example of business growth plan

Writing a Business Growth Plan

Table of contents.

When you run a business, it’s easy to get caught in the moment and focus only on the day in front of you. However, to be truly successful, you must look ahead and plan for growth. Many business owners create a business growth plan to map out the next one or two years and pinpoint how and when revenues will increase. 

We’ll explain more about business growth plans and share strategies for writing a business growth plan that can set you on a path to success. 

What is a business growth plan?

A business growth plan outlines where a company sees itself in the next one to two years. Business owners and leaders apply a growth mindset to create plans for expansion and increased revenues.

Business growth plans should be formatted quarterly. At the end of each quarter, the company can review the business goals it achieved and missed during that period. At this point, management can revise the business growth plan to reflect the current market standing.

What to include in a business growth plan

A business growth plan focuses specifically on expansion and how you’ll achieve it. Creating a useful plan takes time, but keeping your growth efforts on track can pay off substantially.

You should include the following elements in your growth plan:

• A description of expansion opportunities
• Financial goals broken down by quarter and year
• A marketing plan that details how you’ll achieve growth
• A financial plan to determine what capital is accessible during growth
• A breakdown of your company’s staffing needs and responsibilities

Your growth plan should also include an assessment of your operating systems and computer networks to determine if they can accommodate profitable growth .

How to write a business growth plan

To successfully write a business growth plan, you must do some forward-thinking and research. Here are some key steps to follow when writing your business growth plan.

1. Think ahead.

The future is always unpredictable. However, if you study your target market, your competition and your company’s past growth, you can plan for future expansion. The Small Business Administration (SBA) features a comprehensive guide to writing a business plan for growth.

2. Study other growth plans.

Before you start writing, review models from successful companies.

3. Discover opportunities for growth.

With some homework, you can determine if your expansion opportunities lie in creating new products , adding more services, targeting a new market, opening new business locations or going global, to name a few examples. Once you’ve identified your best options for growth, include them in your plan.

4. Evaluate your team.

Your plan should include an assessment of your employees and a look at staffing requirements to meet your growth objectives. By assessing your own skills and those of your employees, you can determine how much growth can be accomplished with your present team. You’ll also know when to ramp up the hiring process and what skill sets to look for in those new hires.

5. Find the capital.

Include detailed information on how you will fund expansion. Business.gov offers a guide on how to prepare funding requests and how to connect with SBA lenders.

6. Get the word out.

Growing your business requires a targeted marketing effort. Be sure to outline how you will effectively market your business to encourage growth and how your marketing efforts will evolve as you grow.

7. Ask for help.

Advice from other business owners who have enjoyed successful growth can be the ultimate tool in writing your growth plan.

8. Start writing.

Business plan software has streamlined the process of writing growth plans by providing templates you can fill in with information specific to your company and industry. Most software programs are geared toward general business plans; however, you can easily modify them to create a plan that focuses on growth. 

If you don’t have business plan software, don’t worry. You can create a business growth plan using Microsoft Word, Google Docs or a similar tool. For each growth opportunity, create the following sections: 

• What is the opportunity? Is your growth opportunity a new geographic expansion, a new product or a new customer segment? How do you know there’s an opportunity? Include your market research to demonstrate the idea’s viability.
• What factors make this opportunity valuable at this time? For example, your growth opportunity could utilize new technology, take advantage of a strategic partnership or capitalize on a consumer trend.
• What are the risk factors for this opportunity? Identify factors that may make this growth opportunity challenging to execute. For example, challenges may include the state of the overall economy, intense competition or supply chain distribution issues. What is your plan for dealing with these challenges?
• What is your marketing and sales plan? Identify the marketing efforts and sales processes that can help you seize this growth opportunity. Detail the marketing channel you’ll use ( social media marketing , print marketing), your message and promising sales ideas. For example, you could hire sales reps for a new geographic area or set up distribution deals with relevant brick-and-mortar or online retailers .
• What are the costs involved in this growth area? For example, if you add a new product, you may need to buy new manufacturing equipment and raw materials. While marketing costs are a given, remember to include incremental sales costs like commissions. Outline any economies of scale or places where your existing operations make the new growth area less expensive than a stand-alone initiative.
• How will your income, expenses and cash flow look? Project your income and expenses, and prepare a cash flow statement for the new growth area for the next three to five years. Include a break-even analysis, a sales forecast and all projected expenses to see how much the new initiative will add to the bottom line. Include how the new growth area will positively (or negatively) impact existing sales. For example, if you sell bathing suits and you decide to grow by adding cover-ups and sunglasses, you will likely sell more bathing suits. 

A cash flow statement will indicate if you must secure additional financing, and a break-even analysis will let you know when the growth opportunity will stop being a drain on the company’s financial resources and start turning a profit.

After completing this exercise for each growth opportunity:

• Create a summary that accounts for all growth areas for the period.
• Include summarized financial statements to see the entire picture and its impact on the company. 
• Evaluate the financing you’ll need to implement the plan, and include various options and rates. 

Why are business growth plans important?

These are some of the many reasons why business growth plans are essential:

• Market share and penetration: If your market share remains constant in a world where costs consistently increase, you’ll inevitably start recording losses instead of profits. Business growth plans help you avoid this scenario.
• Recouping early losses: Most companies lose far more than they earn in their early years. To recoup these losses, you’ll need to grow your company to a point where it can make enough revenue to pay off your debts.
• Future risk minimization: Growth plans also matter for established businesses. These companies can always stand to make their sales more efficient and become more liquid. Liquidity can come in handy if you need money to cover unexpected problems.
• Appealing to investors: For most businesses, a business growth plan’s primary purpose is to find investors . Investors want to outline your company’s plans to build sales in the coming months.
• Concrete revenue plans: Growth plans are customizable to each business and don’t have to follow a set template. However, all business growth plans must focus heavily on revenue. The plan should answer a simple question: How does your company plan to make money each quarter?

Motivate your employees by sharing your growth plan. When employees see an opportunity for increased responsibility and compensation, they’re more likely to stay with your business.

What factors impact business growth?

Consider the following crucial factors that can impact business growth:

• Leadership: To achieve your goals, you must know the ins and outs of your business processes and how external forces impact them. Without this knowledge, you can’t direct and train your team to drive your revenue, and you will experience stagnation instead of growth.
• Management: As a small business owner, you’re innately involved in management – obtaining funding, resources, and physical and digital infrastructure. Ineffective management will impact your ability to perform these duties and could hamstring your growth.
• Customer loyalty: Acquiring new customers can be five times as expensive as retaining current ones, and a 5 percent boost in customer retention can increase profits by 25 percent to 95 percent. These statistics demonstrate that customer loyalty is fundamental to business growth.

What are the four major growth strategies?

There are countless growth strategies for businesses, but only four primary types. With these growth strategies, you can determine how to build on your brand.

• Market strategy: A market strategy refers to how you plan to penetrate your target audience . This strategy isn’t intended for entering a new market or creating new products and services to boost your market share; it’s about leveraging your current offerings. For instance, can you adjust your pricing? Should you launch a new marketing campaign?
• Development strategy: This strategy means looking into ways to break your products and services into a new market. If you can’t find the growth you want in the current market, a goal could be to expand to a new market.
• Product strategy: Also known as “product development,” this strategy focuses on what new products and services you can target to your current market. How can you grow your business without entering new markets? What are your customers asking for?
• Diversification strategy: Diversification means expanding both your products and target markets. This strategy is usually best for smaller companies that have the means to be versatile with the products or services they offer and what new markets they attempt to penetrate.

Max Freedman contributed to this article.

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Write a business development plan

Now that you’re in the growth stage of your business, set things in motion with a business development plan.

A business development plan sets goals for growth and explains how you will achieve them. It can have a short-term or long-term focus. Review and revise your plan as often as you can. And keep building on it as your business evolves.

How to write a business development plan

Your business development plan is your roadmap to growth, so make it clear, specific and realistic.

What to include in a business development plan

• Opportunities for growth: Identify where growth will come from – whether it’s in creating new products, adding more services, breaking into new markets, or a combination of these.
• Funding plan: Determine how you’ll fund your business growth. How much capital do you already have? How much more do you need and how will you get it? Check out our guide on financing your business.
• Financial goals: Work out what revenue, costs and profits you’ll have if things stay the same. Use those numbers as a basis for setting new, more ambitious financial goals.
• Operational needs: Identify what things about your business will need to change in order to achieve growth. Will you need extra people, more equipment, or new suppliers?
• Sales and marketing activities: Figure out what sales and marketing efforts will effectively promote growth and how these efforts will change as the business gets bigger and better. Make sure your sales and marketing plan is sturdy enough to support your growing business.
• Team needs: You may need people to take on some of the tasks you’ve been doing. Think about what parts of running the business you enjoy most – and you’re good at – and what parts you might want to delegate to others. And give some thought to the culture you want to develop in your business as it grows. Check out our guide on hiring employees.

A sample business development plan

Avoid these common business development mistakes.

• Thinking short-term instead of long-term
• Underestimating how much money it will take to grow
• Not budgeting enough money to cover the costs of growth
• Focusing on too many growth opportunities: think quality, not quantity

Micro-planning can keep you focused

You may want to create some micro-plans for specific growth projects so their details don’t get overlooked. And you can build in some KPIs to measure your progress and successes. As your business grows, take note of your progress and make periodic adjustments to your business development plan to make sure it’s still relevant.

Support is out there

Remember you’re not the first to go through this. Seek out mentors, advisors or other business owners who can help you with your planning. Your accountant or bookkeeper may also be able to help or point you in the direction of the right people.

Xero does not provide accounting, tax, business or legal advice. This guide has been provided for information purposes only. You should consult your own professional advisors for advice directly relating to your business or before taking action in relation to any of the content provided.

Growing your business

Are you ready to drop the hammer and take your business to the next level? Let’s look at how to grow.

Before you leap into growth, reflect on where you’ve come from. Find out the stage of business growth you’re at.

Understanding your business performance will help you grow. Check out common examples of small business KPIs.

Increasing sales revenue is one obvious way to help grow your business. But how do you sell more?

You can grow your business by selling more things to more people, or fewer things to fewer people. Let’s look at how.

You’re all set to grow your business. But there’s so much to keep track of. Xero’s got resources and solutions to help.

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Growth Strategy Checklist: Plan Your Business Goals With These 5 Templates

By Nadya Khoja , Jun 16, 2019

I often find that at the end of the year my sense of perspective is heightened and I generally feel a lot more motivated and excited about the future.

Do you feel the same way?

Part of this feeling comes from knowing that a new year is just around the corner, which means a fresh start at tackling any personal or business-related challenges. As a result, it’s the perfect opportunity to start planning your growth goals for the coming year.

But one of the challenges that come with planning our growth strategy is setting realistic and ambitious expectations of what is achievable.

As it turns out, there is a very effective strategy for setting and hitting your growth goals, and by following this strategy you can accurately predict what is possible to accomplish.

I’d like to walk you through the process of not only identifying what those goals are but also how you can break down the actions required to hit them. I’ll also provide you with some useful growth strategy templates that myself and the team at Venngage use to help make the journey a lot easier.

You can also take a look at some other process infographic templates that could help you map out different growth strategies in more detail. Or create a business plan using our online drag and drop tool–no design experience required.

The process for identifying and hitting your business goals can be broken down into five steps:

Step 1: Identifying and setting your high-level goals.

Step 2: Understanding which inputs and outputs impact those goals.

Step 3: Running experiments to impact those inputs.

Step 4: Validating those experiments.

Step 5: Fostering accountability within your team.

By the end of this five-step process, not only should you have a very clear idea of what goals to target for the year, but you will know exactly what is required of you and your team to get there.

Visually documenting the path to hitting your business goals will not only help you have a better understanding of the specific factors that will influence growth, it will also provide the rest of your team with a concise and easy-to-follow growth strategy roadmap as well.

(Oh, and did I mention that we’ve got plenty of roadmap templates to help you visualize your growth strategy?)

Writing out the steps is useful, but showing those steps can help everyone envision the path in question.

Step 1: Start by identifying your high-level business goals

As human beings, we have a tendency to start all journeys at the beginning. And this makes sense of course. After all, if the stories we read started at the end, wouldn’t that defeat the purpose of going through the journey?

Imagine if you were to start reading the Harry Potter series, and J.K. Rowling started the story by saying:

“Hey guys, just so you know, Harry wins and Voldemort is defeated in the end.”

Or if the Star Wars series started with Luke finding out that Darth Vader was his father? Wouldn’t it kind of kill the mood and the anticipation that comes with reading or hearing a story?

Well, the journey to product growth and business growth functions a little bit differently. In fact, it’s almost more helpful to start at the end and work backward, especially when your planning growth .

It makes sense too, right?

If you could know for sure how much revenue your company would make in the long-run before you even started your venture, would that not be helpful in figuring out the best growth strategy to get there?

Starting at the end of your growth strategy:

It’s always helpful to start out with a very high-level and ambitious goal. Many successful and fast-growing companies do this, and all of them have different terms to refer to these high-level goals.

Shopify calls this the BHAG, which stands for big, hairy, audacious goals . This business goal is usually meant to seem a little bit crazy.

Brian Balfour takes a more practical approach and refers to setting high-level goals as using the Top-Down Approach to inform your growth models.

And of course, at Venngage we simply call these our “high-level” or “long-term” goals. But the point is, you need to start out by mapping out a long-term goal, like your 10-year goal.

Where do you see yourself and your company by that time? How much should you grow your business ? How much revenue do you expect your company to generate? How many employees do you see yourself having?

Take a look at the example in this growth strategy template:

These are the High-Level Growth Goals for a hypothetical company called StartUp Masters . Their mission (“ To provide startups with an affordable means of managing projects in order to achieve rapid growth ”) is clearly stated, and their goals are broken down in order to depict where they envision themselves to be In 10 years, 5 years, 3 years and finally 1 year.

At 10 years old, the company expects to be making 100 million in revenue and they expect to achieve this with 120 employees. They’ve also indicated the number of daily active users required to get there.

On top of that, they’ve listed out some steps required in order to achieve those goals. As you glance further down the funnel, you can see that this is, in fact, a pretty audacious business goal considering where the company is probably starting out from.

By working backward, it becomes easier to make somewhat realistic goals of where the company would need to be in 5 years, 3 years and 1 year in order to hit that 10-year goal.

Start breaking down your own high-level goals with the Growth Goals template.

CREATE THIS ROADMAP TEMPLATE

OK great, so you’ve got your high-level goals set out, now you can wipe your hands clean and be done with your growth strategy, right?

This is only one small part of the process. The next step is to figure out how you can hit your 1-year goal, and that means understanding which metrics are most important to improve in order to make a big impact on growth.

Step 2: Know which inputs and outputs impact your goals

Andy Grove’s book High Output Management is one of the most useful resources on building a high-functioning and, of course, high output company.

In this book, he uses the analogy of a breakfast factory to help explain the importance of all the little actions (or inputs) that have an impact on the successful operation and growth of the factory (its output).

What this means is that for every goal you set, there are key metrics and results which will help you identify whether or not you will, in fact, achieve that goal . And of course, there are specific growth strategies that you can follow to help you move the needle on those key metrics.

Identifying your North Star Metric

One of the first metrics you should identify is your North Star Metric . This metric is often described as the one number that best represents the core value that your product delivers to your customers.

For instance, if we take Airbnb as an example, their North Star Metric is the number of nights booked. Why?

Because it’s a clear indication of their product’s value .

If more nights are being booked, and that number is consistently increasing, it means that more customers are having a positive experience with Airbnb and are therefore returning to the platform to book their accommodation.

At Venngage, our North Star Metric is the number of infographics completed. Because if people are completing more and more infographics that they are proud of , it’s a clear indication that they are finding value from the tool.

This number should also have a direct correlation with your company’s revenue goals and retention goals. The more value people are finding from your product, the more likely they are to stay and continue paying for your product.

The next step is identifying what your current baseline is for your North Star Metric. Let’s take a look at the growth strategy template below for our hypothetical company, StartUp Masters .

In the previous template that broke down their high-level goals, they indicated that one of the steps to achieving their 1st-year goal was to increase the retention rate to 30% at 12 months.

If you take a look at the end of the above template, you can see that the baseline of completed projects is indicated under the Retention OKR.

As you can see, they have identified that users have completed 90,000 projects successfully, and they currently have 45,000 Daily Active Users.

Now, in order to hit their revenue and acquisition goals, the company needs to get to 70,000 Daily Active Users. But in order to hit their retention goal of 30%, each of those users needs to complete at least 3 projects successfully which they have calculated as a leading indicator of better retention .

When creating your growth strategy, you need to figure out the overall baselines for your North Star Metric, and how that number will need to change in order to impact your various OKRs .

Setting your OKRs and Inputs

If you weren’t aware of what an OKR is, it stands for Objective Key Results. They refer to specific metrics that you can track which will, in turn, influence your high-level goals.

