Busi

nessPl
an
[
Inser
tDat
e]

Companyname
Str
eetaddr ess1
Str
eetaddr ess2
Ci
ty,state,
ZI P
Businessphone
Websi t
eURL
Emai l
address
Conf
ident
ial
it
yAgr
eement

Theunder
signedr
eaderacknowl
edgest
hatanyi
nfor
mat
ionpr
ovi
dedby
_
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___i
nthi
sbusi
nesspl
an,
othert
hani
nfor
mat
iont
hati
sint
hepubl
i
c
domai
n,i
sconf
ident
ial
innat
ure,
andt
hatanydi
scl
osur
eoruseofsamebyt
her
eadermay
causeser
ioushar
m ordamaget
o__
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
_.Ther
efor
e,t
heunder
signedagr
ees
nott
odi
scl
osei
twi
thoutexpr
esswr
it
tenper
missi
onf
rom _
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
_.

Uponr
equest
,theunder
signedr
eaderwi
l
limmedi
atel
yret
urnt
hisdocumentt
o
_
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
__.

__
____
_ _
____
___
___
_
Si
gnature

__
___
___
____
___
___
_
Name(t
ypedorpr
int
ed)

__
_____
___
___
___
___
Date

Thi
sisabusi
nesspl
an.I
tdoesnoti
mpl
yanof
fer
ingofsecur
it
ies.

2
 Tabl
eofCont
ent
s

Conf
ident
ial
it
yAgr
eement 3
I
.Instr
ucti
ons:Execut
iveSummar
y 5
Execut
iveSummar y 6
I
I.I
nstr
ucti
ons:CompanyDescri
pti
on 7
CompanyDescri
pti
onWorksheet 8
I
II
.Instr
ucti
ons:Product
s&Ser v
ices 9
Product&Servi
ceDescri
pti
onWor ksheet 10
I
V.Instructi
ons:Marketi
ngPl an 11
SWOTAnal ysi
sWorksheet 12
Compet it
orDataColl
ectionPlan 14
Compet it
iveAnal
ysi
sWor ksheet 15
MarketingExpensesStrategyChart 17
Pri
cingStrategyWorksheet 19
Di
stributi
onChannelAssessmentWor ksheet 21
V.I
nst
ruct
ions:Oper
ati
onalPl
an 23
VI
.Instructi
ons:Management&Or
gani
zat
ion 25
ManagementWor ksheet 26
Or ganizat
ionChart 27
VI
I.I
nst
ruct
ions:St
art
upExpenses&Capi
tal
izat
ion 28
VI
II
.Inst
ruct
ions:Fi
nanci
alPl
an 29
I
X.I
nst
ruct
ions:Appendi
ces 31
X.I
nst
ruct
ions:Ref
ini
ngt
hePl
an 32
NowThatYou’
re(
Almost
)Fi
nished... 34

3
I
.Inst
ruct
ions:Execut
iveSummar
y
TheExecutiveSummar yisthemosti mport
antpartofyourbusinessplan.Oft
en,i
t’
stheonlypar
tthata
prospect
iveinv
estororlenderreadsbefor
edecidingwhetherornottor eadt
herestofyourpl
an.I
t
shouldconveyyourenthusiasm fory
ourbusinessideaandgetreadersexcit
edaboutit
,too.

Writ
ey ourExecuti
veSummaryLAST,af
teryouhavecomplet
edt
herestofthebusi
nesspl
an.Thatway
,
you’
llhavethoughtthr
oughal
ltheel
ementsofyourst
art
upandbeprepar
edtosummar i
zethem.

TheExecut
iveSummar
yshoul
dbr
ief
lyexpl
aineachoft
hebel
ow.

1.Anov erviewofy ourbusi nessidea(oneort wosent ences).

2.Adescr ipti
onofy ourpr oductand/orser vice.Whatpr oblemsar eyousolvi
ngf ory ourtarget
customer s?
3.Yourgoal sfort hebusi ness.Wher edoy ouexpectthebusi nesstobei noney ear,threey ears,
five
years?
4.Yourpr oposedt argetmar ket.Whoar ey ouridealcustomer s?
5.Yourcompet iti
onandwhatdi ffer
entiatesy ourbusiness.Whoar eyouupagai nst,andwhatuni que
sell
ingpr oposit
ionwi llhelpyousucceed?
6.Yourmanagementt eam andt hei
rpriorexper i
ence.Whatdot heybringtothet abl
et hatwi l
lgiv
ey our
businessacompet it
iveedge?
7.Financialoutlookf orthebusi ness.Ifyou’reusingthebusi nessplanforfi
nancingpur poses,explai
n
exactlyhowmuchmoneyy ouwant ,
howy ouwi l
lusei t
,andhowt hatwil
lmakey ourbusi nessmor e
profit
able.

Li
mity
ourExecut
iveSummar
ytooneort
wopagesi
ntot
al.

Aft
erreadi
ngt
heExecuti
veSummary,r
eader
sshoul
dhav eabasi
cunderst
andi
ngofy
ourbusi
ness,
shoul
dbeexci
tedabouti
tspot
ent
ial
,andshoul
dbeint
erest
edenoughtoreadf
urt
her
.

Aft
eryou’
vecomplet
edy
ourbusi
nesspl
an,
comebackt
othi
ssect
iont
owr
it
eyourexecut
ivesummar
y
onthenextpage.

