Starting a new business of your own is often a scary time. You may have a great idea and be absolutely sure you can make it work, but what if you just don’t have the money to back your idea?

There are a number of sources to help you get your business going including government help. Many states have money specifically allocated for new, small businesses, so that should be your first port of call. In addition to offering finance, you can get a ton of free advice and help with planning your business.

Every state has an office of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and they can be invaluable in offering advice about finances - as well as the actual cash you might need - business planning, training and many other aspects relating to your start-up. There are some restrictions regarding how the SBA can help you, for example, they operate a ‘maximum business size standard’ policy, but they are always worth a call because of the amount of help they are able to offer.

One of the most important things they can help you with is making your business plan. The importance of a good business plan can’t be over stressed; a good plan can mean the difference between finding a lender or investor for your new business and it failing before it even began. Your plan should contain four main elements which ultimately encompass everything a lender or investor will need to know about you and your business. They are:

1. A full description of the proposed business. This would include details of all products or services that you’re going to offer, as well as how many employees you foresee requiring as well as premises.
2. How you intend to market your new business. This will describe who your potential customers are and how you mean to persuade them to buy your product or service. It should also include details of how much money you would need to advertise your new business.
3. A plan detailing from where you intend to get the funds to start up with. Many lenders of small business loans will ask you to demonstrate your commitment to the business by putting some of your own money into the business. This may involve, for instance, taking out a home equity loan.
4. An executive summary. This summary contains all the documentation relating to your business so far, including your financial projections. The SBA can help you with this, as will your bank or other business start-up advisory.

So, you have your plan, you got advice from the SBA or similar organization, but you still need money... what now? See part 2 of this article regarding sources of finance.