or new customers .

Most marketers measure success using return on investment (ROI) —the revenue you expect to generate after spending your marketing budget. It’s every marketer’s dream to get $100,000 in sales from $1,000 in marketing spend. While that isn’t the most realistic expectation, knowing your target ROI will prevent overspending. If your ROI is hurtling beyond your predictions, you can better allocate that budget to be spent elsewhere.

But there’s more to marketing measurement than dollar returns. Revenue isn’t always the end goal. Brand awareness, website traffic, and social media followers are short-term marketing objectives that aim to get new people into your marketing funnel. Nail them early on and you set your business up for success later down the road.

Not everyone will see your products and convert into a customer instantly. Most people progress through a sales funnel. Content that will make someone progress to the next stage depends on the one they’re currently in.

If you were to use Facebook ads to sell your products to a generic audience modeled on your buyer persona, for example, you might not get the highest conversion rate. These people don’t know who you are, what you stand for, or why they should choose you over a competitor.

But if you used Facebook ads to specifically target people at the bottom of your marketing funnel, you could use retargeting ads to show items someone had in their shopping cart. You’re bound to get a better return on your investment with this strategy because you’re only investing money into reaching people who just need a final nudge to convert.

Let’s break down how you might outline your marketing funnel in a marketing plan.

Example marketing funnel showing the three different stages.

Top of the funnel (TOFU)

People at the top of your marketing funnel don’t understand who you are or what you sell. Social media, podcasts, and video content play huge roles here. Each channel is used by potential customers looking to learn or be inspired.

For this stage, prioritize metrics that give insight into how people are engaging with your top-funnel content, such as:

Video views
Website clicks
Click-through rate (CTR)
Cost per click (CPC)

Middle of the funnel (MOFU)

People reach the middle of the funnel when they know they have a problem that needs to be solved. Look at the marketing channels and formats you’re using to target these people. Most often, it’s search engines and retargeted ads.

Google Analytics is your best bet here. While the dashboard can feel overwhelming for a lot of people, you don’t need to look at every report. Use the following metrics to see how people engage with your middle-funnel content:

Bounce rate
Pages per session
Users by traffic source
Email subscriber conversion rate

To track the data above, especially for advertising campaigns, add the Meta pixel to all pages of your store.

Bottom of the funnel (BOFU)

Going for the hard sell? For marketing messages where the only goal is to convert your audience into paying customers, consult the back end of your ecommerce store. It’s home to sales and product-related data that helps you understand whether your marketing plan is successful, such as:

Added to cart conversion rate
Average order value (AOV)
Number of orders
Reached checkout conversion rate
Sales conversion rate

Shopify Analytics dashboard showing metrics like total sales, sessions, and conversion rate.

Post-funnel and retention

Planning to build a steady stream of paying customers off the back of your ecommerce marketing plan? It's easy to assume revenue growth comes from audience growth. But oftentimes, the easiest way to grow your revenue is by focusing on the people we forget about: existing customers.

Resist the temptation to focus on flashy metrics like social media followers and YouTube subscribers. Instead, involve existing customers in your marketing plan. Use them as a source of testimonials and word-of-mouth referrals.

Graph shows how a small change in retention leads to more revenue.

“Happy customers have been powerful word-of-mouth catalysts for our brand, and it has made sense to keep them engaged,” says Chris Campbell, partner at The Charming Bench Company . “We’ve been getting a steady stream of five-star ratings on websites and social media, which we then share on our Facebook, X [formerly known as Twitter], Pinterest, and Instagram profiles. It’s a great alternative to pushing loud sales messages that don’t always work.”

Define your marketing channels

Channels are the platforms you’ll use as part of your marketing plan. Go back to your market research and uncover the online and offline channels your target audience is using to shop and get entertained or inspired.

