How to Make the Company Description in Your Business Plan Stand Out

Describing your company in the Business Plan sounds simple of course, but a simple description is exactly what you want to avoid. If the description of your company in the Executive Summary is a plain vanilla company description it may not grab the attention of the investors who will be reading it. The first impression someone gets about your company is important. You want to distinguish your company from others, especially your competitors.

Investors weigh their decision heavily on a Competitive Analysis, among other important factors. More than likely, an investor that invests in your company will have more assets and manpower than your company. That investor will do a very thorough analysis of your competition, so your management team needs to be as prepared as the venture capital investor they are dealing with. Your Business Plan should reflect your research, analysis and preparation.

Back to the Company Description. You need to make your Company Description stand out in your Business Plan. Let me try to illustrate my point. Say you use the simple description idea and describe your company as "a maker of widgets with an experienced management team that has worked for several other widget companies in the past". Sounds good, but simple. Consider adding things, if true of course, based on these questions:

  • Does your company have a new cutting edge technology for widgets?

  •  Does your company have patents on unique widgets?

   •  Does your company have a manufacturing process that can make widgets of good quality at less cost than its competitors?

  •  Does your company want to acquire other widget companies that can be more profitably operated with your management team and proprietary manufacturing process?

  •  Does your company want to acquire other widget companies that are failing and consolidate them to capitalize on economies of scale; an acquisition strategy which is known as a “roll-up strategy"?

   Hopefully you get the idea. The point I am trying to make is you have to first differentiate yourself from the competition. You should start by laying the ground work in the Company Description. Then start driving home the point throughout your Business Plan that your business strategy is sound, your management team can execute their game plan and the result will be a highly successful company in which the investor will make a great return on his investment.