excel template business model canvas

Free Business Model and Business Model Canvas Templates

By Joe Weller | November 26, 2018

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In this article, you’ll find the most comprehensive business canvas and business model templates in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats. Document, outline, and manage your unique business structure to ensure you are optimizing your target market, key resources, value proposition, and more.

Direct Sales Business Model Template

Strategize on sales and distribution tactics and plan for your organization’s unique sales pipeline with this template. With room to document distribution models, pricing models, partner strategy, and sales management, you can easily create an effective sales business model. Download this template in Microsoft Excel, Word, or PDF formats.

Download Direct Sales Business Model Template

Excel | Word | PDF  | Smartsheet

Pay-Per-Use Business Model Template

Designed for business structures that rely on pay-per-use customers, this business model template allows you to track the success of your organization and strategize on future plans. With sections to document and track year-over-year paying customers, customer growth, premium paying customers, and net new customers, you can stay on top of the success — or areas of improvement — in your pay-per-use business model.

Download Pay-Per-Use Business Model Template

Excel | Smartsheet

Business Model Canvas Template

This template is designed to analyze and review current business models or to plan and document a strategy for new business models. Use this template to document the key details of your business plan, including key partners and activities, value proposition, and strategic channels. This template is available for customization and download in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Business Model Canvas Template

Excel | Word | PDF

Franchise Business Model Template

Use this template to create a targeted business model for franchises in order to illustrate potential success or highlight current profits. This template includes areas for documenting executive summaries and company descriptions, product or service descriptions, management structure, and more. This free template is available in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Franchise Business Model Template

Freemium Business Model Template

This template provides a business model for companies that have a freemium pricing strategy. It helps you enumerate key products or services that the organization should upcharge for. Use this template to document critical details of your freemium business, such as cost structure, customer segments, and revenue streams.

Download Freemium Business Model Template

Subscription Business Model Template

Outline subscription details, monitor business growth, and keep track of the highest producing revenue streams with this business model template. This template offers space to document and track new subscription members, premium subscription members, and total yearly paid revenue. Download and customize this Microsoft Excel template based on your business needs.

‌ Download Subscription Business Model Template - Excel

Startup Business Model Template

Create a traditional business model and detail all key aspects of your organization with this startup business model template. This template allows you to document the components of your startup that you want to highlight, such as executive summaries, company descriptions, marketing plans, and financial information. This template is available for download and customization in Microsoft Word.

Download Startup Business Model Template

Collective Business Model Template

Gather, document, and report on all the key details of your business with this collective business model template. Use this template to share the core components of your organization, such as key partners, resources, and activities, as well as customer segments and cost structures.

Download Collective Business Model Template

Inclusive Business Model Template

This free template includes space to document the most fundamental building blocks of your company, so you can create a comprehensive business model. Document and communicate key details, such as products or services, cost structures, revenue streams, and more. This template is available for download in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Inclusive Business Model Template

Open Source Business Model Template

Use this template to plan and record a comprehensive business model for open source projects. This template includes sections to document everything from problems and solutions to unique value propositions and customer channels. It is available for download in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Open Source Business Model Template

Consulting Business Model Template

Geared toward businesses in the consulting field, this template lets you construct a comprehensive overview of your organization’s business model. Customize the details of this template to fit your needs. The template includes sections for company descriptions, mission statements, finances, key business metrics, and more.

Download Consulting Business Model Template

Small Business Model Template

This template is perfect for small businesses who want to map out their business model, either at the beginning stages of their business, or as their business grows. Use this template to include the most important high-level details, such as company description, market analysis, organization information, and financial projections.

Download Small Business Business Model Template

Harvard Business Model Template

Use this business model template, influenced by the Harvard Business School, to create the most comprehensive and detailed overview of your business. With space to include key details, like partners, business activities, resources, and value propositions, this template allows you to customize your business plan and share the details among your team.

Download Harvard Business Model Template

SaaS Business Model Template

Leverage this template to accurately explain, build out, and model your SaaS business plan. This template is especially helpful in mapping out key resources, like developers, software value propositions, and revenue streams based on usage. Download this template, available in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF, and customize it based on the details of your company.

Download SaaS Business Model Template

Lean Business Model Template

To eliminate waste and provide the best value to the customer of a lean business, use this template to document and track the core components that contribute to your organization’s success. With room to include potential problems and solutions, cost structure, and unique customer segments, this template allows you to model and perfect the ideal lean business.

Download Lean Business Model Template

Service Business Model Template

This template is designed to analyze and review business models related to the service industry. Use this template to document the key details of your business plan, including key partners and activities, value propositions, and strategic channels. This template is available for customization and download in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Service Business Model Template

Affiliate Business Model Template

Use this preformatted template to plan, track, and assess the business model of an affiliate business in order to keep all details in check. With space to record key details, such as market segmentation and targeting, marketing strategy, business operation, and more, this template gives you the structure to maintain a successful affiliate business. This template is available for download in Microsoft Excel, Word, and PDF formats.

Download Affiliate Business Model Template

What Is a Business Model Canvas?

A business model canvas is a strategic management document that assists you in developing business models of all kinds, from lean to startup to subscription models. It is a purely visual chart that identifies and describes core business elements, like value propositions, market segments, and customers.

What Is a Business Model Canvas Used For?

Typically a one-page document, a business model canvas grants a high-level overview of the business structure and operation and describes the overall value of an organization. Not only is it a strategic tool for developing a new business, but it’s also a way to upgrade or analyze an already-active business. A business model canvas brings clarity, strategy, and simplicity to a business plan, especially regarding areas that are usually difficult to describe.

Why Is a Business Model Canvas Important?

A business model canvas is important because it helps provide a company with clarity, focus, and strategy. It offers a detailed structure of what the business does, how it should perform, and what markets or customer groups it should target.

What a Business Model Canvas Can Help an Organization Do

A business model canvas not only increases the transparency of the business plan by supplying a single, flexible explanation of the business and its strategy, but also helps a business or organization to do the following:

Describe, design, or redesign a business model

Organize new thoughts and ideas about how a business can increase its success

Enable both new and existing organizations to increase their focus on the operations and processes that run their business

Provide a platform to explore new options for a business, test any assumptions, and discover new opportunities

Devise new strategies for a business

Look at a business with a critical eye, identifying areas of improvement or areas of great success

Reevaluate any unique aspects of a business that are working and fine tune those aspects in order to improve an overall business strategy

Discover opportunities to grow or improve upon existing processes

Provide either a general guideline or a detailed layout of a business, depending on its structure

Identify specific instructions on how to achieve a new or improved business plan

Assess potential trade-off opportunities

Align marketing strategies and other business activities

Enable a structured conversation about a business model and an operation and management strategy that can include stakeholders, key team members, and external resources

Present strategic analyses, like a market analysis, customer analysis, or operational analysis

Develop new insight on customers and what they are seeking from a business

Describe the relationships between new initiatives and how a company can achieve those initiatives simultaneously

Who Created the Business Model Canvas?

Business theorist Alexander Osterwalder created the business model canvas following his earlier work on business model ontology.

The Core Structures of Business Models

Based on his analysis, Osterwalder proposed that all businesses share similar modeling, using the following core structures:

Infrastructure : This includes key business activities, key resources, and key partners that the business leverages on a regular basis.

Offering : The concept of offering deals with the unique value proposition of a business, which is what distinguishes one business from another.

Customers : This includes customer segments, channels, and customer relationships, all of which drive the strategy and overall success of a business.

Finances : Finances include both the cost structure and the revenue streams that drive the profit of a business.

When Was the Business Model Canvas Invented?

Alexander Osterwalder invented the business model canvas in 2008, following his work on business model ontology. Since 2008, business experts have created many variations on Osterwalder’s original business model canvas, including ones that are industry specific.

What Do You Include in a Business Model Canvas Template?

A business model canvas has a few main components that build out the structure, organization, and strategy of a business. The components include the following:

Key Activities : The key activities identify the crucial steps and activities a business must perform in order to deliver on its propositions and continue to succeed. As a business changes and grows, it must discover new techniques to perform better, provide better services or products, and consider how these key activities help to drive the value proposition.

Key Resources/Partners : The key resources delineate the strategic assets needed to achieve core business goals and maintain a more targeted and successful approach than one’s competitors. Three core business products make up the key resources: product, scope, and infrastructure.

Value Proposition : This is the driving force of the business, as it identifies the uniqueness of a business’s offering (i.e., what differentiates it from other competitors). The value prop works to pinpoint the needs of the customer and deliver on those needs with the company’s own product or service.

Channels : The channels signify the various media used to communicate the value prop to the appropriate customers. Channels also identify where and how you will sell your product and to what customers.

Customer Segments : This refers to the way in which customers interact with the business through the product or service lifecycle and which type of market a customer might engage with. Types of markets can include niche, mass, segmented, diversified, or multi-sided.

Cost Structure : The cost structure of a business model canvas pairs together how key activities will drive costs and determines how well the costs are aligned with the value prop. It is at this time that businesses must determine other key cost decisions, like using a fixed, variable, cost-driven, or value-driven structure and figuring out how the scope and scale of the business relate to the costs and revenue.

Revenue Streams : This determines the way a company generates revenue from each customer segment. Revenue streams can come in the form of asset sales, usage or subscription fees, lending, leasing, renting, licensing, brokerage fees, and advertising. A business determines its revenue streams based on its overall structure.

What Is a Business Model Canvas Report?

A business model canvas report is a roll-up of all the key details described in a business model canvas. The report aims to describe each component in further detail, providing commentary on both why a company is structured the way it is and how it plans to attain that structure.

What Is a Lean Canvas Template?

A lean canvas template is a one-page business plan that summarizes a business and breaks it down into nine key elements. Those elements include problems, solutions, key metrics, value propositions, advantages, channels, customer segments, cost structures, and revenue streams.

Why Have a Business Model Canvas?

Businesses and organizations should have a business model canvas in order to break down the key components of a business and discuss what is and isn’t working. This process will help you identify problem areas, improve on certain aspects, and continue to grow, generate revenue, and succeed.

Tips For Creating a Business Model Canvas

The best way to get started is by gathering a core group comprised of key team members and stakeholders (ideally around 3-5 people) and drawing out a canvas on paper or creating a canvas digitally.