Some of the most popular channels for ecommerce businesses include:

Social media . Social media is used by more than six out of 10 people . Platforms like Instagram, Facebook, X, LinkedIn, and Pinterest are free to use (on the whole) and help brands reach their target audience.
Search engines . Some 44% of online shoppers start their product research on search engines. By making search engine optimization (SEO) part of your marketing plan, you can generate new business by reaching people when they’re actively looking for your products or services.
Email marketing and SMS marketing . Email and text message inboxes are two of the most sacred places for a marketer to reach. A phone number or email address gives you a direct line of communication with your target customers, if they opt in to hear from you.
Podcasts . Record conversations you have with your team, customers, or experts in the industry and share them with your audience. By establishing yourself or your brand as a thought leader in your industry, you’ll inspire confidence that in turn builds trust in your products.
Offline channels. While digital marketing is vital in today’s world, offline and in-person marketing efforts can be equally powerful. Get in front of people when they’re not online, using channels like word-of-mouth recommendations , radio, billboards and outdoor advertising , or TV marketing campaigns.

There’s a sweet spot to how many channels your marketing plan should include. Go too wide and you burn resources on channels with poor returns. But become too reliant on one channel and you’re at risk.

Algorithms power most digital marketing channels. They’re praised as the type of technology that delivers personalized experiences for their users, but any changes to an algorithm can make marketing plans utterly useless overnight.

“If you rely on SEO, then any algorithm updates could potentially cut your revenue for months before you recover,” explains Marquis Matson, VP of Growth at Sozy . “If you rely on paid ads, then any changes to privacy policies can cut your revenue. If you rely on email marketing, then any ESP [email service provider] policy changes can cut your revenue. Diversifying your acquisition is crucial in a fast-paced digital marketing world.”

Footwear brand Hippy Feet is one ecommerce brand that failed to diversify channels. “The original marketing plan was to drive traffic to our Shopify store through ads—relying heavily on paid Facebook and Instagram traffic,” says Sam Harper, Hippy Feet’s co-founder and CEO. “While this is still a major component of our marketing strategy, the decreasing effectiveness of these ads has forced us to expand our marketing efforts.

“A diverse media strategy is crucial to helping an ecommerce business survive in this highly-dynamic market. By driving traffic through SEO, email, and media coverage, we’re more resilient and less impacted by a single tech platform changing their algorithm.”

For each channel, define which content formats you’ll use to capture attention and drive website traffic. That could include:

Audio. Reach podcast and radio listeners with audio content.
Images. Capture visual learners and shoppers on visually dominant social media sites with infographics, GIFs, and memes.
Video. Get listed on YouTube , the world's second largest search engine, with explainer videos and product demonstrations. Many social media platforms— Instagram and TikTok included—are also evolving to prioritize video content.
Written content. Most search engine results retrieve links to optimized written content, such as blogs , transcripts, or landing pages .

Content marketing is a beast that constantly needs to be fed. Customers want newer, fresher, more exciting content on a regular basis. That’s demanding for a small business to keep up with.

If this sounds unsustainable, consider a content marketing strategy that collects user-generated content (UGC) from existing customers. The more they share their experiences with others, the more content you have to repurpose on each channel. It’s an effective route to scale your content marketing plan and stretch your editorial calendar if your marketing department has limited resources. Don’t have time to invest in promoting the content you create? Partner with popular influencers in your niche—those whose loyal audience overlaps with your target market .

Your marketing budget is the dollar amount you expect to spend executing your marketing plan. If you’re bootstrapped, you can run a marketing plan on a tight budget .

As part of your own marketing plan, state whether you intend to use each channel organically or boost it with advertising. Most channels allow businesses to run sponsored content, which is guaranteed to reach your target market across online and offline channels, like door-to-door sales , social media, TV, billboards, and radio.

“I apply for any competitions, press opportunities, and awards to get my small business out there at any given opportunity,” says Terri-Anne Turton, founder of The Tur-Shirt Company .

The strategy has worked: The Tur-Shirt Company has won a Junior Design Award for best fashion newcomer and a shoutout from media entrepreneur Steven Bartlett after entering his #DeserveToBeFound competition with Facebook.

“I focus on those my target market knows of to build credibility,” says Terri-Anne. “Plus, most of the awards I enter are free or low-cost; they just need some time investment and creativity to take part. It proves my USP to my target market—that my kids’ clothing products are unique—without investing thousands into advertising.”