In most software startups, many founders follow the AARRR framework for setting and tracking OKRs . This stands for Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Revenue, and Referral.

Each of these metrics is important for understanding the behaviors of your customers and of course, the growth potential of your business.

Sometimes, however, it can be overwhelming to influence every single one of these metrics, so in this particular growth strategy template, which helps to break down goals, StartUp Masters is focusing on influencing Acquisition, Conversions (Revenue) and Retention OKRs.

Take a look at the Acquisition OKRs they identified while growth planning:

The main metrics that influence acquisition for StartUp Masters is their Organic Traffic goals and their Paid Traffic goals.

They will need to scale their organic traffic by 130,000 unique visits a month, and their paid traffic by 70,000 unique visits a month.

However, if you look at the inputs that impact those specific OKRs, there are multiple pages that drive organic traffic, so they’ve outlined the required traffic to these various sections of their site.

For the sake of simplicity, the OKRs mentioned here only talk about the traffic goals and not on the burn rate of your marketing budget. However, in actual practice, you may also be concerned about your customer acquisition costs .

Typically, paid acquisition channels like Facebook Ads and Adwords have a higher CAC than organic channels like SEO or content marketing. A long term growth plan might hence also include targets to bring your average acquisition costs down.

By continuing to break down their goals into smaller and more specific inputs, it becomes easier to envision the path towards achieving those high-level goals within the growth plan.

When you are setting your own OKRs , you also need to know which metrics you can manipulate at a smaller scale that will have greater leverage . And as you continue to figure out which inputs will impact your OKRs, you can start thinking of experiments that will, in turn, influence your inputs.

Help your team to clearly understand which inputs impact your main OKRs.

CREATE THIS REPORT TEMPLATE

Step 3: Brainstorm experiments to run that directly affect your identified inputs

Coming up with valuable experiments to run is not always as easy as it may seem. In fact, one issue that many startups face when it comes to implementing new product features, or marketing strategies , is waterfalling .

What’s waterfalling , you ask?

Simply stated, waterfalling is what happens when a team continues to add requirements to a project, to the point where the task becomes so large that the time required to implement it keeps increasing. Eventually, what was supposed to be implemented within a two-week sprint, ends up taking months to push out. 

In an effort to avoid falling victim to the waterfall taking over your growth strategy , it’s better to operate on a one or two-week sprint cadence.

This can be achieved by, you guessed it–breaking down these big projects into more bite-sized experiments, or MVTs.

An MVT is a Minimum Viable Test, and its purpose is primarily to derive insights and validate whether or not it’s even worth pursuing the larger-scale project . By running more MVTs, you gain more learnings which can help inform which steps to take next.

Start by deciding which OKR you are trying to impact. As you can see in the growth strategy template below, the OKR that StartUp Masters is trying to impact is their retention metric. The goal is to push more users to complete one additional project in the span of three weeks.

Then, the suggested experiment is to create a pop-up modal within the project dashboard which will push users to begin a new project upon hitting the 80% completion mark.

They’ve even hypothesized the results that this new implementation will reap. If you take a look at the next step, they’ve outlined the effort required by each team. This is usually a pretty clear indicator of whether or not your experiment is veering in the direction of a waterfall.

Your goal when planning out MVTs is to run experiments which require low effort, but have a high output . These are considered to be “slam-dunks” because you can get big results in less time and with less work required.

Naturally, not every experiment will be a “slam-dunk” but as a general rule of thumb, you want to avoid anything that could be considered high effort and low output, which risk becoming “turtles”.

So here’s where the MVT breakdown board comes in handy when planning your growth strategy. Just walk through this process to get an idea of whether or not your suggested experiment can and should be broken down even more.

Using the example above, let’s run through the flowchart.

• Can this experiment be implemented in the span of 1 week?

Well, considering that the Marketing and Engineering effort required is medium, and the Design effort is high, chances are that it will take at least a few weeks to run the test, so the answer is no .

• Has this implementation already been validated and proven to have a direct and positive impact on the OKR via a previous experiment?

Since this is a first test that StartUp Masters is running in order to try and get more people to create a new project, chances are it hasn’t been proven in anyway just yet. So the answer is also no.

• Can this implementation be broken down and tested without the assistance of engineering?

In this case, the answer is yes because there are other means for StartUp Masters to get the insights they require in order to validate their idea. At this point, they would need to list out possible ways to run the test without the support of engineering.

This might mean something as simple as setting up an automated email to a segment of users that is triggered at the 80% completion mark, asking them to start on the next project.

• Will this smaller test still provide useful insights without requiring substantial effort from multiple teams?

Sending an email is a relatively low effort task on the Marketing side which requires little to no support from Design or Engineering, and which will still provide enough information to validate whether the full feature should be implemented. So the answer is a resounding yes .

As a result, by running their suggested experiment through the MVT Breakdown Board, StartUp Masters is able to avoid a waterfall project and gain useful learnings in a shorter period of time.

Are your experiments at risk of becoming waterfalls? Use this chart to help break your projects down into smaller MVTs.

Step 4: validate your experiments with a checklist.

Sometimes, breaking down an experiment to an MVT is still not enough to validate whether that test is worth including in your growth strategies.

You need to know if it will have a positive impact on your users and their needs as well. Afterall, your job is still to provide a great and valuable experience for your customers.

This is where the Experiment Validation Checklist comes in handy.

As you can see, StartUp Masters follows the “Jobs to Be Done” framework , which focuses on the goals a potential user has, rather than solely focusing on who they are as a person (which is more dependent on marketing to personas).

Here we can see the various “Jobs to Be Done” listed out. Moreover, they are also considering personas as an important factor in how they plan out their experiments.

Of course, they include the probability of success as a factor, the effort required per team and the OKR that is impacted from the experiment.

By getting everyone on your team to use this growth strategy checklist when deciding which experiments to go after, it becomes easier at a first glance to know if all the areas of importance are being considered.

Need help validating your experiments to identify their value?

Step 5: foster accountability in your team.

Lastly, it’s important that everyone on your team understands the work that they are doing, and the value they bring to the company with the growth projects they are running.

By getting specific individuals on your team to share the tests they released, as well as what they learned in a given week, you are encouraging them to consistently produce results .

In your weekly meetings , show the rest of the company what was launched, and what results were achieved. Get each person to speak to their own growth experiments so that they can feel accountable for the work they do .

If there are underperformers that have a tendency to work at a slower pace or reap less valuable insights, this growth strategy template will push them to increase their output.

At any rate, the rest of the company will see who the A-players are , and who is falling short, which is often a wake-up call for the latter.

Start tracking which experiments your team members are working on, and monitoring what results they are getting.

There is no silver bullet or quick “hack” that will lead to explosive growth.

In fact, growth is a long process and requires a strong focus and understanding of the data and metrics that influence the various moving parts of an organization. That is why you need a well thought out growth strategy to really succeed.

You can then start the new year right by setting ambitious business goals, and breaking them down into easily digestible inputs.

By continuing to test out various experiments, and analyzing the results of those experiments–in time you will find that achieving the goals your set for yourself and for your company seem a lot more within reach.

More business communication guides:

30+ Business Report Templates That Every Business Needs [+ Design Tips]

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How to Write a Growth Plan

Last Updated: June 23, 2023 References

This article was co-authored by Gina D'Amore . Gina D'Amore is a Financial Accountant and the Founder of Love's Accounting. With 12 years of experience, Gina specializes in working with smaller companies in every area of accounting, including economics and human resources. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Economics from Manhattanville College and a Bookkeeping Certificate from MiraCosta College. There are 7 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 141,022 times.

If you’re lucky, your business will grow without much effort. However, most business owners need a plan. A well-drafted growth plan will identify potential growth opportunities and the amount of money you will need to fund the expansion. Your plan should have multiple parts, including a marketing strategy and different financial documents. If you need help, you should visit a business development center.

Analyzing Growth Opportunities

• Add new products or services. For example, you might run a nail salon. You could expand your offerings by turning the business into a day spa, complete with massage.
• Sell more products. You might have a boutique that sells vintage clothing. You can try to increase new sales by changing your marketing.
• Open in a new location. If you have a brick-and-mortar business, you can expand by opening another store in a new area.
• Target a different or additional market. There might be a larger market that remains untapped. For example, if you offer massage services to women, you might want to add men as a target market. Alternately, you might be targeting middle-class consumers. Instead, you could gear your business toward high-income people.
• Go global. Get a website so that you can sell to many different countries. Plan on creating a website and selling into markets you’ll never visit in person.
• Review your business's budget—there's almost always room to save money.

• Ask your current staff for help analyzing staffing needs. Ask them what other skills they have. Someone might be able to fill a new position created when you expand.
• If you need to hire staff, visit websites like PayScale or Glassdoor and check how much those employees normally make.

• Go through your budget and check what you can afford. Check how much excess cash your business has, if any, and whether you have a line of credit or business credit card you can use.

• Study the layout and overall design of the plan. You want a growth plan that looks professional. Copy what impresses you.

Drafting Your Growth Plan

• Description of your business. For example, “Jackson Data Processing is a two-person partnership that provides data entry and coding to medical offices.”
• Products or Services you offer. For example, “We collate, enter, and analyze client data before submitting it to appropriate government agencies and private insurers. We provide a one-time service, as well as regular billing and coding.”
• Unique characteristics of the business, if any.

• Strengths. Identify what your business does well. Think broadly and include tangible as well as intangible strengths. You should identify strengths in all areas of the business, such as marketing, finance, service, etc. For example, tangible strengths might include a great location or established customer base.
• Weaknesses. Identify what your business doesn’t do well. These should be things within your control. For example, a bad economy is not a business weakness since you don’t control it. Think of weaknesses such as limited resources, inferior technology, inexperienced staff, and poor location.
• Opportunities. These are external to your business. Generally, opportunities are situations you can exploit to your own advantage. For example, your industry may be booming. In that case, you may try to sell more units or sell additional products in order to grow your business. Alternately, an aging population might present an opportunity for you to target this market. Opportunities can be long-term or short-term.
• Threats. A threat is something beyond your control that could undermine your business. For example, competition is always a threat. However, other threats include increasing government regulations, technological innovations, or negative press attention. A declining customer base could also be a threat. If so, you might pursue growth opportunities by moving to a new location or targeting different consumer markets.

• Expansion opportunities. Identify the growth opportunities you intend to pursue and why they are the right choices based on your SWOT analysis. For example, interest rates may be low, and you intend to borrow to open a new store in a growing area.
• Marketing plan . You should identify your target market and your means of reaching them, by way of paid advertising or other methods. Discuss the costs of your marketing plan, and what kinds of free marketing you can use, such as using social media or increasing word-of-mouth by encouraging customers to leave a review online.
• Demographics of the market area. For example, what is the typical age, gender, education, and income of your targeted market and what are the demographics of the area where you will be expanding.
• Make sure that your plan answers questions like "What growth are you trying to do?" "What is your reasoning behind this growth?" and "What statistics do you have that other people want this growth?"

• Your current financial situation. Include profit and loss statements, cash flow analysis , etc.
• The amount of capital you will need.
• Your costs of operations. Explain your fixed costs, such as employee salaries, rent, and insurance.
• A “break even” analysis. This is the point when you start making a profit. You will need to calculate this point using your fixed and variable costs.

• For example, you might include background data for your company or a copy of a market survey used to develop your growth plan.
• You can also include copies of legal documents, such as your Articles of Incorporation.

Securing Financing

• Call 1-877-322-8228. You can request reports from all three agencies at once. Your copy should be mailed to you.
• Visit annualcreditreport.com. You will need to provide your name, address, date of birth, and Social Security number for identity verification.
• Complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form, available here: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0093-annual-report-request-form.pdf . Mail it to the address on the form.

• Someone else’s account being listed on your report. You might have a similar name or Social Security Number.
• Accounts opened as a result of identity theft.
• Accounts reported inaccurately. For example, an account might be reported as late or delinquent when you haven’t missed a payment.
• An account that appears more than once.
• Information that should have fallen off the report but which still appears. For example, unpaid debts should fall off after seven years.
• A mistake made in the balance owed or in your credit limit.

• SBA loans. The Small Business Administration guarantees loans for some small businesses. You get the loan from a regular bank, but the SBA will pay the bank if you default. SBA loans have favorable terms, though they require a lot of paperwork. SBA offers many types of loans, depending on your needs. You can get a loan to purchase equipment or buildings, expand your business, or to provide for working capital.
• Conventional bank loans. These may be easier to get than SBA loans and generally have low interest rates. However, the repayment period is typically shorter than with an SBA loan.
• Alternative lenders. If you don’t have great credit, you might seek out online lenders, such as Fundation and Kabbage. You will probably have to pay much higher interest rates.

• Business plan or growth plan
• Personal credit report
• Resumes for all members of management
• Personal and business income tax returns
• Personal financial statements
• Personal and business bank statements
• Legal documents, such as copies of your contracts, business licenses, leases, and articles of incorporation

Expert Q&A

• Your plan needs to be well thought out, organized, and something that another person can comprehend. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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Expert Interview

Thanks for reading our article! If you'd like to learn more about investments, check out our in-depth interview with Gina D'Amore .

• ↑ https://www.business.com/articles/writing-a-business-growth-plan/
• ↑ http://www.forbes.com/sites/davelavinsky/2013/10/18/strategic-plan-template-what-to-include/2/#4a955c63b55e
• ↑ https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0155-free-credit-reports
• ↑ https://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1261/what-are-errors-show-credit-reports-out-having-creditors-report-your-accounts-credit-bureaus.html
• ↑ http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7695-small-business-loan-guide.html
• ↑ https://www.sba.gov/loans-grants/get-ready-apply/gather-info-youll-need

About This Article

A well-drafted growth plan will help you identify growth opportunities and budget for the expansion. To write your growth plan, start by identifying areas of potential growth, such as adding new products or services, expanding into new territories or markets, and increasing your marketing to sell more existing products. Once you’ve decided on a direction for your growth, take a look at your goal and figure out what your business is already doing well and where it needs to improve. Use this to write a 5-year growth plan, detailing the steps you’ll take to put the plan in motion. Then, write a financial plan, including your current financial situation, the amount of capital you need to raise, and how you’ll secure it. If you need to hire extra staff for your expansion, include this in the plan and how much it’ll cost. For more tips, including how to get a business loan to support your growth plan, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Growth Strategy Template

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Outline your corporate growth plan with the help of this detailed template. 

Document and plan for corporate growth in the following areas:

• Sales and Revenue Growth
• Addition of New Branches or Locations
• Growth of Customer Base
• Expansion into New Regions
• Addition of a New Product/Service
• Growth in Employee Headcount
• Growth in Customer Acquisition Rate
• Expansion of Physical Space

Grow With Purpose. Grow With a Plan.

Company growth is exciting – but it's important to have a step-by-step plan to help you achieve your goal. 

That's why you should use this  company growth strategy template to organize your thoughts, process, and expectations for corporate growth – be it in employee headcount, office locations, revenue, or anything else. 

Download this free template to take your corporate growth strategy to the next level. 

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Growth Plan: What is it & How to Create One? (Steps Included)

“I want to increase sales this quarter. I want to expand my business this year. I want to hire new employees this month. I want to improve the quality of my product by the end of this year. I want to hit a new market target.”

If you run a business, you’ve probably said these things or something similar a thousand times. After all, every business has a list of goals they want to achieve by a particular time.

In a perfect world, we’d set goals, and we’d reach them without much effort. Unfortunately, in the real world, there are a lot of things we need to do after setting goals, like creating a growth plan.

A growth plan isn’t just about the goals and future of your business, but also the strategies you would implement to make sure that your vision comes to life.

Considering the fact that 50% of businesses fail during their first five years and 66% fail during their first ten, creating a solid growth plan is quintessential.

So, in this blog post, we’re going to tell you all about growth plans and how you can create one that works like a charm. So buckle up because you’re in for a ride.

Growth Plan: What Exactly is it? (Definition)

A growth plan is a strategic plan about how every aspect of your business will walk towards attaining the business goals. With a growth plan in hand, you’ll know exactly what to do, how, and when to do it.

Even though a growth plan sounds like the marketing tactics you’d implement to grow your business, it’s a lot more than that. It encompasses an overview of everything you’d be doing to grow your business.

Let’s understand the concept of a growth plan better with an example.

Suppose you’re running a gaming laptop business. Your goal is to increase your sales by 60% over the next five years. To achieve this goal, you might need to carry out a plethora of tasks like:

• Hiring new, more experienced sales reps.
• Upgrading the product after conducting market research.
• Finding investors who’d be willing to invest in the new version of the laptop.
• Hiring a social media marketer to handle your business’s social media accounts.
• Creating a TV advertisement that hits the right spot.

Now, you’d be writing all these things in your growth plan, along with other details like timeline, budget, name of the people responsible for carrying out a particular task, and more.