4
Execut
iveSummar
y
(
Wri
teaf
tery
ou’
vecompl
etedt
her
estoft
hebusi
nesspl
an.
)

5
I
I.I
nst
ruct
ions:CompanyDescr
ipt
ion
Thi
ssect
ionexpl
ainst
hebasi
cel
ement
sofy
ourbusi
ness.I
ncl
udeeachoft
hebel
ow:

1.Companymi ssionst atement

Ami ssionst atementi sabr i
efexplanationofy ourcompany ’sreasonf orbeing.I tcanbeasshort
asamar ketingt agl
ine( “Mor eDoughisanappt hathelpsconsumer smanaget heirper
sonal
fi
nancesi naf un,conv enientway ”
)ormor einvolved:(
“DoggieTalesi sadogday careand
groomi ngsal onspeci ali
zingi nconvenientservicesforurbanpetlov ers.Ourmi ssi
onistoprovi
de
servi
ce, safetyandaf ami lyatmosphere, enabli
ngbusydogowner stospendl esst i
met aki
ngcare
oftheirdog’ sbasicneedsandmor etimehav i
ngf unwiththeirpet
.”)Ingener al,it
’sbesttokeep
yourmi ssionst atementt ooneort wosent ences.

2.Companyphil
osophyandv i
sion
a.Whatv aluesdoesy ourbusinessli
veby?Honest y,i
ntegrit
y,fun,
innovati
onandcommunit
y
areval
uesthatmightbei mpor t
anttoy
ourbusi nessphi l
osophy.
b. Visi
onrefer
stothel ong-t
erm outl
ookf
ory ourbusiness.Whatdoy ouulti
matel
ywanti
tto
become?Forinstance, y
ourvisi
onforyourdoggieday -carecentermightbetobecomea
nati
onalchai
n,f
ranchiseort osell
toalargercompany .

3.Companygoals
Speci
fyyourl
ong-andshor t
-t
erm goal
saswel lasanymi l
est
onesorbenchmarksyouwi l
luseto
measureyourprogress.Forinst
ance,ifoneofyourgoalsist
oopenasecondl ocat
ion,
mil
estonesmightincludereachi
ngaspeci f
icsalesvol
umeorsigni
ngcontract
swi t
hacer t
ain
numberofcli
entsinthenewmar ket.

4.Targetmarket
Youwi l
lcovert
hisi
n-dept
hint
heMar
ket
ingPl
ansect
ion.Her
e,br
ief
lyexpl
ainwhoy
ourt
arget
customersare.

5.Industry
Describey ouri
ndust
ryandwhatmakesy ourbusinesscompeti
ti
ve:Istheindust
rygrowi
ng,
mat ur
eorst able?Whatistheindustryoutl
ooklong-ter
m andshort
-ter
m?Howwi ll
yourbusi
ness
takeadv antageofpr
ojectedindust
r ychangesandt r
ends?Whatmi ghthappentoyour
compet i
torsandhowwi llyourbusinesssuccessfull
ycompete?

6.Legalstructure
a.I sy ourbusinessasol epr
opri
etorship,
LLC,par
tner
shi
porcorporat
ion?Whydidyou
chooset hispar t
icularfor
m ofbusiness?
b.I fthereismor et hanoneowner ,explai
nhowownershi
pisdiv
ided.I
fy ouhavei
nvest
ors,
expl ai
ntheper centageofsharest heyown.Thi
sinf
ormat
ionisimportantt
oinv
estor
sand
l
ender s.

Af
terreadi
ngt
heCompanyDescript
ion,
thereadershoul
dhaveabasi
cunderst
andi
ngofy
ourbusi
ness’
s
mi
ssionandvi
sion,
goal
s,t
argetmarket
,competit
ivel
andscapeandl
egal
str
uctur
e.

Uset
heCompanyDescr
ipt
ionwor
ksheetont
henextpaget
ohel
pyoucompl
etet
hissect
ion.

6
CompanyDescr
ipt
ionWor
ksheet

Busi
nessName

CompanyMissi
on
St
atement

Company
Phi
losophy/
Values

CompanyVi
sion

1.

Goal
s&Mi
lest
ones
2.

3.

Tar
getMar
ket

1.
Indust
ry/ 2.
Competit
ors
3.

LegalSt
ruct
ure/
Ownershi
p

7
I
II
.Inst
ruct
ions:Pr
oduct
s&Ser
vices
Thissecti
onexpandsonthebasi
cinf
ormati
onabouty ourpr
oductsandser
vicesi
ncl
udedi
nthe
Executi
veSummar yandCompanyDescri
pti
on.Expl
ainindetai
leachoft
hebelow:

1.Yourcompany ’spr oduct sand/ orser vi

ces:Whatdoy ousel l,andhowi sitmanuf actur edorpr ovi
ded?
Incl
udedet ail
sofr elati
onshi pswi thsuppl ier
s, manufact urersand/ orpartner sthatar eessent i
al t
o
deli
veringt hepr oductorser vi
cet ocust omer s.
2.Thepr obl em t hepr oductorser vicesol ves:Ev erybusinessneedst osolveapr obl em t hati ts
customer sf ace.Expl ainwhatt hepr oblem isandhowy ourpr oductorser vicesol vesit .Whatar eits
benefi
t s,feat uresanduni quesel lingproposi ti
on?Your swon’ tbet heonlysol ution( ev er ybusiness
hascompet i
tors),buty ouneedt oexpl ainwhyy oursolutioni sbet terthantheot her s,tar get sa
customerbasey ourcompet i
torsar eignor i
ng, orhassomeot herchar acter
ist i
ct hatgi v esi ta
compet i
tiveedge.
3.Anypr opr ietaryf eat urest hatgivey ouacompet i
ti
veadv ant age: Doy ouhav eapat entony our
productorapat entpendi ng?Doy ouhav eexcl usiv
eagr eement swi t
hsuppl iersorv endor st osella
productorser vi
cet hatnoneofy ourcompet itorssell
?Doy ouhav ethelicensef orapr oduct ,
technologyorser v
icet hat ’
sinhi ghdemandand/ orshortsuppl y?
4.Howy ouwi l
lpricey ourpr oductorser vice:Descr i
bethepr icing,fee,subscr ipti
onorl easi ngstructur
e
ofyourpr oductorser v
ice.Howdoesy ourpr oductorser v i
cef i
tintothecompet iti
v elandscapei n
termsofpr i
cing—ar ey ouont hel owend, mid-rangeorhi ghend?Howwi llt
hatpr icingst rategyhelp
youattr actcust omer s?Whati sy ourprojectedpr ofi
tmar gin?

I
ncludeanyproductorser
vicedetai
ls,
suchastechni
calspeci
fi
cat
ions,
drawi
ngs,
phot
os,
pat
ent
documentsandothersupporti
nformati
on,i
ntheAppendices.

Aft
erreadingtheProducts&Serv
icessect
ion,
ther
eadershouldhav
eaclearunder
standi
ngofwhaty
our
busi
nessdoes, whatprobl
em i
tsolvesf
orcust
omers,
andt heuni
quesel
l
ingproposi
ti
onthatmakesi
t
competit
ive.

Uset
hePr
oductandSer
viceDescr
ipt
ionWor
ksheetont
henextpaget
ohel
pyoucompl
etet
hissect
ion.

8
Pr
oduct&Ser
viceDescr
ipt
ionWor
ksheet

Busi
ness
Name

Product/
Ser
viceIdea

Speci
al
Benef
it
s

Uni
que
Feat
ures

Li
mit
sand
Li
abi
li
ti
es

Product
ion
andDeli
ver
y

Suppl
ier
s

I
ntell
ectual
Proper
t y
Special
Permits

Product
/
Ser
vice
Descri
pti
on

9
10
I
V.I
nst
ruct
ions:Mar
ket
ingPl
an

Thi
ssecti
onprovi
desdet
ail
sonyouri
ndust
ry,
thecompet
it
ivel
andscape,
yourt
argetmar
ketandhow
youwi
llmarkety
ourbusi
nesst
othosecust
omers.

1.Mar
ketr
esear
ch

Therearetwokindsofresear
ch: pr
imaryandsecondar
y.Pr
imarymarketr
esearchi
sinf
ormati
onyou
gatheryour
sel
f.Thi
scouldincludegoingonl
ineordri
vi
ngaroundtowntoi
dentif
ycompeti
tor
s;
i
ntervi
ewingorsurvey
ingpeoplewhof itt
heprof
il
eofyourt
argetcust
omers;ordoi
ngtr
aff
iccount
sata
ret
aill
ocati
onyou’r
econsider
ing.

Secondar ymarketresear
chisinf
ormat
ionfrom sour
cessuchastradeorgani
zati
onsandj our
nal s,
magazi nesandnewspaper s,
Censusdataanddemogr aphi
cpr
ofi
les.Youcanfindthi
sinformationonl
i
ne,
atl
ibraries,
from chambersofcommerce,fr
om vendorswhosel
ltoy ouri
ndust
ryorfrom government
agencies.

Thi
ssect
ionofy
ourpl
anshoul
dexpl
ain:

*Thetotalsi
zeofyourindust r
y
*Trendsinthei
ndustr
y–i sitgrowingorshri
nki
ng?
*Thetotalsi
zeofyourtargetmar ket,andwhatshar
ei sr
eal
ist
icf
oryoutoobt
ain
*Trendsinthet
argetmar ket–i sitgr
owingorshri
nking?Howarecust
omerneedsorpr
efer
ences
changi
ng?

2.Bar
ri
erst
oent
ry

Whatbarr
ier
stoent
rydoesy
ourst
art
upf
ace,
andhowdoy
oupl
ant
oov
ercomet
hem?Bar
ri
erst
oent
ry
mi
ghtincl
ude:

*Highstartupcost s
*Highproductioncost s
*Highmar keti
ngcost s
*Brandrecognitionchal l
enges
*Fi
ndingqual i
fi
edempl oyees
*Needf orspecializedtechnologyorpat
ent
s
*Tari
ffsandquot as
*Unioni
zationiny ourindustry

3.Thr
eat
sandoppor
tuni
ti
es

Onceyourbusi
nesssur
mountsthebarr
ier
stoentryy
oument
ioned,
whataddi
ti
onal
thr
eat
smi
ghti
tface?
Expl
ainhowthefol
lowi
ngcoul
daffecty
ourstar
tup:

*Changesi
ngovernmentregul
ati
ons
*Changesi
ntechnology
*Changesi
ntheeconomy
*Changesi
nyourindustr
y

UsetheSWOTAnalysi
sWorksheetonthenextpagetoi
dentif
yyourcompany’
sweaknessesand
pot
enti
alt
hreat
s,aswel
lasi
tsstrengt
hsandthepotent
ialoppor
tuni
ti
esyoupl
antoexploi
t.