While you can run a strategy with little to no budget, this section of your marketing plan needs to account for more than any planned advertising spend. Time is a resource that needs to be managed and accounted for. Be sure to detail how much time you plan to spend executing your marketing strategy.

If you have a designated marketing team, it’s also worth noting who will be responsible for each element of your marketing plan. Who’s responsible for this marketing plan? Which team members are executing it? What experience do they have with marketing?

More importantly, detail what you expect from the resources you’re putting into your marketing plan. If you plan to spend $40,000 throughout the coming year, how much revenue will you get in return? If you’re producing a marketing plan for a large or public company, this is what stakeholders really want to see.

Go back to the KPIs (key performance indicators) you set in the earlier section of your marketing plan. How will you determine whether you’ve met these KPIs? What happens if you’re exceeding or falling short of your target? It’s good to have a plan of action for either case.

Let’s put that into practice and say you expected to increase sales by 20% through your social media marketing plan. Detail exactly how you’d measure this, for example, you could say, “we’ll look at our Shopify sales report once per month and analyze which channel is meeting this KPI. If a channel falls behind, we’ll evaluate why and either adjust our marketing plan or deprioritize it in favor of more effective channels.”

The best marketers approach their plans with an open mind. The hypothesis you started with might be proven wrong. Don’t take that as a negative. You just got closer to finding what will work.

Tips for creating your marketing plan

Set conservative expectations.

While it’s good to approach your marketing goals with confidence, high expectations often lead to disappointment when we fail to meet them. That disappointment is magnified in a marketing plan, as stakeholders or founders will have already bought into unrealistic predictions and business objectives.

Start small

Don’t overwhelm yourself and your team by trying to generate results with all marketing tactics at once: running Facebook ads, tweeting like crazy, writing daily blog posts for SEO, and making constant changes to site and content strategy to improve your conversion rate.

If you’re very lucky, one of these tactics will bring you consistent traffic and sales. But more often than not, trying everything at once will make you extremely busy without anything to show for it.

Take it from Jameela Ghann, owner of Alora : “When we first started Alora, 10 years ago, our marketing plan was unrealistic. We were just a couple of people making plans that were good on paper but almost impossible to execute with a small team.”

Alora’s website home with tiled images of earrings, necklaces, and jewelry gifts.

Originally, Jameela’s team planned to invest in several marketing channels—online and offline advertising, PR, trade shows, influencer marketing, and blogging included. However, the team changed its marketing plan. They went deep on one channel instead of spreading resources too thin by trying to be everywhere at once.

“We stuck to one course of action that was where our customers were, and ready to buy, and easiest for us to see a good ROI,” Jameela says. “What really worked for us was focusing on a handful of channels that we knew we could do well.”

Go back to your audience research and identify three channels your target audience uses most often. Put most of your energy into perfecting those before overcomplicating things with a more comprehensive marketing plan.

Use historical data as a guide

Past performance can help you temper your expectations for your marketing plan. If you know your click-through rate (CTR) for Facebook ads is 0.1%, don’t stray too far from that baseline with your social media marketing .

The same goes for website content optimized for search : If you’re currently getting 10,000 visitors per month from Google, scaling your traffic up to a million is a tough battle. Instead, 50,000 visitors is a more achievable goal.

Allow for flexibility

The purpose of a marketing plan isn’t to create a never-fail manual. Whether your marketing team has fallen victim to completion bias or focused too heavily on one channel, sticking rigidly to your original plan can be a big mistake.

Imine Martinez, assistant manager at Rainbowly , says: “Our regular campaigns targeting mainly birthday celebrations and anniversaries offered poor return on ad spend and inconsistent results over the months.

“That said, during festive seasons, such as Christmas or New Year’s, our targeted campaigns were particularly profitable, achieving five times return on ad spend with much cheaper cost per click and impression.”

Continuing with the same marketing strategies despite this data would only have resulted in heartbreak. Rainbowly would be pouring money down the drain on ads that wouldn’t perform, just because its marketing plan said to do so.

