A business plan is a roadmap that will help you prepare for the next three to five years of your venture. Before you start writing, you’ll need to understand the ins and outs of your customers, competitors, and market.

We have a wealth of information that you can use to create the best data-driven business plan for your business.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) offers a guide on how to write a simple business plan. These instructions will teach you how to write an executive summary or conduct data-driven market analyses. If you’re still stuck, the SBA provides a learning center, as well as local assistance in your community.

Location, location, location. It’s one of the most important factors in establishing your business.

There are many business location factors to consider when looking for the perfect place for your storefront. Census Business Builder (CBB) is a one-stop resource to help you start your research so that you can find the right location for your business.

Before you set up shop, you need to find out more about other similar businesses in your area. Using Census Bureau economic data will help you determine where your customers are and will it fit your financial goals. Census Bureau data can help with answering questions like these:

• Where do people who match your ideal customer live?
• How many competitors are already in the area?
• On average, how many people does each existing business serve?
• How much you should expect to pay your employees per year?
• The average amount of revenue that each employee earns for other businesses like yours in the area?

The North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) is used by the United States, Canada, and Mexico to classify businesses by industry. Each business is classified into a six-digit NAICS code number based on the majority of activity at the business. The Census Bureau tabulates the data into summary totals at the two-digit down to six-digit NAICS levels.

The NAICS code has 20 primary two-digit NAICS code classifications, often called sectors. For example, all Accommodation and Food Services businesses are under the NAICS two-digit code of 72.

Federal and state governments often require NAICS codes to determine if a business is eligible for government purchase contracts or grants.

Examples of when NAICS codes are required:

• To become SBA-certified and be eligible for government contracts set aside for certified small businesses.
• For each veteran-owned small business wishing to become a VA-verified Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) or Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). These verifications allow small businesses to be eligible for VA contracts.

While some federal agencies assign NAICS codes for businesses, many other agencies require businesses to identify the right code(s) for themselves.

Want to know more about the demographics of your customers? Our data can provide insights into the makeup of the people in your community. Our available information includes:

• Total population
• Population by key age ranges
• Population by race, ethnicity, and veteran status

Wondering about your customers’ social and economic backgrounds? Our socioeconomic and housing data can help you learn more about your customers’ employment, household, and housing characteristics, including:

• Education levels
• Employment rates
• Average travel time to work
• Homeownership rate
• Average household size
• Median rent and owners' costs

Use Census data to answer:

• Where do people who match your ideal customer live?
• What are their demographics (income, age, family size)?
• How many competitors are already in the area?
• Is the population growing or shrinking?

The U.S. Census Bureau provides powerful tools to see how many businesses like yours already exist in your area—key for market saturation and opportunity analysis.

Every business type has a NAICS code (North American Industry Classification System). You’ll need it to search Census tools. You can find yours at: NAICS Search Tool

Need to know more about the types of similar businesses in your area? How about businesses in your area that might complement yours?

You can explore the  County Business Patterns (CBP) Survey to:

• List how many businesses exist in each industry by county and ZIP
• Show number of establishments, number of employees, and payroll

Our summary-level economic data can help you by offering insights into how much competition you will have and what their revenue streams are like. 

Go to data.census.gov to explore Census data.

Our data can help you determine the characteristics of other businesses like yours in your area so your employees will stay. Our information can help you determine: 

• The average number of people that businesses like yours employ 

• How much other businesses like yours pay their employees 

• The amount of revenue that each employee earns for every dollar of payroll 

The Census Business Builder (CBB) report presents data for your business type and particular location – all in one place so that you can easily use it for your business.

CBB assembles demographic, business, and consumer spending data that you can implement in your research. You can export CBB data into a report that includes interactive charts, which are usable in presentations, applications, and more. You can also download and print your reports in CSV, Excel, and PDF formats.

Best for: Market research, business planning, location scouting

Features:

• Choose your business type (e.g., restaurant, tutoring, construction).
• View interactive maps showing demographics, income levels, competition, and consumer spending.
• Zoom into specific areas like ZIP codes or counties.
• Download professional reports for business plans or pitches.

Example Use: A tutor can use CBB to find ZIP codes with high populations of school-age children and few competitors.

Best for: Deep dives into demographic and economic data

Features:

• Access the full catalog of Census surveys (ACS, Decennial Census, Economic Census).
• Search by geography, topic, industry, or survey.
• Useful for customized tables and reports.

Best for: Understanding local communities

Features:

• Annual estimates of demographic, housing, economic, and social data.
• Used to track changes in population, education, housing costs, etc.
• Valuable for tailoring services or products to local needs.

Best for: Benchmarking and competitive analysis

Features:

• Detailed data on industries, revenues, business sizes, and workforce characteristics.
• Helps you see how your business compares to others in your industry.

Best for: Workforce and commuting patterns

Features:

• Visualize where workers live and where they work.
• Useful for finding areas with available workforce or planning business hours based on commuting flow.