Allow yourself plenty of undisturbed time to start mapping out a high-level overview of the business and its structure. Connect the core building blocks of your business, like market segments and target customers, and brainstorm how to achieve the most success.

Make sure to keep on open mind and separate the current from the ideal state of the business. After you have completed your canvas, review it and share it with your team to collect further ideas or comments. Ask team members to look for missing details, both in the design and structure of the canvas.

Once you have completed the canvas review, test your new plan and analyze it periodically to ensure it is working for your business.

Examples of Successful Business Models

As you begin to create your own business models and business model canvases, use the following resources to help you create the best business model for your organization.

Score’s Business Plan Template for Startups

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Business Plan Tool

The $100 One-Page Business Plan

LawDepot’s WYSIWYG Business Plan Template

Santa Clara University’s My Own Business Plan Template

Rocket Lawyer’s Business Plan Templates by State

Move Beyond Your Business Model Canvas with Real-Time Work Management in Smartsheet

Empower your people to go above and beyond with a flexible platform designed to match the needs of your team — and adapt as those needs change. 

The Smartsheet platform makes it easy to plan, capture, manage, and report on work from anywhere, helping your team be more effective and get more done. Report on key metrics and get real-time visibility into work as it happens with roll-up reports, dashboards, and automated workflows built to keep your team connected and informed. 

When teams have clarity into the work getting done, there’s no telling how much more they can accomplish in the same amount of time.  Try Smartsheet for free, today.

Discover why over 90% of Fortune 100 companies trust Smartsheet to get work done.

The Business Model Canvas

The Business Model Canvas is a strategic management and entrepreneurial tool. It allows you to describe, design, challenge, invent, and pivot your business model. This method from the bestselling management book Business Model Generation is applied in leading organizations and start-ups worldwide.

The Business Model Canvas enables you to:

• Visualize and communicate a simple story of your existing business model.
• Use the canvas to design new business models, whether you are a start-up or an existing businessManage a portfolio of business models
• You can use the canvas to easily juggle between "Explore" and "Exploit" business models.

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Business Model Canvas Free Template – Excel Spreadsheet Example

  Download the Business model canvas free template – Excel spreadsheet example

How does the Canvas model generate the result for my organization?

Canvas is used to build a business model, which can be used to create a new organization or revise the existing model in a mature company. In the Excel Canvas model, you easily record the proposed idea and identify the variables that influence the business.

Business Plan x Canvas Model

In the past, the possibility of starting a company was usually conditioned by extensive research, summarized in a business plan that could exceed a hundred pages. The Canvas model created in the 2000s by Swiss consultant Alex Osterwalder, enabled the essence of the business proposal to be compiled into a single page so that it can be validated with real customers before receiving major investments, which means discovering the MVP – Minimum Viable Product.

The following aspects will be developed in your Canvas model:

• Partners: main partners, including suppliers.
• Activities: key activity required by the value proposition.
• Resources: key resources to generate value.
• Value Proposal: the real problem the offered solution solves.
• Customer Relationship: type of relationship and segments.
• Channels: channels that reach the target audience.
• Customer Segment: the most important audience for which value is generated.
• Cost Structure: cost of the business model and more costly resources and activities.
• Revenue Flow: the amount currently paid by the public and how much it intends to pay.

Start now! Click here and download the Business Model Canvas Free Template – Excel Spreadsheet Example.

Combine this free template with other tools:

Michael Porter’s Five Forces SWOT Analysis Balanced Scorecard (BSC) 4P’s of Marketing

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11 Free Business Model Canvas Templates in Word and ClickUp

Haillie Parker

March 13, 2024

The foundation of a successful business is an effective business model—your organization won’t be able to get off the ground without one!

At the same time, creating your business model is no walk in the park, and you’ll likely need to lean on some or all of your resources in the development process. One of the most accessible and time-saving resources in this area is a business model canvas template, and if you don’t have one yet or are seeking a new one, you’ve come to the right place!

Follow along as we dive into the top FAQs, benefits, and features of the best business model canvas templates and 11 downloadable examples for any type of business.

What is a Business Model Canvas Template?

What to look for in a business model canvas template, 1. business model canvas template by clickup, 2. startup business model canvas template by clickup, 3. lean canvas template by clickup, 4. business planning template by clickup, 5. business planning document template by clickup, 6. lean business plan template by clickup, 7. business development plan template by clickup, 8. business ideation template by clickup, 9. clickup business brainstorming template, 10. microsoft word business model canvas template by neos chronos, 11. microsoft work blank business model canvas template by the business model analyst, elements of a business model canvas.

Business model canvas templates are pre-built and customizable tools to outline and visualize your business model on a single page. These documents quickly define your company’s unique value proposition , target audience, revenue, cost, resources, key partnerships, and more.

Without a template, developing your business model canvas can be a lengthy and difficult process. Plus, business model canvas templates reduce the margin for error and ensure you’re thinking strategically, working efficiently, and meeting your stakeholder’s expectations.

Business model canvas templates are also great resources to share with the entire team and keep everyone aligned on your organization’s long-term goals.

There are tons of simple, accessible, and free business model canvas templates available for virtually every business management software —but not all templates are created equally! Here are five must-have features to look for before downloading:

• Multiple views to customize the structure of your business model plan and how you visualize it
• Collaboration features to involve the team, stakeholders, and other departments
• Ease of use and simplicity to ensure you’re using the template correctly
• Flexibility to accommodate different company sizes, industries, and business models
• Multiple integrations to bring context and information from other work tools into your template

11 Business Model Canvas Templates in Word & ClickUp

Searching for the perfect BMC template can be an overwhelming process.

Instead of fishing through pages of links or resorting to the trial-and-error method, start here with 11 of the best business model canvas templates for ClickUp and Microsoft. 

The Business Model Canvas Template by ClickUp empowers teams to create new and try different business models with ease on a collaborative Whiteboard . The template starts with nine main color-coded segments to structure your business model canvas:

Key Partners

Key activities, value proposition, customer relationships, customer segments, key resources, cost structure, revenue stream.

Defining these segments will help you develop every element of your business model and give your organization the foundation to thrive. This template also prompts you to indicate the company you’re creating the business model for, along with the designer involved and the date of creation. You can also specify the version name and number if you plan on creating multiple iterations of a business model using this template. And since ClickUp Whiteboards provide an infinite canvas, you’ll never run out of space developing your business ideas.

Startups have unique planning requirements and need a tool that can build a solid foothold for the new company. The Startup Canvas Whiteboard Template by ClickUp was designed with this in mind, and why ClickUp itself is one of the best tools for startups in the planning phase. 

This template includes everything you need to gauge the feasibility of your startup business based on various parameters. The template includes 13 segments that cover nearly every aspect of your startup to help you fully realize your vision for the business. Easily name your organization’s key partners, the problem your business or product will solve, your target market, measurable objectives , equipment costs, the key factor to your success, and more. 

This beginner-friendly Whiteboard template allows you to create a concise summary of your business, what you want to achieve with it, and how you can succeed. It can also serve as a skeletal roadmap for a more comprehensive business plan as your company grows.

The Lean Canvas Template by ClickUp helps business leaders identify the most crucial and dangerous assumptions in their organization. It’s especially helpful when launching a new product or service, as it presents all ideas and potential problems in an organized, easy-to-understand list. Another great resource for startups, this template isn’t just for the planning phase—you can use it multiple times to organize any area of your business throughout its lifecycle.

A little different than the Whiteboard diagrams we saw above, this template applies a pre-made List to your Workspace with three five views including ClickUp’s unique Form view , Kanban-like Board view , and Table view . Using these views, managers can choose how they visualize the issues at hand and can categorize them based on factors like customer segment, cost, metrics, channels, and more.

In this template, you’ll also find a detailed Getting Started Guide ClickUp Doc to support your setup process, three custom statuses, and eight Custom Fields to access key information quickly and directly from your tasks.

If you’re starting a new business idea, the Business Planning Template by ClickUp will help you develop a thorough business plan that leaves no areas overlooked. This details all tasks you and the team must complete and keep everything organized on a clear timeline .

This template will immediately prompt you to plug in your organization’s information, deadlines, and projects into ready-made tasks arranged on an interactive list, Kanban board , or table. With four custom statuses and three Custom Fields to add references, approvals, and sections to each task, this template is somewhat simpler to learn than the previous one but includes a comprehensive Business Plan ClickUp Doc to built-out your strategy.  

Ready to learn more about business strategy? Use this template along with another strategic planning template to ensure you’re taking the proper course of action.

If you’re not ready to put your business model plans into action, start with the Business Planning Document Template by ClickUp to fully outline and visualize your business strategy. What’s unique about this template is that it’s specifically and only for ClickUp Docs. And while it’s intuitive to learn and start using quickly, it’s by no means a simple one-pager !

The formatted Doc guides you from the top down. Starting with your company name, overview, background, and team, you’ll soon be prompted to define key metrics and research including:

• Your marketing analysis
• Sales and marketing strategy
• Operational strategy

And more! Plus, you can link tasks directly in your Business Plan Doc and turn any text into an action item, helping you act on new ideas the moment they come up. And with an automatically saved version history, collaborative live editing, and assigned comments, your Doc will remain updated and act as a referrable source of truth throughout the development of your business proposal and model.

For something a bit less extensive than our other business plan and Whiteboard templates, you can make the most of your resources with this Lean Business Plan Template by ClickUp . 

In this template, you’ll have access to multiple views depending on your preferred layout including a dynamic List, a pre-built Kanban board, and multiple Help Docs . Within each view, you’ll find convenient sections for all of your key information including your plan summary, business model canvas, prioritized tasks, or notes.

In your plan summary, you can categorize your tasks by five different custom statuses, add multiple assignees for cross-functional teams , set deadlines, attach Docs, and more. This template will establish the bare bones of a traditional business plan as you and your team get things done, working toward your business goals.

ClickUp’s Business Development Plan Template offers a comprehensive roadmap tailored for success. With its user-friendly interface, this template facilitates measurable goals and objectives, identification of key milestones for progress tracking, and the creation of clear action plans and strategies.

By utilizing this template, entrepreneurs can effectively chart their path towards sustainable growth and development, ensuring their business remains agile and responsive in today’s dynamic market landscape.

Need the perfect tool to practice and develop your ideation techniques ? Apply the Business Ideation Template by ClickUp to start mapping out new concepts. It’s also a great resource to have on hand during group discussions or brainstorming sessions . 