Want to know some other reasons why you need to create a growth plan? Let’s find out!

Read more:  Growth Marketing: What is it & How to Carry it out for your Business?

3 Reasons Why You Should Create a Growth Plan

1. keeps you focused.

When you’re running a business, you usually try to flap your wings around in different places.

But, when some places don’t give you the results you expected, you get frustrated and realize that you wasted so much of your time and effort that you could’ve invested in other areas.

Well, a growth plan can help you avoid that frustration. With a growth plan, you’d know exactly what areas you should be focusing on and what areas you don’t need to pay attention to.

The result? You won’t be wasting any time and effort on places you won’t get any return from.

Read more:  Business Development Plan: What Is It And How To Create A Perfect One?

2. Helps You When Things Go Sideways

We don’t want to scare you, but the landscape of the market is changing at a rapid pace.

That means things in your business can go haywire at any time. But, you really don’t need to worry about that if you have got a strong growth plan in place.

Like we said above, in a growth plan, you write all the strategies that’d lead you to growth. When things go wrong, you can just pick one of the strategies, modify them according to the current scenario, and you’re good to go!

3. Gives You a Direction

Your business isn’t a road trip. You can’t go rogue and see where the road takes you. You need a roadmap, a direction…and that’s exactly what a growth plan gives you.

A growth plan shows you the way towards achieving your goals. It tells you the route you need to take to reach your goals . Without it, you might end up taking the wrong turn and reach a dead end.

To put it simply, when you have a growth plan with you, you’ll know all about what you need to do to make your business successful.

Considering the importance of a growth plan, creating it is not something you can rush through. There are some steps that you need to follow, and we’re going to tell you all about them.

How to Create a Growth Plan In 5 Easy-Peasy Steps?

Set 1. set goals.

Every plan starts with setting business goals , and a growth plan is no different.

After all, you can’t just say “I want this” and expect something to happen automatically. You need to define what exactly you want to achieve, i.e., you need to set your goals.

Also, always make sure that your goals are not vague but realistic and measurable. For instance, “ Increasing sales ” isn’t a solid goal. “ Increasing sales by 20% over the next 6 months ” is the kind of goal you can measure.

Step 2. Conduct Market Research

You might think that once you’ve decided on your goals, you can just go ahead and start creating strategies. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy.

There’s another important step that you need to follow: carrying out market research. Creating strategies without considering the market is not going to help you achieve your goals.

Examine your target audience, the condition of the market, and your competitors. Evaluate what your audience is looking for, how saturated the market is, and what your competitors are doing.

Step 3. Evaluate Your KPIs

Once you’ve done the market research, it’s time to get back home, aka your business, and do some digging. You need to find out what’s working for your business and what’s not.

The best way to figure that out is by evaluating your KPIs. For those who don’t know, KPIs stand for Key Performance Indicators. They are the metrics that are “key” in determining your business’s success.

By assessing your KPIs, you’ll find out the key areas that are giving you the most fruitful results. You can then target these areas while you’re brainstorming strategies for growth. This brings us to the next step:

Read more: KPI Report: What it is & How to Create a Perfect One?

Step 4. Create Strategies

Okay, so now you know everything about the market and your company, so you’re all set to create strategies that you’d be implementing to achieve your goals.

From hiring new sales reps to upgrading your existing product – your strategies can be anything, as long as they help you achieve your goals.

We don’t need to say this, but make sure that your strategies align with your present and future budget. You don’t want to overspend right now and then be short of money when you execute a future strategy.

Step 5. Execute Your Plan

Brace yourselves because it’s time to get the ball rolling and execute the plan. Start implementing all the strategies according to the timeline you’ve set.

However, there’s something that you need to remember: Your plan isn’t a static piece of document. You need to keep modifying and updating it as you go.

Just follow the old saying, ‘ grow through what you go through .’ A strategy isn’t giving the results you expected? Change it. A strategy is working too well? Increase its timeline. A strategy isn’t in trend anymore? Slash it.

Yay! You’ve now learned how to create a solid growth plan.

Now, all that’s left for you to learn is how to create it the right way . See, your growth plan is a VERY essential document. You can’t just type all the strategies out and think that your growth plan is ready.

Your plan needs to have a proper structure and layout. It needs to be easy on the eyes and easy to comprehend. Most of all, it needs to be written after getting inputs from all the departments in your business.

It seems like a tough and long process, doesn’t it? It’s not, because Bit.ai is a platform where you can do all this and more. Want to know more about Bit.ai? Read on!

Read more:   Growth Hacking: What is it & 21 Tools that can Help!

Bit.ai – The Perfect Tool for Creating Growth Plans & Other Business Documents

Yes, that’s the essence of Bit.ai – a document collaboration platform where you can create, organize, share and manage all company documents and other content.

You do not have to worry about formatting or designing your growth plan at all – just pick a template, and put all your strategies in it. Did you know that Bit gives you the option to choose from over 70 templates ?!

This nifty platform lets you and your team collaborate in real-time by co-editing, making inline comments, chatting via document chat, @mentions, and much more.

Want to make your growth plan more robust and comprehensive? Add rich media into it! Bit lets you add excel sheets, social content, cloud files, charts, surveys/polls, code, presentations, and much more to your documents.

One feature that makes Bit stand out is ‘smart workspaces’. On Bit, you can create infinite workspaces around projects and teams. This will help you in keeping all your documents related to your growth plan organized!

Bit.ai makes creating documents as easy as ABC, and there’s no reason why you shouldn’t give it a try.

Wrapping Up

There are some things in business you just can’t avoid, and creating a growth plan is one of them. If you don’t want your business to disappear into thin air, you need to create a proper growth plan.

A growth plan literally has the power to take your business to heights, but only if you create it properly and accurately. It’s not even a gigantic task, considering that you have Bit.ai with you.

So, what are you waiting for? Go ahead, start working on your growth plan and skyrocket the growth of your business. We’re totally rooting for you!

Got any questions or suggestions? Feel free to tweet us @bit_docs. We’d get back to you as soon as possible.

Further reads: 

Financial Plan: What is it & How to Create an Impressive One?

13 Growth Marketing Strategies You Must Know About!

Mitigation Plan: What Is It & How To Create One?

12 Sales KPIs Your Sales Department Should Measure!

Go-To-Market Strategy Guide for Businesses!

Communication Plan: What is it & How to Create it? (Steps included)

How To Develop a Growth Mindset That Will Change Your Future?

12 Marketing Goals You Must Include In Your Plan!

Performance Report: What is it & How to Create it? (Steps Included)

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About Bit.ai

Bit.ai is the essential next-gen workplace and document collaboration platform. that helps teams share knowledge by connecting any type of digital content. With this intuitive, cloud-based solution, anyone can work visually and collaborate in real-time while creating internal notes, team projects, knowledge bases, client-facing content, and more.

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24 Best Sample Business Plans & Examples to Help You Write Your Own

Published: August 17, 2023

Free Business Plan Template

The essential document for starting a business -- custom built for your needs.

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Reading sample business plans is essential when you’re writing your own. As you explore business plan examples from real companies and brands, you’ll learn how to write one that gets your business off on the right foot, convinces investors to provide funding, and confirms your venture is sustainable for the long term.

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But what does a business plan look like? And how do you write one that is viable and convincing? Let's review the ideal business plan formally, then take a look at business plan templates and samples you can use to inspire your own.

Business Plan Format

Ask any successful sports coach how they win so many games, and they’ll tell you they have a unique plan for every single game. The same logic applies to business. If you want to build a thriving company that can pull ahead of the competition, you need to prepare for battle before breaking into a market.

Business plans guide you along the rocky journey of growing a company. Referencing one will keep you on the path toward success. And if your business plan is compelling enough, it can also convince investors to give you funding.

With so much at stake, you might be wondering, "Where do I start? How should I format this?"

Typically, a business plan is a document that will detail how a company will achieve its goals.

• Outline your idea.
• Pitch to investors.
• Secure funding.
• Get to work!

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

Fill out the form to get your free template.

Most business plans include the following sections:

1. Executive Summary

The executive summary is arguably the most important section of the entire business plan. Essentially, it's the overview or introduction, written in a way to grab readers' attention and guide them through the rest of the business plan. This is important, because a business plan can be dozens or hundreds of pages long.

Most executive summaries include:

• Mission statement
• Company history and leadership
• Competitive advantage overview
• Financial projections
• Company goals

Keep in mind you'll cover many of these topics in more detail later on in the business plan. So, keep the executive summary clear and brief, including only the most important takeaways.

Executive Summary Business Plan Examples

This example was created with HubSpot’s business plan template:

And the executive summary below tells potential investors a short story that covers all the most important details this business plan will cover in a succinct and interesting way.

Image Source

Tips for Writing Your Executive Summary

• Clearly define a problem, and explain how your product solves that problem, and show why the market needs your business.
• Be sure to highlight your value proposition, market opportunity, and growth potential.
• Keep it concise and support ideas with data.
• Customize your summary to your audience. For example, emphasize finances and return on investment for venture capitalists.

Check out our tips for writing an effective executive summary for more guidance.

2. Market Opportunity

This is where you'll detail the opportunity in the market. Where is the gap in the current industry, and how will your product fill that gap?

In this section, you might include:

• The size of the market
• Current or potential market share
• Trends in the industry and consumer behavior
• Where the gap is
• What caused the gap
• How you intend to fill it

To get a thorough understanding of the market opportunity, you'll want to conduct a TAM, SAM, and SOM analysis and perform market research on your industry. You may also benefit from creating a SWOT analysis to get some of the insights for this section.

Market Opportunity Business Plan Example

This example uses critical data to underline the size of the potential market and what part of that market this service hopes to capture.

Tips for Writing Your Market Opportunity Section

• Focus on demand and potential for growth.
• Use market research, surveys, and industry trend data to support your market forecast and projections.
• Add a review of regulation shifts, tech advances, and consumer behavior changes.
• Refer to reliable sources.
• Showcase how your business can make the most of this opportunity.

3. Competitive Landscape

Speaking of market share, you'll need to create a section that shares details on who the top competitors are. After all, your customers likely have more than one brand to choose from, and you'll want to understand exactly why they might choose one over another. Performing a competitive analysis can help you uncover:

• Industry trends that other brands may not be utilizing
• Strengths in your competition that may be obstacles to handle
• Weaknesses in your competition that may help you develop selling points
• The unique proposition you bring to the market that may resonate with customers

Competitive Landscape Business Plan Example

The competitive landscape section of the business plan below shows a clear outline of who the top competitors are. It also highlights specific industry knowledge and the importance of location, which shows useful experience in this specific industry. This can help build trust in your ability to execute your business plan.

Tips for Writing Your Competitive Landscape

• Complete in-depth research, then emphasize your most important findings.
• Compare your unique selling proposition (USP) to your direct and indirect competitors.
• Show a clear and realistic plan for product and brand differentiation.
• Look for specific advantages and barriers in the competitive landscape. Then, highlight how that information could impact your business.
• Outline growth opportunities from a competitive perspective.
• Add customer feedback and insights to support your competitive analysis.

4. Target Audience

This section will describe who your customer segments are in detail. What is the demographic and psychographic information of your audience?

If your immediate answer is "everyone," you'll need to dig deeper. Ask yourself:

• What demographics will most likely need/buy your product or service?
• What are the psychographics of this audience? (Desires, triggering events, etc.)
• Why are your offerings valuable to them?

It can be helpful to build a buyer persona to get in the mindset of your ideal customers and be clear on why you're targeting them.

Target Audience Business Plan Example

The example below uses in-depth research to draw conclusions about audience priorities. It also analyzes how to create the right content for this audience.

Tips for Writing Your Target Audience Section

• Include details on the size and growth potential of your target audience.
• Figure out and refine the pain points for your target audience , then show why your product is a useful solution.
• Describe your targeted customer acquisition strategy in detail.
• Share anticipated challenges your business may face in acquiring customers and how you plan to address them.
• Add case studies, testimonials, and other data to support your target audience ideas.
• Remember to consider niche audiences and segments of your target audience in your business plan.

5. Marketing Strategy

Here, you'll discuss how you'll acquire new customers with your marketing strategy. You might consider including information on:

• The brand positioning vision and how you'll cultivate it
• The goal targets you aim to achieve
• The metrics you'll use to measure success
• The channels and distribution tactics you'll use

It can help to already have a marketing plan built out to help you with this part of your business plan.

Marketing Strategy Business Plan Example

This business plan example includes the marketing strategy for the town of Gawler. It offers a comprehensive picture of how it plans to use digital marketing to promote the community.

Tips for Writing Your Marketing Strategy

• Include a section about how you believe your brand vision will appeal to customers.
• Add the budget and resources you'll need to put your plan in place.
• Outline strategies for specific marketing segments.
• Connect strategies to earlier sections like target audience and competitive analysis.
• Review how your marketing strategy will scale with the growth of your business.
• Cover a range of channels and tactics to highlight your ability to adapt your plan in the face of change.

6. Key Features and Benefits

At some point in your business plan, you'll review the key features and benefits of your products and/or services. Laying these out can give readers an idea of how you're positioning yourself in the market and the messaging you're likely to use . It can even help them gain better insight into your business model.

Key Features and Benefits Business Plan Example

The example below outlines products and services for this business, along with why these qualities will attract the audience.

Tips for Writing Your Key Features and Benefits

• Emphasize why and how your product or service offers value to customers.
• Use metrics and testimonials to support the ideas in this section.
• Talk about how your products and services have the potential to scale.
• Think about including a product roadmap.
• Focus on customer needs, and how the features and benefits you are sharing meet those needs.
• Offer proof of concept for your ideas, like case studies or pilot program feedback.
• Proofread this section carefully, and remove any jargon or complex language.

7. Pricing and Revenue

This is where you'll discuss your cost structure and various revenue streams. Your pricing strategy must be solid enough to turn a profit while staying competitive in the industry. For this reason, you might outline:

• The specific pricing breakdowns per product or service
• Why your pricing is higher or lower than your competition's
• (If higher) Why customers would be willing to pay more
• (If lower) How you're able to offer your products or services at a lower cost
• When you expect to break even, what margins do you expect, etc?

Pricing and Revenue Business Plan Example

This business plan example begins with an overview of the business revenue model, then shows proposed pricing for key products.

Tips for Writing Your Pricing and Revenue Section

• Get specific about your pricing strategy. Specifically, how you connect that strategy to customer needs and product value.
• If you are asking a premium price, share unique features or innovations that justify that price point.
• Show how you plan to communicate pricing to customers.
• Create an overview of every revenue stream for your business and how each stream adds to your business model as a whole.
• Share plans to develop new revenue streams in the future.
• Show how and whether pricing will vary by customer segment and how pricing aligns with marketing strategies.
• Restate your value proposition and explain how it aligns with your revenue model.

8. Financials

This section is particularly informative for investors and leadership teams to figure out funding strategies, investment opportunities, and more. According to Forbes , you'll want to include three main things:

• Profit/Loss Statement - This answers the question of whether your business is currently profitable.
• Cash Flow Statement - This details exactly how much cash is incoming and outgoing to give insight into how much cash a business has on hand.
• Balance Sheet - This outlines assets, liabilities, and equity, which gives insight into how much a business is worth.

While some business plans might include more or less information, these are the key details you'll want to include.

Financials Business Plan Example

This balance sheet example shows the level of detail you will need to include in the financials section of your business plan:

Tips for Writing Your Financials Section

• Growth potential is important in this section too. Using your data, create a forecast of financial performance in the next three to five years.
• Include any data that supports your projections to assure investors of the credibility of your proposal.
• Add a break-even analysis to show that your business plan is financially practical. This information can also help you pivot quickly as your business grows.
• Consider adding a section that reviews potential risks and how sensitive your plan is to changes in the market.
• Triple-check all financial information in your plan for accuracy.
• Show how any proposed funding needs align with your plans for growth.

As you create your business plan, keep in mind that each of these sections will be formatted differently. Some may be in paragraph format, while others could be charts or graphs.

Business Plan Types

The formats above apply to most types of business plans. That said, the format and structure of your plan will vary by your goals for that plan. So, we’ve added a quick review of different business plan types. For a more detailed overview, check out this post .

1. Startups

Startup business plans are for proposing new business ideas.

If you’re planning to start a small business, preparing a business plan is crucial. The plan should include all the major factors of your business. You can check out this guide for more detailed business plan inspiration .

2. Feasibility Studies

Feasibility business plans focus on that business's product or service. Feasibility plans are sometimes added to startup business plans. They can also be a new business plan for an already thriving organization.

3. Internal Use

You can use internal business plans to share goals, strategies, or performance updates with stakeholders. Internal business plans are useful for alignment and building support for ambitious goals.

4. Strategic Initiatives

Another business plan that's often for sharing internally is a strategic business plan. This plan covers long-term business objectives that might not have been included in the startup business plan.

