How Long Should an Ideal Business Plan Be in 2021?

The important of writing an efficient and effective business plan prior to kick starting a business can never be overemphasized.

Just as blood is to human, an efficient business plan is the root and foundation of a successful business establishment.

Have you been wondering how long should an ideal business plan should be? Are you in need of an accurate figure as to the length of a business plan?

Whatever you need as to the longevity of a business plan, coming down to Bizideas4beginners means your problem is solved.

Essence, your business template shouldn’t be longer than necessary, as it is important to think critically as to the reason why you’re drawing up the plan.

What’s more, the shorter your business plan is, the more easier and manageable the revision process will be.

But before going further, it is very ideal to answer the question: what is business plan?

WHAT IS BUSINESS PLAN?

There is no universal definition for the term “Business plan”. But nevertheless, there are countless number of definitions put forward by successful business owners.

Therefore, it is a written document that state and explain the purpose, mission, goals and aim and objectives of starting a business establishment.

It is a document that define how the propose business will be built, develop, grow and how any obstacle that may ply the business way will be handled.

It state and identify who the business target audience will be, the marketing strategy to be adopted, means of acquiring fund etc.

Read also: How to pitch and get your business funded

HOW LONG SHOULD AN IDEAL BUSINESS PLAN BE?

Be informed that there is no generally or universal acceptable number or figure as to the exact number an ideal business plan should contain, but what is very sure is that a plan should not be too bulky and voluminous.

However, the following are top notch hints as to the length of an effective business template.

1. 15 minutes should be enough to skim it.

An ideal and effective planning can be measured by it readability and summarization.

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An efficient planning should be able to summarize and provide a good general idea of the contents when skim or browse through within 15 minutes.

While the required numbers of words can be given with precision, the main points of a business template or plan should be discussed in time as though it is a business presentation.

2. The length should reflect on its audience.

Of what use is the page count in determining how long should a business plan should be? Unfortunately enough, people still believe in page count as ideal.

When in reality it doesn’t it. What do you say about Corporate business plans for big companies who bump into hundreds of pages?

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Hence, a standard start-up plans should be able easy to read, formatted with bullet points, well-spaced text, illustrated by charts and financial tables etc.

It should be drafted in a manner that it will be able to mirror its audience standard.

3. 30 – 40 pages may be an ideal length.

Most successful business enterprise often trim their business template or plan to 30 pages and sometimes 40 – with the financial details in the appendices.

Excess writing may lead the planner to a very bad choices. The content may end up looking dense and the plan may be badly drafted at the end of the day.

4. Let Your Graphics count.

The fact that an ideal business template isn’t expected to be voluminous doesn’t mean you should shorten it by taking out all the useful and necessary graphics.

Be informed that the page count doesn’t matter as much as the readability of the content.

Where necessary, endeavor to make use of business charts and use images and drawings to indicate products, locations, products pictures, sample menus etc. as much as it is required.

In the long, never add extra charts or graphics, like the clip art or so that are not relevant to the content.

Not even for the sake of making the plan look better. Use your graphics wisely and at when necessary.

CONCLUSION

While it has been stated above that there is no universal or general acceptable number of pages for an effective business plan, but if you can follow and maintain the above highlighted hints, your chance of having an efficient one is highly guaranteed.