Creating a marketing plan is the first step

A lot of hard work goes into a successful marketing plan. To create an attainable one, you’ll need to spend hours diving into competitive research, audience data, and channels your target market consults when researching new products.

Most importantly, know that marketing is unpredictable. There are thousands of scenarios that fundamentally change the marketing strategy that’s best for your business. Global pandemics, PR crises, and the emergence of new social media platforms are unpredictable.

Treat your marketing plan like the best-case scenario. Plan SMART goals and strategies but remember to be flexible to give your marketing the best chance of success.

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More From Forbes

Strategies For Managing Debt In A Growing Business

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Managing debt is a critical component of running a successful business, especially when that business is in a growth phase. As your business expands, it is natural to incur debt for purchasing new equipment, expanding your workforce, or entering new markets. However, managing this debt effectively is key to ensuring sustainable growth and financial health.

Here are some strategies to help you manage debt in your growing business:

1. understand your debt.

Before you can manage your debt, you need to have a clear understanding of it. This includes knowing the total amount owed, interest rates, repayment schedules, and any penalties for late payments. Create a detailed list or spreadsheet that tracks all your business debts, including:

Loan Amounts: The principal amounts of each loan.
Interest Rates: The interest rates and whether they are fixed or variable.
Repayment Terms: The length of the loan and the repayment schedule.
Collateral: Any assets pledged as security for the loans.
Lenders: The names and contact details of your lenders.

Knowing this information will help you make informed decisions about how to manage your debt effectively.

2. Prioritize Your Debt Payments

Best high-yield savings accounts of 2024, best 5% interest savings accounts of 2024.

Not all debt is created equal. Prioritizing your debt payments can help you avoid unnecessary penalties and reduce your overall debt burden more quickly. Generally, you should focus on paying off high-interest debt first, as this is the costliest in the long run. Consider the following prioritization strategies:

High-Interest Debt: Pay off credit cards and high-interest loans first.
Secured Debt: Ensure you stay current on loans secured by collateral to avoid losing assets.
Tax Obligations: Always prioritize any tax debts, as these can lead to severe penalties and legal issues.

3. Negotiate Better Terms

If your business has a good credit history and a solid relationship with your lenders, you may be able to negotiate better terms. This could include:

Lower Interest Rates: Request a lower interest rate to reduce your monthly payments and overall debt burden.
Extended Repayment Terms: Ask for an extended repayment period to lower your monthly payments.
Consolidation: Consider consolidating multiple debts into a single loan with a lower interest rate and more manageable repayment terms.

Negotiating better terms can provide immediate relief and improve your business's cash flow.

4. Create a Debt Repayment Plan

A structured debt repayment plan is essential for managing debt effectively. This plan should outline how much you will pay each month, which debts you will prioritize, and your timeline for becoming debt-free. A well-thought-out plan can help you stay focused and disciplined in your debt repayment efforts. Here are some things to think about when creating your repayment plan:

Set Realistic Goals: Determine a realistic timeline for paying off your debt based on your business's cash flow.
Automate Payments: When you set up automatic payments you never miss a due date.
Track Progress: Regularly review your debt repayment progress and adjust your plan as needed.

5. Improve Cash Flow

Improving your business's cash flow can make it easier to manage and pay off debt. Look for ways to increase revenue and reduce expenses, such as:

Boost Sales: Implement marketing strategies to increase sales and attract new customers.
Reduce Costs: Identify areas where you can cut costs without compromising quality or efficiency.
Optimize Inventory: Manage inventory levels to avoid overstocking and reduce holding costs.
Invoice Promptly: Ensure you send invoices promptly and follow up on overdue payments to maintain healthy cash flow.

6. Seek Professional Advice

Managing business debt can be complex, and seeking professional advice can provide valuable insights and guidance. Consider consulting with:

Accountants: They can help you create a debt repayment plan and identify tax-saving opportunities.
Financial Advisors: They can offer strategies for improving cash flow and managing debt more effectively.
Debt Counselors: They can provide specialized advice and support for businesses struggling with debt.