The template presents users with an Ideation Diagram that includes different segments to help categorize and organize ideas. You can jot down all ideas based on whether they’re business process, product, or people-oriented. The legend indicates each category, and the Pool of Ideas segment will allow you and others to add certain general ideas that you can categorize later.

The entire diagram is highly visual and organized using ClickUp’s digital whiteboard software to capture and develop ideas the moment you have them.

Especially if you rely on ClickUp as brainstorming software , the Business Brainstorming Template by ClickUp will help you nurture new ideas. 

This template allows you to categorize ideas based on:

• What you love
• What you know
• What people need
• What people will pay for 

Include multiple people on your Whiteboard diagram and use collaborative detection to see viewing your work and edit alongside each other without overlap.

This unique visual aid will make everyone feel like they’re actively contributing to discussions and brainstorming sessions, even if you work asynchronously. You can also take this template a step further and use your completed diagram to prioritize newer ideas and determine what’s worth exploring further.

Another option to help develop your business model is the Microsoft Word Business Model Canvas Template. It’s similar to ClickUp’s business model canvas templates and allows for simple organization of the various facets of your company.

Using this basic template, you can establish multiple key details about your business model including key partners and suppliers, your value proposition, and relationships. Identify the channels you’ll need to use to reach your customers, along with the resources required for each activity. In addition, you can add information about revenue streams and cost structure.

This tool is free to download and allows for instant use through Microsoft Word. If simplicity is something you’re looking for from your business model canvas template, this is a good place to start.

Looking for a different Word template to build your next business plan? This Blank Business Model Canvas Template is a little more complex and flexible than the previous document—it’s also free to download!

This template gives you and members of your team a centralized view of your business model, keeping everyone on the same page, literally and figuratively. It takes the segments from the template above and presents them in a diagram format . You can view all key partners, activities, and more in organized sections and add details in the form of sticky notes . Choose from different formatting options, including colors, fonts, and arrangements to optimize how you present your data.

Understanding the key components of a business model canvas is crucial for effectively applying it to your business strategy. Each element plays a vital role in presenting a comprehensive view of your business model. Here are the critical elements of a business model canvas template:

Key Partners are the external companies or individuals who contribute to your business’s success. These can include suppliers, manufacturers, and business allies who support your operations or market entry strategies, helping reduce risks or acquire resources.

Key Activities entail the essential actions your business must take to deliver its value proposition successfully. This can range from production, problem-solving, to delivery, crucial for your business model to thrive.

The Value Proposition defines the unique value your product or service offers to customers. It’s what sets you apart from competitors and addresses specific customer needs or problems, making your offering compelling.

Customer Relationships describe the types of relationships you establish with your customer segments. Whether personal, automated, or self-service, this element outlines how you interact and maintain engagement with your customers.

Customer Segments identify the different groups of people or organizations your business aims to serve. Different segments can have varied needs, and tailoring your approach to each segment can optimize satisfaction and value delivery.

Channels refer to the methods through which your business communicates with and reaches its customer segments to deliver the value proposition. Effective channels ensure the right products and services reach customers at the right time and place.

Key Resources are the assets vital for a business to create and deliver its value proposition, reach markets, maintain customer relationships, and generate revenue. This includes physical, intellectual, human, and financial resources.

The Cost Structure highlights the significant costs involved in operating the business model. Understanding these helps in strategizing on value optimization, cost reduction, and overall financial management.

Revenue Streams constitute the various sources from which the business earns money from each customer segment. This can include direct sales, subscriptions, licensing, or any other revenue-generating mechanisms.

Reach your Goals with Business Model Templates

Choosing the right business model template is essential for developing a successful plan that aligns with your business goals and objectives. With a variety of options available, it can be overwhelming to find the ideal template that fits your specific requirements.

ClickUp’s extensive Template Library offers a range of customizable templates to streamline your business planning process and achieve your goals. Plus, you can access any template, hundreds of productivity features , and over 1,000 integrations for free when you sign up for ClickUp today .

Questions? Comments? Visit our Help Center for support.

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Business Model Canvas: The Definitive Guide and Examples

Before 2004, entrepreneurs suffered from prolonged and cumbersome business plans. Alexander Osterwalder facilitated the creation of a business model by introducing the Business Model Canvas (BMC) .

By definition, it’s a visual template that illustrates various objects of a business model . Osterwalder’s original canvas includes nine elements, which we will have explained below in the article. They represent vital aspects of business survival.

What to Begin With?

Once you decided to use the Business Model Canvas approach, you need to prepare the essentials:

• Decide on the team members involved.
• Allocate time
• Prepare the tools.

The necessary tools depend on how you decide to brainstorm:

• Offline. Download a PDF Business Model Canvas template, and take several colored markers, sticky notes, and anything else you may need. For example, if you are brainstorming in a big team, a board is a must for enhanced convenience.
• Online. Choose the platform where you will work with a template. It can be Google Docs, Omnigraffle, or the Stratygizer web app.

Why Choose Business Model Canvas?

What makes The Business Model Canvas stand out in an array of approaches to business model creation? Its 1-page nature drives the following advantages:

• Focus – With all the data presented on a single page, business owners don’t spread themselves too thin. They formulate key elements and eliminate unnecessary ones.
• Density – It’s much better to read one dense piece of paper than look through a 30-page report.
• Flexibility – The canvas is easy to customize; therefore, you can fill out several templates, compare them, and choose the best one.

About the Nine Business Model Canvas Elements

Let’s elaborate on what is behind the nine Business Model Canvas blocks:

1. Customer Segment

Daily operations highly depend on customers and their behavioral patterns. That’s why customer segmentation is a must when creating a business model.

In this block, you need to describe the buyer persona. The description includes the following:

• Demographics (age, gender, etc.)
• Professional status
• Motivation and goals
• Shopping preferences

This is a basic list of points. You can add specific parameters. For example, software developers may identify the preferred device type. Already-established brands can also introduce visitors’ tiers that differentiate people according to their level of connection with a brand.

Read an in-depth article about customer segments here .

2. Value Proposition

A value proposition is a brief description of your product and its ultimate value for a client. In other words, write down in a Business Model Canvas why consumers should buy your goods or services. Ideally, it solves a problem or drives additional value for an end-client.

Keep in mind that the wording should be precise and short. Don’t describe your value proposition in several sentences. Limit it to a single but eloquent phrase. Here is a good example from Maps.me : “Fast, detailed, and entirely offline maps with turn-by-turn navigation – trusted by over 140 million travelers worldwide.”

Read an in-depth article about value proposition here.

3. Distribution Channels

Osterwalder, together with Pigneur, described five phases of channel development.

• Awareness includes channels that establish the initial contact with the target audience and develop the connection. It usually involves marketing channels.
• Evaluation implies allowing potential buyers to try your goods and see the value. Popular channels are free samples, reviews, and case studies.
• Purchase is about when and by what means customers can buy your product. The channels vary significantly depending on the prevalence of online or offline communication.
• Delivery describes how an end consumer receives a product.
• After-sales is usually limited to customer support that provides after-sales service and resolves problems.

Read an in-depth article about distribution channels here.

4. Customer Relationship

A customer relationship strategy determines how your target audience interacts with your brand. You can choose from five types of customer relationships in terms of the Business Model Canvas:

• Personal assistance is a traditional approach where a customer interacts with a personal assistant when contacting your brand. It implies a high level of personal care and deep, meaningful relationships.
• Self-service is the opposite of personal assistance: a brand doesn’t directly communicate with a consumer – instead, the consumer can understand the product via guides and FAQs.
• Automated service involves AI-based suggestions and bots that can provide basic assistance. This type is more engaging than self-service.
• Communities are spaces developed by a brand itself to help the audience understand the product better. A good example is Oracle, which practices the approach.
• Co-creation implies educating the customers via user-generated content.

Read an in-depth article about customer relationships here.

5. Revenue Streams

The next block of the Business Model Canvas is about determining where your revenue comes from. Here, you should consider the buyer’s persona to identify what the target audience is ready to pay for.

There can be several methods of monetization:

• Direct sales : Implies selling your service or product for a fee. It’s common for the majority of industries.
• Advertising : It’s relevant for such niches as blogging or IT platforms. The revenue comes from advertisers who want to reach your audience.
• Freemium : This applies to services only. Some features are free, while premium ones are paid for.
• Subscription : It’s similar to a fee-based monetization. The only difference is that a consumer pays for getting access to the service for a limited time, not forever.

Read an in-depth article about revenue streams here.

6. Key Resources

In the Business Model Canvas, key resources are divided into four categories. Here are they explained:

• Tangible – Any physical resources, from real estate to equipment. The stocks also fall in the category.
• Intangible – Intellectual property like patents, copyrights, licenses, and customer knowledge
• Human – Your employees that make the business run
• Financial – All the finance, regardless of whether it’s an obligation or not. It includes cash, bank loans, grants or donations, and other finances.

Read an in-depth article about key resources here.

7. Key Activities

Key activities included in a canvas are the business activities vital for work. They vary from industry to industry. Some design this block by uniting the activities into one out of three categories:

• Problem-solving

For example, software developers fall in the first category as they design new products, while an IT company with its own taxi service is attributed to the third category.

Read an in-depth article about key activities here.

8. Key Partners

Key partners are parties like suppliers who are vital to flawless business operations. In other words, a company can’t survive without them. There are four categories to include in the Business Model Canvas:

• Supplier – A partner who supplies you with raw materials or finished goods
• Non-competitors – Companies you team up with to leverage their resources: for example, you can source goods from several suppliers
• Joint ventures – Partners who help you fill the gap: enter a new market or reach a new niche. The result of a joint venture is enhanced mutual profitability.
• Coopetition – Partnership between two competitors, which may take place as a merger to market a new product

Read an in-depth article about key partners here.

9. Cost Structure

All the mentioned above blocks of the Business Model Canvas aren’t implemented for free. Startups and enterprises spend money on production and accompanying services. To set realistic revenue goals, a company needs to estimate the costs first.

The costs vary depending on the industry. For example, some businesses have to cover R&D expenditures, together with production and post-service. Others, however, exclude this debit from the template.

Read an in-depth article about cost structure here.

