Business Plans: A Research Guide

Your business plan describes your business and identifies your business goals. A good business plan is necessary to receive a business loan. A good business plan should answer the  questions: what service or product does your business make or provide and what public need does it fill, who are the business’s potential customers and what is your marketing strategy to reach them, and where and how will you get the financial resources to start your business? The materials listed below will help you get started

Anatomy of a Business Plan: A Step-by-step Guide to Building a Business and Securing your Company’s Future, 5th ed. by Linda Pinson. Chicago: Dearborn Trade, 2001. this resource provides a step-by-step process for developing a polished, professional, and results-oriented plan.

Business Plans Handbook, 10th ed. Detroit: Gale Research, 2004.Includes sample business plans and templates from various industries. Business plans include type of business; statement of purpose; executive summary; business/industry description; market; product and production; management/personnel; and financial specifics.

How to Write a Business Plan, 6th ed. by Mike P. McKeever. Berkeley, CA: Nolo Press, 2002. Instructions on making realistic financial projections, developing effective marketing strategies, and refining your overall business goals.

Your First Business Plan: A Simple Question and Answer Format Designed to Help You Write Your Own Plan, 4th ed. by Joseph A. Covello and Brian J. Hazelgren. Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks, 2002. Instructional guidelines for those writing their first business plan.

Market Share Reporter: An Annual Compilation of Reported Market Share Data on Companies, Products, and Services. Detroit: Gale Research, 1991– . Annual. Provides an overview of companies, products, and services. Each entry features a descriptive title; data and market description; a list of producers/products along with their market share.

World Market Share Reporter: A Compilation of Reported World Market Share Data and Rankings on Companies Products and Services, 5th ed. Detroit: Gale Research, 2001– . Biennial.  Includes 1,670 entries which cover 360 geographic locations. Provides world market share data and rankings on companies, products, and services.

Encyclopedia of American Industries, 4th ed. Detroit: Gale Research, 2004. Includes industry description and statistical data for service and non-manufacturing industries (vol. 1) and manufacturing industries (vol. 2).

Standard and Poor’s Industry Surveys. New York: Standard & Poor’s, 2002– . Quarterly. Check your local library for current issues.  Includes industry profiles and trends, key industry ratios and statistics. A comparative company analysis lists revenues, net income, profit ratios, balance sheet ratios, equity ratios, and per-share data.

U.S. Industry & Trade Outlook. New York: DRI/McGraw-Hill; Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce and the International Trade Administration, 2000– . Annual.  Check your local library for the current volumes.  Includes historical data on shipments, imports, exports, employment, industry trends, technology, international competition, forecasts, trade patterns, and major country markets.