11
SWOTAnal
ysi
sWor
ksheet

St
rengt
hs Weaknesses Oppor
tuni
ti
es Thr
eat
s
Pr
oduct
/Ser
vice
Of
fer
ing

Br
and/Mar
ket
ing

St
aff
/HR

Fi
nance

Oper
ati
ons/
Management

Mar
ket

Cananyofyourst
rengt
hshel
pwi
thi
mpr
ovi
ngy
ourweaknessesorcombat
ingy
ourt
hreat
s?I
fso,
pl
easedescr
ibehowbelow.
 

Basedont
hei
nfor
mat
ionabov
e,whatar
eyouri
mmedi
ategoal
s/nextst
eps?
 

Basedont
hei
nfor
mat
ionabov
e,whatar
eyourl
ong-
ter
m goal
s/nextst
eps?
 

12
4.Pr
oduct
/ser
vicef
eat
uresandbenef
it
s

Descr
ibeal
lofyourpr
oduct
sorser
vices,
bei
ngsur
etof
ocusont
hecust
omer
’spoi
ntofv
iew.Foreach
pr
oductorser
vice:

*Descr
ibet
hemosti
mpor
tantfeat
ures.Whatisspeci
alaboutit
?
*Descr
ibet
hemosti
mpor
tantbenefi
ts.Whatdoesitdoforthecust
omer
?

I
nthi
ssect
ion,
expl
ainanyaf
ter
-sal
eser
vicesy
oupl
ant
opr
ovi
de,
suchas:

*Productdel
ivery *Ongoingsuppor
t
*Warranty
/guarantee *Trai
ning
*Servi
cecontr
act s *Refundpoli
cy

5.Tar
getcust
omer

Descr
ibey
ourt
argetcust
omer
.(Thi
sisal hei
soknownast dealcust
omerorbuy
erper
sona.
)

Youmayhav emorethanonetar
getcustomergr
oup.Forinst
ance,i
fyousel
laproductt
oconsumers
throughdistri
but
ors,suchasr
etail
ers,y
ouhaveatl
easttwokindsoftar
getcust
omers:t
hedist
ri
but
ors
(businesses)andtheenduser
s( consumer
s).

I
dent
if
yyourt
argetcust
omergr
oups,
andcr
eat
eademogr
aphi
cpr
ofi
l
eforeachgr
oupt
hati
ncl
udes:

Forconsumer
s:
*Age *I
ncome
*Gender *Occupati
on
*Locati
on *Educat
ionlev
el

Forbusinesses:
*Indust
ry *St
ageinbusi
ness(
star
tup,
growi
ng,
mat
ure)
*Locati
on *Annual
sal
es
*Size

6.Keycompet
it
ors

Oneofthebiggestmist
akesyoucanmakeinabusinessplanistocl
aimy ouhav
e“ nocompet
iti
on.
”
Ever
ybusinesshascompetit
ors.Yourpl
anmustshowthatyou’v
eident
if
iedyoursandunder
standhow
todi
ffer
enti
ateyourbusi
ness.Thi
ssecti
onshoul
d:

Listkeycompani esthatcompetewithyou(includi
ngnamesandl ocations),pr
oductsthatcompetewith
yoursand/ orser
v i
cesthatcompetewithyours.Dot heycompeteacrosstheboard,orjustforspeci
fi
c
product s,forcer
taincustomersorincert
aingeographicareas?
Alsoi ncludeindi
rectcompetit
ors.Fori
nstance,ify
ou’reopeningarestaurantt
hatrel
iesonconsumer s’
discreti
onar yspending,t
henbarsandnightclubsareindi
rectcompetit
ors.

UsetheCompetit
orDat
aCollect
ionPl
anonthenextpaget
obr
ainst
orm way
syoucancol
l
ect
i
nfor
mationaboutcompet
it
orsineachcat
egor
y.

13
Compet
it
orDat
aCol
lect
ionPl
an

Pr
ice

Benef
it
s/Feat
ures

Si
ze/
prof
it
abi
li
ty

Mar
ketst
rat
egy

Oncey
ou’
vei
denti
fi
edy ourmaj
orcompet
it
ors,
uset
heCompet
it
iveAnal
ysi
sWor
ksheetont
henextpage
t
ocompar
eyourbusinesstot
hei
rs.

14
Compet
it
iveAnal
ysi
sWor
ksheet
Foreachfactorli
stedi
nt hefi
rstcol
umn, assesswhet hery
outhinkit
’sastr
engthoraweakness(SorW)
foryourbusi
nessandf oryourcompet i
tors.Thenr ankhowi mport
anteachfact
oristoyourtar
get
customeronascal eof1t o5(1=v eryimpor tant
;5=notv eryimport
ant)
.Usethisi
nfor
mat i
ontoexpl
ain
yourcompeti
t i
veadvantagesanddisadv antages.