5. Business Acquisition or Repositioning

When a business is moving forward with an acquisition or repositioning, it may need extra structure and support. These types of business plans expand on a company's acquisition or repositioning strategy.

Growth sometimes just happens as a business continues operations. But more often, a business needs to create a structure with specific targets to meet set goals for expansion. This business plan type can help a business focus on short-term growth goals and align resources with those goals.

Sample Business Plan Templates

Now that you know what's included and how to format a business plan, let's review some templates.

1. HubSpot's One-Page Business Plan

Download a free, editable one-page business plan template..

The business plan linked above was created here at HubSpot and is perfect for businesses of any size — no matter how many strategies we still have to develop.

Fields such as Company Description, Required Funding, and Implementation Timeline give this one-page business plan a framework for how to build your brand and what tasks to keep track of as you grow. Then, as the business matures, you can expand on your original business plan with a new iteration of the above document.

Why We Like It

This one-page business plan is a fantastic choice for the new business owner who doesn’t have the time or resources to draft a full-blown business plan. It includes all the essential sections in an accessible, bullet-point-friendly format. That way, you can get the broad strokes down before honing in on the details.

2. HubSpot's Downloadable Business Plan Template

We also created a business plan template for entrepreneurs.

The template is designed as a guide and checklist for starting your own business. You’ll learn what to include in each section of your business plan and how to do it. There’s also a list for you to check off when you finish each section of your business plan.

Strong game plans help coaches win games and help businesses rocket to the top of their industries. So if you dedicate the time and effort required to write a workable and convincing business plan, you’ll boost your chances of success and even dominance in your market.

This business plan kit is essential for the budding entrepreneur who needs a more extensive document to share with investors and other stakeholders. It not only includes sections for your executive summary, product line, market analysis, marketing plan, and sales plan, but it also offers hands-on guidance for filling out those sections.

3. LiveFlow’s Financial Planning Template with built-in automation

This free template from LiveFlow aims to make it easy for businesses to create a financial plan and track their progress on a monthly basis. The P&L Budget versus Actual format allows users to track their revenue, cost of sales, operating expenses, operating profit margin, net profit, and more.

The summary dashboard aggregates all of the data put into the financial plan sheet and will automatically update when changes are made. Instead of wasting hours manually importing your data to your spreadsheet, LiveFlow can also help you to automatically connect your accounting and banking data directly to your spreadsheet, so your numbers are always up-to-date.

With the dashboard, you can view your runway, cash balance, burn rate, gross margins, and other metrics. Having a simple way to track everything in one place will make it easier to complete the financials section of your business plan.

This is a fantastic template to track performance and alignment internally and to create a dependable process for documenting financial information across the business. It’s highly versatile and beginner-friendly. It’s especially useful if you don’t have an accountant on the team. (We always recommend you do, but for new businesses, having one might not be possible.)

4. ThoughtCo’s Sample Business Plan

One of the more financially oriented sample business plans in this list, BPlan’s free business plan template dedicates many of its pages to your business’s financial plan and financial statements.

After filling this business plan out, your company will truly understand its financial health and the steps you need to take to maintain or improve it.

We absolutely love this business plan template because of its ease-of-use and hands-on instructions (in addition to its finance-centric components). If you feel overwhelmed by the thought of writing an entire business plan, consider using this template to help you with the process.

6. Harvard Business Review’s "How to Write a Winning Business Plan"

Most sample business plans teach you what to include in your business plan, but this Harvard Business Review article will take your business plan to the next level — it teaches you the why and how behind writing a business plan.

With the guidance of Stanley Rich and Richard Gumpert, co-authors of " Business Plans That Win: Lessons From the MIT Enterprise Forum ", you'll learn how to write a convincing business plan that emphasizes the market demand for your product or service. You’ll also learn the financial benefits investors can reap from putting money into your venture rather than trying to sell them on how great your product or service is.

This business plan guide focuses less on the individual parts of a business plan, and more on the overarching goal of writing one. For that reason, it’s one of our favorites to supplement any template you choose to use. Harvard Business Review’s guide is instrumental for both new and seasoned business owners.

7. HubSpot’s Complete Guide to Starting a Business

If you’re an entrepreneur, you know writing a business plan is one of the most challenging first steps to starting a business. Fortunately, with HubSpot's comprehensive guide to starting a business, you'll learn how to map out all the details by understanding what to include in your business plan and why it’s important to include them. The guide also fleshes out an entire sample business plan for you.

If you need further guidance on starting a business, HubSpot's guide can teach you how to make your business legal, choose and register your business name, and fund your business. It will also give small business tax information and includes marketing, sales, and service tips.

This comprehensive guide will walk you through the process of starting a business, in addition to writing your business plan, with a high level of exactitude and detail. So if you’re in the midst of starting your business, this is an excellent guide for you. It also offers other resources you might need, such as market analysis templates.

8. Panda Doc’s Free Business Plan Template

PandaDoc’s free business plan template is one of the more detailed and fleshed-out sample business plans on this list. It describes what you should include in each section, so you don't have to come up with everything from scratch.

Once you fill it out, you’ll fully understand your business’ nitty-gritty details and how all of its moving parts should work together to contribute to its success.

This template has two things we love: comprehensiveness and in-depth instructions. Plus, it’s synced with PandaDoc’s e-signature software so that you and other stakeholders can sign it with ease. For that reason, we especially love it for those starting a business with a partner or with a board of directors.

9. Small Business Administration Free Business Plan Template

The Small Business Administration (SBA) offers several free business plan templates that can be used to inspire your own plan. Before you get started, you can decide what type of business plan you need — a traditional or lean start-up plan.

Then, you can review the format for both of those plans and view examples of what they might look like.

We love both of the SBA’s templates because of their versatility. You can choose between two options and use the existing content in the templates to flesh out your own plan. Plus, if needed, you can get a free business counselor to help you along the way.

Top Business Plan Examples

Here are some completed business plan samples to get an idea of how to customize a plan for your business. We’ve chosen different types of business plan ideas to expand your imagination. Some are extensive, while others are fairly simple.

Take a look.

1. LiveFlow

One of the major business expenses is marketing. How you handle your marketing reflects your company’s revenue. We included this business plan to show you how you can ensure your marketing team is aligned with your overall business plan to get results. The plan also shows you how to track even the smallest metrics of your campaigns, like ROI and payback periods instead of just focusing on big metrics like gross and revenue.

Fintech startup, LiveFlow, allows users to sync real-time data from its accounting services, payment platforms, and banks into custom reports. This eliminates the task of pulling reports together manually, saving teams time and helping automate workflows.

When it came to including marketing strategy in its business plan, LiveFlow created a separate marketing profit and loss statement (P&L) to track how well the company was doing with its marketing initiatives. This is a great approach, allowing businesses to focus on where their marketing dollars are making the most impact.

"Using this framework over a traditional marketing plan will help you set a profitable marketing strategy taking things like CAC, LTV, Payback period, and P&L into consideration," explains LiveFlow co-founder, Lasse Kalkar .

Having this information handy will enable you to build out your business plan’s marketing section with confidence. LiveFlow has shared the template here . You can test it for yourself.

2. Lula Body

Sometimes all you need is a solid mission statement and core values to guide you on how to go about everything. You do this by creating a business plan revolving around how to fulfill your statement best. For example, Patagonia is an eco-friendly company, so their plan discusses how to make the best environmentally friendly products without causing harm.

A good mission statement should not only resonate with consumers but should also serve as a core value compass for employees as well.

Outdoor clothing retailer, Patagonia, has one of the most compelling mission statements we’ve seen:

"Together, let’s prioritise purpose over profit and protect this wondrous planet, our only home."

It reels you in from the start, and the environmentally friendly theme continues throughout the rest of the statement.

This mission goes on to explain that they are out to "Build the best product, cause no unnecessary harm, and use business to protect nature."

Their mission statement is compelling and detailed, with each section outlining how they will accomplish their goal.

4. Vesta Home Automation

This is the kind of business plan you need when applying for business funds. It clearly illustrates the expected future of the company and how the business has been coming along over the years.

This executive summary for a smart home device startup is part of a business plan created by students at Mount Royal University . While it lacks some of the sleek visuals of the templates above, its executive summary does a great job of demonstrating how invested they are in the business.

Right away, they mention they’ve invested $200,000 into the company already, which shows investors they have skin in the game and aren’t just looking for someone else to foot the bill.

5. NALB Creative Center

This fictional business plan for an art supply store includes everything one might need in a business plan: an executive summary, a company summary, a list of services, a market analysis summary, and more. Due to its comprehensiveness, it’s an excellent example to follow if you’re opening a brick-and-mortar store and need to get external funding to start your business .

One of its most notable sections is its market analysis summary, which includes an overview of the population growth in the business’ target geographical area, as well as a breakdown of the types of potential customers they expect to welcome at the store. This sort of granular insight is essential for understanding and communicating your business’s growth potential. Plus, it lays a strong foundation for creating relevant and useful buyer personas .

It’s essential to keep this information up-to-date as your market and target buyer changes. For that reason, you should carry out market research as often as possible to ensure that you’re targeting the correct audience and sharing accurate information with your investors.

6. Curriculum Companion Suites (CSS)

If you’re looking for a SaaS business plan example, look no further than this business plan for a fictional educational software company called Curriculum Companion Suites. Like the business plan for the NALB Creative Center, it includes plenty of information for prospective investors and other key stakeholders in the business.

One of the most notable features of this business plan is the executive summary, which includes an overview of the product, market, and mission. The first two are essential for software companies because the product offering is so often at the forefront of the company’s strategy. Without that information being immediately available to investors and executives, then you risk writing an unfocused business plan.

It’s also essential to front-load your company’s mission if it explains your "Why?" In other words, why do you do what you do, and why should stakeholders care? This is an important section to include if you feel that your mission will drive interest in the business and its offerings.

7. Culina Sample Business Plan

Culina's sample business plan is an excellent example of how to lay out your business plan so that it flows naturally, engages readers, and provides the critical information investors and stakeholders need. You can also use this template as a guide while you're gathering important details. After looking at this sample, you'll have a better understanding of the data and research you need to do for your own business plan.

8. Plum Sample Business Plan

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Top 10 Business Growth Plan Templates with Samples and Examples

Mohammed Sameer

Every organization should have a strategic business growth plan that aligns with the company’s goals. A strategy with attainable and measurable goals can be the difference between success and stagnation.

This is true for most people, from entrepreneurs to athletes. Identifying where you want to go, and the steps you need to take to get there will ensure that your company meets all objectives with ease.

A growth strategy integrates all functional areas of the business to achieve your long-term goals. Every department, from sales and marketing to product development, must contribute to the detailed development of this plan. This collaboration aids in achieving synergy and enables your business to achieve unparalleled efficiencies. 

We've compiled a list of the top 10 Business Growth Plan Templates to ensure that business leaders can reap the benefits.

Business Growth Templates Your Company Needs

Napoleon Hill once said, "Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle." And without a proper plan in place, all your efforts and struggles could be futile. Growth planning is a strategic exercise that allows business owners to schedule and monitor the progress of their revenue. SlideTeam's Business Growth Plan Templates make it easier and faster to create these plans. Let's explore them.

Template 1: Business growth plan PPT Template

Draft an inclusive business growth plan leveraging our content-ready PPT Template. It covers the heart and soul of an effective business growth plan. It emphasizes the importance of revenue streams, SWOT Analysis , PESTEL Analysis, financial plan, and risk control. It’s a resource that is a must-have. Download it now.

Get this template

Template 2: Business Growth And Development Plan

In the deck of all kings , this illustrative template is an Ace of Spades. It is ripe with knowledge and aesthetically-pleasing graphics that make the perfect blend of memorable and impactful presentations. A download of it will ensure you and your team has a concrete business growth plan to work on and take your organization to the heights of success. Get it now.

Download this template

Template 3: Business Growth Planning PPT Framework

Business growth never comes easy. You have to be relentless in your work and diligent in your efforts to give a fair shot to your business to reach success (which is still not guaranteed). SlideTeam has prepared this PowerPoint Presentation to make your life easy. This template helps you frame an effective and workable business growth plan. Get it now.

Grab this template

Template 4: Business Growth Strategy And Revenue Model

Here’s a star PPT Template for preparing a business growth strategy that aligns with your company’s brand and vision. From business growth model and revenue model to go-to-market strategy and marketing strategy, this presentation template has everything that makes a business plan a success. Get it now.

Template 5: Business Growth and Strategy Planning 

Business growth and strategic planning can be daunting tasks to accomplish. With SlideTeam as your PPT Presentation partner, you can rest assured that you never have to worry about anything. We have built this PPT Template on extensive research and analysis to ensure you have the best resource for your business. Grab it now.

Template 6: Two-Stage Business Growth Plan

Here’s a two-stage business growth plan that can help your enterprise break free of the grip of stagnation. Improve your business’ visibility and take steps to move from mere existence to a stage where your key decision-makers have the maturity to offer new products. Use this slide to showcase business growth in two steps and the attractive backdrop to convince clients of your resolve to grow your business. Download it now.

Template 7: Growth-Oriented Business Plan PowerPoint Presentation Slides

This business growth template contains the overview, financial highlights of the company, revenue streams, growth strategies, and much more. Using it, you can easily present the financial highlights covering turnover, net assets, and EBITA (earnings before interest, taxes, and depreciation). You can quickly identify and analyze the company's strengths, weaknesses, threats, and opportunities. Showcase PESTLE analysis that examines external and internal business factors affecting your organization's performance.

Template 8: Next Year Annual Business Growth Plan

As 2022 is almost over, it is time to plan for the year ahead. One of the absolute essentials for any business is to have a solid business growth plan. Not sure about how to make the next year’s annual business growth plan? Fret not; SlideTeam is here to help. By downloading this template, you can have all the right resources critical to framing a relevant business growth plan.

Template 9: Key Essential of Business Growth Plan

As a business development manager, building a business growth plan without knowing the key essentials is suicidal. It is also akin to giving directions to a location you have no clue about. Your business will end up stuck in the middle of nowhere. Here’s an exemplary PPT Template that describes the key essentials necessary to draft an effective business growth plan. Grab it now.

Template 10: Strategies for Business Growth PPT Template

Business growth is not an overnight achievement. You need proven strategies to guide your business to success. With a lot already on your plate, you will need assistance in strategizing. SlideTeam acknowledges that constraint and has developed an illustrative PPT Template that describes the strategies for business growth. Grab it now.

Before We Bid Adieu

There is no quick fix or silver bullet that will result in exponential growth.

Indeed, growth is a lengthy process that necessitates a keen focus and understanding of the data and metrics that influence the moving parts of an organization. That is why, in order to truly succeed, you must have a well-thought-out growth strategy (and our business growth plan templates to build one).

FAQs on Business Growth Plan

How do i write a business growth plan.

Steps to Make a Growth-Oriented Business Plan:

• Define your Aim
• Determine your Market(s) and Customers (s)
• Choose your Value Proposition
• Set your Goals and Objectives
• Plan Out your Operations
• Create a well-defined marketing strategy
• Outline your Budget and Forecasting
• Step-wise Execution with Real-time Monitoring

What are the 4 types of business growth strategies?

The following are the four primary growth strategies:

Market Penetration

This strategy aims to increase sales of existing products or services in markets where you are already present, giving you an increased share. You can accomplish this by luring customers away from competitors and ensuring that your existing customers purchase your products or services more frequently. It can be achieved through price reductions, increased promotion and distribution support, acquiring a competitor in the same market, or minor product refinements.

Market Development

It entails expanding existing product or service sales into previously untapped markets. Market expansion entails determining how a company's existing products can be sold in new markets or how to grow the existing market. It can be accomplished through a study of customer segments, such as industrial buyers, for a product that was previously only sold to households. Example: Internet service providers targeted employers for using their product, when it was not so ubiquitous.

Product Development

The goal is to introduce new products or services into existing markets. Product development can be used to expand the offer to current customers to increase ARPU (Average Revenue Per User). These products can be obtained by investing in additional product research and development, acquiring the rights to manufacture someone else's product, purchasing the product, and "branding" it.

Diversification

It entails introducing new products or services into previously untapped markets. Diversification involves higher business risk. It involves the company marketing completely new products and services in a completely unknown market.

What is a growth plan in a business plan?

Business and growth planning are similar. A growth plan primarily focuses on revenue generation or expansion and the actions required to achieve it.

It is a detailed, systematic record of your company's future goals. It outlines your company's goals and objectives and clear strategies and tactics for achieving these.

A growth plan considers the following:

• Your company's current state, including its strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities.
• What do you want your company to be in the future?
• A strategy and timetable for achieving your goals.

What is the 5 Ps strategy?

Mintzberg developed his 5 Ps of Strategy as five distinct definitions of (or approaches to) strategy development. He first discussed the 5 Ps of Strategy in 1987. Each of the 5 Ps represents a distinct approach to strategy. 

