How to Make a Business Plan with AI

Before asking the AI anything, you need these five questions answered. They don’t need to be perfect answers: honest drafts are enough to get started.

1. What problem do you solve? (the specific pain point of your customer)
2. Who is your ideal customer? (age, situation, why they need you)
3. How do you make money? (what you sell, at what price, how often)
4. Who else does something similar? (direct and indirect competitors)
5. How much do you need to start? (estimated startup costs)

Write them down in a document or even on paper. Having them ready speeds up everything that follows.

With your answers from step 1 in hand, open ChatGPT or Claude and use this prompt:

Act as my business advisor. I'll give you information about my idea and I want you to give me the complete structure of a business plan tailored to my case.

My business:
- Problem I solve: [your answer]
- Ideal customer: [your answer]
- How I make money: [your answer]
- Main competitors: [your answer]
- Estimated starting budget: [your answer]

Give me a detailed table of contents for the business plan with the sections I should include, in what order, and what each one should cover. I'll confirm section by section.

Review the index. If there are sections that don’t apply to your type of business (for example, “manufacturing plan” if you offer a service), ask it to remove or adapt them.

With the approved index, develop one section at a time. For each one, use this prompt format:

Following the business plan we structured, now develop the section: [section name].

Additional context I want to include: [add details, data or nuances the AI doesn't have]

The section should be clear, direct and aimed at [investors / internal use / bank presentation]. Maximum 400 words.

After each section: review it, adjust the tone and add information only you know (relationships, prior experience, local context). AI gives the skeleton; you add the flesh.

The most common sections of a business plan are:

• Executive summary
• Business description
• Market analysis
• Marketing and sales plan
• Operating plan
• Team
• Financial projections
• Funding needs (if applicable)

Financial projections are the heart of the plan for any bank or investor. AI can help you build them, but the base numbers have to come from you.

Use this prompt to start:

Help me build simple financial projections for the first 12 months of my business.

Data I have:
- Price of my product/service: [price]
- Estimated sales in the first month: [units or customers]
- Monthly fixed costs: [rent, salaries, tools, etc.]
- Variable costs per sale: [raw materials, commissions, etc.]

Generate a monthly table with: revenue, fixed costs, variable costs, gross profit and net profit. Add the break-even point (when I start making money).

Review each figure with critical thinking. If a number looks too optimistic or unrealistic, ask: “What assumptions are you using for this calculation? How does it change if sales are 30% lower?”

Important note: these projections are working estimates. Before presenting them to a bank or investor, verify the numbers against industry data and, if needed, consult with an accountant or financial advisor.

To present the plan visually and with impact, see the tutorial on how to create professional presentations with AI.

If you want a quick complete draft to evaluate the idea before going deeper, use this single prompt:

Act as my business advisor. With the information I give you, create a complete and concise business plan (maximum 1500 words) with these sections: executive summary, business description, target market, competition, value proposition, revenue model, basic marketing plan and simplified financial projections for 12 months.

My business:
- What I do: [description]
- Who for: [ideal customer]
- Price: [price of your product or service]
- Estimated monthly sales: [number]
- Monthly fixed costs: [amount]
- Main competitors: [names or categories]
- What sets me apart: [what you're better at or different in]

The result is a working draft. Review it, adjust the data and use it as a base to go deeper section by section.

To learn how to write more effective prompts and get more out of AI, see the tutorial on effective prompts for AI.

Problem	Fix
The plan sounds too generic	Add more specific context: industry, city, type of customer, exact price
Financial projections are unrealistically optimistic	Ask: “Recalculate assuming I sell half of the estimate in the first month”
AI invents competitors that don’t exist	Provide the real competitor names yourself in the prompt
The executive summary is too long	Ask: “Rewrite the executive summary in maximum 150 words, direct and clear”
I don’t know what financial data to use	Look for industry data from chambers of commerce, trade associations or market reports in your country