Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Melissa Houston covers financial issues that affect women in business. Creating a business plan is a critical first step for any ...

Matt Webber is an experienced personal finance writer, researcher, and editor. He has published widely on personal finance, marketing, and the impact of technology on contemporary arts and culture.

Elysse Bell is a finance and business writer for Investopedia. She writes about small business, personal finance, technology, and more. Samantha (Sam) Silberstein, CFP®, CSLP®, EA, is an experienced ...

An income statement is your business’s bottom line: your total revenue from sales minus all of your costs. Financial data is always at the back of the business plan, but that doesn’t mean it’s any ...

You’re set on becoming a franchisee. You may think it’s time to call a franchisor, tell them you’re interested, and get funding from your local bank, right? Wrong. If you’re considering buying a ...

A home business requires a lot of the same preparation as any other business, but you can skip finding an office or retail space. Many, or all, of the products featured on this page are from our ...

Throughout my years advising leadership teams on strategic planning, I’ve witnessed a consistent pattern: companies often judge the quality of their strategy by the sophistication of the final ...

Learn the steps to obtaining a business loan, from calculating your funding needs to receiving funding Written By Written by Staff Loans Editor, WSJ | Buy Side Hannah Alberstadt is a Buy Side staff ...

The purpose of a business plan is to communicate the vision and operating plan for your business. In this guide, we’ll look at how to write a strong business plan to guide your business decisions, get ...