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Start, manage and grow your business
Business structure
When you are starting a business, you will need to think about the type of structure that best suits your business needs.

Different business structures

There are four common types of business structures for a business in Australia:

  • sole trader
  • company
  • partnership
  • trust

For an incorporated or non profit business explore the following on the Business Victoria website:

  • incorporated association
  • incorporated aboriginal association
  • co-operative
  • social enterprise

Business plan

Your business plan sets out your goals objectives and strategies for achieving your business goals. It should have a start and end date define marketing and promotional activities target market and financials including budget.

A business plan is essential in applying for finance communicating your goals and strategy to partners and to benchmark your progress. A business plan is a living document which means it guides your daily decisions and actions.

A way to write your business plan is to follow an online template model. Before you begin make notes about the following:

  • products and services
    • what are you selling and who to?
    • why?
  • competitors
    • who is your competition?
    • how are you better stronger faster or cheaper?
    • do you offer better service?
  • define your purpose
    • why do you want to start a new business?
    • what are your personal or career goals?
  • what is your SWOT? (strengths weaknesses opportunities and threats)
  • research your market
    • use our stats and data section to get economic information
    • use your networks
    • use .id the population experts for demographic resources.

Business Victoria has a free business plan template and one page action plan which is a fantastic snapshot of where you are now your vision for the future strategies and 3-4 actions to achieve your goals in a certain time frame.