7. Monitor and Adjust

You must monitor your debt management strategy regularly and make adjustments as needed. Business conditions can change rapidly, and your debt management plan should be flexible enough to adapt to these changes. Regularly review your financial statements, track your debt repayment progress, and adjust your strategy to stay on track.

The bottom line is that managing debt in a growing business is an ongoing process. By understanding your debt, prioritizing payments, negotiating better terms, creating a structured repayment plan, improving cash flow, seeking professional advice, and monitoring your progress, you can effectively manage your debt and ensure your business continues to thrive. Remember, the goal is not just to manage debt but to leverage it as a tool for growth and success.

Melissa Houston, CPA is the author of Cash Confident: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Creating a Profitable Business and the founder of She Means Profit . As a Business Strategist for small business owners, Melissa helps women making mid-career shifts, to launch their dream businesses, and I also guide established business owners to grow their businesses to more profitably.

The opinions expressed in this article are not intended to replace any professional or expert accounting and/or tax advice whatsoever.

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Charity Business Plan Template

Written by Dave Lavinsky

Charity Business Plan

Over the past 20+ years, we have helped over 500 entrepreneurs and business owners create business plans to start and grow their charity companies. We have the experience, resources, and knowledge to help you create a great business plan.

In this article, you will learn some background information on why business planning is important. Then, you will learn how to write a charity business plan step-by-step so you can create your plan today.

Download our Ultimate Business Plan Template here >

What is a Charity Business Plan?

A business plan provides a snapshot of your charity business as it stands today, and lays out your growth plan for the next five years. It explains your business goals and your strategies for reaching them. It also includes market research to support your plans.

Why You Need a Business Plan for a Charity

If you’re looking to start a charity business or grow your existing charity company, you need a business plan. A business plan will help you raise funding, if needed, and plan out the growth of your charity business to improve your chances of success. Your charity business plan is a living document that should be updated annually as your company grows and changes.

Sources of Funding for Charity Businesses

With regards to funding, the main sources of funding for a charity business are personal savings, credit cards, bank loans, and major donors . When it comes to bank loans, banks will want to review your business plan (hand it to them in person or email to them as a PDF file) and gain confidence that you will be able to repay your loan and interest. To acquire this confidence, the loan officer will not only want to ensure that your financials are reasonable, but they will also want to see a professional plan. Such a plan will give them the confidence that you can successfully and professionally operate a business. Donations and bank loans are the most common funding paths for charity companies.

Finish Your Business Plan Today!

How to write a business plan for a charity business.

If you want to start a charity business or expand your current one, you need a business plan. The guide and sample below details the necessary information for how to write each essential component of your charity business plan.

Executive Summary

Your executive summary provides an introduction to your business plan, but it is normally the last section you write because it provides a summary of each key section of your plan.

The goal of your executive summary is to quickly engage the reader. Explain to them the kind of charity business you are running and the status. For example, are you a startup, do you have a charity business that you would like to grow, or are you operating more than one charity business?

Next, provide an overview of each of the subsequent sections of your plan.

Give a brief overv iew of the charity business industry.
Discuss the type of charity business you are operating.
Detail your direct competitors. Give an overview of your target customers.
Provide a snapshot of your marketing strategy. Identify the key members of your team.
Offer an overview of your financial plan.

Company Overview

In your company overview, you will detail the type of charity business you are operating.

For example, you m ight specialize in one of the following types of charity businesses:

Public charity business: A charity business that is defined by the Internal Revenue Service as a “public service support,” is one that benefits the public at large. This may include chambers of commerce, labor unions, and certain types of insurance companies. If a charity business fits within the specifications set by the IRS, the charity is considered a 501c3 entity, and receives preferential tax treatment.
Private charity business: By far, the majority of charities fall within the category of “private charities,” which can be identified as serving a specific group of people. This may include philanthropic foundations, churches or synagogues, and other clubs or associations that serve via a privately-funded means. If a private charity business fits within the specifications set by the IRS, the charity is considered a 501c3 entity and receives preferential tax treatment.