• Perspective

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8 Growth Strategies for the Modern Business Landscape

Nov 3, 2023 | Read time: 10 min.

RJ Licata , Sr. Director of Marketing

• A growth strategy is an action plan for a business to increase sales, revenue, or customers.
• Choose business growth strategies that align with your budget, goals, timelines, competition, and desired market share.
• The most effective growth strategies align with brand positioning, possess deep audience insight, and are diversified to reduce risk and maximize market share expansion.

Contents Jump to

In a business landscape where consumer preferences and behavior are constantly changing alongside technology, the significance of a growth strategy cannot be overstated. 

It’s the blueprint for success, the guiding force that propels businesses forward, and the key to thriving in a fiercely competitive market.

In this article, we’ll define what growth strategy means, discuss different types of strategies, and how to build one. We’ll also explore the transformative power an integrated approach holds in the pursuit of business excellence.

Why growth strategy matters

Put simply, a growth strategy is a well-defined plan or set of tactics for achieving expansion and increased success. It outlines how a business intends to grow in terms of revenue, market share, customer base, or geographical locations. 

MARKETING TERM DEFINITION Growth Strategy A well-defined plan or set of tactics for achieving expansion and increased success

Growth strategies encompass various approaches, such as market penetration, product development, market development, diversification, mergers and acquisitions, and more, depending on the specific goals and circumstances of the business. These strategies are critical for a company’s long-term viability and competitiveness.

To remain relevant and adaptive, large brands must continuously seek new avenues for growth, innovation, and market expansion. A robust growth strategy enables businesses to navigate these changes effectively.

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Types of business growth strategies

At a high level, there is organic business growth and inorganic. Organic growth means expanding naturally through internal efforts, like increasing sales, launching new products, or entering new markets, without relying on mergers or acquisitions. 

It’s self-driven growth from within the company, and it’s considered more stable and sustainable than inorganic growth that happens through external means.

The four most common and well-known growth strategies align with the Ansoff-Matrix: market penetration, product development, market development, and diversification. But with the expanding digital landscape and changes in consumer behavior , brands have more opportunities to diversify their approach, grow their footprint, and get in front of customers in more impactful ways. 

Here’s a closer look at 8 different types.

1. Market development (expansion)

Market development, or market expansion, is a growth strategy where you sell existing products to new, untapped markets. This strategy helps you broaden your market share beyond your current customer base. 

It might involve targeting different industries, demographics, corporate departments, or geographic areas. Successful companies often find the most profitable growth by expanding into adjacent markets. 

Uber’s global expansion is a prime example. They started in the United States and expanded internationally, adapting their services to local needs and regulations. This move extended their customer base and global presence, contributing to their significant growth as a transportation platform. 

To succeed in a new market, it’s essential to understand the entire competitive landscape, including non-direct competitors and key decision-makers.

2. Market penetration

Market penetration, on the other hand, aims to increase a company’s market share and sales within an existing market or customer base. This strategy typically involves selling more of the company’s existing products or services to its current customers or targeting similar customers who have not yet used the company’s offerings.

Amazon’s expansion of its Amazon Prime service is one example of market penetration. Amazon already had a large customer base, but they wanted to increase customer loyalty and sales within that existing customer pool.

Amazon introduced various enhancements to its Prime service, including faster delivery options, expanded streaming content, and exclusive deals. These options aimed to attract new customers while also encouraging current Prime members to use the service more frequently.

As a result, Amazon increased its market penetration by making the Prime service more attractive to a broader range of consumers.

Interested in assessing your current market position or exploring a new one? See where you stand today .

3. Market disruption

Market disruption involves entering a well-established industry that is usually dominated by a few legacy brands and proceeding to do things completely differently than everyone else. There are many ways you can potentially disrupt a market, including:

• Using a completely different business model, as many direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands have done.
• Utilizing innovations, such as when Salesforce offered a cloud-based CRM.
• Offering significantly cheaper or better quality products.
• Providing something new, such as Slack replacing traditional email.

Think of how Dollar Shave Club disrupted the male razor market with a DTC model. In a sign of capitulation, Unilever acquired them roughly five years later for $1 billion.

4. Product expansion or diversification

Developing new products or adding new features to existing ones can be a highly effective business growth strategy. Product development opens your brand up to new audiences who weren’t interested in your brand before.

Semrush is an example of a company that started with a rudimentary SEO and paid search platform.

The company launched new features over the years, and it’s now a comprehensive software suite. Although the target audience never changed, new functionalities appealed to a wider segment of that audience.

This business growth strategy worked well for Semrush which has a current market capitalization of more than $2.7 billion.

5. Owned asset optimization

Owned asset optimization (OAO) is an emerging approach to growth strategy that aims to harmonize a company’s various brand and marketing efforts around common business goals.

In OAO, a brand’s content and other marketing materials are viewed as business assets with potentially untapped value. These assets are then optimized and strategically leveraged to build brand equity and generate consistent, predictable revenue streams.

This approach creates a synergistic relationship between branding and revenue generation , ensuring that marketing efforts not only drive engagement but also contribute directly to the bottom line.

Owned Asset Optimization (OAO) | The Foundational Guide

6. new channels.

New distribution channels rank among the top 10 business strategies for growth because they propel revenue growth without any product changes. Ecommerce businesses like Allbirds have increased revenue by also growing their brick-and-mortar presence. Whereas Allbirds was exclusively online in the beginning, they currently boast 29 real-world stores.

Sometimes, one company’s identification of a new distribution channel can trigger a tsunami of change throughout the industry. Take Salesforce. They introduced the idea of cloud-based, subscription software in an industry dominated by large, expensive, complex enterprise software requiring an army of professional service reps to get it to work.

Salesforce went on to grow rapidly, and today it’s a $21 billion+ entity. The software industry transformed, and today is filled with other SaaS offerings.

7. Strategic partnerships

Strategic partnerships with other brands can generate growth that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. For example, if you partner with a company that offers a product or service that complements yours, you get access to their audience, and vice-versa. You also receive referrals from your strategic partner and benefit from the goodwill built up around their brand.

An example of a strategic partnership that worked well is the one between Lyft and Taco Bell. Lyft offered Taco Bell delivery service to its customers, in which a Lyft passenger could request a mid-trip stop at a local Taco Bell (“Taco Mode”) with a simple tap within the Lyft app. The partnership led to free publicity for both companies and an increase in sales for Taco Bell.

Strategic partnerships can also focus on an improved or unique product. Once again, looking at Taco Bell, a partnership with Doritos resulted in the creation of the Doritos Locos Taco. To say it was a massive hit is an understatement. Within the first 18 months of the new product launch, Doritos Locos Taco sales surpassed $1 billion.

8. Acquisitions

Acquisitions are one of the most straightforward and effective paths to business growth. They typically become a viable strategy for companies with substantial cash flow and debt capacity at their disposal.

Acquisitions offer a range of advantages. They enable businesses to:

• Reduce competition by acquiring direct competitors.
• Gain access to proprietary technology that would be time-consuming and costly to develop in-house.
• Tap into the customer base of the acquired company.

A prominent example of successful business growth through acquisitions is Salesforce. In 2020, Salesforce acquired Slack Technologies, a prominent business communication platform. This acquisition allowed Salesforce to diversify its services beyond customer relationship management (CRM) into workplace collaboration and communication. 

The goal was to create an integrated platform for businesses and merge customer data with communication tools. This underscored the trend of companies broadening their service offerings through strategic acquisitions to provide more comprehensive solutions to their customers.

How to build a successful growth strategy

So, how do you execute a successful business growth strategy? A comprehensive growth strategy encompasses all aspects of your brand, including digital marketing, brand identity, positioning, and customer experience. Here are the key steps that ensure your growth strategy is set up for success.

Know your brand

First and foremost, you need a clear understanding of your brand identity and strengths. Identify your core competencies, positioning, and differentiation. Consider Walmart, for instance, which achieved remarkable growth by delivering the lowest prices for its customers.

Conduct market and audience research

No matter which growth strategies you implement, start with market research. Research gives you insight into your current customers as well as potential new business from untapped markets. This step reveals trends, growth opportunities, and potential barriers to entry that could limit your success in a new market.

Audience research helps you tap into new areas of your current market, as well as new audience segments that could benefit from your offerings. You’ll uncover valuable insights about buying behavior and product preferences in addition to the channels they use most frequently along their journey .

Competitive research highlights your positioning relative to competitors in your current market. It also identifies market share leaders in new areas so you can assess their vulnerabilities and capitalize on opportunities.

Establish goals

Once you have a clear understanding of your current market as well as where you want to grow (new markets or existing markets), you can then establish specific growth goals. Goals are key to any growth strategy because they drive the actions that lead to success.

All growth goals should be measurable, and quantitative goals should be time-bound with deadlines.

By establishing clear goals, you can measure your success and optimize your activities over time. You can adjust your strategy as necessary to ensure the achievement of your growth objectives.

Determine your growth strategy

After you set growth goals, decide which growth strategy you’ll implement to acquire new customers and achieve your goals.

Will you target organic growth, or use an acquisition strategy? Alternatively, you might combine several strategies to achieve your goals. It’s more complex to implement multiple business growth strategies, but it’s certainly a method to maximize your results.

The strategy or strategies you choose will depend on a variety of factors, including your budget, goals, opportunities, competition, timelines, and calculated market share targets.

Create your implementation plan

Your execution plan contains the nitty-gritty details of your growth strategy. It’s the concrete actions you’re going to take to make your growth strategy a reality. For example, if you’re going to use acquisitions as a growth strategy, define the specific gaps you’re aiming to fill or the new audience segments you’re trying to capture.

Don’t be vague with your execution plan. Spell out all the details of your growth strategy so that you and your team members know what needs to be executed, when it needs to be done, and how it will be achieved.

All of this planning creates accountability and helps ensure that you hit your intended growth goals more reliably.

Measure results and optimize for what works

Once you have established your growth strategy and have started executing it, regularly measure the key metrics that indicate your performance. The metrics you choose should be closely tied to your overall growth goals, not vanity metrics with no real-world bearing on actual results.

The more you monitor and measure your growth efforts, the more you’ll begin to see which parts of your execution plan are producing results and which aren’t. If something is working particularly well, double down on it. If a particular tactic isn’t effective, don’t be afraid to pivot.

Continually optimize the activities of your business growth strategies, and you’re bound to come out ahead in the end.

Make Connections that Matter

Uncover what your customers are looking for in real time and meet their needs with valuable content.

The power of an integrated approach to growth

Even though you’re making serious investments with any business growth strategy, there needs to be elements of flexibility in your approach. The power of an integrated growth strategy in the modern business landscape lies in its ability to harness the collective strength and flexibility of diverse approaches to drive sustainable success.

By combining market development, disruption, diversification, channel expansion, strategic partnerships, acquisitions, and emerging approaches like OAO, businesses can adapt to changing landscapes, and seize opportunities while mitigating risks.

This synergy fosters a holistic, future-focused approach that propels companies toward expansion. The most resilient, legacy-building brands are those that weave these strategies into a dynamic program, creating a roadmap for sustained growth.

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8 Growth Plan Examples for Your Business

Table of Contents

When it comes to business growth, companies have plenty of opportunities to invest. But because there are so many options of where and how to invest, deciding what’s right for your organization can be overwhelming.

This article covers eight growth plan examples to reach a more extensive customer base, surpass competitors, and expand your business.

What Are Business Growth Plan Strategies?

Business growth plan strategies help a company grow, allowing the company to potentially become stronger, larger, and more profitable. Growth might occur through raising capital from strategic investors, developing new products, and reducing advertising costs to lead to a better outcome.

Business growth plans are dynamic tools used by management to grow the company’s size and market share. But the plan itself is typically designed with investors in mind. This is so that investors may understand how the company they’ve invested in intends to spend their money and develop as a business. A thorough business growth plan will achieve that objective.

Why Are Growth Strategies Important?

A growth strategy is a set of actions and decisions meant to increase the size of your business over a specified period of time. This can be anything from opening a new store to entering a new market in order to gain market share. This can result in a growth in revenue, profit, or other variables of your business.

Moreover, growth plans provide your business with a goal and long-term direction. You can maintain your focus on the future by laying out a plan of action for areas where your business might be improved.

Through these growth strategies, You may enhance upon what is already effective and make changes to things that require improvement.

Finding the most effective plan for your business is vital because no growth strategies are universal. However, breaking down your ideas into smaller bits will help you analyze scopes of improvement and accomplish specific objectives.

Types of Growth Plans for Your Business

The types of growth plan vary based on what goals you’re trying to meet. An effective growth plan is one that is as specific as your goal and as flexible as your team. The most common types of business plans are:

Market Strategy

Growth plans should be designed around the market strategy; these range from a target market approach to a revenue-generating strategy. If you have just begun your company, these strategies might be simple and small to keep the company’s growth manageable.

Speak to your current and potential customers to learn what they want and are looking for while formulating your strategy.

Development Strategy

A development strategy tries to open up a new market for the goods and services offered by your business. This comprises creating consumer profiles and looking for new market segments and demographics to target with marketing and advertising.

Product Strategy

A product strategy plan helps entrepreneurs find new and innovative products for their company and develop a marketing plan to generate sales.

Such a plan aims to balance the need for a creative new product with the need for stability and scalability. A product strategy plan also helps the entrepreneur create a successful product launch, ensuring strong sales.

Diversification

Development and product strategy are both elements of diversification. Chunking down product sales can be an excellent way to grow your business by diversifying your offerings.

You can increase your revenue by getting into other markets and pricing your product differently. You can also increase your influence by providing a similar product in another market with the same benefits. This will help you interact with new customers and create opportunities for new sales.

Top 8 Growth Plan Examples

A growth plan is a business development strategy designed to help an enterprise grow and increase profitability. It helps plan out long-term and short-term goals and focuses on how an enterprise can grow cash flow, sales, and other metrics.

Following a suitable growth plan can help you reach a more significant portion of the market share. Below are the top eight growth strategies frequently used by businesses.

1. Start Promotions

Promotion starts with community engagement. This can be accomplished through social media marketing and is key at any stage of your company’s growth plan. Building brand awareness and incorporating social advertising into your current marketing mix will help propel you to the next level.

2. Viral Loops

Viral loops are a marketing technique designed to generate word-of-mouth advertising. Viral loops work by creating a loop, which is a back-and-forth process that establishes and reinforces a relationship between two or more people.

3. Check Pricing

Pricing is a marketing activity that relies on the knowledge and experience of your business’s goals and the market’s needs. Companies could use low prices as a growth strategy. Consumers are frequently drawn to your brand when you provide a more affordable option than your competitors.

4. Ensure Quality

A business reflects its quality by measuring its team and customers, as well as its ability to generate revenue and competitive advantage. Businesses that frequently concentrate on raising the quality of their goods and services reap the rewards.

With a business plan, you can create a quality company culture. As a result, you can have an efficient sales and marketing strategy with increased customer trust and recommendations.

5. Word of Mouth

Word of mouth can be a great growth strategy. If you need it to be, you need to promote your products or services in a way that brings in talk.

Provide perks for influential people in your industry, such as celebrities, influencers, and top journalists. They will most likely help promote your product for you. All the more reason to learn leadership skills!

6. Strong Branding

If you want your business to grow, it’s vital that you have a strong brand. Building a strong brand means not just promoting your business but also guaranteeing your customer a consistent experience and the trust of a brand.

One way to implement a strong brand is by creating a unique value proposition for your customers that other companies cannot offer.

7. Targeted Emails

Targeted emails are an effective way of determining the most effective way of improving your business. They can be sent to targeted customers, departments, employees, and clients. They may be sent to a group of people in a personalized manner using keyword phrases that reflect their role or level of importance. You may send emails based on age, shopping habits, and region to increase engagement through relevancy.

8. Customer Experience

Good customer experience is not just about a great product. It’s also about how you and your team create unforgettable interactions with customers, investors, and partners.

You can do this by offering a live chat feature for customers on your website. You can also send personalized emails thanking customers and suggesting additional products based on past purchases.

These methods boost customer loyalty, increasing your possibility of gaining repeat customers.

Growing a business is not easy. Today we have thousands of ways to build a business and build an exit strategy. But we must have business growth plans to help guide our decisions in the short and long term. So before you strategize your first growth plan, go through these top 8 examples and analyze the areas of improvement for your business expansion.

Abir Ghenaiet

Abir is a data analyst and researcher. Among her interests are artificial intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing. As a humanitarian and educator, she actively supports women in tech and promotes diversity.

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A Strategic Plan for Business Implementation: 3 Steps to Getting Business Growth Done

Let me ask you a question:

What’s the ONE thing your business needs to take the next BIG step in its growth?

Is it more ideas? More knowledge? More information?

You need to have a good system in place to make sure your ideas are being prioritized intelligently and implemented efficiently.

Probably not.

If you’re like most marketers, entrepreneurs, and business owners I know, you already have a whole pile of notes, ideas, and to-do lists still waiting to be implemented.