Applications and Analysis

Once the Business Model Canvas is ready, you need to analyze it. For this, you should assess the canvas in terms of three points:

• Is it logical and coherent? Are there are misaligned blocks? If yes, address the issue.
• What can be improved? If you find any mediocre blocks, devote more time to improve them.
• Are there any other ideas to consider? Maybe you can add something to the existing template or design a new one?
• Does my team agree with the canvas? If not, reconsider the arguable moments. To prove your point of view, rely on data and facts.
• Have I taken into account a long-term competitive advantage? If no, address the point. You need to consider the market and competitors when building a business plan.

What to Do After?

After you have examined the canvas, you can integrate it into your daily routine. Here is how it can be utilized:

• Track the changes. Any company evolves with time. A plan helps to make sure that changes don’t contravene core principles.
• Onboard top-management. The model communicates who you are and how you live. Instead of describing everything on your own, you can let new hires read everything.
• Guide the brainstorming. Every time you have a meeting where a team is generating ideas, place the canvas in front. It will help to reject unfit ideas.

Besides, you can use the same technique in other areas. For example, if you have several customers, you can describe an approach to them with the help of the BMS.

Some Tips for Beginners

If you have never created the Business Model Canvas before, comprehending all the above-mentioned data may be hard. Here are five tips that will help to navigate across the template easier:

• Prefer teamwork: It’s better to brainstorm side by side with reliable and competent team members rather than alone. You reduce the risk of designing the canvas from one perspective.
• Work on a whiteboard: The more space you have, the better. It allows the whole team to have a good look at the template and facilitates the process.
• Stock up on stationery: Colored markers and stickers will help you to group the ideas when brainstorming. Otherwise, you risk ending up with an incoherent Business Model Canvas.
• Devote enough time: Don’t allocate half an hour or schedule an important meeting right after the brainstorming. You will need a minimum of one hour for a draft.
• Determine the sequence of blocks to fill in: It’s advisable to start with customer segmentation or value proposition. After that, you can determine the sequence as it’s convenient for you.

Software for Business Model Canvas

If you prefer digital solutions to traditional paper and markers, you can opt for software to create the Business Model Canvas. There are many useful tools on the web. These three, however, are the best:

• Canvanizer. The tool is free, simple, and shareable. It allows collaborative brainstorming in Google Docs. Later, the canvas can be exported to an image or other formats.
• Strategyzer. The free software is more advanced with deep analytics and enhanced user experience. For example, the tool can assess the financial viability of a business idea. It also offers additional modes: for example, a dashboard for Lean Startup development.
• CNVS. The software with a simple interface is easy-to-understand. It allows building not only the BMC but also a Lean and Feature Canvas.

What Are the Benefits of the BMC?

Businesses of all scopes choose the Business Model Canvas approach because of four core benefits:

• Enhanced Visibility. Since the canvas involves visual presentation, it facilitates data comprehension. The team has all the information in front of their eyes; therefore, the analysis and decision-making are much easier.
• Customization. You can change some blocks of the canvas in no time if they don’t match with others. It won’t take several hours to retype and reprint a 40-page report.
• Focus on Value. Typically, the value of the product is at the core. It means that all the other blocks are designed with the end-benefit in mind.
• A Single Message. A team gets a clear message of the operation. The Business Model Canvas eliminates risks of failure because of misunderstandings.

What Does the Business Model Canvas Lack?

Although the Business Model Canvas is a popular and recognizable approach, many critics revolve around it. In particular, some executives criticize the model because of the lack of:

• Competitors
• Market analysis
• Brand mission
• Key priorities

While it may bother some people, in reality, there is nothing wrong. The nature of the BMC doesn’t imply focusing on these aspects. Its ultimate objective is to facilitate the process of crafting business models. And the template includes the core blocks only. After all, the market and competitors’ external outcomes aren’t shaping the company’s inner structure.

Why Should Already-Established Companies Implement the Business Model Canvas?

Traditionally, the canvas approach is the prerogative of startups. But it can also be useful for already-established enterprises. The BMC covers the following tasks: Helps to identify gaps in the model and discover new opportunities.

• Allows comparing your model to competitors to identify competitive advantages
• Enhances a presentation of a company to potential investors
• Allows examining and testing new business models
• It helps to unite the model and eliminate misunderstandings in a team
• Allows recreating the company from scratch

As can be seen, the Business Model Canvas helps to effectively analyze the whole company or particular project, map out possible changes or gaps, and address them.

Real Examples of the Business Model Canvas

Examples help executives to grasp the basics of the BMC better. Here are two examples of canvases from different industries:

Airbnb is a provider of affordable accommodation around the globe. Its canvas may look like this:

• Customer segments – budget tourists, unconventional travelers, locals seeking extra income
• Value proposition – easy and fast booking, huge offer, competitive prices, local lifestyle
• Distribution channels – social media, travel bloggers, word-of-mouth
• Customer relationships – self-service with customer support
• Revenue streams – a fee system, affiliate marketing
• Key resources – a community of both landlords and guests, platform, IT-specialists
• Key activities – user research, customer support, maintenance
• Key partners – tourists and travelers, hosts, investors, payments providers, insurance companies
• Cost structure – marketing, platform maintenance

LinkedIn is a professional social network.

• Customer segments – HR, professionals seeking employment, marketing specialists
• Value proposition – building a professional network of contact, sourcing potential employees, blogging.
• Distribution channels – app stores, website
• Customer relationships – self-service, customer support
• Revenue streams – freemium, marketing, and hiring solutions
• Key resources – platform, IT-specialists, user-generated content
• Key activities – platform maintenance
• Key partners – users, SlideShare
• Cost structure – marketing, maintenance

The Business Model Canvas is one of the numerous approaches to business modeling. For more than fifteen years of existence, it has proved its worth in the corporate community. Despite some critics, the method is effective and illustrates the business plan precisely. Moreover, thanks to its visual feature, it’s easy to comprehend and assess.

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You may also be interested in the Value Proposition Canvas template , a complementary tool to the Business Model Canvas.

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Business Model Canvas Template [FREE DOWNLOAD]

What is the business model canvas.

The Business Model Canvas is a tool used to visualise nine key elements of business planning.

The business model canvas template allows for a concise, visual overview of the core elements of the business plan to be created.

FREE DOWNLOADS

Business model canvas guidance notes [free download], what are the nine elements of the business model canvas, 1. value proposition.

This refers to the collection of products and services that a business offers in order to meet the needs and desires of their customers.

Value can be expressed through design, price, performance, customisation, accessibility, technology or any other similar means.

2. Customer Segments

Customers can be segmented based on their different needs, attributes and interests.

3. Channels

Once a business has devised its value proposition and identified its customers it will need to establish the best channels in which to communicate.

4. Customer Relationships

Customer service, care and retention should be at the heart of every business.

5. Key Activities

By this stage the business will now have a fairly good idea of what it hopes to achieve.

6. Key Resources

What resources are required to turn the value proposition into a reality?

7. Key Partners

The term partners does not refer to business partnerships in the traditional sense but rather it refers to any external organisations who the business plans to partner with in order to deliver their value proposition.

8. Cost Structure

It is all very well having a solid value proposition but unless it can be delivered in a financially viable way it will simply not work.

9. Revenue Streams

Businesses need to understand where their income is going to come from and if it is likely to exceed the amount proposed in the cost structure.

What are the Benefits of using the Business Model Canvas?

The most important benefit of using the business model canvas when planning your business activities is that it provides a concise but comprehensive overview of the key topics.

When used in a group setting it may be useful to print out a large business model canvas and use Post It Notes to stick onto the plan.

This can be a great way to initially brainstorm business ideas and financial viability.

The business model canvas is a very popular and useful planning tool that can be used for any business: big, small, new or established.

Old Versions of the Business Model Canvas Still Available for Download...

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Business Model Canvas 101 Excel Template

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Business Model Canvas Template

The business model canvas helps you re-evaluate your unique value proposition in regard to your customer segments, business activities, cost structure, and revenue streams in a lean one-page diagram. Use Xtensio’s business model canvas template to define your company’s unique value proposition and ongoing business plan.

• Create a clear, concise, and focused business model canvas to highlight how to get your products to the customer and how your business will generate income and profit.
• Define product-market fit and identify customer needs.
• Connect the dots between your value proposition, your customer segments, and revenue streams.
• Streamline planning, development, and execution across your business.

Xtensio is your team space for beautiful living documents. Create , manage and share business collateral, easily. Join the 264,433 changemakers.

How to create a business model canvas with Xtensio

• Click and start editing, no account or credit card required. Follow along with the instructional canvas template details. Add charts, graphs, images, and videos. Drag & drop. Resize. Customize the canvas format however you need. It’s the easiest editor ever.
• Customize everything in the template to match your brand. Define your style guide. Add your (or your client’s) brand fonts and colors. You can even pull colors directly from a website to easily brand your business model canvas and more.
• Work on your value proposition and business models together on the cloud. Add colleagues (or clients) to collaborate on the business model canvas template. Changes automatically save and sync across all devices, in real-time.
• Share a link. Present a slideshow. Embed. Download a PDF/PNG. The business model canvas seamlessly adapts to your workflow. No more jumping from tool-to-tool to design different types of deliverables.
• Reuse and repurpose. Save your own custom business model canvas template. Or copy and merge into other documents.

Follow along step-by-step with the Business Model Canvas how-to guide .

What is a business model canvas template?

The business model canvas was proposed by Alexander Osterwalder based on his book: Business Model Ontology . The template provides the structure of a business plan in a concise, 9-segment canvas that outlines business elements to describe how your company plans to bring in revenue streams.

New business ideas, startups and evolving companies use business models to identify key resources, target their ideal customer segment, outline key partners and structure their main revenue stream. A well-developed business model canvas will help streamline planning, development, and execution across your business. It should align everyone’s goals and reduce discrepancies among the numerous people who contribute to your business goals.

What are the 9 parts of a business model?

There are 9 building blocks in the business model canvas that outline key business drivers. These building blocks are key elements in understanding how your business can make money.

