Business Plan

Templates
Set up for success with strategic planning frameworks,
including Lean Canvas, SWOT Analysis, Pirate Funnel, and more.
 Lean canvas is a one-page business plan template
Create a created by Ash Maurya. It’s designed to create a
snapshot of your business idea, distill the essence

Business Plan of your product or service, and break it down into

key parts. Check out a completed example on the

with a Lean
next page and then try filling out the blank lean
canvas for your own business on the page after that

Canvas

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Problem Solution Unique Value Unfair Advantage Customer
What problems are people How will you solve these Proposition What separates you from Segments
facing? List their top 3 problems? Write down a competitors? What makes
How will you turn an unaware Create 3 to 4 personas of the
frustrations. solution for each problem. you ahead of the pack?
visitor into an interested people you can help. Visualize
customer? Create a clear and these people who will turn to
compelling one-liner message you for solutions.
you want to send across.

Existing High Level Concept Early Adopters

Alternatives Key Metrics How does your product or
Channels What are the specific
How will you measure the service fit into the grand How will you reach your target characteristics of your
How are these problems solved
success of your product or scheme of things? consumers? Direct marketing, early adopters?
today? This can be a direct
service? List the key metrics. social media, ads, partnerships
competitor to what you are
— identify the effective ways to
offering or the existing ways
reach them.
people are employing to
address their problems.

Cost Structure Revenue Streams

What are the fixed and variable costs to launch your product or service? What money sources will grow your money? How will you generate income?
Consider the cost at each stage from setting up a website, hiring employees, Show a pricing model of your product or service and include other revenue
production, marketing, and bringing them to consumers. sources, such as sales and subscription fees.
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Find Your Strengths Weaknesses

Competitive What advantages does your What areas can you improve on?
company have? What do you do What does your company lack?
Position with a better than anyone else? What What things do your
SWOT Analysis are your unique selling points? competitors do better than you?

A SWOT analysis maps out your

company’s path towards your goals by
identifying strengths and weaknesses
Opportunities Threats
(internal attributes) and opportunities and
What changes in technology, What are the obstacles to your
threats (external conditions). Uncover
your company's competitive position with
policies, and social patterns can company’s growth? Who are
these guiding questions. Use the blank be a growth opportunity for the your competitors? What
framework on the next page to start company? changing factors can threaten
filling out your own SWOT analysis. your company's position?
 The Pirate Funnel is a customer-lifecycle
Visualize Your framework by Dave McClure that shows what
you need to focus on to optimize your marketing

Company's funnel. It is called a Pirate Funnel because the

first letters spell out AAARRR for Awareness,

Weak Points
Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral, and
Revenue. Use the blank framework on the next
page to start filling out your own pirate metrics.

with a Pirate
Funnel
 Awareness Retention
How will you introduce your company to your potential How many of your customers are you retaining? Why
customers? Examples: impressions, click-through rate, are you losing others? Examples: customer acquisition
visits, and social media metrics. rate and customer churn rate.

Acquisition Revenue
Where are your potential customers coming from? How can you increase revenue? What’s your
What channel is driving the most valuable traffic for monetization plan? Examples: customer acquisition
your company? Examples: new leads, email subscribers, cost and customer lifetime value.
resource downloads, support and sales chats.

Activation Referral
How will you introduce your company to your potential
How will your potential customers try your product or
customers? Examples: impressions, click-through rate,
service for the first time? Examples: new trial signups,
visits, and social media metrics.
product sales, activation after app download.

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Position Your 4Ps of Marketing
The 4Ps of Marketing illustrates how product,

Product or price, place, and promotion work together when

a product or service is launched to customers. It

Service with
is created by Neil Borden in the 1950s to
demonstrate the ways companies use
advertising and marketing techniques to convert

the 4Ps of potential buyers into actual customers. Use the

blank framework on the next page to start filling

Marketing out your own 4Ps of Marketing.

 Product Product refers to the good or service
you are offering to customers.
Price Price is what customers pay for a
product or service and it takes into
Brand What needs does this product fulfil? Price account the cost of production. What
Features What frustrations does it address? Discounts is the value of the product or service
Packaging What makes it compelling to Bundling deals to customers? Are there established
customers such that they will Credit terms price points for this product or service
believe they need to have it? in the market? How will this price
compare with competitors?