Compet
it
or I
mport
ancet
o
FACTOR Me Compet
it
orB Compet
it
orC
A Cust
omer

Pr
oduct
s

Pr
ice

Qual
it
y

Sel
ect
ion

Ser
vice

Rel
iabi
li
ty

St
abi
li
ty

Exper
ti
se

Company
Reput
ati
on

Locat
ion

Appear
ance

Sal
esMet
hod

Cr
edi
tPol
ici
es

Adv
ert
isi
ng

I
mage

7.Posi
ti
oni
ng/
Niche

Nowthatyou’
veassessedyouri
ndust
ry,
product/
ser
vice,
cust
omersandcompet
it
ion,
youshoul
dhav
ea
cl
earunder
standi
ngofyourbusi
ness’
sniche(y
ouruni
quesegmentofthemar
ket
)aswellasyour

15
posi
ti
oni
ng(
howy
ouwantt
opr
esenty
ourcompanyt
ocust
omer
s).Expl
aint
hesei
nashor
tpar
agr
aph.

8.Howy
ouwi
llmar
kety
ourpr
oduct
/ser
vice

I
nthi
ssect
ion,
expl
aint
hemar
ket
ingandadv
ert
isi
ngt
act
icsy
oupl
ant
ouse.

Adv
ert
isingmayincl
ude:
 Onli
ne
 Pri
nt
 Radio
 Cabletelev
isi
on
 Out-of-
home

Whi
chmedi
awi
l
lyouadv
ert
isei
n,whyandhowof
ten?

Mar
keti
ngmayi ncl
ude:
 Businesswebsi t
e
 Social mediamar keti
ng
 Emai lmar keti
ng
 Mobi lemar keti
ng
 Searchengi neopt i
mizati
on
 Cont entmar keti
ng
 Pri
ntmar keti
ngmat eri
als(br
ochur
es,
fly
ers,
busi
nesscar
ds)
 Publicrelati
ons
 Tradeshows
 Networ ki
ng
 Wor d-of-
mout h
 Refer r
als

Whati
magedoy
ouwantt
opr
ojectf
ory
ourbusi
nessbr
and?

Whatdesignel
ementswil
lyouusetomarkety
ourbusi
ness?(
Thi
sincl
udesy
ourl
ogo,
signageand
i
nter
iordesi
gn.
)Expl
ainhowthey’
l
lsuppor
tyourbr
and.

9.Pr
omot
ionalbudget

Howmuchdoy
oupl
ant
ospendont
hemar
ket
ingandadv
ert
isi
ngout
reachabov
e:

*Bef
orest
art
up(
Thesenumberswil
lgoi
ntoyourst
art
upbudget
)
*Onanongoi
ngbasi
s(Thesenumber
swil
lgoint
oyouroper
ati
ngpl
anbudget
)

UsetheMarketi
ngExpensesSt
rat
egyChar
tont
henextpaget
ohel
pfi
gur
eoutt
hecostofr
eachi
ng
di
ff
erentt
argetmarket
s.

16
Mar
ket
ingExpensesSt
rat
egyChar
t

Tar
getMar
ket1 Tar
getMar
ket2 Tar
getMar
ket3

One-Ti
me
Expenses

Monthl
yorAnnual
Expenses

LaborCost
s

Downloadt
heAnnualMarket
ingBudgetTempl
ate.Usi
ngt
hei
nfor
mat
iony
ou’
vegat
her
ed,
creat
eyour
annualmar
ket
ingbudget
.

17
10.
Pri
cing

Youexpl
ainedpri
cingbri
eflyint
he“Product
s&Ser vices”secti
on;nowi t
’st
imetogoint
omor edetail
.
Howdoy ouplantosetprices?Keepi
nmi ndthatfewsmal lbusinessescancompet
eonpricewithout
hur
ti
ngtheirpr
ofi
tmar gi
ns.Inst
eadofoffer
ingthelowestpr i
ce,it
’sbet
tert
ogowithanaverageprice
andcompeteonqual i
tyandservi
ce.

 Doesyourpri
cingstrat
egyref
lecty
ourpositi
oning?
 Compareyourpriceswithy
ourcompetit
ors’.Ar
et heyhi
gher
,lowerorthesame?Why
?
 Howimportantispri
cetoyourcustomers?Itmaynotbeadeci di
ngfactor
.
 Whatwil
lyourcustomerservi
ceandcreditpoli
ciesbe?

Uset
hePr
ici
ngSt
rat
egyWor
ksheetont
henextpaget
ohel
pwi
thy
ourpr
ici
ng.

18
Pr
ici
ngSt
rat
egyWor
ksheet

Busi
nessName

Whi
choft
hef
oll
owi
ngpr
ici
ngst
rat
egi
eswi
lly
ouempl
oy?Ci
rcl
eone.

Val
ueBased Ot
her
:
CostPl
us
Basedony ourcompeti
ti
ve
Thecost sofmaking/
obtai
ning
advantageandbrand
yourproductorprovi
dingyour
(
perceiv
edv al
ue)
ser
vice,plusenoughtomakea
prof
it

Provi
deanexpl
anationofyourpri
cingmodelsel
ecti
on.
I
ncludest
rat
egyinf
oony ourmajorproductl
i
nes/
servi
ceof
fer
ings.Li
sti
ndust
ry/
mar
ketpr
act
icesand
anyconsi
der
ati
onstobediscussedwi t
hyourmentor
.

