FREE online courses on How To Start Your Own Dot Com Company - Scouting for Funds - Get your Business Plan Ready

 

It helps to put things down on paper and get a business plan ready. A handy framework for a business plan can be accessed on the Net at sba.gov. You can avail of the services of experts.

 

The financial advisory services group, PriceWaterHouseCoopers, will work on your plan if they are taken in by your idea for a success fee, which allows them to get a percentage of the funding if the deal comes through.

 

 

General outline

 

 

A general outline for your business plan should include the following:

 

• Executive Summary: usually written last, it summarizes and provides the reader with an overview;
  
  
• The Business: describe the company, trade name, vision, mission, ethics, goals and legal structure;
  

• Products & Services: outputs, sales mix, costs and profits, expansion of services and product lines and product/service life cycle;
  
  
• Industry Analysis: trends, demand outlook, barriers to entry and growth, impact of innovation and technology, impact of economy, government and financial health of the industry;
  
  
• Market Analysis: trends, size, competition analysis, projected market share and decisions on products and services;
  
  
• Marketing Strategy: location, distribution channels, sales, pricing, tools: networking, circles of influence, internet, brochures, sales systems and database;
  
  
• Management: Operations & Organization: organizational structure, responsibilities and support (professional services);
  
  
• Implementation Plan: staff, staffing issues, systems, communication, book-keeping, equipment, software, office, furniture, fixtures, land and buildings, research & development;
  
  
• Potential Risks and Downfalls: identify risks (liability, contract termination etc.) and plan to reduce or eliminate identified risks or threats;
  
  
• Financial aspects: start up costs, cash flow sensitivity analysis, cash flow and expenses, etc.

 

(For more information on how to make your business proposal refer to OLW's course on  Venture Capital Funding.)

Non-disclosure Agreement

You do not always have to provide a full copy of your plan.

Use good judgement and exercise caution in your dealings. Sometimes an excerpt, summary or just financial statements and projections will suffice. If you are providing  proprietary information a secrecy agreement and non-competition agreement might be appropriate.

 

Caption: When you provide someone with a full copy of your plan get him to sign a confidentiality, non- disclosure agreement (NDA)

 

Make reasonable assumptions

 

When you create a plan, you have to make many assumptions. Some of these are so basic that they remain, appropriately, unstated. Also, there is little use in worrying about cataclysmic or other events that can render all your planning a waste of time. You have to start with the premise that it is going to be ‘‘life as usual.'' Beyond that, there are several broad assumptions that you are going to have to make. These assumptions are what support and quantify the projections that you will make in the plan.

 

You will have to make some assumptions about:

 

• The general environment  --  interest rates, demographics, and other factors that all  businesses face 

• Factors specific to your firm --  capacity, opportunity, motivation and environmental factors. 

• How you will shift gears -- if necessary, in response to events outside your control. Such as growth, economic downturn, illness or other significant crises or risks.

Experience

 

Unless you're starting a totally new type of operation, there will be someone around with experience in what you're planning to do. You'd be surprised how willing even potential competitors are to share information, if asked in the right way. This is particularly true if you will serve a limited geographic market and do not plan to directly compete with similar organizations located some distance away.

While there is no substitute for personal experience, you can benefit by drawing on the experience of those around you.

Managerial aspects

In addition to whatever product or service you will provide, you  will also have to perform a broad range of managerial activities. The most important assumption you can make about these back office duties is that they will take more time than you would like. But the same sources that provide the data you need to make reasonable financial and operational assumptions can help you out with respect to those tasks that fall on you as the owner of a startup.

Do not forget about the management aspects of running your own company.