• Key Partnerships: Who would you like to have as your business partners, suppliers, or collaborators on your business idea?
• Key Activities: Identify the key steps you need to take in order for your business to deliver on its promises and make sure development rolls out smoothly. What actions or activities do your value propositions require you to make?
• Key Resources: Identify your key resources and find your differentiating factor among your competitors. What strategic assets do you need to launch and operate your business?
• Unique Value Proposition: Your value proposition should clearly and immediately express the value that your service or product provides to the customer. What is your business promising to its audience, and how does your product or service stand out? If you have multiple customer segments you may have a few different value propositions.
• Customer Relationships: Determine how your customers will interact with your products and services (internet, phone, in-person). Then write down guidelines for creating, maintaining, and growing your customer relationships.
• Distribution and Marketing Channels: These are the different channels your team uses to communicate, sell, or provide service for customers.
• Customer Segments: Who are your key customers? Investigate your customer needs and problems to identify what channels are ideal for each of your customer segments.
• Cost Structure: This section will go over the costs connected with your business model and identify cost drivers. What will the cost of launching and maintaining your new products and services be? Consider how your key activities contribute to costs and whether these costs are in line with your value propositions.
• Revenue Streams: How will your business make money? Where is your company driving new business and income from?

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Business Model Canvas Template (Excel)

Resource overview.

Use this Microsoft Excel template to define your business model.

Related Resources

Use this template to define your business model.  For background on this approach, read this book:

https://www.amazon.com/Business-Model-Generation-Visionaries-Challengers-ebook/dp/B06X426D4F/

Key sections of the canvas include:

• Key Partners
• Key Activities
• Key Resources
• Value Propositions
• Customer Relationships
• Customer Segments
• Cost Structure
• Revenue Streams

This template is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy or read more, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

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What is the Business Model Canvas?

Download the free business model canvas template, history of the business model canvas, structure of the business model canvas template, example of a business model canvas, additional resources, business model canvas template.

The executive summary of a business

The business model canvas is a strategic planning  tool used by managers to illustrate and develop their business model. The business model canvas template clearly identifies the key elements that make up a business. Additionally, it simplifies a business plan into a condensed form. In this way, the business model canvas template acts like an executive summary for the business plan.

Corporate Finance Institute®’s Corporate & Business Strategy Course has more tools that you can use to manage and improve your business!

Enter your name and email in the form below and download the free template now!

The business model canvas template was originally introduced by Alexander Osterwalder in his 2004 thesis, “The Business Model Ontology – A Proposition in a Design Science Approach”. Since then, the business model canvas template has been taught at business schools and iterated upon to fit more niche businesses.

There are nine main building blocks in the business model canvas template:

• Key Partners
• Key Activities
• Key Resources
• Value Propositions
• Customer Relationships
• Customer Segments
• Cost Structure
• Revenue Streams

The following is a breakdown of each of these nine elements. These elements all link and work with each other to ensure the success of the business.

#1. Key Partners

Key partners are the companies or people your business works with to create a strategic relationship. A few examples of key partners are suppliers or distribution partners in the supply chain .

Here are a few things to consider about key partners:

• What key resources does your company receive from these partners?
• What key activities are performed by these partners?
• What is your company’s motivation for working with these key partners? Is there something specific that only they can provide? Do they help lower costs?

#2. Key Activities

Key activities are specific activities or tasks that are fundamental to the operation of your business. An example of a key activity would be the procurement of fresh produce in bulk for a restaurant.

Here are a few things to consider about key activities:

• What key activities are necessary to deliver your value proposition ?
• What activities set your company apart from others?
• How do your revenue streams , distribution channels , and customer relationships differ from competitors? How do your key activities affect these?
• Do you need to procure specific niche resources?
• Do you need to streamline to keep costs and prices low?

#3. Key Resources

Key resources are the assets necessary to operate and deliver your value proposition. For example, a diamond mining company cannot operate without mining equipment . Alternatively, an automotive company cannot operate without the human capital and expertise that goes into designing cars.

Here are a few things to consider about key resources:

• What specific assets are necessary to operate your business and deliver your value proposition ?
• What resources do your distribution channels and revenue streams need to function?
• What resources are needed to maintain customer relationships and customer satisfaction ?
• Does your company require significant capital or human resources?

#4. Value Propositions

Value propositions are arguably the most important element of the business model canvas template. The value proposition determines the fundamental offering the company is trying to give its customers. It is the primary driver of business operations. For example, Spotify’s value proposition,  “Music for everyone.” , eloquently states its mission and offering. Spotify wants to be a music streaming platform that has music selections for everyone.

Here are a few things to consider about value propositions:

• What exactly is your company trying to give to customers?
• What problem is your company trying to solve and what needs are your company satisfying?
• How do you offer something different that satisfies the demands of your  customer segments (e.g. price, quality, design, status, etc.)?

#5. Customer Relationships

Customer relationships are the different types of interactions a company has with its customers. For example, a designer suit company will provide significant help for the customer, tailoring to their needs and working directly with them to create the suit they want. Conversely, telecommunications companies often have poor reputations and customer relationships as many practice aggressive and predatory sales practices through their call centers. Compared to telecommunications companies, the designer suit company has significantly richer and more fulfilling customer relationships.

Here are a few things to consider about customer relationships:

• What type of relationship does your company have with its customers? For example, do you provide dedicated assistance or are they expected to self-serve their needs through provided support channels?
• How does the business interact with customers and how does this differ between customer segments ?
• Does your company frequently communicate with customers?
• How much support is provided by your company?

#6. Channels

Channels are the different structures and methods that are used to deliver your company’s product and value proposition to its customers. Channels encompass all of a company’s supply, distribution, and marketing channels. It is important to consider all channels of a company and make sure they are functioning cohesively. For example, a company like Amazon needs to consider how its fulfillment centers and shipping services are integrated to send out timely shipments.

Here are a few things to consider about channels:

• How do you deliver your  value proposition ?
• How do you reach your  customer segments ? What channels are used?
• Are your supply, distribution, marketing, and communication channels well-integrated and cost-efficient? Are they being utilized effectively?

#7. Customer Segments

Customer Segments are the different types of customers that a company manages. A company that produces different products will need to interact with different types of customers.

An example of this would be airline companies. Airlines offer tickets for economy, business, and first-class customers. First-class passengers have access to exclusive benefits and luxury travel arrangements. Conversely, economy passengers are provided much less support, thus costing less, but also coming in significantly larger amounts.

Here are a few things to consider about customer segments:

• Who is the main focus of your value proposition? Who are you creating value for?
• Who are your most important customers? What are they like? What do they need? What do they enjoy?
• What are your different types of customers ?
• What is the customer market like? Is your company targeting a small niche community or a mass market?

#8. Cost Structure

The cost structure refers to how a company spends money on operations. It consists of the company’s key costs and the company’s level of focus on costs. If a company is cost-driven, it focuses on minimizing costs and, thus, prices for customers. Alternatively, if a company is value-driven, it focuses on creating value for its customers, with less focus on cost.

An example of this would be a comparison between fashion retailers, Forever 21 and Gucci. Forever 21 is a fast-fashion company focused on delivering the newest styles at low costs – a cost-driven company. Alternatively, Gucci is a luxury brand focused on delivering high-quality clothes and accessories designed with the latest trends in the fashion industry – a value-driven company.

Here are a few things to consider about cost structure:

• What are the key costs in your company’s business model
• What are the major drivers of cost ?
• How do your  key activities and  key resources  contribute to the cost structure?
• How do your costs relate to your  revenue streams?
• Is your company properly utilizing economies of scale ?
• What proportion of costs are fixed and variable ?
• Is your company focused on cost-optimization or value?

Check out CFI’s course on Budgeting and Forecasting to learn more about estimating future cash flows, revenues, and expenses!

#9. Revenue Streams

Revenue streams are a company’s source of cash flows . They are the final element of the business model canvas template. Revenue streams are the different ways your company’s value proposition generates money. A company might have multiple revenue streams. For example, Apple has multiple revenue streams between its variety of products and its services, such as Apple Music.

Here are a few things to consider about revenue streams:

• Does your company have multiple methods of generating revenue ?
• What is the pricing strategy for the products offered by your company?
• Through what  channels do your customers pay?
• Does your company offer multiple forms of payment (up-front, payment plans, financing, etc.)?

Here is a simple example built for an automotive company using our business model canvas template!

Proper financial management is the backbone of any business. Corporate Finance Institute has resources that will help you expand your knowledge, advance your career, and manage the financials of your company! Check out the helpful CFI resources below:

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Business model canvas template

Summarize a new business model in its early stages.

Use this template to outline all the advantages, targets, challenges, risks, costs, and opportunities of your business. After completing each step, you'll have an exportable canvas representing all the key details.

A business model canvas (BMC) is a one-page model that provides a clear and concise overview of a company's value proposition, target customer segments, revenue streams, cost structure, key activities, resources, partnerships, and channels.

By filling out each section of the canvas, business owners and entrepreneurs can gain a deeper understanding of different business models, identify areas for improvement, and develop strategies to achieve their goals.

The business model canvas template helps with:

• Gathering observations across an organization and build a strategy
• Aligning teams around a common vision
• Identifying areas for improvement
• Making it easier to communicate your ideas to others

How to use the Business model canvas template

Use the following building blocks to build a cohesive business strategy:

1. Identify your customer segments

Who are the people or organizations that will be using your product or service? Try to be as specific as possible — build a customer persona to consider factors such as demographics, psychographics, and behaviors.

For an added level of detail, map out the customer journey to identify key touchpoints.

2. Define your value proposition

What is the unique value that your product or service offers to your customers? This should be a clear and concise statement that summarizes the benefits of your product or service, and how they address customer needs.

3. Identify your channels

Which methods of communication do you plan to use to spread the word about your business to your customers and your key partners? Will you be using online marketing, social media, direct mail, or some other method? List all the channels you plan to use.

4. Describe your customer relationships

How will you interact with your customer base? Will you be providing customer support, offering loyalty programs, or engaging in other ways? Be specific about the types of relationships you will be building with your customers.

5. Define your revenue streams

How will you generate revenue from your product or service? Will you be charging for subscriptions, selling products, or using advertising? List all the revenue streams and pricing models you plan to use.

6. Identify your key resources

What are the resources you need to deliver your value proposition? This could include things like technology, equipment, human resources, intellectual property, or physical assets.

7. Describe your key activities

What are the core activities required to operate your business? This could include things like product development, manufacturing, distribution channels, marketing, sales, or customer service.

8. Identify your partnerships

What external parties will you need to collaborate with to achieve your goals? This could include suppliers, distributors, or other businesses that complement your product or service. Understanding key partnerships can help give you a leg-up against potential competitors.

9. Define your cost structure

What are the costs associated with operating your business? This could include things like salaries, rent, utilities, marketing expenses, or product development costs.

