Your business identity
What is the name and purpose of your business?

The product
What product or service are you going to provide? Who are your customers? What will be your product/service's image? Your product/service should have a Unique Selling Point. Why would I, as a customer, come to YOU?

Marketing and customer focus
Successful businesses make sure they have the right product/service in the right place, at the right time and at the right price. Your business needs to be market driven. And your main task is to match your company's resources with opportunities in the market place. Is there a significant market demand for this product/service? Have you done your market research? What is your potential market?

Competitive advantage
What competition have you got? Why will you be better than your competitors?

Design and development
Design involves the appearance of a product/service - its form and image. But it also centres around practicality and the way a product/service works - its function.

Management
Successful businesses aim to organise their operations so there is as much added value and as little waste as possible. Do you have a management style that can turn your business vision into a reality? Are you going to run all of your operations by yourself or will you outsource some of them to other businesses?

Human Resources
Which people are needed? When are they needed? Where are they needed? And what will they do? What kind of people do you need to start up your business, with what skills and education background? What are their positions and job responsibilities? How are you going to pay your people? Who will take part in decision-making processes? What is your company's staff structure?

Promotion and Selling
Where and how are you going to promote your product/service? Who is going to do that? What kind of events or marketing materials may help you to speed up the selling of your product/service? What will your website look like?

Costing and pricing
The right price is a balance between what the market will stand, and what the company needs to make a profit. The price must cover all of your costs and provide a profit. How did you reach your decision on price? Finding out about the price people will pay is vital. Do you provide any discounts?

Profit
Profit usually increases with time and, because of initial investment, it can take companies years before they break even. When do you expect your business to make a profit? It is important to have a business plan and take into account all the factors that affect your profit.