subject: Writing The Perfect Business Plan - The Crucial Part of Business Start Up [print this page] Writing The Perfect Business Plan - The Crucial Part of Business Start Up
The business plan is your selling document. It is like writing a CV, only for the future, for your company and what you would like to accomplish. This is supposed to be pitched and given to possible investors and the idea is to get them excited and wanting to back you financially to help you realise your plan. The business plan must of course also be viable and one that you are going to follow through with when you get your financing, else it is no good. Since getting money is really difficult these days, having a good business plan is paramount.
Most business plans are written in a very dull and poor manner and this reflects badly upon the ones pitching the ideas. Since most companies that give out venture capital get a lot of requests each year, they end up only looking at a few and giving money to even less people. Therefore, its important to stand out among the many applicants to these money. Here is how you do it:
Show Them The Benefits
When you are proposing to a backer, tell them exactly what they will get out of this relationship with your start up and why you business is going to succeed in the market you are approaching. And do this directly. If you are going to go for cost leadership, tell them so and how you are planning to do that and preferrably why you are doing it as well. If you do this well enough, they might understand why you are the person right for their money.
Give Believable Financial Forecasts
Show them projected cash flows, profit, losse, balance sheets and so on for at least three years forward in time. Mostly people dont believe the ones put out after year one, but is good to sell a dream. And make these believable. Lying is a good thing, and neither is it on a application for venture capital. Be reasonable in your assumptions of growth and future profits, people you are asking capital of are often not stupid, and if they are, they probably dont have that much money anywas.
Demonstrate The Product Or Service
Often showing them what your product or service are supposed to do will help them quickly understand your business. Remember to highlight key differences and the strong points that you have with your product and why it will muscle out the competition or capture a specific market. There are many more points on how you can be writing the perfect business plan, but these points are the ones you need to take to heart and give the most thought. Other include introducing your team, explaining the market size and other parts.