10. Review the canvas

Once you have filled out all the sections, review your canvas and make any necessary adjustments. You may want to consider whether there are any areas that need further refinement, or if there are any inconsistencies that need to be resolved.

11. Next steps

Use the canvas to guide your decision-making and strategy development. You may want to share it with your team, investors, or other stakeholders to get their feedback and input. Update it regularly as your business evolves and grows to inform your roadmap.

Tips for creating a business model canvas

Invite more collaborators.

Invite more team members into the workflow to help with building out each section of the canvas. Team members can provide valuable feedback and unique insights that will strengthen the quality of your business model canvas

Try use cases other than business plans

A business model canvas can be used for more than new business models or an existing business strategy. For example, try gathering insights across an organization to build a more inclusive environment.

Keep it simple

The canvas is meant to provide a high-level overview of your idea on a single page. Avoid getting bogged down in details and keep your descriptions concise and to the point.

How to create a Business model canvas template

Better brainstorming, collaboration, and planning with mural.

Sticky notes & text

Add ideas, action items, and more as a sticky note or text box — then change the colors and cluster to identify patterns and new solutions.

Asynchronous collaboration

Innovate and collaborate effectively together without booking time on calendars.

Add comments and tag collaborators for smooth asynchronous communication.

Easy sharing

There are no barriers to collaboration with the ability to safely and securely share murals with others.

Presentation mode

Build presentations collaboratively, then deliver engaging sessions that go beyond one-way talk tracks.

Export as a download or embed the mural as an iframe into documentation and more.

Business model canvas template frequently asked questions

When do you need a business model canvas, how do you use a business model canvas, what are some common mistakes with using a business model canvas.

Template by Strategyzer

Strategyzer aims to put practical tools into the hands of every business strategy practitioner. They’ve assembled an amazing team of creative, technical, and business professionals from around the world to build products and create experiences that benefit individuals, organizations, and society.

Mural is the only platform that offers both a shared workspace and training on the LUMA System™, a practical way to collaborate that anyone can learn and apply.

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Business Models

Business Model Templates: 12 Free Templates PDF, Word, Excel and PPT

These free business model templates are an ideal way to shape your business ideas and create a business plan. For instance, if you’re a startup you can use the Lean Canvas template and value proposition to create a product or service that is supported by a strong business model. I’ve created these business model templates

These free business model templates are an ideal way to shape your business ideas and create a business plan.

For instance, if you’re a startup you can use the Lean Canvas template and value proposition to create a product or service that is supported by a strong business model.

I’ve created these business model templates to make it easy for you to play around with your ideas, shape them, share them and include them in any business plan.

For each template you have four formats to choose from:

• Free Business Model template : PDF, MS Excel, MS Word and PowerPoint.
• Free Value Proposition template : PDF, MS Excel, MS Word and PowerPoint.
• Free Lean Canvas template : PDF, MS Excel, MS Word and PowerPoint.
• Bonus Free Persona template : PDF, MS Excel, MS Word and PowerPoint.

Most businesses make assumptions about their customer and often rely on legacy data.

The persona canvas and value proposition are the perfect business design tool to change that. Using the jobs to be done framework you can dig into what ‘jobs’ customer are trying to achieve and the problems they face.

These business templates will also help you to design a powerful business model .

First of all, I’ve designed the business model templates in PowerPoint to have a master template. As a result, you can create as many variations as you want , and then evaluate them.

Second, the business model templates have been designed to be easy to edit and print .

This makes it easy to document your ideas, print them and then refine them e.g. create a storyboard approach and watch your ideas evolve.

Think of it as a journey in which you evolve and iterate how you design your business until you find the best one.

Table of Contents

startup business plan Templates

Start with an open mind. Use these tools to rethink and reimagine your business. Let go of previous ways of thinking and try new models. A good place to start is by taking a look at business model patterns and deciding if adopting any would give you an edge in your market.

A unique business model can transform profits and deliver a competitive advantage.

Customers have more choice now than ever before. So try to create products/services and business models that truly are unique.

Try to stand out from the pack and solve customer problems.

Start with the customer and then build outwards. Once you’re confident you can address an unmet need or problem, build outwards to create a business model that is efficient, effective and lean.

Then, once you’re you have your business model you can get stuck into developing your business plan.

Free Business Model Templates To Download

These business model templates are free to download and you can use them immediately.

If you’re running a workshop the business model pdf template is ideal for printing and pinning to a wall – see sizes below.

However, you can also simply document the results of a workshop using the free Word or PowerPoint templates.

Either way, these business model templates can be adapted to suit a variety of individuals and teams.

If you’re not already familiar with how to use the business model canvas , I strongly suggest you follow the link and brush up on the main principles.

Business Model Template Word Doc

Download this easy to use business model template created as Microsoft Word docx file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Business Model Template Excel

Download this business model template created as an Excel file (xlsx). Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Tip you can easily create different versions by clicking on the tab, right-click and click copy.

Business Model Template PowerPoint

Out of the business model templates, the PowerPoint in my experience is probably the most versatile.

Download this business model template created as a PowerPoint file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Business Model Template Pdf

Download this business model PDF template. The file is width 3508 px x height 2480 px (300 dpi).

Simply click on the image to the right to download the file. If you want to edit the file and change things then use Abobe Acrobat .

Free Value Proposition Templates To Download

The value proposition was developed as a second book by Yves Piigneur and Alexander Osterwalder. The most important part of the business model is the value proposition.

Creating a unique value proposition is one of the hardest parts of creating a strong business model.

It involves considerable amounts of time, lots of care, iterations and tests. However, a strong value proposition will quickly bring in more revenue and profits than a weak one .

It is the foundation for how customers connect with your brand and business.

If you’re not familiar then read the article on how to use the value proposition canvas .

Value Proposition Template Word Doc

Download value proposition template as a Microsoft Word Docx file. Simply click on the image or the button below to download the file.

Value Proposition Template Excel

Download this value proposition template as an Excel Xlsx file. Click either on the image or the button to get your copy.

Value Proposition Template PowerPoint

Download this value proposition PPT template as a PowerPoint file. It is designed to have a Master template that allows you to create multiple versions of your value proposition.

Value Proposition Template Pdf

Download this value proposition template created as a high-quality PDF file. Click on the image to the right or the button below to download. This is an ideal size for workshops.

Free Lean Canvas Templates To Download

The Lean Canvas Model was designed by Ash Muarya as an alternative to the business model canvas.

The business model canvas is more suited to established businesses that have established resources, customers and revenue.

On the other hand, the Lean Canvas template is designed to help startups who are at the beginning of the innovation process and shaping their idea into a competitive business model.

The Lean Canvas is a startup business plan template that will help entrepreneurs or intrapreneurs plan their new venture.

Lean Canvas Template Word Doc

Download this easy to use lean canvas template created as Microsoft Word docx file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Lean Canvas Template Excel

Download this lean canvas model template created as an Excel xlsx file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Lean Canvas Template PowerPoint

Lean canvas template pdf.

Download this lean canvas model template created as an Excel xlsx file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file. If you want to edit the file and change things then use Abobe Acrobat .

Bonus Persona Canvas Templates

At the root of all great businesses is a culture and focus on customers.

In today’s hyper-competitive world understanding different customers segments is crucial to your marketing communications and sales process.

More importantly, understanding your customers provides the backbone for creating new products and services.

The Persona Canvas is a powerful tool then to help you develop a shared mental model of your different customers. A common mistake is to treat all businesses the same.

Learn how to use the Personal Canvas and accelerate how you drive innovation, improve sales and develop a competitive advantage.

Persona Canvas Template Word Doc

Download this easy to use Persona Canvas template in Microsoft Word Docx file. Simply click on the image or button to download the file.

Persona Canvas Template Excel

Download this Persona Canvas template created as an Excel xlsx file. Simply click on the image to the right to download the file.

Persona Canvas Template PowerPoint

Download this Persona Canvas template as a PPT file. Simply click on the image or the button below.

Personal Canvas Template Pdf

Download this free Persona Canvas template as a PDF file. If you need to edit the file and change things then use Abobe Acrobat .

Tips On Using These Business Plan Templates

An idiot with a plan can beat a genius without a plan. Warren Buffet

Create a powerful business plan and it will convince others to either invest in you or become part of your business.

A tight business plan will separate you from the pack and deliver a competitive advantage.

How To Use These Business Model Templates

A business model innovation has a higher potential to deliver an innovation advantage than having a unique product or service. Products and services are easy to copy whereas a business model is embedded in the DNA of the business and the way it works.

Here are a few tips when you plan your business using these business model templates.

• Jot down your ideas – all your ideas without evaluating them first.
• Group them – group ideas into themes.
• Evaluate each group – evaluate each group and discard duplicates or ones that are similar. At this stage, you don’t want to limit the possibilities too early.
• Gather your data – pool all the data you have currently on your ideal customer and identify any gaps in data that are important.
• Invest time/money (dependent on budget) in trying to bridge the data gaps – use online reports, surveys, observations – a mix of data.
• Value proposition canvas – start with the value proposition template to get into the detail of the jobs, gains and pains of your customer.
• Move to the business model or lean startup canvas – use your ideas to create the business model.
• Check your business model vs competitors – what can you do differently better than competitors.
• Create a strategy – a business plan is not a strategy. A strategy evaluates your capabilities and ideas vs the market and trends.
• Research the trends and use supporting data to clarify if you have a strong or weak strategy.

Need help? Join the Facebook group and either myself or other members of the community can help.

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Business Model Templates for Lean Startup.

Business model templates..

The business modelling templates in this page have been created by our designers as a service to the entrepreneur community. This is why we provide them under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , unless marked otherwise. All templates are provided in editable format, and you are free to use and adapt them for your own purposes as long as you visibly acknowledge Neos Chronos as the source in any derivative work. In practical terms this means that you can use and adapt these templates as long as you do not remove our copyright notice , and you do not restrict the rights you received from us when sharing the result with others.

You are welcome to link back to this page if you found it useful. This is the easiest form of attribution and it helps us reach and help more aspiring founders and entrepreneurs.

The business modelling templates herein are provided in Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx), Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pptx), Microsoft Excel (.xls, .xlsx), Adobe PDF (.pdf), and Apple Keynote (.key). We have also translated the download pages in German and in French .