If anything, you might have TOO MANY ideas. Too many projects.

And the problem is that you need to get better at implementing those projects. Actually getting them DONE.

Am I right?

If your to-do list has 50 growth strategies on it, you certainly don’t need any more growth strategies. No, what you need instead is a method to…

• Decide which project to tackle first, and…
• Actually DO IT in an effective and efficient way

And that’s what this post is all about.

The framework you’re about to learn is the exact same process we use internally at DigitalMarketer to implement our business growth strategies.

It came out of the frustrations we had in our own recent growth…

As a company, DigitalMarketer went from being a small team of two to three people to being a team of over 50 people in a relatively short time.

But here’s the crazy part…

Even though our team ballooned in size by 25x, we didn’t actually get that much more work done!

See, you can’t just throw more money and people at a problem like this and hope that will fix the issue. Because it won’t.

Instead, you need to have a good system in place to make sure your ideas are being prioritized intelligently and implemented efficiently.

So, without further ado, here are the three steps to doing just that—a business growth plan for avoiding “shiny object syndrome” and actually implement a growth plan in your business …

Business Growth Plan Step 1: Align Your Team to a Single Goal

The first step is to align your team to a single goal and AVOID multiple simultaneous projects.

Instead of trying to achieve many different things at once, it’s much better to focus on one goal at a time. And don’t move on to the next goal until you’ve achieved the first one.

Goals should be sequential, never simultaneous.

Sequential goals ensure maximum efficiency because they allow you to put 100% of your focus on that one thing.

Simultaneous goals, on the other hand, are a recipe for chaos and inefficiency. And the more projects you have going at once, the less efficient you will be. Guaranteed.

This applies to your entire team, whether you’re a team of one or part of a much larger department.

One of the big mistakes that many companies make is giving a different goal or project to every employee.

For example: Bob’s project might be trying to grow the email list, while Lois is charged with increasing conversions, and Steve is in charge of trying to cut down on customer refunds.

The problem with a situation like this is that there are dependencies between these projects, and those dependencies can cause a lot of in-fighting between employees.

As a result, nobody is able to do a really great job of achieving their goal and you end up with another quarter of mediocre improvements and stagnant growth across the board.

But what if you could get your whole team—Bob, Lois, and Steve—all focused on the same goal at the same time? This way, there wouldn’t be any competing agendas. Chances are they would do a much better job than any one person could do on their own.

So, why don’t more companies work this way? The answer might surprise you.

The Secret Danger of Good Ideas

For many companies, the thing that’s stopping them from adopting a more efficient, sequential goal structure is too many good ideas.

It might sound strange, but it’s true…

Good ideas have killed far more companies than bad ideas.

It’s rare for a bad idea to bring down a company. Instead, failure is more often caused by trying to implement too many good ideas at once .

This makes sense if you think about it: we’re on the lookout for bad ideas. Anytime we try something that doesn’t work, what do we do? We stop doing it. We pivot. We try something else.

Bad ideas are usually caught and thrown out pretty quickly.

But good ideas?

Good ideas are dangerous.

Anytime we try a tactic that works well…

Anytime we come up with a new campaign that makes a lot of sense…

Anytime we see a competitor doing something that would work for us…

Anytime we come up with a marketing idea that “could be a game-changer”…

We pursue those good ideas.

Eventually, we start chasing too many things—and before you know it we’re knee-deep in “shiny object syndrome.”

This puts you in a tricky situation. Because you don’t want to ignore all those good ideas. But at the same time, you can’t afford to pursue them all at the same time.

So, what should you do?

How to Organize & Prioritize Your Good Ideas

I recommend using this four-step grid to help organize and prioritize your good ideas.

So first, draw out a grid like this on a whiteboard somewhere your whole team can see it:

Each column represents one of the four primary “Growth Levers.” These are the four ways you can grow a company . And the 4 Growth Levers are:

• Acquisition: Getting new leads
• Activation: Converting your existing leads into customers
• Monetization: Increasing the average order value of your existing customers
• Retention: Reducing refunds and churn rate

Then you’ll want to take each good idea and put it into the column where it fits best, like so:

Writing down all your ideas in a central location like this does two important things.

First, it organizes your ideas in a way that makes sense from a growth perspective AND makes it easy to focus and prioritize each idea. This will become crucial in just a moment.

Second, it gets those ideas out of your head and down on paper.

Many of us are walking around with too many ideas floating around in our heads. And trying to keep track of those ideas leads to cognitive overload.

Mentally, it feels like you have too many browser tabs open on your internet browser.

But when you write down your ideas, it’s like closing one of those tabs. It frees up some mental space because you know you don’t have to keep track of that idea in your head any longer.

Choose One Column to Focus On

OK, you now have your ideas all written down and organized according to the 4 Growth Levers.

The next thing you need to do is to choose a column to focus on for a period of time.

Because here’s the thing:

Impact doesn’t happen when you improve ten different parts of your business by 1% each. It happens when you make a giant improvement in ONE area.

So, for example, let’s say that for the next 12 weeks you decide to focus on Acquisition.

For now, you can ignore all your ideas that fall under Activation, Monetization, and Retention, and focus 100% on your Acquisition ideas:

The next thing you need to do is to prioritize those Activation ideas. And to do this, I highly recommend using the ICE Framework. ICE stands for…

So, what you want to do is this: for each idea, measure the Impact, Confidence, and Ease of each idea on a scale from 1-10.

• Impact : How big of an impact will this idea have on your business? A 1 means that this idea will have a minimal impact, while a 10 means that this idea is a real “needle-mover” with the potential to dramatically grow your business.
• Confidence : How confident can you be that this idea will work? If you’ve tried it before and it worked well, this might be a 9 or 10. If it’s a gamble, it might be a 1 or 2.
• Ease : How easy or difficult would it be to implement this idea? The easier the implementation, the higher the score.

You should make this a discussion with your whole team. Give everyone a vote and average the results for each idea.

Here’s an example of how we scored a few different ideas here at DigitalMarketer using the ICE Framework. The ideas were “testing new homepage opt-in copy” and “launching a podcast.”

Test New Homepage Opt-In Copy  

We knew that our homepage was a significant source of opt-ins. So, we knew that if we could move the needle and increase that conversion rate, it would have a high impact on our lead flow. (Impact of 10.)

At the same time, we had never tested the copy that was on the homepage. So, we were reasonably confident that we could beat that copy that was currently there. (Confidence of 9.)

Finally, because this involved changing just a few lines of text, it was super quick & easy to implement. (Ease of 10.)

ICE score: 10 + 10 + 9 = 29 / 3 = 9.7

As the ICE score suggests, this idea was really a no-brainer for us. As a result, it shot up to #1 on our list of priorities.

And we would go on to update the homepage to…

Launch a Podcast  

We knew that if we could launch a podcast and have it do really well, that could be a huge needle-mover for our business. It could help grow our brand and generate awareness by reaching a massive number of people who listen to podcasts. (Impact of 10.)

However, we had never launched a podcast before—so we had no experience in that arena. As a result, we were not highly confident that we would be able to produce a great podcast right out of the gate. (Confidence of 2.)

And because we had never done a podcast before, implementing this was not going to be easy. It was going to involve lots of research, investing in new equipment, setting up a studio, and lots of other setup. Definitely not an easy process. (Ease of 1.)

ICE score: 10 + 2 + 1 = 13 / 3 = 4.3

This was a classic “moonshot” idea for us. Pulling it off would be tough, but the potential payoff was huge.

Keep in mind that just because it had a low ICE score, that doesn’t mean we didn’t do it. It just meant that we didn’t do it first . Instead, it got pushed down on the priority list of Acquisition ideas.

As you may know, we DID end up launching a podcast—and the Perpetual Traffic Podcast was a smash-hit beyond anything we expected. It turned out to be well worth the risk.

( RELATED: How to Launch a Podcast, Drive it to the Top of the Charts, AND Keep it There in Just 4 Steps )

The great thing about the ICE Framework is that it makes the process of project selection really transparent to the whole team, and nobody ever feels like their ideas are being ignored or disregarded.

Every idea gets scored by the team according to the ICE Framework, and everyone on the team gets a say in which projects get tackled first.

Business Growth Plan Step 2: Work in Focused Sprints (Not Exhausting Marathons)

People, teams, and companies perform best with short bursts of intense work followed by a rest.

We are NOT designed for long marathons.

(It’s interesting to note that according to legend, the first Greek runner who ever ran a marathon ended up falling down dead at the end of it.)

We tend to work much better when we can go all-out for a couple hours, then rest and recharge our batteries so that we’re fresh when we go at it again.

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t work hard, and I’m not saying that you shouldn’t work hard for long periods of time.

What I’m saying is that your work should follow a cycle that allows you to put forth 100% effort and then recover from that effort so you can do it again.

Work really hard, rest.

…you get it. 🙂

Fortunately, this sprint-based style of project implementation works perfectly with sequential goals because it allows you to pursue one single goal for that short period of hard work …

Then you take a break before pursuing the next goal.

And when you add all those sprints together, you get what we call a “season.”

Business Growth Plan Step 3: Work in 12-Week “Seasons”

We experience life in seasons. We’re never in one consistent mode all the time.

This applies to many different timeframes. Obviously, it applies to the seasons of a year, as the weather changes from cold, snowy winter to hot, thriving summer and back again.

But it also applies on the level of a week, where we have five days of focused work followed by two days of rest and recovery.

Similarly, each day can be thought of as having its own “seasons” too; often the morning involves some ramp-up time, after which we increase to our most productive period in the late morning. From there it’s common to have a lull in the afternoon, after which we ramp up again to finish our work in time to head home at night.

So, that’s why I think it makes sense to approach growth projects using that same idea of seasons.

And when it comes to putting growth projects into action, these are the five “seasons” of implementation:

• Learn : This is where you learn the principles that will help guide the implementation of your upcoming project. This isn’t “just in case” learning, where you’re researching something you might, maybe implement someday. It’s “just in time” learning where you’re figuring out how to implement one big idea that you’re about to work on NOW.
• Implement : This is where the rubber meets the road. Stop attending webinars, watching videos, and reading blog posts. Now’s your chance to take ACTION. Whatever your project is, this is the time to put in the legwork to get it done.
• Celebrate : Once you’ve finished implementing your project, take a moment to sit back and celebrate all your hard work! I don’t recommend celebrating your results at this point—because after all, not every project is going to be a win. Instead, simply celebrate the fact that you got something done. That you learned something. That you took meaningful action to grow your business.
• Optimize : Often we will implement something, but that implementation will be shaky at best. We’ll build a bridge, but it will be a rickety bridge with lots of holes and problems. That’s why we need to take time to optimize—to improve what we’ve implemented, to fix the bugs, to iron out the kinks. This is an important step because it helps us to get the best results from whatever it is we just implemented and make sure we’re putting forth a polished and professional effort.
• Rest/Repeat : Now that your project has been implemented and optimized, I recommend you take a little time off to rest before going at it again. This is important to recharge your batteries so that when the next season starts, you’re ready to give it all you’ve got and really kick butt on your next project.

Here at DigitalMarketer, we follow this season in 12-week cycles. We find that 12-week cycles work really well for a couple reasons.

For one thing, 12 weeks is long enough to allow you to really dig in and implement some significant solutions.

Secondly, 12 weeks gives you four quarters each year. This lines up perfectly with the 4 Growth Levers, which means you can focus on each Growth Lever once a year.

Our 12-week season looks like this:

We take just one week to learn, followed by four weeks of implementation. After that we give ourselves a week to celebrate, then we spend the next four weeks optimizing our work. Finally, we take a short two-week break before starting all over again.

3 Business Growth Mindsets

Now that we’ve covered the three steps of implementing a growth project, I want to briefly hit on three critical mindsets to getting growth done.

Business Growth Mindset #1: Patiently Impatient Thinking  

“Patiently impatient thinking” means that you work with a sense of urgency…

Really push yourself to get your work done as quickly and efficiently as possible…

…while also understanding that results always lag behind your efforts.

A good analogy here is to think of this in terms of exercise.

You need a sense of urgency while putting in the work while being patient for the results.

If you want to lose weight and get in shape, how would you achieve that goal?

For one thing, you would probably start working out, right?

And if you wanted to get in really great shape, you would work out intensely. With a sense of urgency.

But at the same time, you have to recognize the fact that you can’t transform your body overnight.

It takes time for the results to come.

And the same thing is true of growth strategies. You need a sense of urgency while putting in the work…

…while being patient for the results—knowing that they will take some time, but they will come eventually.

Business Growth Mindset #2: High-Impact Thinking   

The second important growth mindset is to foster high-impact thinking.

And to illustrate what I mean by that, I want to warp back to high school physics class for a minute. Let’s talk about Newton’s Second Law of Motion, which states:

Force = Mass x Acceleration

What this equation basically says is that to generate a lot of force you either need a lot of mass…or a lot of acceleration.

Growth ideas are the same way.

An idea with high mass and low acceleration might be like a steamroller. A steamroller doesn’t move very fast…but it’s so big and massive that once it reaches its target, it generates a massive amount of force.

For us, launching the Perpetual Traffic Podcast was a steamroller idea. It took a lot of work to get it moving, but once it launched it made a big impact on our business.

An idea with low mass and high acceleration might be more like a bullet. Bullets aren’t very heavy. They weigh just a couple ounces. But they’re shot with so much velocity that they are able to generate a massive amount of force.

The great thing about bullets is that you can implement lots of quick and easy ideas in a short amount of time. You can fire them off one after another.

In the 12-week implementation season, we spend the Learn and Implement phases focusing on steamroller strategies that will really move the needle.

Then during the Optimization phase, we focus on lots of bullets that we can implement to improve that steamroller idea as quickly as we can.

Business Growth Mindset #3: Leadership Thinking

I hear from a lot of business owners who claim to be the “visionary” for their company. They think their job is to come up with ideas, and that it’s the rest of their team’s job to implement them.

Leaders don’t merely plan…leaders lead. They DO! Because good leaders understand that…

“A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan executed next week.”—U.S. General George S. Patton

You don’t need a perfect plan. You need a good plan that gets DONE. And as a leader, it’s your job to make sure that happens.

Here at DigitalMarketer, our leaders do the most work. They lead by example.

Don’t be one of those leaders who sits in your ivory tower and just dictates orders down the mountain. Instead, roll your sleeves up and get your hands dirty doing the work yourself.

That’s why this growth implementation plan is so important.

And that’s how you lead a company.

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How to Write a Business Plan in Under an Hour

Noah Parsons

6 min. read

Updated November 21, 2023

Most people think that writing a business plan has to be hard . I’m here to tell you that it doesn’t have to be.

In fact, it’s possible to write your initial business plan in less than an hour. After all, you’re always thinking about your business and the strategies you’re going to use to grow, so getting those ideas down on paper shouldn’t be hard—it can even be an enjoyable experience.

• A new kind of business planning

A business plan no longer needs to be a long document that takes weeks to write and research. It’s not something that you print, bind professionally, and then stick on a shelf. You probably only need a formal, traditional business plan if you’re seeking a bank loan or outside investment—you’ll be expected to provide one in those instances.

But for most businesses,  business planning should be a simple, ongoing process that helps you discover your ideal business strategy. It’s a lot less about putting together a document, and more about frequently reviewing your strategy and financials so you can respond quickly to challenges and opportunities. Plus, just doing the process of business planning has been scientifically proven to make you more successful —and there are a lot of other reasons why having a business plan is important as well.

I encourage you to embrace a concept called growth planning—it has all the benefits of traditional business planning without the pain and hassle of creating a long business plan document.

You’ll start with a short overview of your business. It’s your business strategy, written in brief, with just the essential business plan components, so that you can update quickly and easily as you learn more about your business, your customers, and yourself. It’s also a great starting place for making sure your amazing business idea is really viable.

• What to include in your one-page plan

When you’re writing your one-page plan , channel Twitter and try and keep each business plan section as short as possible:

Value proposition

One sentence that describes the value you provide to your customers. If you were composing a tweet to tell people about your business, what would you say? With only 140 characters, describe what you do and what makes you unique. Your goal is to communicate the value you are providing to your customers in a way that they will understand.

Market need

What problem does your business solve for your customers? If you aren’t solving a problem for your customers, you are going to have a hard time building your business. If you’re not sure, try talking to your potential customers and ask them what they like about your products or services. Why do they choose you over other alternatives?

Your solution

How do you solve your customer’s problem? What products and services are you offering? Describe your product or service and why it’s better than the alternatives. Essentially, if someone asked you what you sell, what would your answer be?

What’s your biggest business challenge right now?

Competition.

What products and services do your customers choose today instead of yours? How are you different? What makes your business and products better than the alternatives that are out there ?

Target market

Describe your ideal customer . Who are they? Be as specific as possible—age, gender, shopping habits, and so on. If you target different types of people, create market segments for each group.

