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If you were setting up a traditional business and needed to secure money from investors or a loan from a bank, you would write a business plan. Often such plans would run to many pages and would takes weeks of preparation. For people setting up an internet business, the need for a business plan is different but just as necessary.

Do you remember the story from Alice in Wonderland, when Alice meets the Cheshire cat and asks: ‘Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?’
‘That depends a good deal on where you want to get to,’ said the Cat.
‘I don’t much care where—-’ said Alice.

‘Then it doesn’t matter which way you go,’ said the Cat.

In the world of internet marketing, there are many, many opportunities and you will be bombarded with new ideas every day. Having a business plan will help you to decide which opportunities you should research further and which ones you should leave for the moment.

Here are my top tips for developing the plan for your business.

Your Business Plan is a Story

Like Alice in Wonderland, a good business plan is a good story. It shows what you imagine, plan and hope might happen in the future. A business plan is not about things that have already happened. To write a good business plan requires imagination, and there are 2 important points: i) Remember, this is real life so don’t write a fantasy; ii) In this context a short story is always better than an epic.

Your Business Plan is a Mirror

Your business is your baby, and it should look like you. Your business plan needs to reflect the personality of your management team and the type of company you want to create. Someone reading it should get a picture of the people involved in the company, their objectives and their unique skills.

Your business plan is personal. Take what is unique about your business and make it personal to YOU. “I will be the cheapest source of…; I will be the most informative….; My products are the highest quality…; I deliver faster than ….;”

Your Business Plan Is a Work in Progress

Things will change. If you wrote your business plan then put it away for a year, you’d be surprised how much had changed during that time. Keep your business plan handy. Look at it, refer to it (you probably had some very good ideas while you were working on it that you might want to refresh). Update you business plan as you go along.

It’s a document to help you and guide you, but not to restrict you. Never feel ashamed to admit you haven’t followed it. It probably shows you’re responding to the changing market and opportunities.

Your Business Plan Is a Map

You may be one of these people who can get into your car and drive to a destination that you’ve visited infrequently. You may be able to work out easily how to take an alternative route if there is a traffic hold-up or road maintenance works. However, the majority of people like to have a set of maps that show them the major roads and the possible junctions. A road map will not necessarily show you the exact route and all the turnings you must make, but it will give you information so you can make a good decision when you come to a junction. Your business plan should show the main layout of your industry and help to guide your decisions as your business journey develops.

If you are driving on a motorway or freeway, you don’t need to know the name of every street that you pass. The internet business is developing and changing very quickly. You will need plans that are an appropriate scale and you should know the major landmarks that you are looking out for that will let you know that you are on track and making progress in the right direction.

Your Business Plan Is a Flashlight

One of the difficult things about writing a business plan is the inclusion of problem areas. It may be tempting to ignore areas of weakness, however glossing over potential risk doesn’t help you to think about ways of handing problems. Use your business plan to illuminates potential problem areas and light up the dark corners where things are lurking. Then think about details plans that effectively address each issue.

Your Business Plan Is Your Conscience

It’s exciting setting up a new business. And it’s exhausting setting up a new business. Amidst all the busyness and energy, it is easy to forget the sound plans that you made when you were planning your business. Return to your business plan and let it remind you about tasks you said you would do, new products you would develop, the unique differences that would ensure customers bought from your business rather than anyone else. Use your business plan to ensure that you are still holding on to the vision you had when you started and that you are still following your dream.