Quite simply, the business model is how the company makes money. It also explains the sources of the company's revenues, how much these sources pay and how often. So it's not enough to say that a company sells PCs or burgers. You need to go deeper and learn the structure through which the dollars are earned. Does the doughnut business include franchises or company-owned outlets? Does the burger company own the outlet real estate, as McDonald's does, or does it lease the space? Does the PC maker generate most of its money through direct sales, as Dell does, or does it sell via retailers, like Hewlett Packard does?