Sales and marketing

How do you market your products and services to your customers? What are your sales channels, or the places where you will sell your products? If you’re selling online, your online store is a sales channel. If you also have a physical store, that’s another sales channel. What will you do to market your business?

If you plan on buying advertising, list the types of advertising you plan on doing here. Remember, different target markets might need different types of marketing activities to get your product in front of them.

Budget and sales goals

How much do you think you will sell and how much is it going to cost you to make your product or deliver your service? What other key expenses will you have when your business is up and running? What sales goals do you need to reach for your business to be a success?

Don’t sweat the details to start and just think in broad strokes to get a rough idea of how your business will work financially. You can refine the details and create a full financial plan later.

What have you achieved so far and what are your major goals for the next few months or years? This will help you stay on track and meet your goals. Make sure to assign milestones to people on your team so you have real responsibility and accountability.

Why are you and your business partners the right people to make your company successful? Even if you’re starting out with just you, write a few quick bullets about why you’re the right person to run this business. If you need to hire key people in the future, list those positions as well, even if you don’t know who specifically will fill those positions right now.

Partners and resources

Do you need to work with other companies or organizations to make your company a success?

Funding needs

This is optional; if you need to raise money for your business, how much do you need and what will you use it for? Even if you’re starting your business with your own savings or using credit card debt, it’s a good idea to plan on how you will use the funds until you start making sales.

• Start with your one-page plan—save the detailed business plan document for later

As you think about each of the areas above, don’t think “business plan.” Instead, imagine that you are having a conversation with someone at a cocktail party and you’re explaining your business to them in simple terms.

It’s much better to approach this as though you’re “pitching your business.” After all, the idea of pitch first, plan second   is a best practice in business and is a much faster and more effective path to success than the traditional business plan .

Here’s an example of a one-page plan I built in 27 minutes:

I’ve always wanted to own a bike shop, so here’s a one-page plan that I built in 27 minutes, well short of one hour. As you can see, it doesn’t have to be complicated, and I still had time left over to do another one and try another business idea on for size.

The key is to remember to keep each business plan element brief. Don’t add more than is necessary.

• Get started

If you’re ready to start working on your own one-page plan, download our free template and get started right away. Use markers or sticky notes to jot down your ideas quickly. And, if you need a more traditional business plan, you can check out our full guide on how to write a business plan and browse through over 550 complete business plans for inspiration .

Do you think you can use this format to plan your business faster and more efficiently? Share your thoughts with me on Twitter @noahparsons and feel free to ask questions, too. I’ll make sure to answer them as they come up!

See why 1.2 million entrepreneurs have written their business plans with LivePlan

Noah is currently the COO at Palo Alto Software, makers of the online business plan app LivePlan.

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Chapter 3 Building an Economy That Works for All Canadians

On this page:, 3.1 building canada's clean economy, 3.2 canada's economic plan is globally competitive, 3.3 investing in canada's economy, 3.4 creating opportunities for workers and businesses.

Following a strong recovery from the pandemic recession, the federal government's economic plan has ensured that the Canadian economy remains resilient. Over a million more Canadians are employed compared to when the pandemic hit, our unemployment rate remains low by historical standards, and wage growth has outpaced inflation for the past nine months.

We must address the challenges facing Canadians and the Canadian economy today—and seize the opportunities ahead of us in the years to come.

The global economy is evolving. Countries around the world are moving quickly to fight climate change and to build their clean economies. As the world moves towards net-zero, the federal government is delivering on its economic plan to ensure that Canadian workers and businesses lead the way.

In Budget 2023, the federal government released Canada's clean economy jobs plan, which will create a new generation of great middle class careers to help Canadians support their families, advance economic reconciliation and ensure that Indigenous Peoples share in the prosperity of major clean energy projects, while ensuring that the Canadian economy is a leader in a net-zero world.

According to Clean Energy Canada's estimates, the clean energy sector's contribution to our economy could increase as much as six-fold by 2050. Further analysis by RBC Economics suggests 235,000 to 400,000 new jobs will be created in the clean economy over the coming decade, with a number of sectors seeing significant growth (Chart 3.2).

The 2023 Fall Economic Statement introduces a series of new measures to advance the government's economic plan by continuing to build a stronger economy, and provides important updates on key pillars of the government's plan to fight climate change and create great careers for Canadians from coast to coast to coast.

The federal government's plan to build Canada's clean economy is already delivering results. Over the past three years alone, more than 90 clean growth projects valued at a total of more than $40 billion, including private investment, are underway or will soon move forward into construction across Canada. Clean economy projects are drawing investments into every region of the country and creating great jobs for the middle class (Figure 3.1).

Companies from around the world are already capitalizing on the Canadian advantage. According to the OECD, Canada is ranked third in the world for the most foreign direct investment in the first half of 2023.

With more than $1 trillion in private capital ready to be invested to build the clean economies of the 21st century, Canada has the abundant resources needed to thrive—from critical minerals, to world-leading research and innovation, to a strong and deep pool of talented and diverse workers who are supported by programs like affordable child care and strong public health care. Beyond that, Canada has the stable political and economic institutions that companies around the world are looking for as a safe place to do business.

Canada's clean economy jobs plan is about capitalizing on our remarkable competitive advantages in order to attract investment and create good jobs across the country.

As an important pillar of Canada's clean economy jobs plan, the government is focused on implementing, on a priority basis, the new clean economy investment tax credits for carbon capture, utilization, and storage; clean technology adoption; clean hydrogen; clean technology manufacturing; and clean electricity. The following timelines outline the federal government's path towards delivering all investment tax credits in 2024.

The clean economy investment tax credits will be implemented as follows, subject to the results of consultations:

Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS):

• Legislation will be introduced in Parliament this fall.
• Consultations on draft legislation were held from August 4, 2023, to September 8, 2023.
• The tax credit would be available from January 1, 2022.

Clean Technology:

• The tax credit would be available from March 28, 2023.

Clean Hydrogen:

• Consultations on draft legislation will launch this fall.
• The government is targeting to introduce legislation in Parliament in early 2024.

Clean Technology Manufacturing:

• The government is targeting to introduce legislation in Parliament in early 2024.
• The tax credit would be available from January 1, 2024.

Clean Electricity (Except for Publicly-Owned Utilities):

• Design and implementation details will be published in early 2024.
• Consultations on draft legislation will launch in summer 2024.
• The government is targeting to introduce legislation in Parliament in fall 2024.
• The tax credit would be available from the day of Budget 2024 for projects that did not begin construction before March 28, 2023.

Clean Electricity (For Publicly-Owned Utilities):

• Consultations with provinces and territories will take place in 2024.

Expanding Eligibility for the Clean Technology and Clean Electricity Investment Tax Credits to Support Using Waste Biomass to Generate Heat and Electricity:

• The expansion of the Clean Technology investment tax credit would be available from the day of the 2023 Fall Economic Statement .
• The expansion of the Clean Electricity investment tax credit would be available from the day of Budget 2024 for projects that did not begin construction before March 28, 2023.

Labour Requirements

Budget 2023 announced that labour requirements to pay prevailing union wages and provide apprenticeship training opportunities will need to be met in order to receive the maximum credit rate of the Clean Technology, Clean Hydrogen, Clean Electricity, and CCUS investment tax credits.

• Legislation to implement the labour requirements will be introduced in Parliament this fall.
• The effective date for the labour requirements will be the date that a Notice of Ways and Means Motion for the enabling legislation is first tabled this fall.

Using Waste Biomass to Generate Electricity and Heat

During the course of production, industries like forestry and agriculture generate organic by-products, such as leftover wood chips and crop residues, which have the potential to be used to generate affordable energy while also reducing emissions.

• The 30-per-cent Clean Technology investment tax credit to include systems that produce electricity, heat, or both electricity and heat from waste biomass. This expansion of the Clean Technology Investment Tax Credit would be available to businesses investing in eligible property that is acquired and becomes available for use on or after the date of the 2023 Fall Economic Statement .
• The 15-per-cent Clean Electricity investment tax credit to include systems that produce electricity or both electricity and heat from waste biomass, which would be available as of the date of Budget 2024 for projects that did not begin construction before March 28, 2023.

The labour requirements to pay prevailing wages and provide apprenticeship training opportunities will apply to the expanded investment tax credits. Turning waste biomass into electricity and heat is, on a lifecycle basis, a carbon-neutral energy solution, with potential to be carbon-negative when combined with carbon capture, utilization, and storage, while providing new opportunities for major Canadian industries. This proposal is expected to cost $853 million from 2023-24 to 2028-29, and an additional $1.2 billion from 2029‑30 to 2034-35. 

Canada has been at the forefront of global efforts to build the clean economy. Since the federal government launched Canada's first climate plan in 2016, our clean tech companies have created world-leading technologies, our researchers have been driving new clean innovation, and our workers have been transforming the way we build and deliver economic growth all while cutting pollution and protecting the environment.

The world is catching up, and our friends and allies around the world—chief among them the United States and the European Union—are helping to accelerate this important shift in the global economy. The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act is estimated to mobilize as much as US$1.7 trillion of private and public investments in the U.S. economy. The European Union has also made significant commitments including the new Green Deal Industrial Plan, which makes available €245 billion in public investment to build Europe's clean economy. The significant new measures announced in Budget 2023 help ensure Canadian businesses and Canadian workers will have their share of benefit in the clean economy today and for generations to come.

Independent analyses show that Canada's clean economy jobs plan is competitive with both the U.S. and the EU (Chart 3.3), and will ensure that Canada can attract the clean investment needed to create good jobs from coast to coast to coast:

"Canada's financial support for the clean energy transition is yielding positive results and has established a competitive position relative to the U.S." TD Economics, April 2023

"Amid the turmoil of the global energy crisis, Canada continues to be a bright spot in advancing the clean energy transition while supporting international energy security and paying close attention to the social and economic implications of change." Dr. Fatih Birol, Executive Director, International Energy Agency, February 2023

"Budget 2023's relatively hands-off approach has many advantages, as it allows markets, rather than governments, to identify the best investments and prevents governments from spending money without impact." Smart Prosperity Institute, March 2023

"Canada's [Budget 2023 clean economy investment tax credits] will make the country a global leader in favorable financial conditions for green energy projects…these new tax breaks will raise the value of some projects by more than 50 per cent over their lifetime, positioning Canada as the second most attractive place for renewable developers, behind only the U.S." Rystad Energy, April 2023

"This budget will not only make a low-carbon future possible, it will also make clean electricity more affordable. The big "winners" of today's budget are Canadian electricity customers." Electricity Canada, March 2023

"Today, the federal government is proposing interesting measures to ensure that Canada can succeed in the area of electricity and a clean economy. Competition between different countries in this area is fierce." Véronique Proulx, President and Chief Executive Officer, Manufacturiers et Exportateurs du Québec, March 2023 [translation]

Building Canada's Strong Electric Vehicle Battery Supply Chain

Major automakers are rapidly pivoting to build the electric vehicles that are quickly becoming the vehicles of choice for people around the world and which are integral to the emissions reductions plans of many governments.

Canada has the best auto workers in the world, and our electric vehicle supply chain—from critical minerals extraction and processing to battery and components manufacturing and vehicle parts and assembly—will be a key pillar of Canada's clean economy. In 2022, Canada's auto sector—our second largest exporter—employed more than 500,000 workers and contributed over $14 billion to GDP.

To grow Canada's economy and secure long-term opportunities for Canada's auto supply chain workers, the federal government has been working hard to secure major electric vehicle battery projects.

Since 2020, Canada has secured more than $34 billion in investment in the batteries and automotive supply chain, which will help our economy grow and create and protect well-paying middle class jobs—today and for generations to come. In 2023, the federal government has secured landmark battery manufacturing facilities—Volkswagen and Stellantis-LGES in Ontario, and Northvolt in Quebec. These projects will employ thousands of Canadians and anchor the future of Canada's electric vehicle industry, while also creating new opportunities for workers and businesses across Canada's critical minerals, clean manufacturing, and clean technology industries.

Canada is the destination of choice for major investments across the EV supply chain, from early-stage mining and refining, to battery manufacturing, to assembly and recycling. The following are just some of the recent major projects.

The federal government has also been securing other major investments in Canada's economy, including:

Summer 2022

• BHP , in Jansen, Saskatchewan, with a $100 million federal investment to support a $7.5 billion project to advance the development of a world-leading low-emissions potash mine. This investment will ensure Canada remains a global leader in both potash production and sustainable mining.
• Rio Tinto Fer and Titane , in Sorel-Tracy, Quebec, with a proposed federal investment of up to $222 million to support a $511 million project to increase the company's production of critical minerals including lithium, titanium, and scandium.

Winter 2023

• Xanadu Quantum Technologies , in Toronto, Ontario, with a $40 million federal investment to support a $178 million project to build and commercialize the world's first photonic-based, fault-tolerant quantum computer.

Spring 2023

• Michelin North America Inc. , in Bridgewater, Pictou and Waterville, Nova Scotia, will receive up to $44.3 million in federal funding pending a final agreement and a provincial tax credit of about $61.3 million over five years from the government of Nova Scotia, to support a $300 million project. This investment will enable the modernization of the company's Nova Scotia facilities, leveraging technological innovation to manufacture more efficient tires, including tires for electric vehicles, and cut production emissions through electrification.
• Ranovus Inc. , in Ottawa, Ontario, with a $36 million federal investment to support a $100 million project that will advance the company's domestic production and manufacturing of semiconductor products and services, and help position Canada as a key player in the strategically important semiconductor industry.
• AbCellera Biologics Inc. , in Vancouver, British Columbia, with federal and provincial investments of $225 million and $75 million, respectively, to support a $701 million project to enhance and expand the Canadian supply chain in leading-edge antibody drug development and clinical research, giving Canadian patients early access to innovative medicines created here at home.

Summer 2023

• AVL Fuel Cell Canada Inc. , in Burnaby, British Columbia, with a $15 million federal investment to support a $38.5 million project to develop the company's innovative hydrogen fuel cell technologies and world-class engineering solutions for customers in the global transportation sector.
• General Dynamics Mission Systems , in Sherbrooke, Quebec, with a $10 million federal investment to support a $34 million project to undertake mission system integration, testing, and demonstration on the LX300 helicopter, a Canadian-made remotely piloted aircraft produced by Quebec-based Laflamme Aero.
• Umicore , in Loyalist, Ontario, with federal and provincial investments of up to $551.3 million and $424.6 million, respectively, to support a $2.76 billion project to build a manufacturing facility of cathode active materials and precursor cathode active materials—critical components for producing electric vehicle batteries.
• E-One Moli Energy , in Maple Ridge, British Columbia, with federal and provincial investmentsof up to $204.5 million and $80 million, respectively, to support a $1 billion project to build Canada's largest lithium-ion battery cell manufacturing facility. The lithium-ion battery cells produced in Maple Ridge will be used to electrify devices that have traditionally relied on diesel, such as power tools, medical devices, high-performance vehicles, and aerospace applications, supporting the transition to cleaner, more efficient energy sources.

Delivering the Canada Growth Fund

To help attract billions of dollars worth of investments in Canadian workers and Canadian businesses, the federal government launched the Canada Growth Fund, a $15 billion arm's length public investment vehicle led by some of Canada's leading investment professionals from the Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments).

The Canada Growth Fund's investments in cutting-edge Canadian businesses and technologies will help them grow in Canada and create good jobs for Canadians.

In summer 2023, the Canada Growth Fund commenced operations, and is deploying a suite of financial tools to de-risk and bolster private investment in low-carbon projects, technologies, businesses, and supply chains. The Canada Growth Fund has already met with more than 150 market participants and has developed a pipeline of projects across leading clean economy sectors, including carbon capture, utilization, and storage; hydrogen; biofuels; critical minerals; and clean tech.

The Canada Growth Fund announced its first investment on October 25, 2023. With a $90 million investment in a groundbreaking geothermal energy company, Calgary's Eavor Techologies Inc., the Canada Growth Fund is supporting good jobs for Albertans and securing a Canadian future for a company at the leading-edge of the global clean economy. The Canada Growth Fund's investment will enable Eavor to scale-up its emissions-reducing technology, ensure the company's headquarters and majority of its workforce remain in Canada, and create new jobs at its Calgary headquarters.

Further Canada Growth Fund investments will be announced in the coming weeks and months.

Carbon Contracts for Difference

One of the financial tools the Canada Growth Fund is providing to support clean growth projects is contracts for difference—including contracts on the future price of carbon. Carbon contracts for difference will backstop the future price of carbon and provide predictability to businesses in order to de-risk important emission-reducing projects. Since Budget 2023, the federal government has been consulting on a broad-based approach to carbon contracts for difference complementary to the offerings of the Canada Growth Fund. Federal accounting authorities have undertaken work on the accounting recognition of broad-based carbon contracts for difference. Contracts of these types, with a high strike price, could expose the government to significant fiscal risks and require upfront recognition of potential costs.

