I had an initial consultation with a client last night who asked me if I could write a business plan for a new LLC she had formed. She's an author and wants to build a website to sell her books among other promotional items.

Now I wrote my own business plan, but have never attempted to write one for someone else. I was thinking of preparing a Client Survey form for her to complete to give me the bare bones essential data I'll need to write her first draft. Does anyone have anything like that already in existence or a link to a site where I can find guidance or a template?

Also, should I charge my regularly hourly rate for this service or a flat fee or a per page fee? Any ideas?
Thanks.
Charlotte Flowers
JUSTCALLCHARLOTTE

There is a great resource listed here Wonderful Business Plan Template-Like Document that might help you - it's a pretty lengthy template but you could take what you need from it to help get you started.

Also, check the Business Planning section of the forums for even more resources

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Charlotte I was thinking about offering a similar service. I have written so many business plans for my husband and friends that have been good enough for the bank. I was having one of those ,"what can i do to make some money" brainstorms. It is a great idea as some pple just hate this type of thing.

I do write business plans as a service. It's easy enough to find formats and structures online, and loads of instructions about how to write them. The main thing, I'd say, is to understand the purpose for which the plan will be used, and then to listen very carefully to your client.

I send the client an outline asking for the raw info to be filled in. Then I write it up and we go through two or three rounds of edits. Sometimes clients prefer to be interviewed over the phone rather than writing out the info.

It's a lengthy process, mostly because clients take their sweet time between edits and I always have to nudge them to keep the project flowing. The actual writing doesn't take long, though. I don't do the Financial Summary part of business plans - that's completed usually by a CPA.

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Mary H. Ruth/Virtual Writing & Communications
http://www.writingVA.com