Free-Plan | Free-Plan is a Business Plan Guide and Template compiled and distributed as freeware by PlanWare. It comprises: - A Word-based Template (48 pages) contains a detailed framework and structure for writing a business plan with sample text, typical tables and charts (click thumb opposite to enlarge view).
- A complementary Guide (supplied as a 90+ topic Help file and as a 100+ page PDF file for printing) offers extensive section-by-section help related to the Template. It covers executive summary, strategy and mission, profiling target markets, marketing strategies, sales plans and projections, technology and R&D, operations and management, financial projections and funding. It also discusses such matters as planning to plan, length of a business plan and writing a basic/short plan.
Free-Plan is ideal for new and established businesses seeking to expand, raise finance etc. which need to produce a comprehensive business plan for internal/external use. While Free-Plan is not specifically aimed at very small businesses (e.g. annual sales under, say, $250,000), it contains many ideas and issues which could be adopted to produce a shorter, simpler plan as explained in the Guide. Free-Plan is freeware. Once downloaded, you are completely free to edit Free-Plan to produce your own business plan. The only significant restriction is that you are not entitled to distribute Free-Plan as a template to third-parties - you should refer these parties to this page to get their own copies of Free-Plan. The latest release of Free-Plan is designated 3.0. It is a major revamp with the complete separation of the Template from the Guide. The Template has been restructured and the Guide contains substantial additional advice and guidance. If you have an earlier release, you may wish to delete/uninstall it and use the links below to download the latest release. To check your release of Free-Plan, look for the release number on the third line within the colored table on the first page of the DOC file. |
Biz-Plan |
Biz-Plan and Free-Plan are, in theory, identical packages with different names. In practice, different releases of Biz-Plan are scattered around the Internet and these may not be as up-to-date as Free-Plan. The latest release of Biz-Plan is designated 3.0. If you have an earlier release, you may wish to delete/uninstall it and use the links below to download the latest release of Free-Plan. To check your release of Biz-Plan, look for the release number on the third line within the colored table on the first page of the DOC file. | Biz-Plan (Free-Plan) awarded 5-Stars by C|Net |
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2. Download Links & Instructions for Use To Download Free-Plan:
Click an appropriate link below. To download Exl-Plan Free for business financial projections (which includes a copy of Free-Plan), go here instead.
Important: Free-Plan requires Microsoft Word.
| Free-Plan - For Windows 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/Vista/Win7 running with Word 97, 2000, XP, 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016: | | Free-Plan - Zipped File (FREEPLAN.ZIP - 1.4 meg) Download this file if using Word on a Mac | or:
| Free-Plan - Self installing (FREEPLAN.EXE - 1.6 meg) | - If you are using Windows XP, Vista or Win7, you can ignore the Security Warning about 'unknown publisher' when downloading FREEPLAN.EXE as we are the publisher.
- FREEPLAN.ZIP needs to be uncompressed using an utility like WinZip before installation.
- Our Privacy & Security Statement applies to all our software. This means that Free-Plan DOES NOT contain 'adware', 'spyware' or any devices for collecting and/or transmitting any user information and we DO NOT send spam.
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| Free-Plan - For Windows 3.1 or Word 6 & 95 only: |
| Free-Plan - Zipped File (FREEPLN5.ZIP - 49k) |
To Set Up Free-Plan:
If you downloaded the ZIP file, unzip and open it and place the files* in an appropriate folder (e.g. call it Free-Plan) on your PC. If you need an unzip utility, download WinZip. If you downloaded the EXE file, run it to install the Free-Plan files*. | * | These files comprise README.TXT, LICENSE.TXT, FREE-PLAN_GUIDE. CHM (comprehensive help file), FREE-PLAN_GUIDE.PDF (comprehensive manual) and FREE-PLAN_TEMPLATE.DOC (Word document). |
To Use Free-Plan after Installation:
If you downloaded the ZIP file, just open the supplied files. If you installed from the EXE file, use Start | Programs | Free-Plan and select Free-Plan Template. Alternatively, go to the folder where you placed Free-Plan and click on FREE-PLAN_TEMPLATE.DOC. Both approaches will start Microsoft Word and load the Template which can be used as the basis for your business plan. The current release of Free-Plan (downloadable using the links above) does NOT require any registration - if you have an older release that requires registration, see below. The detailed Guide can be opened via Start | Programs | Free-Plan (if you used the EXE) or by clicking FREE-PLAN_GUIDE.CHM (HTML style help file). Open FREE-PLAN_GUIDE.PDF if you'd like a printable copy of the Guide (this requires the widely-used free Acrobat Reader). To Uninstall Free-Plan:
Use Add or Remove Programs within the Control Panel (access via Start | Settings) if you used the EXE file, or simply delete the ZIP file and its contents. |
3. Registration Instructions (Only relevant for earlier releases of Free-Plan)IMPORTANT:
The current release of Free-Plan (downloadable using the links above) does NOT require registration - so ignore these instructions.
