Business Plan Tips

Here are some Business Plan tips to help you with preparing and submitting your business plan to potential investors. This is a vital first step in the capital raising process, so you should spend a great deal of time and effort drafting, researching and editing. It is a good idea to start by studying examples of as many different Business Plans as possible.

Familiarize yourself with the basic parts of a typical Table of Contents by reviewing the Corky, Inc. Table of Contents. Corky, Inc. Table of Contents; business plan tips Review it carefully but remember it is just a general outline and some of the sections might not apply to your business and you may have to add other sections you feel are necessary. In addition to covering those items in the Table of Contents and other areas unique to your company, it should grab the attention of the reader. In other words, your Business Plan should have some “sizzle”.

Be careful not to exaggerate however,or make claims that are unrealistic. You should, however, convey your passion to execute your Business Plan and succeed. Investors like to see a management team with “fire in the belly”. Of course this may be hard to show on paper, but you must show your business passion when you meet with investors and make your Money Pitch. A good time to start showing some of this passion is in your Business Plan.

If you saw some of the American Inventor episodes on TV you may remember that in addition to the panel looking for great new products, they were looking at how passionate the inventor was about his or her product. This is an important factor investors look at because that passion translates to business drive, hard work and determination. You have to be able to sell your product or service to investors.

The Executive Summary section of your Business Plan should be concise, direct and explain what your Company does or intends to do. Many clients of mine have prepared separate Executive Summaries as a condensed version of their Business Plan. The stand alone Executive Summary should be about 10 pages and should probably contain the following sections:

Company Description
Mission Statement
Products and Services
Financing Requirements
Use of Proceeds
Management Team
Competitive Analysis
Financial Forecast
Exit Strategy

It is a good idea to start off your Executive Summary with a description of the company and then a Mission Statement. The Mission Statement should be a short statement of your company’s business and what it intends to accomplish as a goal. For instance, an internet service provider might have the following Mission Statement:

    “NetSky Holdings, Inc. is an internet service provider (ISP)     focused on acquiring other ISPs and consolidating all of their     operations to achieve economies of scale. NetSky’s goal is to     be recognized as one of the most profitable ISP  consolidation     enterprises in the ISP field.”

Limit your Mission Statement to 1 or 2 sentences in length. The two key points you want to convey to the reader are your confidence and the goal you are seeking to achieve. Strong and powerful statements are good because they show your business drive, but remember to keep it real. Don’t put price projections in your Mission Statement. For instance, do not say we expect to generate $10,000,000 in gross sales during our first year of operations. Sales projections Belong in the Financial Forecast section.

Try to avoid putting confidential, proprietary or trade secret information in your Business Plan unless you feel you really do need to include such information. In that case, have potential investors sign a Confidentiality Agreement. However, another approach I advise my clients to use is to prepare a separate, stand alone, Executive Summary without the confidential and proprietary information.

Do you Know When and Why to Use an Executive Summary Instead of a Business Plan? See how and why to use an Executive Summary to your advantage.

Preparing an Effective Business Plan is no easy task. Every hour of preparation and research you spend on this first step to raising capital will save you months of time in the long run.Study these business plan tips carefully.

Learn How to Make Your Company Description Standout. It may sound easy, but you need to make the Company Description section of your Business Plan stand out and grab the attention of Venture Capital investors. After all, it is the first section that investors will read.

The Competitive Analysis section of your Business Plan can reveal to a Venture Capital firm just how well you really know your field and can run your company successfully. Here are some business plan tips on how to prepare your Competitive Analysis.

The Financial Forecast of your Business Plan should be based on reasonable assumptions. Here are some business plan tips you should know before you plug your numbers in to your final draft.

What is your Exit Strategy? Don't get caught off guard, make sure you review these important business plan tips.

Angel Investors are the first choice for companies looking to raise $1,000,000 or less. Find out more important tips here about Angel Investors.

Venture Capital Firms are the leading source for raising significant amounts of capital from $1,000,000 to $25,000,000 or more. Here's some great advice to help you in your Venture Capital search.