• The 2023 Fall Economic Statement announces that the Canada Growth Fund will be the principal federal entity issuing carbon contracts for difference. The Canada Growth Fund will allocate, on a priority basis, up to $7 billion of its current $15 billion in capital to issue all forms of contracts for difference and offtake agreements.

The Canada Growth Fund is already in the process of negotiating carbon contracts for difference with a number of project proponents across a range of sectors. The Canada Growth Fund's carbon contracts for difference will also support the establishment of robust carbon credit markets. The government will continue to explore additional ways to provide businesses certainty regarding the carbon pricing trajectory, including potential legislative approaches and other new measures, in conjunction with provinces and territories. In addition, the government remains committed to enforcing the existing requirement under the carbon pricing benchmark that the design of provincial and territorial output-based pricing systems preserve a marginal price signal at or above the minimum national carbon pollution price, on an ongoing basis, to maintain a strong carbon credit market.

Canada's competitive advantages, including our democratic stability, highly educated workforce, broad trade access to global markets, strong social safety net, and abundant natural resources, make Canada an incredibly attractive place to do business. The federal government is continuing to take action to build on these competitive advantages by cutting red tape, making it easier for businesses to get the support they need to create good jobs, and improving market access for Canadian businesses.

To ensure that the Canadian economy continues to be competitive for businesses, workers, and consumers, the federal government has introduced and updated federal legislation and regulations, including:  

• The Modernization of the Competition Framework, based on the broad public consultation on competition reform undertaken by the government, will increase the robustness of competition enforcement across all industries to ensure more competitive, open, and dynamic markets across Canada.
• The Digital Charter Implementation Act introduces three proposed Acts, which, if enacted, would create a national legislative framework on privacy and artificial intelligence. The proposed Consumer Privacy Protection Act will ensure the privacy of Canadians will be protected and that innovative businesses can benefit from clear rules as technology continues to evolve.
• An Act to amend the Investment Canada Act, if passed, would ensure that Canada can continue to address changing threats that can arise from foreign investment. This will safeguard economic growth and Canadian jobs without compromising national security or national interests.
• The Annual Regulatory Modernization Bill process is in place to help the government address overly complicated, inconsistent, or outdated federal regulatory requirements. The recurring bill helps to keep the regulatory system relevant and up to date. 
• The government has conducted a range of Targeted Regulatory Reviews of existing regulations and regulatory practices in order to support economic growth and innovation. Stakeholder engagement is central to these reviews and feedback supports more agile, transparent, and responsive regulations. Themes have included agri-food, aquaculture, and clean technology.

Getting Major Projects Built Faster

For Canada to build a thriving economy, investments in clean projects—from critical minerals, to clean electricity, to clean energy and beyond—must be able to move forward quickly and effectively. Canada is a world leader in getting these projects done right—with strong environmental protections, robust labour standards, and engagements with Indigenous partners. However, more needs to be done to ensure major projects get built in a timely manner.

Budget 2023 announced that, by the end of this year, the government will outline a concrete plan to further improve the efficiency of the permitting and impact assessment processes for major projects, which will include clarifying and reducing timelines, mitigating inefficiencies, and improving engagement and partnerships. The recently announced Ministerial Working Group on Regulatory Efficiency for Clean Growth Projects is coordinating government-wide efforts and details of the government's plan will be released in the coming months.

The global clean economy will be dependent on access to the critical minerals and metals that are required for low-carbon technologies, ranging from electric vehicle batteries to semiconductors. By some estimates, global demand for critical minerals for clean energy technologies will double or even triple by 2030, driven largely by electric vehicles and battery storage, as well as clean electricity generation and transmission.

Canada is a global mining leader with a fortunate abundance of many of the world's essential critical minerals, including lithium, graphite, cobalt, and nickel. Moving quickly to ensure that Canada can capitalize on this critical economic shift is essential. Canada is already home to almost half of the world's publicly listed mining and mineral exploration companies, with a presence in nearly 100 countries and a combined market capitalization of over $500 billion. These Canadian mining companies currently produce 60 minerals and metals at 200 mines and 6,500 quarries across the country. Canada's mining sector ranks second among BloombergNEF's scoring of 10 leading critical mineral producers, all while meeting world-leading sustainability requirements and creating good-paying jobs for Canadians.

"I would say there is no place on the planet that I get more optimistic about than Canada." Jakob Stausholm, CEO of Rio Tinto Group, September 2023

As the world shifts to sustainable energy and adopts clean technologies, it is essential for workers to lead the way. The federal government is ensuring that workers continue earning wages that help them to take care of their families and build a brighter future.

• This includes by making most of Canada's new suite of clean economy investment tax credits more generous when employers pay the prevailing wage and create apprenticeship opportunities.
• Since 2015, the government has been equipping Canadian workers with the skills they need through programs like the Union Training and Innovation Program, and has since launched the new Apprenticeship Service and made Canada Apprentice Loans interest-free.
• In the 2022 Fall Economic Statement , the government announced the creation of a Sustainable Jobs Training Centre and Secretariat, and more recently, introduced the Canadian Sustainable Jobs Act to put Canadian workers and communities at the centre of federal decision making as the government makes further important clean economy investments.

Pension Fund Investment

Canada's pension funds provide Canadians with the secure and dignified retirements they deserve and have contributed to after a lifetime of hard work. By responsibly investing Canadians' pension contributions, Canadian pension funds now manage more than $3 trillion in pension assets, representing one of the largest pools of investment savings in the world. These savings are invested in diverse portfolios that include public and private equities, real estate, infrastructure, and fixed income, and are made in line with the fiduciary duty to maximize risk-adjusted returns for plan members and retirees. The stability and security of retirement supported by Canadian pension funds, and their strong performance, are the envy of the world.

Canada is one of the safest and most attractive investment destinations in the world—whether it is for the clean economy and major infrastructure projects, or new housing, or supporting our innovative companies. Our robust economy, highly skilled workforce, well-regulated financial sector, strong governance culture, and competitive tax rates provide many investment opportunities.

The federal government believes that continued domestic investments by Canada's pension funds have the potential to boost Canada's economy and create good careers for people across the country.

• The 2023 Fall Economic Statement announces that the federal government will work collaboratively with Canadian pension funds to create an environment that encourages and identifies more opportunities for investments in Canada by pension funds and by other responsible investment pools, while helping to deliver secure pensions for Canadians.
• To enable pension funds to more fully participate in Canada's economic growth, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement also announces that the government will explore removing the "30 per cent rule" from investments in Canada. The 30 per cent rule restricts Canadian pension funds from holding more than 30 per cent of the voting shares of most corporations.
• As part of this effort, and in order to improve transparency around pension investments, the government also proposes to require large federally-regulated pension plans to disclose the distribution of their investments, both by jurisdiction and asset-type per jurisdiction, to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI). This information will be made publicly available, and the government will engage with provinces and territories to discuss similar disclosures by Canada's largest pension plans in a simple and uniform format.

Supporting Employee Ownership Trusts

An Employee Ownership Trust owns shares in a business on behalf of its employees, enabling greater worker participation in business decisions and profits. The trusts can also provide an alternative business succession option for retiring business owners, especially since more than 75 per cent of small business owners plan to exit their business in the next decade. Budget 2023 introduced tax rules to facilitate the creation of Employee Ownership Trusts.

• Building on this effort, and to encourage more business owners to sell to an Employee Ownership Trust, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement proposes to exempt the first $10 million in capital gains realized on the sale of a business to an Employee Ownership Trust from taxation, subject to certain conditions.

This incentive would be in effect for the 2024, 2025, and 2026 tax years and is expected to reduce federal revenues by $52 million over the 2023-24 to 2026-27 period. Further details will be provided in the coming months. The Department of Finance will monitor the adoption of Employment Ownership Trusts in Canada and their associated impacts on the economy and Canadians.

Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program

Everyone in Canada deserves to share in Canada's economic prosperity, and the clean economy opportunities that lie ahead offer new ways to advance economic reconciliation. Economic reconciliation—whether through engagement with Indigenous partners, creating good jobs in Indigenous communities, or helping ensure Indigenous communities share in the prosperity of major projects—is a major part of the federal government's work to build a strong and sustainable economy.

The federal government is determined to ensure that Indigenous communities can share in the benefits of major projects in their territories on their own terms. 

With the number of major projects with potential for Indigenous equity ownership anticipated to grow significantly over the next decade, the government, with Indigenous partners, is working to increase access to the affordable capital that Indigenous communities will require to make these opportunities a reality. This will make projects more economically feasible for Indigenous communities by decreasing the cost of capital.

• Informed by Natural Resources Canada's ongoing work to develop a National Benefits-Sharing Framework, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement announces that the government will advance development of an Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program to help facilitate Indigenous equity ownership in major projects in the natural resource sector. Next steps will be announced in Budget 2024.

Sustainable Finance Action

Canada is a world leader in climate finance. The federal government wants to keep this advantage, including by moving towards mandatory reporting of climate-related financial risks across a broad spectrum of the Canadian economy. Last year, the government also issued the first Canada Green Bond, worth $5 billion, of which 45 per cent of investors were international and which saw a final order book of over $11 billion, showing there is strong appetite from investors around the world to make clean investments in Canada.

In 2021, the federal government established the Sustainable Finance Action Council (SFAC), with a three-year mandate to provide advice to the Minister of Finance and the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to help lead the Canadian financial sector towards integrating sustainable finance into its standard industry practices.

The government has since received SFAC's Taxonomy Roadmap Report with recommendations for advancing a Canadian taxonomy, or classification, to identify economic activities that the financial sector could label as "green" or "transition", as well as SFAC's advice on advancing climate-related disclosures in Canada. In the coming months, SFAC will provide additional advice to the federal government on strategies for aligning private sector capital with net-zero, as well as on climate data and analytics.

• To expand the coverage of mandatory climate disclosures, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement announces that the Department of Finance; Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada; and Environment and Climate Change Canada will develop options for making climate disclosures mandatory for private companies.
• Building on SFAC's Taxonomy Roadmap Report, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement also announces that the Department of Finance will work with Environment and Climate Change Canada and Natural Resources Canada to undertake next steps, in consultation with regulators, the financial sector, industry and independent experts, to develop a taxonomy that is aligned with reaching net-zero by 2050. This work will be supported by external technical experts. The 2023 Fall Economic Statement proposes to provide $1.5 million in 2024-25 to the Department of Finance to support this work.

The federal government recognizes the important work and contributions to Canada by the Sustainable Finance Action Council, particularly its Chair, as well as all members, over the course of its mandate.

Defending Canadian Businesses Against Unfair Foreign Treatment

Canadian workers and businesses deserve to be treated fairly by Canada's trading partners. When the Government of Canada opens its markets to goods and services from other countries, Canada expects those countries to also grant Canadian businesses the same access that we provide their companies.

To protect Canadian workers and Canadian businesses—and to develop mutually beneficial and resilient supply chains—going forward, Canada will consider reciprocity as a key design element for new policies, including certain clean economy investment tax credits, federal procurement, and federally-funded infrastructure projects. This includes reciprocal procurement to ensure that countries that do not provide Canadian goods and services with a similar level of market access do not unfairly benefit from access to Canada's markets. Concurrent to this announcement, the government is releasing a policy statement with further details on Canada's approach to reciprocity.

Ensuring Crown Corporations Are Delivering for Canadians

The Business Development Bank of Canada, Export Development Canada, and Farm Credit Canada were designed to complement the private sector in supporting Canadian businesses and farmers with the financing, insurance, and advice they need to compete and thrive in the global economy. Amidst a changing global economy, it is critical for these Crown corporations to continue delivering effective support.

• To ensure these Crown corporations maximize their existing resources and best support Canadian businesses and farmers, the 2023 Fall Economic Statement announces that the government will be reviewing their roles and taking steps to increase risk appetite where appropriate. Next steps will be announced in Budget 2024.

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• Government efficiency, transparency and accountability
• Government spending

Autumn Statement 2023

This is the Autumn Statement 2023 in full. You can find supporting and related documents below.

Autumn Statement 2023 (web)

Ref: CP 977

PDF , 2.18 MB , 120 pages

Order a copy

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Autumn Statement 2023 (print)

PDF , 2.4 MB , 120 pages

Autumn Statement 2023 (HTML)

Impact on households: distributional analysis to accompany Autumn Statement 2023

PDF , 164 KB , 20 pages

Autumn Statement 2023: Policy Costings

PDF , 583 KB , 73 pages

Autumn Statement 2023: Data Sources

PDF , 164 KB , 30 pages

Statement of funding policy: funding the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive

PDF , 834 KB , 92 pages

Table 5.1 Autumn Statement 2023 Policy Decisions

MS Excel Spreadsheet , 53.3 KB

The Chancellor of the Exchequer presented his Autumn Statement to Parliament on Wednesday 22 November 2023.

Distributional Analysis

This document sets out the estimated impact of changes to tax, welfare and public service spending policy that carry a direct, quantifiable impact on households. It also presents estimates of the overall level of tax paid and public spending received by households.

Policy costings

This document sets out the assumptions and methodologies used in the government’s costing of policy decisions announced since Spring Budget 2023.  For each decision it contains a description of the measure, the base, and the methodology for the costing (including relevant adjustments for behavioural responses). It highlights main areas of additional uncertainty.

Data sources

This document sets out the data sources used in charts, tables and text in the Autumn Statement 2023 document. This should be read in parallel to the references contained in the Autumn Statement 2023 document.

Statement of funding policy: Funding the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive

This document sets out how the UK Government funds the devolved administrations and explains the other sources of funding available to them when they set their spending plans. This is the tenth edition of the Statement, which was first published in March 1999

Table 5.1 shows the cost or yield of all government decisions accounted for at Autumn Statement 2023 which have a direct effect on Public Sector Net Borrowing (PSNB) in the years up to 2028-29. This includes tax measures, changes to aggregate Departmental Expenditure Limits (DEL) and measures affecting annually managed expenditure (AME).

Also publishing alongside Autumn Statement 2023:

Autumn Statement 2023: National Insurance Factsheet

Monetary policy remit: Autumn Statement 2023

Remit and recommendations for the Financial Policy Committee: Autumn Statement 2023

Government response to the 2023 Fiscal Risks and Sustainability Report

Driving growth through world class, smarter regulation

Pro-innovation Regulation of Technologies Review: Cross-Cutting

Memorandum of Understanding for the “Trailblazer” Single Settlements for Greater Manchester and West Midlands Combined Authorities

The Harrington Review of Foreign Direct Investment

Short Selling Regulation: consultation – sovereign debt and credit default swaps

Short Selling Regulations 2024

Oil and gas fiscal regime review: call for evidence

Autumn Statement 2023 Research and Development Tax Reliefs Reform

UK Retail Disclosure Framework – Draft SI and Policy Note

Technical note: Electricity Generator Levy – new investment exemption

Consultation on the Digital Securities Sandbox

Call for evidence on the visual effects industry

Full expensing

Future of Payments Review 2023

Shared Outcomes Fund Round Three

Autumn Statement pensions reform 2023

New devolution deals: Hull and East Yorkshire

New devolution deals: Greater Lincolnshire

New devolution deals: Lancashire

New devolution deals: Cornwall

Deeper Devolution Level 4 Policy Document

Deeper Devolution Scrutiny protocol

Response to National Infrastructure Commission (NIC) recommendations for National Strategic Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs)

Getting Great Britain Building Again

Independent review of spinouts - government response

Research, development and innovation organisational landscape: an independent review

National quantum strategy long term quantum missions

Evaluation of venture capital schemes

Energy profits levy energy technical note

Energy profits levy energy discussion note

Off-Payroll Working (IR35) - calculation of PAYE liability in cases of non-compliance

Making Tax Digital – Simplification Measures

Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) Reform

Expanding the cash basis

Smarter regulation: Strengthening the economic regulation of the energy, water and telecoms sectors

Smarter regulation: Extending the growth duty to Ofgem, Ofwat and Ofcom

Smarter regulation: Regulating for growth

Financial Reporting Council: FRC remit letter from the Business Secretary

Work Capability Assessment Gateway reform

Occupational-health: Working Better

National policy statements for energy infrastructure

Community benefits for electricity transmission network infrastructure: Government Response

Connections Action Plan

Transmission Acceleration Action Plan

Climate Change Agreements: consultation on a new scheme

Corporate Governance Reform: letter from Capital Markets Industry Taskforce

Smarter regulation: strengthening the economic regulation of the energy, water and telecoms sectors

Annual Report on the UK Government’s Contingent Liabilities, November 2023

Access HMRC’s collection of tax documents.

Implementation date changed from April 2024 to January 2024 and the level of the minimum income floor in financial terms removed from Distributional Analysis document.

Implementation date changed from April 2024 to January 2024 and the level of the minimum income floor in financial terms removed from Table 5.1 and Policy Costings document.

First published.

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