In addition to explaining the type of charity business you will operate, the company overview needs to provide background on the business.

Include answers to questions such as:

When and why did you start the business?
What milestones have you achieved to date? Milestones could include the number of people served, the number of charitable outcomes, reaching X number of geographic locations, etc.
Your legal business structure. Are you incorporated as an S-Corp? An LLC? A sole proprietorship? Explain your legal structure here.

Industry Analysis

In your industry or market analysis, you need to provide an overview of the charity business industry.

While this may seem unnecessary, it serves multiple purposes.

First, researching the charity business industry educates you. It helps you understand the market in which you are operating.

Secondly, market research can improve your marketing strategy, particularly if your analysis identifies market trends.

The third reason is to prove to readers that you are an expert in your industry. By conducting the research and presenting it in your plan, you achieve just that.

The following questions should be answered in the industry analysis section of your charity business business plan:

How big is the charity business industry (in dollars)?
Is the market declining or increasing?
Who are the key competitors in the market?
Who are the key suppliers in the market?
What trends are affecting the industry?
What is the industry’s growth forecast over the next 5 – 10 years?
What is the relevant market size? That is, how big is the potential target market for your charity business? You can extrapolate such a figure by assessing the size of the market in the entire country and then applying that figure to your local population.

Donor Analysis

The donor analysis section of your charity business plan must detail the individuals or business entities who donate or those you expect to donate to your charitable business.

The following are examples of donor segments: individuals, families, foundations and corporations.

As you can imagine, the donor segment(s) you choose will have a great impact on the type of charity business you operate. Clearly, individuals would respond to different marketing promotions than corporations, for example.

Try to break out your target donors in terms of their demographic and psychographic profiles. With regards to demographics, including a discussion of the ages, genders, locations, and income levels of the potential donors you seek.

Psychographic profiles explain the wants and needs of your target donors . The more you can recognize and define these needs, the better you will do in attracting and retaining your donors . Ideally you can speak with a sample of your target donors before writing your plan to better understand their needs.

Finish Your Charity Business Plan in 1 Day!

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With Growthink’s Ultimate Business Plan Template you can finish your plan in just 8 hours or less!

Competitive Analysis

Your competitive analysis should identify the indirect and direct competitors your business faces and then focus on the latter.

Direct competitors are othe r charity businesses.

Indirect competitors are other options that donors may contribute to that aren’t directly competing with your product or service. This includes service-related charitable endeavors, private foundations, and organizations that serve specific communities, etc. You need to mention direct competition, as well.

For each direct competitor, provide an overview of their business and document their strengths and weaknesses. Unless you once worked at your competitors’ businesses, it will be impossible to know everything about them. But you should be able to find out key things about them such as

What types of donors do they solicit ?
What type of charity business are they?
What is their donation model (cash, assets, estate-wealth)?
What are they good at?
What are their weaknesses?

With regards to the last two questions, think about your answers from the donors’ perspective. And don’t be afraid to ask your competitors’ donors what they like most and least about them.

The final part of your competitive analysis section is to document your areas of competitive advantage. For example:

Will you provide recognition for all your donors?
Will you offer premium products or services for your top-tier donors?
Will you provide consistent communication with your donors?
Will you offer directorships or preferential placement for your donors?

Think about ways you will outperform your competition and document them in this section of your plan.

Marketing Plan

Traditionally, a marketing plan includes the four P’s: Product, Price, Place, and Promotion. For a charity business plan, your marketing strategy should include the following:

Product : In the product section, you should reiterate the type o f charity company that you documented in your company overview. Then, detail the specific products or services you will be offering. For example, will you provide food for the homeless population? Will you improve the neighborhood park? Will you invest in artwork on behalf of your charity to support the art world?

Value : Document the specific value your charity provides and how that compares to your competitors. Essentially in the product and price sub-sections of yo ur plan, yo u are presenting the products and/or services you offer and their respective values.

Place : Place refers to the site of your charity company. Document where your company is situated and mention how the site will impact your success. For example, is your charity business located in an affluent neighborhood, a warehouse, a standalone office, or is it purely online? Discuss how your site might be the ideal location for the donors who contribute and the services you provide.