19
11.
Locat
ionorpr
oposedl
ocat
ion

I
fyouhav
eal
ocat
ionpi
ckedout
,expl
ainwhyy
oubel
i
evet
hisi
sagoodl
ocat
ionf
ory
ourst
art
up.

I
fyouhav
en’
tchosenal
ocat
iony
et,
expl
ainwhaty
ou’
l
lbel
ooki
ngf
ori
nal
ocat
ionandwhy
,incl
udi
ng:

*Conveni
entlocati
onf orcustomer s
*Adequat
epar ki
ngf orempl oyeesandcustomer
s
*Proxi
mit
ytopubl i
ct r
anspor t
ationormajorr
oads
*Typeofspace( i
ndustri
al,ret
ail,et
c.)
*Typesofbusinessesnear by

Focusonthelocati
onofy
ourbui
l
ding,
nott
hephy
sical
bui
l
dingi
tsel
f.You’
l
ldi
scusst
hatl
ater
,int
he
Operat
ionssect
ion.

12.
Dist
ri
but
ionchannel
s

Whatmet
hodsofdi
str
ibut
ionwi
l
lyouuset
osel
lyourpr
oduct
sand/
orser
vices?Thesemayi
ncl
ude:

*Retai
l
*Dir
ectsal
es
*Ecommerce
*Wholesal
e
*I
nsidesal
esforce
*Outsi
desalesr
epresent
ati
ves
*OEMs

Ifyouhaveanystrat
egi
cpar
tner
shi
psorkeydi
str
ibut
orr
elat
ionshi
pst
hatwi
l
lbeaf
act
ori
nyoursuccess,
explai
nthem her
e.

Ify
ouhav en’
tyetf
inal
i
zedyourdi
str
ibut
ionchannel
s,uset
heDist
ri
buti
onChannelAssessment
Worksheetonthenextpaget
oassesstheprosandconsofeachdist
ri
but
ionchannelyouar
e
consi
deri
ng.

20
Di
str
ibut
ionChannelAssessmentWor
ksheet
Di
str
ibut
ionChannel1 Di
str
ibut
ionChannel2 Di
str
ibut
ionChannel3

EaseofEnt
ry

Geogr
aphi
c
Pr
oxi
mity

Cost
s

Competi
tor
s’
Posi
ti
ons

Management
Exper
ience

Staff
ing
Capabi
lit
ies

Mar
keti
ng
Needs

21
13.
12-
mont
hsal
esf
orecast

Downl
oadt
heSal
esFor
ecastspr
eadsheetandusei
ttocr
eat
eamont
h-by
-mont
hsal
espr
oject
ion.

Ifyou’
vealreadymadesomesal es,y
oucanuset hoseasabasisforyourpr
oject
ions.I
f,l
i
kemost
start
ups,youhaven’tsol
danyt
hingyet,
you’
llneedtocreateest
imat
esbasedony ourmarketr
esear
ch,
yourproposedmar keti
ngst
rat
egiesandyourindust
rydata.

Createt
woforecast
s:a“bestguess”scenari
o(whaty
our
eal
l
yexpect
)anda“
wor
stcase”scenar
io(
one
you’r
econf
identyoucanreachnomat terwhat)
.

Keepnot
esontheresear
chandassumpti
onsthatgoi
ntodev
elopi
ngt
hesesal
esf
orecast
s.Fi
nanci
ng
sour
ceswil
lwantt
oknowwhaty oubasedthenumber
son.

Aft
erreadingtheMar keti
ngPlansecti
on,
ther
eadershoul
dunderst
andwhoyourtargetcust
omersare,
howyoupl antomar kettothem,whatsal
esanddist
ri
buti
onchannel
syouwi
l
l use,andhowy ouwil
l
posi
ti
ony ourproduct/ser
vicerel
ati
vetot
hecompeti
ti
on.

22
V.I
nst
ruct
ions:Oper
ati
onalPl
an

Thi
ssect
ionexpl
ainst
hedai
l
yoper
ati
onofy
ourbusi
ness,
incl
udi
ngi
tsl
ocat
ion,
equi
pment
,per
sonnel
andpr
ocesses.

1.Product
ion
Howwill
youwill
producey
ourpr
oductordel
iv
eryourser
vice?Descr
ibeyourpr
oduct
ionmet
hods,
the
equi
pmentyou’
l
luseandhowmuchitwill
costtopr
oducewhaty ousel
l.

2.Qual
itycont
rol
Howwil
lyoumaint
ainconsi
stency
?Descr
ibet
hequal
i
tycont
rol
procedur
esy
ou’
l
luse.

3.Locati
on
Whereisyourbusi
nessl
ocated?Youbrief
lyt
ouchedont
hisi
ntheCompanyOv
erv
iew.I
nthi
ssect
ion,
expandonthati
nformat
ionwithdet
ail
ssuchas:

a.Thesizeofy ourlocat
ion
b.Thetypeofbui l
ding(ret
ail
,indust
ri
al ,
commer ci
al,et
c.)
c.Zoni
ngr est
rict
ions
d.Accessibi
li
tyforcustomers, empl
oy ees,suppli
ersandtranspor
tat
ioni
fnecessar
y
e.Costsincl
udingrent,maintenance,util
i
ties,
insuranceandanybuil
doutorremodel
ingcost
s
f.Ut
il
it
ies

