II. Business Description

Whether you're looking for money or simply creating an internal document, you must be able to present a clear portrait of what your company does. Your business description is your corporate vision, and includes: who you are, what you will offer, what market needs you will address, and why your business idea is viable.

Too many business owners make the mistake of operating without a vision; a situation which hampers their business' ability to grow and prosper. A business owner without a vision will have difficulty describing his or her business and will provide a long, rambling description, a few stock phrases, or a collection of incomprehensible jargon when asked for one. A concise, easy-to-understand description of your company will not only help your business plan, but will benefit you in any number of other day-to-day situations - from networking to making cold calls to approaching a newspaper for an interview. A typical business description section includes:

• An overview of your industry
  
• A discussion of your company
  
• Descriptions of your products/services
  
• Your positioning
  
• Your pricing strategy