Promotions : The final part of your charity business marketing plan is where you will document how you will drive potential donors and charitable recipients to your location(s). The following are some promotional methods you might consider:

Advertise in local papers, radio stations and/or magazines
Reach out to websites
Distribute flyers
Engage in email marketing
Advertise on social media platforms
Improve the SEO (search engine optimization) on your website for targeted keywords

Operations Plan

While the earlier sections of your business plan explained your goals, your operations plan describes how you will meet them. Your operations plan should have two distinct sections as follows.

Everyday short-term processes include all of the tasks involved in running your charity business, including answering calls, planning and providing fund-raising events or campaigns, correspondence with donors and charitable recipients, and maintaining records of acts of service.

Long-term goals are the milestones you hope to achieve. These could include the dates when you expect to serve your Xth charity recipient, or when you hope to reach $X in donations. It could also be when you expect to expand your charity business to a new city.

Management Team

To demonstrate your charity business’ potential to succeed, a strong management team is essential. Highlight your key players’ backgrounds, emphasizing those skills and experiences that prove their ability to grow a company.

Ideally, you and/or your team members have direct experience in managing charity businesses. If so, highlight this experience and expertise. But also highlight any experience that you think will help your business succeed.

If your team is lacking, consider assembling an advisory board. An advisory board would include 2 to 8 individuals who would act as mentors to your business. They would help answer questions and provide strategic guidance. If needed, look for advisory board members with experience in managing a charity business or top-tier donors who are regularly involved in your charity business.

Financial Plan

Your financial plan should include your 5-year financial statement broken out both monthly or quarterly for the first year and then annually. Your financial statements include your donation and gift income statement, balance s heet, and cash flow statements.

Income Statement

An income statement is more commonly called a Profit and Loss statement or P&L. In a charity business, profits can be made through sales; however, the majority of income is received from donor gifts and activity. Your income statement will show several avenues of income as a result. It will demonstrate your receipts and then subtract your costs to show the IRS the activity of your 501c3 organization.

In developing your income statement, you need to devise assumptions. For example, will you hold 5 donor events each year, and/or offer acts of service weekly ? And will your charity business grow by 2% or 10% per year? As you can imagine, your choice of assumptions will greatly impact the financial forecasts for your business. As much as possible, conduct research to try to root your assumptions in reality.

Balance Sheets

Balance sheets show your assets and liabilities. While balance sheets can include much information, try to simplify them to the key items you need to know about. For instance, if you spend $50,000 on building out your charity business, this will not give you an immediate return on the investment. Rather it is an asset that will hopefully help you maintain your charity business for years to come. Likewise, if a lender writes you a check for $50,000, you don’t need to pay it back immediately. Rather, that is a liability you will pay back over time.

Cash Flow Statement

Your cash flow statement will help determine how much money you need to start or grow your business, and ensure you never run out of money. What most entrepreneurs and business owners don’t realize is that you can generate gifts or assets , but run out of money and go bankrupt.

When creating your Income Statement and Balance Sheets be sure to include several of the key costs needed in starting or growing a charity business business:

Cost of equipment and office supplies
Payroll or salaries paid to staff
Business insurance
Other start-up expenses (if you’re a new business) like legal expenses, permits, computer software, and equipment

Attach your full financial projections in the appendix of your plan along with any supporting documents that make your plan more compelling. For example, you might include your list of top-tier donors, or examples of how your charity has changed lives or communities for the better.

Writing a business plan for your charity business is a worthwhile endeavor. If you follow the template above, by the time you are done, you will truly be an expert. You will understand the charity business industry, your competition, and your donors. You will develop a marketing strategy and will understand what it takes to launch and grow a successful charity business.

Don’t you wish there was a faster, easier way to finish your Charity business plan?

OR, Let Us Develop Your Plan For You

Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success. Click here to see how a Growthink business plan consultant can create your business plan for you.

Charity Business Business Plan FAQs

What is the easiest way to complete my charity business plan.