BUSINESS MODEL CANVAS

Strategyzer's Business Model Canvas is a strategic management and entrepreneurial template, that allows to develop new or document existing business models. The template is a visual, one-page chart with elements describing a firm's or product's value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances.

business model canvas template in english

.doc .docx .key .pdf .ppt .pptx .xls .xlsx

business model canvas vorlage in german / auf deutsch

Business model canvas in french / en français, lienzo de modelo de negocios in spanish / en español, canvas de modelo de negócios in portuguese / em português, kanvas İş modeli şablonu in turkish / türkçe, want to know more.

You can read How to Create your Business Model with the Strategyzer Canvas in our insights article .

STRATEGYZER VALUE PROPOSITION CANVAS

The Value Proposition Canvas by Strategyzer AG (strategyzer.com) is a tool that helps a company capture and clarify its understanding for a specific customer segment (Customer Profile), and how the company creates value for that customer segment (Value Map). Ultimately, a company achieves fit between the two, when one meets the other.

strategyzer value proposition canvas template, in english

.doc .docx .key .pdf .ppt .pptx

strategyzer value proposition canvas vorlage in german / deutsch

Lean canvas.

LeanStack's Lean Canvas is a strategic management and Lean Startup template, that is used to describe how a company createds, delivers, captures and defends value. Like the Business Model Canvas, the template is a visual, one-page chart with elements describing a firm's or product's value proposition, infrastructure, customers, and finances.

lean canvas template in english

Lean canvas in french / français, lean canvas vorlage in german / deutsch, lean canvas examples.

linkedin .doc .docx .key .pdf .ppt .pptx .xls .xlsx

You can read How to Create your Business Model with the Lean Canvas in our insights article .

VALUE PROPOSITION CANVAS

The Value Proposition Canvas by Peter J Thomson is an evolution of Strategyzer's original version which draws from behavioural economics and choice psychology to help guide users of the canvas into thinking through the end-customer experience. It puts particular focus in empathy, marketing, branding and persuasion techniques.

value proposition canvas template, in english

Value proposition canvas vorlage in german / deutsch.

You can read How to Create your Value Proposition Canvas in our insights article .

CHANNEL IMPLEMENTATION CANVAS

The Channel Implementation Canvas by Thomas Papanikolaou is a Neos Chronos template that helps capture the the key activities, key resources, and key partners required for the implementation of the Channels block in the Business Model Canvas and the Lean Canvas.

channel implementation canvas template, english

Customer personas canvas.

The Customer Personas Canvas by Thomas Papanikolaou is a Neos Chronos template that helps capture the the demographics and psychographics of a specific customer / user segment as required for the implementation of the Customer Segments block in the Business Model Canvas and the Lean Canvas.

customer personas canvas template, english

Business modelling startup pack.

The Busines Modelling Startup Pack by Thomas Papanikolaou is a Neos Chronos bundle of templates.

business modelling startup pack, english

Credits & references.

All names and trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners. Please observe the Neos Chronos Terms of Use .

For more information on how our advisory services can help you make the most out of our complimentary templates, please contact us to arrange an introductory meeting or

Book a Discovery Session now! Get to know us. Put us to the test.

Neos Chronos

Neos Chronos are an advisory services firm for startups and large enterprises. We care that enterprise executives solve their hardest strategic issues and avoid disruption, and startup founders accelerate growth and avoid business-critical mistakes.

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Business Canvas Excel Template

In this tutorial, I will tell you about Exsheet Business Canvas Template. The  Business Model Canvas Template of Excel  is a spreadsheet template that can help you design your business model canvas with ease. The Business Model Canvas is likely to be the most well-known and used business modelling system in the world. This tool was developed by Alexander Osterwalder, in his book entitled Business Model Generation.

It is user-friendly and different from everything that had been previously proposed, because it dispenses pages and pages of explanations and, on the other hand, focuses the attention of interested parties on a single canvas.

This blank canvas is divided graphically into nine building blocks, which  must be filled in as follows:

• Customer Segments : you should start filling out your  Business Model Canvas  here. That’s because it’s easier to design your business when you already know who you’re selling to. Try to answer as briefly as possible to the question: “Who is my primary customer?” or “What kind of customer can I generate value for”?
• Value Propositions :  having defined who your audience is, in the first block, you must now think about what needs of those people your product can meet. Ask yourself “What value do I deliver to my consumer?” Basically, try to highlight what differentiates your product or service from the competition.
• Channels :  the question here is “What are the best ways for me to reach my customer?” List, in this block, all the ways through which your business can deliver value to your customer, whether sales channels, distribution or even communication and marketing.
• Customer Relationships :  the purpose of this block is to bring together all the service, communication and after-sales strategies that your business will use to create a relationship with the customer, in order to guarantee the retention of your audience, preventing them from migrating to the competition.
• Revenue Streams :  “How and how much will my customer pay for the value proposition I will be delivering?” This block outlines how your business will make money. You can have more than one revenue stream also, and it is important that all of them are included here. For example, sales, subscription, licensing, etc.
• Key Resources : to fill this block, you first need to ask yourself “What resources are essential for my business to be able to deliver value to the customer?”. Then, you must also include the necessary resources to keep your channels and relationship strategies working. In short, they are all fundamental assets for the maintenance of the business, such as software, human resources, machines, among others.
• Key Actives :  the purpose of this building block is very similar to the previous one. Indicate here all the essential activities for your business to work out and deliver value to the customer. They can be development and maintenance of technologies, production line, logistics and distribution etc.
• Key Partners :  inform in this block who your business partners are, observing the motivation of each one, whether they are suppliers, service providers, outsourced companies, among others.
• Cost Structure : it is interesting to let this as the last block of the Business Model Canvas to be completed. By doing so, you will have already defined what the main activities and resources are so that your business can deliver value to the customer. Therefore, you will be able to define the costs that these and the other blocks may involve and, thus, explain them finally.

Notice that, using the  Business Model Canvas Template for designing your business model, you and your team will be able to view the business as a whole, on a unique screen. Thus, it is easy to observe each of its essential aspects and how they relate to each other.

    In this post we looked at Business Canvas Template which can be downloaded for free.Using this template that is provided in this post will help you to well-defined business plan which can be difficult, but the tools you use can be very simple. Download right now the  Business Model Canvas Template Excel Spreadsheet  for free. Fully editable to help you create your own business model canvas. You can also download the Canvas in PDF format.Please leave a comment below If you have any questions or suggestions.I will reach out to you asap.Thank you

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Business Model Templates

50 amazing business model canvas templates.

Business owners must come up with their own business model template as it contains the plan of the company for making a profit . In your business model canvas template, you identify the goods or services you plan to sell, your target market, and the anticipated expenses. Any new business which is still in development must have its own business model canvas sample.

Table of Contents

• 1 Business Model Templates
• 2 How does a business model work?
• 3 Business Model Canvas Templates
• 4 Types of business models
• 5 BMC Templates
• 6 Using a business model template

How does a business model work?

A business model template is a type of high-level plan for your business to operate profitably in the market. The main component of an effective business model canvas PDF is its value proposition. This refers to the description of the products or services offered by the business and why customers would find these appealing.

Ideally, you should state your value proposition in such a way that shows why your products or services stand out from the competition. A BMC template for new business must also contain your financing sources and your projected startup costs.

Other information to include is your target market, your marketing strategy, a review of your business’ competition, and projections of your expenses and revenues. One of the most common mistakes people make when creating their business model is that they underestimate the funding costs until the business becomes profitable.

It’s important to count costs when introducing a new product or service but this isn’t enough. You must make sure that your business keeps on running until your revenues exceed your expenses. The business model canvas template might also contain your definition of opportunities for partnering with businesses which are more established.

Business Model Canvas Templates

Types of business models

If you’re planning to start a business, you don’t have to invent your own business model template. There are so many different types of business model canvas samples which you can download. Then all you have to do is customize the content and format according to the needs of your business.

BMC Templates

Downloading a business model canvas PDF makes your task easier so you can focus more on what to write in it. The best part is that there are different types of BMC templates for different types of businesses . Here are some of the most common examples of these templates:

• Advertising This type of business model has existed for years and has evolved into something very sophisticated as we have moved from print to online. The basics of this model focus on coming up with content that will interest people then displaying this to viewers or readers. In this type of model, there is a need to satisfy two groups of customers, namely your advertisers and your viewers or readers. The latter may or may not pay you but the former definitely will.
• Affiliate This type of business model is somewhat related to the advertising model with a few variations. You would typically find this online, therefore you would use links which you embed in your content rather than easily identifiable visual advertisements.
• Brokerage When you’re in this type of business, you help facilitate transactions between sellers and buyers. You would earn a fee for each of the transactions either from the seller or the buyer or even from both of them.
• Concierge or customization This business model involves taking existing services or products and then adding customized elements to the transaction. This process makes each sale unique for the customers.
• Crowdsourcing If you think you have the capacity to gather a large group of people to contribute content to the website of your business , then you could go into the business of crowdsourcing. This type of business model is often paired with advertising to increase the chances of generating revenue. If you want to succeed in this type of business, make sure that you provide the right kinds of rewards or incentives to the people while still focusing on building a viable business.
• Disintermediation If you’re planning on manufacturing a certain kind of product which you want to sell in stores, you would have to work with several middlemen in order to get your products from a factory all the way to the store shelves. But when you use a disintermediation business model, you sidestep these middlemen. You sell your products to the customers directly. In doing this, you don’t have to deal with a lot of costs. Also, you would be able to build direct relationships with your customers.
• Fractionalization Rather than selling your whole product, you can simply sell a part of it using this type of business model. That way, you would still have control over the product while you earn money off it.
• Franchise This is a very common type of business model, especially in the restaurant industry. Here, you would sell a plan or “recipe” for starting and for running a business to interested parties. You would sell access to your brand while offering your support services too. Then you would help new franchise owners to set up their businesses too. This type of model means that you would sell access to a working business model which you have developed.
• Freemium This type of business model refers to when you give part of your product or service to your customers for free. Then you charge them for premium services of features. This means that you would only charge customers who would like to have access to advanced features will.
• Leasing For this type of business model, you have to come up with an agreement with an expiry. As the end of the agreement, the customer returns the product to you. This is very common for high-priced products which customers cannot afford to purchase.
• Low-touch This business model involves your business lowering your prices in exchange for fewer services. If your customers want to avail of additional services, they would have to pay extra.
• Marketplace Here, you permit sellers to list the products they’re selling to provide customers with an easy way to connect with sellers. This type of business model allows you to generate revenue from several sources and you can use it for both services and products.
• Razor Blade This business model involves you selling a durable product lower than its cost for the purpose of increasing volume sales of a disposable but high-margin component of said product. In some cases, businesses practically give the components away since they know that customers cannot use the product without purchasing the other components.
• Reverse Razor Blade This is the exact opposite of the razor blade business model where you offer high-margin products while promoting the sales of low-margin companion products. Just as with the razor blade model, you entice your customers to join a kind of ecosystem of your products to keep your customers coming back for more.
• Reverse Auction For this business model, you would present your lower prices to your buyers first. This gives them the option to select these prices. You would typically see such business models when contractors offer bids to work on a specific project or when you’re shopping for mortgages.
• Subscription This type of business model is becoming more common these days. Here, you would charge your consumers with a fee to subscribe to your services. Although this used to be very common with newspapers and magazines, you can now find it in service industries too.