The following instructions are for users who acquired an earlier release of Free-Plan which requires registration. As an alternative to registration, you can download a copy of the latest release of Free-Plan which does not need registration using the links above. This may be faster and more convenient for most users. - First, you must download, install and run the Free-Plan or Biz-Plan DOC file using Word.
- Register by sending us a special serial number (a) using the form below or (b) within the body of an email to <freeplan@planware.org>.
You will find this serial number inside the box/table on the first page (click thumb opposite for guidance) of FREE-PLAN_TEMPLATE.DOC once you have opened it with Microsoft Word.
Note: With earlier releases of Free-Plan and Biz-Plan, this box will only become visible once Word has been set to View | PageLayout (Word 6, 95 or 97) or View | Print Layout (Word 2000, XP or 2003).
| Online Tutorial | View a Tutorial (2 minutes) on how to register and start using Free-Plan / Biz-Plan. * |
| * If using Word 2007, the registration procedure is slightly different: Load the Free-Plan DOC file, select the Review tab and go to the Protect group. Click the Protect Document button and select the Restrict Formatting and Editing option. Look at the bottom of the task page for Restrict Formatting and Editing, click the Stop Protection button and enter the password into the Unprotect Document box. |
Depending on your time of day, time zone and day of week, allow between one and twelve hours to secure your registration code by email (in plain text with no attachments). Note that: - Our Privacy & Security Statement applies to all users.
- If you don't hear from us within 24 hours, make contact again but double-check your email address - wrong email addresses are a problem! If you have just recently registered, please don't register a second time - it won't speed up the process. In common with most Internet-based businesses, we operate extensive spam-filtering. If we don't respond to your request, check your original message to ensure that it is not 'all caps', overly HTML-intensive or contains other spam-related elements, and then resend it.
- If your own email system uses aggressive anti-spam filtering, you may not receive our email containing your registration code. You should temporarily add emails from '@planware.org' to your white or friends list, or allow messages containing the phrases 'Free-Plan' and 'Biz-Plan' to pass through your filters. Do this before you seek registration.
If you intend to register Exl-Plan Free (which includes Free-Plan), download it from here and/or register it here - there is no need to separately register Free-Plan as you'll be given codes for both packages when you register Exl-Plan Free. |
Business
Plan
Template | Free-Plan &
Biz-Plan | | See Also: | Business Plan
Guide | Online Business
Planner
- Specimen Plan | | Exl-Plan Free | Cashflow Plan
Free |
| 4. Registration Form (Only relevant for earlier releases of Free-Plan)IMPORTANT:
The current release of Free-Plan (downloadable using the links above) does NOT require registration - so ignore these instructions.
This Registration Form is for users who acquired an earlier release of Free-Plan which requires registration. As an alternative to registration, you can download a copy of the latest release of Free-Plan which does not need registration using the links above. This may be faster and more convenient for most users. Instead of sending an email, you can use the Registration Form below to register either Free-Plan or Biz-Plan.
You may wish to bookmark this page to return to it once you have accessed Free-Plan or Biz-Plan to secure its serial number. Allow between one and twelve hours to secure the Unlock Code. Please register just once!
If you wish to make a comment or get help, use this Contact Form. Get Help with Financial
Projections |
| Exl-Plan - Integrated Multi- Year Financial Planner | Requires: Excel 5, 7, 8, 95, 97, 2000, XP, 2003, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 365 with Windows 95/98/ Me/NT/ 2000/XP/Vista/Win7,8,10.
Prices: Free to US$ 289. | DetailsTrial Downloads
Buy + Use Now |
| Basic & Free Planners for Financial Projections and more .. | Our Exl-Plan range of integrated monthly/quarterly planners includes Exl-Plan Basic which uses annual assumptions to generate comprehensive 5-year projections. This simple, low-cost version (US$29) will meet many business planning needs. Get details, download free trial copy or buy & use now. Also available is a completely free version, Exl-Plan Free, which is identical to Basic but projects for just two years ahead. Details and free download. The Free and Basic versions of Exl-Plan are complemented by other more detailed, powerful versions of Exl-Plan. Get details and download trial copies. All versions of Exl-Plan include a free 150-page Business Plan Guide & Template (for Word). |
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