Growthink's Ultimate Business Plan Template allows you to quickly and easily write your charity business plan.

How Do You Start a Charity Business?

Starting a charity business is easy with these 14 steps:

Choose the Name for Your Charity Business
Create Your Charity Business Plan
Choose the Legal Structure for Your Charity Business
Secure Startup Funding for Your Charity Business (If Needed)
Secure a Location for Your Business
Register Your Charity Business with the IRS
Open a Business Bank Account
Get a Business Credit Card
Get the Required Business Licenses and Permits
Get Business Insurance for Your Charity Business
Buy or Lease the Right Charity Business Equipment
Develop Your Charity Business Marketing Materials
Purchase and Setup the Software Needed to Run Your Charity Business
Open for Business

Where Can I Download a Free Business Plan Template PDF?

Click here to download the pdf version of our basic business plan template.

Our free business plan template pdf allows you to see the key sections to complete in your plan and the key questions that each must answer. The business plan pdf will definitely get you started in the right direction.

We do offer a premium version of our business plan template. Click here to learn more about it. The premium version includes numerous features allowing you to quickly and easily create a professional business plan. Its most touted feature is its financial projections template which allows you to simply enter your estimated sales and growth rates, and it automatically calculates your complete five-year financial projections including income statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements. Here’s the link to our Ultimate Business Plan Template.

Since 1999, Growthink has developed business plans for thousands of companies who have gone on to achieve tremendous success.

how to write a business plan for a foundation

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The Ultimate Guide to Writing a Nonprofit Business Plan

What is a Nonprofit Business Plan?

Why do we need a Nonprofit Business Plan?

10-Step Guide on Writing a Business Plan for Nonprofits

Step 1: Data Collection

Step 2: Heart of the Matter

Step 3: Outline

Step 4: Products, Programs, and Services

Step 5: Marketing Plan

Step 6: Operational Plan

Step 7: Impact Plan

Step 8: Financial Plan

Step 9: Executive Summary

Step 10: Appendix

Do’s and Dont’s of Nonprofit Business Plans – Tips

Nonprofit Business Plan Template

Join the fundraising movement!

Raise More & Grow Your Nonprofit.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

The purpose of a nonprofit business plan

More Reading

Creating a nonprofit business plan

Step 1: Write a mission statement

Step 2: Collect the data

Step 3: Create an outline

Using a business plan template

Nonprofit business plan sections

1. Executive summary

2. Products/Services/Programs

3. Marketing

Nonprofits not in operation

Nonprofits already in operation

4. Operations

6. Finances

7. Appendix

Share this Article

Business Planning for Nonprofits

Narrative of a business plan

Basic format of a business plan

More About Business Planning

Additional Resources

How to write a nonprofit business plan: A comprehensive guide

The purpose and importance of a nonprofit business plan

What is a nonprofit business plan?

Why do nonprofits need a business plan?

Key components of a nonprofit business plan

A step-by-step guide to writing a nonprofit business plan

Tips and best practices

How Jotform can help you create a nonprofit business plan

How to Write a Non-Profit Business Plan

Sylvia Okoye

What is a Non-Profit Business Plan?

Why Write a Non-Profit Plan?

Crafting Your Non-Profit Business Plan

Executive Summary

Mission, Vision, and Values

Organizational Structure and Management

Programs and Services

Target Audience and Market Analysis

Marketing and Fundraising Strategies

Financial Projections and Budget

Evaluation and Measurement Metrics

Risk Management and Contingency Plans

Tips for Writing a Compelling Non-Profit Business Plan

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How To Write A Business Plan For A Nonprofit Organization

Dodd Caldwell

Your Basic Nonprofit Business Plan Template

1. Title Page

2. Executive Summary

3. Nonprofit Description – Details of Previous Accomplishments

4. Product, Service, and Program Details

5. Management Team Summary

6. Marketing Strategy

7. Capitalization and Finances

8. Appendix – Supporting Documents

Additional Sections

Problem Statement

Organizational Structure and Personnel Plan

Operational Plan