4.Legalenvironment
Whatt y
peoflegalenvi
ronmentwi
l
lyourbusi
nessoper
atei
n?Howar
eyoupr
epar
edt
ohandl
elegal
requi
rement
s?I ncl
udedetai
l
ssuchas:

a.Anyli
censesand/ orpermit
sthatar eneededandwhet heryou’
veobtai
nedthem
b.Anytrademar ks,copyri
ghtsorpatentst hatyouhaveorareint
heprocessofappl
yi
ngf
or
c.Theinsurancecov erageyourbusinessr equir
esandhowmuchi tcosts
d.Anyenv i
ronment al,
healt
horwor kplacer egul
ati
onsaff
ecti
ngyourbusiness
e.Anyspecialregulati
onsaffect
ingy ourindustry
f.Bondi
ngr equirements,i
fappli
cable

5.Personnel
Whatt
ypeofpersonnel
wil
lyourbusi
nessneed?Expl
aindet
ail
ssuchas:

*Whattypesofempl oyees?Ar ethereanylicensi

ngoreducat ionalrequi
rement
s?
*Howmanyempl oyeeswi llyouneed?
*Wil
lyouev erhir
ef reelancersorindependentcontr
actors?
*I
ncl
udej obdescr i
ptions.
*Whatisthepayst ructure( hourl
y,sal
ari
ed,basepluscommi ssion,etc.
)?
*Howdoy ouplantof indqual i
fi
edempl oyeesandcontract
or s?
*Whattypeoft r
ainingi sneededandhowwi l
lyoutr
ainempl oy ees?

Downl
oadt
heJobAnal
ysi
sWor
ksheetandusei
ttohel
pyouanswert
hequest
ionsabov
e.

23
6.Invent
ory
I
fyourbusi
nessr
equi
resi
nvent
ory
,expl
ain:

 Whatkindofinventorywi l
l y
oukeeponhand( rawmateri
als,suppl
i
es,fi
nishedproducts)?
 Whatwillbetheav er
agev al
ueofi nv ent
ory( i
notherwords,howmuchar ey ouinvesti
ngininvent
ory)
?
 Whatrateofinventoryturnov erdoy ouexpect ?Howdoest hiscomparetoindustryaverages?
 Wil
lyouneedmor einventoryt hannor mal duri
ngcert
ainseasons?(Fori
nst ance,
ar et
ail
ermightneed
addi
ti
onal i
nventor
yf orthehol idayshoppi ngseason.
)
 Whatisyourleadtimef oror deringinventory?

7.Suppl
ier
s
Li
sty
ourkeysuppl
i
ers,
incl
udi
ng:

*Names, addr esses,websites

*Typeandamountofi nventoryfurnished
*Theircreditanddel i
verypol i
cies
*Historyandr eliabi
li
ty
*Doy ouexpectanysuppl yshor t
agesorshor t-
term del
i
v er
yprobl
ems?Ifso,howwi
l
lyouhandlethem?
*Doy ouhav emor ethanonesuppl ierforcri
ti
calit
ems( asabackup)?
*Doy ouexpectt hecostofsuppl i
est oholdsteadyorfl
uctuat
e?Ifthel
att
er,
howwil
lyoudealwit
h
changingcost s?
*Whatar eyoursuppl i
ers’paymentt er
ms?

8.Creditpol
ici
es
I
fyouplantosellt
ocust
omer
soncr
edi
t,expl
ain:

*Whet herthisistypicaliny ourindust

ry(docust omersexpectit)
?
*Whaty ourcr editpoli
cieswi ll
be.Howmuchcr editwil
lyouextend?Whatar et hecr
it
eri
aforextending
cr
edit?
*Howwi l
lyouchecknewcust omer s’
credit
wor t
hiness?
*Whatcr edittermswi llyouof fer?
*Detailhowmuchi twil
l costyout ooffercredi
t,andshowt hatyou’v
ebui l
tthesecostsi
ntoyourpricing
st
ructure.
*Howwi l
lyouhandl esl
ow- payi
ngcustomer s?Explainyourpoli
cies,suchaswheny ouwillf
oll
owupon
l
atepay ment s,andwheny ouwi l
lgetanattorneyorcoll
ecti
onsagencyi nv
olved.

Aft
err
eadingtheOperat
ional
Plansect
ion,
ther
eadershoul
dunder
standhowy
ourbusi
nesswi
l
loper
ate
onaday-
to-daybasi
s.

24
VI
.Inst
ruct
ions:Management&Or
gani
zat
ion
Thissecti
onshouldgiv
er eader
sanunder st
andingofthepeopl
ebehindyourbusi
ness,theirr
olesand
responsi
bil
it
ies,
andtheirpri
orexper
ience.I
fyou’reusi
ngyourbusi
nessplant
ogetfinancing,knowthat
i
nv est
orsandlender
scar ef
ull
yassesswhethery ouhaveaquali
fi
edmanagementteam.

1. Biographies
I
ncludebr i
efbiographi
esoft heowner/
sandkeyempl oy
ees.Includeresumesint heAppendi
x.
Here,summar izeyourexperienceandthoseofyourkeyempl oyeesinafewpar agraphsper
person.Focusont hepriorexperi
enceandskil
lsthathavepreparedyourteam tosucceedinthi
s
business.I
fany onehaspr ev
iousexper
iencestar
tingandgrowingabusi ness,
expl ai
nthi
sindet
ail
.

