Starting your online business as a solopreneur, content creator, freelancer, coach, or digital product creator?
You need a practical online business plan that guides your daily decisions—not one that just sits on your desktop gathering dust.
This guide will help you create a plan that’s simple, flexible, and built to grow with your business.
Here’s What We’ll Cover:
- Setting your sales goals and key milestones
- Deciding how you’ll use the plan
- Including your business vision and “big why”
- Defining your target audience and niche
- Listing your products, services, and pricing
- Clarifying the problem you’re solving
- Outlining your marketing strategy
By the end, you’ll have an actionable plan to guide you through launching, running, and scaling your online business. Let’s dive in!
Why Do You Need an Online Business Plan?
Think of starting your business like setting off on a road trip. Would you hit the road without a clear destination or a route planned out? Probably not. Your online business plan is exactly that—your roadmap to where you want your business to go and how you’ll get there.
It’s where you lay out your vision, set clear goals, and map out the action steps to achieve them. This plan will be your go-to guide, helping you track your progress and keep your strategy on point day by day, week by week, and month by month.
And no, it doesn’t have to be a 50-page document packed with jargon. The best plans are practical and actionable, even if they’re just one page long. Make it simple, make it strong, and most importantly, make it work for you.
Key Elements of a Good Business Plan
1. Decide how you will use the plan
Before you start drafting your business plan, it’s important to know how you’re going to use it.
Are you creating it as an active guide for your day-to-day operations, content creation schedules, or launching digital products? Or is this plan meant for potential investors or other interested parties?
The approach you take will differ significantly.
Investor-focused business plans are often detailed, formal documents with a heavy emphasis on financial projections, funding requirements, and expected returns.
While they’re valuable for securing funding, they usually end up in a folder once the money is in hand.
For solopreneurs, content creators, and service-based entrepreneurs, a more flexible, working online business plan is essential.
This type of plan acts as a practical guide to help you prioritise tasks, map out launches, and adapt as your business grows.
It’s not just a one-time document but a living strategy you’ll use every day to shape your actions and decisions.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to build a business plan that is tailored to digital entrepreneurs—one that supports your operations, content creation, and product launches.
Your plan should be simple, actionable, and something you can rely on to drive your business forward, especially when you’re working on a tight budget or limited time.
2. Include your business vision
When crafting an online business plan, you don’t need to start with an executive summary like you would in an investor-focused plan. Instead, kick things off with your “big why”—the reason you’re starting your business and why it exists.
Your vision should reflect your core mission and align with the work you’re passionate about as a solopreneur, content creator, coach, freelancer, or digital product creator.
Your online business vision isn’t just for show; it’s a guiding light for your daily activities.
This is what keeps you aligned with your goals and prevents you from drifting off course when juggling content creation, client work, or launching new products.
Make sure your vision statement is clear, motivating, and something you can revisit frequently.
This way, you stay grounded in your mission and make strategic decisions that keep you moving toward your long-term digital entrepreneurship goals.
3. Focus on Results
Your online business plan should be centred around the results you want to achieve and the steps you’ll take to get there. This isn’t just about listing goals; it’s about making those goals actionable and aligned with your growth strategy.
Whether it’s launching digital products, growing your audience, or signing new clients as a service-based entrepreneur, be specific about what success looks like for you.
Identify the key metrics that will signal progress—such as product sales, follower growth, or client bookings—and map out the strategies you’ll use to hit those targets.
By focusing on tangible digital business results, you can create an online growth strategy that’s both clear and motivating, ensuring every step you take moves you closer to your objectives.
4. Be Clear, Focused and Strategic
Your online business plan is more than just a set of tasks; it’s the strategic framework that guides your decisions and actions.
For coaches, freelancers, and digital product creators, having a clear strategy helps manage client work, streamline product launches, and stay organised without losing momentum.
While your core strategy should remain steady, the tactics you use to implement it can be flexible.
This approach allows you to adapt to changes, respond to new client needs, or take advantage of unexpected opportunities while staying aligned with your main business goals.
Being clear and strategic keeps you focused on what matters most, helping you prioritise effectively and ensure every effort moves you closer to achieving your online business vision.
Writing Your Business Plan: Section-by-Section
These are the key sections you should have when you write a business plan.
Section 1: What Will Your Business Do?
The first section of your online business plan should detail what your business does, as well as your “big why” and vision.
Start with a simple, clear one-liner that states what your business is about. Your “why” and vision statement can be longer, but keep it concise and meaningful.
Examples for Different Online Roles:
- “I am a freelance graphic designer creating custom branding packages for small businesses.”