These are some of the more common types of business model templates you can find online. If your business doesn’t fit into any of these models, you can simply search online to find a template which you can use.

Using a business model template

Successful businesses created their own business model template at the beginning. This model allowed them to meet the needs of their clients by offering a competitive price while maintaining sustainable costs. As time goes by, business owners need to revise their business model canvas template to reflect the changes in market demands and business environments.

Investors and analysts can assess the success of their business model by taking a look at the gross profit of the company. This refers to the total revenue of the company minus the cost of sold goods. When you compare this value to the main competitors, it gives you a good idea of how effective your business model is.

However, relying solely on gross profit might mislead you. Therefore, you must also examine your net income or cash flow. This refers to the gross profit minus your operating expenses. This shows you the amount of real profit generated by your business.

The two main levers of a successful business model are costs and pricing. When you raise your prices, you can find inventory at lower costs to increase your gross profit. Despite this, a lot of analysts still consider gross profit as an important indicator when evaluating business plans.

When you have a good gross profit, this suggests that you have a sound business plan. But if you have too many expenses, you may have to make a few modifications to correct this issue. The bottom line is that when you have a superb business model, you can ensure that your business will run smoothly.

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Create a Business Model Canvas

About generating and creating a business model canvas.

In this topic, you learn the basic steps of generating and creating a Business Model Canvas (BMC) on Dragon1.

The business model canvas is a strategic management template and lean startup schema for developing innovative or documenting current and future state business models.

It is a visual map with areas describing a company's or product's customers, value proposition, finances, and infrastructures.

This canvas of a business model is the perfect tool to help you understand your business model much better. In a straightforward and structured way.

On the Dragon1 Platform, the Business Model Canvas is available as a template and accessible in the Visual Designer and the Viewer.

An example of a Business Model Canvas.

How To Generate A Business Model Canvas using an Excel Sheet

To generate a BMC using an Excel sheet and a visualization template:

How To View a Business Model Canvas

To view a BMC

Download and view the .dragon1 File

Dragon1 offers you to work file-based (JSON structured) and repository-based (in a SQL Server database management system).

The example above has the data in a .dragon1 file . A .dragon1 file is JSON structured on the inside.

To download and view this BMC template file:

How To Create a Business Model Canvas

You can create a BMC on the fly, directly in the Viewer, in the Data Dashboard, or in the Visual Designer.

An empty business model canvas.

We will first describe the Viewer way.

To create a business model canvas:

You have now created a business model canvas in a .dragon1 file.

If you want to be guided by a chatbot in creating a business model, click on the Chatbot button.

Create a BMC with the Data Dashboard and Repository

To create a BMC via the Data Dashboard and Repository:

How To Edit the Template

To rename the groups on the canvas:

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Business model canvas template

Modify this business model canvas template to map out your business model and identify ways to test or optimize it. Collaborate with others to visualize cost centers, profit centers, and key value propositions.

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What is the Lucidspark business model canvas?

When it comes to starting a business—or improving an existing one—planning is everything. But you may not have the time (or need) for a full-fledged business plan. At least not right away.

This is where a business model canvas layout comes in. The business model canvas template is a single-page document for outlining your business plan and strategy. If your business were a ship, a business model canvas would help you answer that crucial question: Will it float?

Your business can’t succeed if you are spending more money than you are making. (Hopefully this isn’t news to anyone!) Before starting a business, it’s crucial that you consider the cost and revenue centers in your business model. Creating a business model with a project model canvas template breaks this process down into just nine steps, which we’ll dive into below. Utilize Lucidspark to easily create your business model canvas.

How to use the Lucid business plan canvas template

The Lucid business model canvases are meant to be quick and effective. You need to focus on the content of the document, not the structure. And with Lucid’s chart template for a business model canvas, you don’t have to worry about structure at all.

Use our business canvas template maker to create a blank business model canvas and work through these nine steps.

• Value proposition: What problem do your customers have and how are you going to solve it for them?
• Customer relationships: How will you communicate and build rapport with your customers? Each instance of communication should further promote your product or brand as a solution to a particular problem.
• Customer segments: What people and organizations do you create value for? List them out.
• Channels: At what points do you interact with customers to deliver value? How are they purchasing your product? It should be easy for customers to say "yes" to your solution!
• Key partners: What individuals, businesses, or other entities do you rely on to deliver your product to customers? These might be distributors, suppliers, etc.
• Key activities: What activities are absolutely essential to create, deliver, and promote your product? Those are your key activities.
• Key resources: What resources do you need to create, deliver, and promote your product? If it’s not essential, it’s not a key resource.
• Cost structure: How much will you spend on key resources, partners, and activities? That’s roughly how much it will cost you to run your business.
• Revenue streams: How will customers purchase your product and how much will it cost them? Is it a one-time purchase or subscription-based?

With Lucidspark, you can invite others to your board to contribute their ideas or give feedback. If you’re ready to present your business plan and strategy, you can even use Presentation Mode , to turn your sticky notes into a more polished slide deck.

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Excel Made Easy

Business models canvas 101.

So you have a great idea and you want to create your company, your own startup. This is GREAT.

Starting something on your own, creating value for you, your family and the world is a totally recommendable thing to do. The world has been made by people like you. Entrepreneurs, Self-Made Men, Creators, Builders people that believed an obstacle is just another great challenge to overcome, to solve and put behind them as an achievement. 

If you want to create your own company, you need to know your environment very well and for this we give you a structure that you can follow and use, not only at the moment of creation but also on a regular base in order to assess if you are still on track or already deviating from your target. It helps you define your product, understand better your revenue streams, give you an overview about your customers and competitors, helps you define a good value proposition, decide on your various distribution Channels, focus on you Key Activities, assign correctely your Key Resources, select your Key Partners, define a adequate Cost Structure, makes you think about the Long Term Mission of your business, the strategy to reach it Strategy.

So in order to give your business idea all the chances for a success startup, it is important to go through a few important points that should not be forgotten before starting your race towards success. We also share with you our Excel business model canvas template or business canvas or business plan model for some.

The main part is to define clearly your business idea: this is called the business plan  and part of it is the business model which we are discussing here.

This business model mainly looks at your company, your startup as a cloud or black box that has stuff going in (material from suppliers, money from lenders, workers and their work, market feedback, orders, ...), stuff going out (whatever your are producing, marketing campaigns, salaries, taxes, waste, investments in equipment's, people, consumable, ...) and internal processes that are the heart, lungs and liver of your company (production or creation of your product, finance controlling, creation of marketing campaigns, websites, ...,)

We propose to you here a business model canvas Template that is used very frequently by many companies that want to start, restructure or just see where they stand in terms of their business model. The Business Model Canvas was at first developed by Alexander Osterwalder a Swiss Author and Theorist.

This business model canvas Template is very easy to use and similar to a paper one as it uses the virtual Paper Notes that you can move around the sheet.

Here is the screenshot of the full business model canvas Template sheet. We will explain here under and in the next pages how to use it. Go to the bottom of the page to download it.

We will go through all the blocks in this template.

Value Proposition (just hereunder), Customer , Channels , Revenue Streams , Key Activities , Key Resources , Key Partners , Cost Structure , Long Term, Mission, Strategy , Competition ,

Our Example for the next 7 pages: A cupcake Factory

A business model is made of various parts.

The value proposition.

First you have to know what you want to do (The VALUE PROPOSITION) with your business, your startup or current company and this does not start with "I want to do money", because it has been proven a million time that money has no lasting effect on willpower, pleasure at work, drive, etc...Of course if you have no money at all, then your priority in the short term is to make money to be able to grow bigger. The only way people are driven for the long term is by passion . So your business model has to be driven by a passion and show the banker/investors (if you need some) that your passion will contribute to their well being too. In my case, I am passionate about helping people and seeing that my efforts have produced an added value to these customers. Some are driven by discovering new planets, some by developing new virtual reality glasses, some by creating new medicine, some are feeding of the wellbeing, happiness or contentment they are producing and this is enough to drive them. At the end it is all about you being content even better happy with what you are doing and this leaves a lot of open avenues to explore and create a business. I am writing here and hopefully it will have a positive effect that in return will make me happy.

Happiness is important but making money while being happy is even better. So that is why you have to do something you like but also that other will benefit of.

In the case of a Cupcake factory , the business model value proposition could be written a a few sentence: We provide to our customers a cupcake for every occasion. These are healthy cupcakes (low sugar, low fat, ....) and we guaranty that they are locally produced with local ingredients.

Here the questions you have to answer for the value proposition

What value/products do we deliver to the customer? 

Which customer problem do we solve?

Which product or set of products (can be service too), are we offering to our customers?

Which are the customer problems we are solving (Example: quality, performance, design, branding, strategy, cost reduction, pricing, risk reduction, production efficiency, legal, etc…)

Next: the Customer Segment

if you want to short cut, download the business model canvas Template for Excel from here.

A SWOT Matrix  (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) is also used to define the strategy of your company when used in conjunction with the business model. The SWOT matrix can also be used for personal development, for example to compare yourself to other for a certain situation.

For this purpose we have created this SWOT matrix Template.

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Business Model Canvas - Implementation Toolkit (Excel XLSX)

This product ( Business Model Canvas - Implementation Toolkit ) is an Excel template (XLSX) with a supplemental Zip archive file document, which you can download immediately upon purchase.

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