Promotion Promotion is how you will get the

word out about your product or
Place Place refers to how and where your
customers will look to see your
Ads service to your target customers. Stores product or service. It also considers
PR It includes advertising, public Website how you will deliver the product or
Social Media relations, and promotional Online service to them. Will it be in a physical
Email strategies. Marketplace store or online? What will be the
Search Engine distribution channels?
Video

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 Product-Market fit is a concept coined Marc
Andreessen and refers to your start-up being
in a good market with a product that can
Establish Your
satisfy that market. Finding Product-Market
fit is the difference between struggling to Product's
Appeal with a
find customers and having them knocking
down your door for your product. This
framework will help you identify target
customers and their underserved needs and
test and change your key market hypotheses Product-Market
Fit Pyramid
to arrive at product-market fit. Use the blank
framework on the next page to start filling
out your own Product-Market Fit Pyramid.
 1. Identify your target customer.
Use market segmentation and create personas to get a picture
of the people you are targeting. No need to be precise. A high-
UX level hypothesis is enough to start testing, and revise as you go.

2. Know “undeserved” needs.

What needs do they have that are adequately met?
Feature Set
3. Define your value proposition.
How you will meet your customers needs better than your
competitors? Of all the needs you can address with your
product, which ones will you focus on?
Value Proposition
4. State your MVP feature set.
Build only what is needed to create enough value for your
target customers to validate the direction of your product.
Product-Market Fit
5. Make your MVP prototype.
Create a version of your product to test your MVP hypotheses
with your customers. Apply user experience principles to
receive feedback and to bring your feature set to life for your
Underserved Needs customers.

6. Test it out to your customers.

Ensure you are testing with your target market so feedback
received will help iterate your product in the right direction.
Target Customer Making your test group answer a survey is a great way to
ensure they possess the attributes of your target customer.
Know the Stages Marketing Funnel
A Marketing Funnel maps your company’s

of the Customer marketing activities at each stage of the customer

journey. It starts with making your target audience

Journey with a
aware of your solution, then guiding them through
an evaluation process and finally leading them to
make a purchase. The goal is to create a system,

Marketing which is measurable at every level of the journey.

Use the blank framework on the next page to start

Funnel filling out your own marketing funnel.

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TOFU (Top of the Funnel) Social media post and ads
Email marketing
Activities that facilitate awareness. Make your target audience Promotional video
aware of the problem you’re addressing and how you’re solving it Press Release

MOFU (Middle of the Funnel) Discounts

Exclusive offers
Activities that facilitate evaluation Free trial
Convert thosewho are aware into leads Event

BOFU (Bottom of the Funnel) Demo

Feedback
Activities that facilitate conversion Success stories
Guide the leadsin making an informed purchase decision Comparison sheets
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Mission, Vision, and Values

State Your Company's

Mission, Vision, and Values
Clearly defining your company’s mission, vision and values is a powerful
way to align your team and reach your goals.Use the blank framework on
the next page to start filling out your own mission, vision, and values.
 Mission
Mission is the reason why your company exists. It is the
visible and tangible effect you want your company to create

Mission,
for your customers and the world.

Vision
Vision, and Vision is what success looks like for your company. It is what
your company aspires to be in the future. It is how the world

Values will look like once you've accomplished your mission.

Values
These are the guiding principles that will influence your
actions to fulfill your company's mission and vision.

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 Strategy, Tactics, and Execution

Illustrate Your Company's

Strategy, Tactics, and Execution
A strategy, a list of tactics, and knowing how to execute them are integral in the
attainment of your company goals. Use the blank framework on the next page
to start filling out your own strategy, tactics, and execution

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 Strategy
Strategy is how your methods, time, and resources come

Strategy, into play to fulfil your company mission and vision.

Tactics, Tactics
Tactics are the specific methods, resources, and

and techniques you will need to accomplish your strategy.

Execution Execution
Execution is how you will employ the tactics you’ve
chosen. It includes measurable outcomes, such as
timelines and deliverables.

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 Develop Deep Insights
About Your Customers
Using Buyer Personas
Buyer personas are semi-fictional representations of your target
customers. These personas are based on market research and real data
about the people you are targeting. Two to three buyer personas are
ideal. The more detailed the buyer persona, the better.

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 Solution Needs Buyer's Journey
(Gender, age, marital status, (Awareness, consideration,
employer) purchase, advocacy)

Buying Roles Objections Channels

(Decision makers, influencers) (Social media, other digital
activities,non-digital activities)

Goals and Frustrations Sources of

Responsibilities information
(Content that influences
purchasedecisions)

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Free Resources
Use these free and recolourable
icons and illustrations in your
Canva design.

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