- “I create and sell digital planners and templates to help entrepreneurs stay organised.”
- “I am an online coach who guides new solopreneurs in building profitable digital product strategies.”
This section sets the stage for the rest of your plan, giving clarity on what you offer and why your business matters.
Section 2: Who Does Your Business Serve?
This section is all about identifying your niche and detailing your ideal client. For online business owners—whether you’re a coach, freelancer, or digital product creator—it’s crucial to know who you’re targeting. Who needs your services or products? What specific problems are you solving for them?
Be as detailed as you need to be here. While your business plan should include a summary of your ideal client profile, consider creating a separate, more comprehensive document for deeper insights.
Tips for Defining Your Online Niche:
- Identify the unique needs of your target audience. For example, if you’re a coach, your niche might be new solopreneurs needing mindset coaching.
- Consider demographic and psychographic traits: age, profession, business stage, challenges, and goals.
- Think about the specific value you bring to this group and how you can differentiate your service or product to meet their needs.
Example: “We work with new and aspiring digital product creators who are building their first online business. Our ideal client is a content creator who wants to turn their expertise into a steady income stream but feels overwhelmed by the process. They are motivated but need step-by-step guidance to build and launch their products efficiently.”
Understanding your ideal client will guide your marketing, service delivery, and overall strategy.
Check out our client niche finder…..
Section 3: How Will You Serve Them?
This section should clearly outline your products and services, along with your pricing structure.
If you’re a digital product creator, coach, or service-based entrepreneur, map out all the ways you serve your clients and customers.
Start with entry-level offers, such as a minimum viable offer (MVO), which you can test with initial clients at a lower price point to gather feedback and refine.
Example for Digital Product Creators:
- E-books: Introductory guide priced at £15.
- Online Courses: Beginner course priced at £97, advanced course priced at £197.
- Consultation Services: One-hour strategy session at £150.
Think of this section as an overview of your service pricing structure. Be clear about the value each offer provides and how it meets the needs of your ideal client.
This clarity will not only guide your strategy but also set expectations for your clients and customers.
Mapping out your offers and pricing helps ensure that your business has a scalable structure that supports growth and attracts a range of clients, from those just starting out to those looking for more in-depth services.
Section 4: What Problem Are You Trying to Solve?
To create a successful online business plan, you need to clearly define the problem you’re solving.
As an entrepreneur, your primary role is to be a problem solver. If your business doesn’t address a real issue, it’s unlikely to succeed.
Use this section to spell out the main problem your target audience faces and how your offerings provide a solution.
Examples Specific to Online Businesses:
- Streamlining Workflows: “Helping overwhelmed solopreneurs create efficient workflows so they can focus on scaling their business without burnout.”
- Mindset Coaching: “Guiding new coaches through mindset shifts to help them overcome self-doubt and confidently launch their services.”
- Digital Product Support: “Assisting content creators in turning their expertise into profitable digital products, so they don’t waste time figuring out the process alone.”
Be specific and concise. Understanding and articulating the problem you’re solving helps potential clients connect with your business and see the value in your solutions.
Section 5: What Makes You Different From Your Competitors?
In this section, highlight what sets your business apart from others in your niche.
For service-based solopreneurs, this often comes down to leveraging your personal brand, unique processes, or specialised expertise.
Ask yourself: what makes your approach or service memorable? It could be your pricing, tailored packages, or even the specific skills and experience you bring to the table.
Examples for Service-Based Solopreneurs:
- Personal Brand: “I offer bespoke social media strategy consulting with a focus on Pinterest marketing for new online entrepreneurs, ensuring they grow their audience organically and quickly.”
- Unique Process: “My coaching program integrates mindset work with actionable business strategies, tailored to help new coaches launch confidently.”
- Specialised Expertise: “I am a freelance graphic designer who specialises in creating branding that resonates with eco-conscious startups, using sustainable design principles.”
You can also include a brief list of your top competitors for context, making it easier to illustrate where your business stands out.
Being clear on what makes you different helps potential clients see why they should choose your services over others in the market.
Section 6: How Will You Reach Your Ideal Client?
In this section, outline your plan for marketing your products and services to attract and convert leads into clients. For online solopreneurs, content creators, and service-based businesses, an effective content marketing plan is key to building visibility and trust.
Dive into Digital Marketing Strategies:
- Blogging: Create valuable, SEO-optimised blog posts that resonate with your target audience and drive organic traffic to your site.
- Email Marketing: Build and nurture an email list with regular, engaging content that keeps your audience informed and primed for your offers.
