Your business plan is the most important document you will prepare: it says who you are, describes your business, and shows how you will be profitable. 

BDC's article "Pull together an effective business plan" provides a brief outline of the key elements of a plan. A properly formulated plan can help you gain confidence with lenders, investors and shareholders. Other useful links: 

• BDC offers a free business plan template
• The CBN (Canada Business Network) has good example plans that are industry-specific; they also offer the guide Writing your business plan
• Check out these two guides: Writing an Effective Business Plan and Introduction to Business Plans

Marketing
Marketing is an important section of your business plan, and will require some research on your part. For a general introduction to marketing concepts, try Marketing and Sales by the CB network or consult BDC’s article A 5-step, no-nonsense marketing plan.

• If your business will rely heavily on marketing, you may want to create a separate marketing plan
• Looking for statistics? Statistics Canada can help, or see Industry Canada' Researching Markets list for other sources. (Many firms hire consultants to do this work - for example, BDC Consulting offers such a service for a fee)
• If you live near a Canada Business centre, you can drop in and use their reference library (or call; many centres can offer search assistance for a fee)