- Social Media Tactics: Focus on platforms where your ideal clients spend their time. Use a mix of educational posts, reels, and interactive content to boost engagement and brand awareness.
- Collaborations: Partner with other creators or businesses for joint webinars, guest blogging, or co-promotions to tap into each other’s audiences.
- SEO and Paid Advertising: Maximise your online visibility with SEO strategies and, if budget permits, targeted paid ads.
Maximising Visibility Online with SEO and Social Media
Write out your overall strategy and list the first 5-10 tactics you’ll implement to achieve your marketing goals.
Consider how many leads you need to generate to meet your sales targets, and adjust your approach based on performance.
This section is one you’ll want to revisit regularly. Fine-tune your tactics as you gather data and learn what works best for reaching and converting your ideal clients.
This is the money section—without clients, your business can’t thrive.
Section 7: What Are Your Sales Goals?
Setting clear sales goals is crucial for steering your online business in the right direction.
Without defined goals, it’s easy to get lost in the day-to-day without making real progress. Having clear, measurable objectives gives you focus and helps you wake up each day with one question: “What can I do today to reach my goals?”
When defining your sales goals, think in terms of specific outcomes that align with your online business growth. This could mean:
- Growing your email subscriber list by a set number each month.
- Achieving a targeted number of course sign-ups or e-book sales.
- Securing a specific number of coaching clients per quarter.
- Hitting a monthly revenue milestone from digital product sales.
This section acts as the core around which the rest of your plan revolves. Once you’ve set your sales goals, revisit other sections of your business plan to make sure they support these objectives.
This ensures your strategies for content marketing, client outreach, and service offerings are all aligned to help you hit those digital sales targets and propel your business forward.
Section 8: What are Your Business Goals and Key Milestones?
Start by defining 2-3 major business goals that set the direction for your growth. From these main goals, create your sales and marketing objectives to keep your efforts aligned.
This section is where you break down your big-picture goals into actionable milestones that drive your online business growth.
Examples of Business Goals and Key Milestones for Online Entrepreneurs:
- Revenue Targets: Reach £5,000 in monthly revenue within six months.
- Product Launches: Successfully launch a new digital product, such as an e-book or online course, by a specific date.
- Subscriber Growth: Grow your email list by 1,000 new subscribers over the next quarter.
- Client Bookings: Secure five new coaching clients within the next two months.
Online Business Milestones to Track Your Success
These milestones should be actionable steps that contribute to reaching your financial and business goals.
For example, if your goal is to launch a new digital course, your milestones might include creating the course outline, recording the content, and promoting it through a targeted email campaign.
Clearly outlining these milestones will give you a roadmap to follow, helping you stay focused and track your progress over time. Adjust your goals and milestones as needed to keep up with changes and ensure consistent growth.
Section 9: How Much Will It Cost to Start Your Business?
Understanding your startup and ongoing costs is essential for running a successful online business. Knowing these expenses helps you set a baseline for how much revenue your business needs to generate each month to remain viable and, ultimately, profitable.
Typical Costs for Online Entrepreneurs:
- Web Hosting and Domain: Essential for maintaining your website.
- Software Subscriptions: Tools like email marketing platforms, project management software, and design apps (e.g., Canva, Adobe Creative Suite).
- Marketing Tools: Paid ads, SEO tools, or social media scheduling apps.
- Professional Services: Fees for consulting, legal assistance, or accountancy services.
- Miscellaneous Expenses: Anything else that supports your business, like training courses or premium plug-ins.
Knowing your costs allows you to set realistic sales goals and craft a pricing strategy that covers your expenses and contributes to growth. It’s not just about breaking even but making enough profit to reinvest and expand your offerings.
Keep Your Business Plan Dynamic and Relevant
Reviewing and adapting your business plan regularly is key to keeping your online business thriving.
Think of your plan as a living document that evolves as you grow. Make it a habit to revisit and update it every three months to refresh your costs, strategies, and milestones.
This ensures that your plan stays aligned with your business’s current needs and goals, helping you remain agile and proactive.
By addressing these nine key sections, you gain clarity on who you serve, how you serve them, and how to make money doing it.
More importantly, you create a practical roadmap that guides you in attracting leads, converting them into clients, and achieving consistent growth.
To make this process even easier, download our business plan template and use it as your go-to resource for building and refining your plan.
Keep it handy, adapt it as needed, and watch as it helps you navigate your path to success.
Regular updates and strategic adjustments will empower you to stay on track, make informed decisions, and push your online business forward.