2. Gaps
Expl
ainhowy ouplantof
il
li
nanygapsinmanagementand/orexperi
ence.Fori
nst
ance,i
fyou
l
ackfinanci
alknow-how,
will
youhi
reaCFOorr et
ainanaccount
ant?Ifyoudon’
thavesal
esski
ll
s,
wil
lyouhireanin-
housesal
esmanageroruseoutsi
desal
esreps?

3. Adv i
sor s
Li
stthemember
sofy
ourprof
essional/ advi
sorysuppor
tteam,
incl
udi
ng:
a. Attorney
b. Account ant
c. Boardofdi rector
s
d. Adv i
soryboar d
e. I
nsuranceagent
f. Consul tants
g. Banker
h. Ment
orsandot heradvisor
s

I
ftheyhaveexper
ienceorspeci
ali
zat
ionsthatwil
lincr
easeyourchancesofsuccess,
expl
ain.For
i
nstance,
doesyourmentorhaveexperi
encelaunchingandgrowi
ngasi mi
larbusi
ness?

4. Organizat
ionChart
Devel
opandincl
udeanor
ganizationchart
.Thi
sshoul
dincl
udebot
hrol
est
haty
ou’
veal
ready
fi
l
ledandrol
esyoupl
antofil
li
nt hefutur
e.

Aft
erreadi
ngtheManagement&Or gani
zat
ionsect
ion,
ther
eadershoul
dfeel
conf
identt
haty
ouhav
ea
qual
if
iedteam l
eadi
ngyourbusi
ness.

UsetheManagementWor
ksheetandOr
gani
zat
ionChar
tont
henextt
wopagest
ohi
ghl
i
ghty
our
managementteam.

25
ManagementWor
ksheet

Bi
o/s

Gapsin
Managementor
Experi
ence

Adv
isor
s

26
Or
gani
zat
ionChar
t

TI
TLE

TI
TLE TI
TLE TI
TLE
TI
TLE

TI
TLE
TI
TLE TI
TLE

TI
TLE TI
TLE TI
TLE

TI
TLE TI
TLE

27
VI
I.I
nst
ruct
ions:St
art
upExpenses&Capi
tal
izat
ion
I
nthissecti
on,detai
ltheexpensesi
nvolvedinopeni
ngforbusi
nessandhowmuchcapi t
aly
ou’l
lneed.
(Donotincl
udeongoingexpensesafteryourbusi
nessopens;t
hoseareli
stedint
heFinanci
alPl
an.)
Esti
mati
ngst ar
tupexpensesasaccuratelyaspossi
blehel
psyougatherenoughst
art
upcapital
.

1. Start-
UpExpenses
Downloadandcompl et
et heSt art
-UpExpensest emplat e.Inworki
ngont hi
sBusinessPlan,you
shouldalr
eadyhav egatheredmost ,i
fnotall
,oftheinfor mati
ony ouneed.I
nthebodyoft his
secti
on,besuretoexplainal l
oft heassumptionsbehi ndt hefigur
es.Howdidyoucomeupwi t
h
theseexpenses?Ifyou’
v esecur edorexpecttosecur el oans,expl
aint
hesource/s,amount/sand
terms.I
fy ou’
vesecuredorexpectt osecureinv
estors, explai
nhowmucheachi nvest
orwi l
l
contr
ibuteandwhatper centageofowner shi
peachr ecei vesi
nr et
urn.

Besuretoincl udeextr
acapi t
alforunexpectedexpenses.Openinganewbusi nessalmostalway s
endsupcost ingmor ethanexpect ed,andyouneedtobepr epared.Li
stthi
sfigur
eint heStar
t-Up
Expensestempl ateunder“Reservef orConti
ngenci
es.”Howmuchshoul dyousetasidefor
conti
ngencies?Youcant al
kt ootherbusinessownersinyourindustr
ytogetaballparkfi
gure.If
youcan’tcomeupwi thaf i
gurethisway ,agoodrul
eoft humbi stosetasi
de20%t o25%ofy our
tot
alstart
upcost sforcontingencies.

2. Openi
ngDayBal anceSheet
DownloadandcompletetheOpeningDayBalanceSheet
.Usei
ttodetai
ltheexpect
edstat
eof
yourbusi
nessfi
nancesonopeningday.AswiththeStar
t-
UpExpensessheet
,besuret
oexplai
n
theassumpti
onsbehindthef
igures.

3. PersonalFinancialStatement
Ifyouareusingthebusinessplantoseekf inanci
ng,incl
udeper sonal fi
nancialstatementsfor
eachownerandeachmaj orstockholder.Thepersonal f
inanci
al statementsshoul ddetail
each
person’sassetsandli
abil
it
iesoutsi
deoft hebusinessandt heirper sonalnetwor th.I
nvestor
s
and/orlenderstypi
cal
l
yexpectbusi nessowner stouseper sonal assetstofinanceast art
up,and
they’
llwanttoseehowmuchcapi talyouhav eavai
lablefrom yourper sonalfinances.

Aft
erreadi
ngtheStart
upExpenses&Capi
tal
izati
onsecti
on,
thereadershoul
dknowhowmuchmoneyi
s
neededtostar
tthebusinessandhowwel
lcapit
ali
zedyouare.

28
VI
II
.Inst
ruct
ions:Fi
nanci
alPl
an
Yourfi
nanci
alpl
anisperhapsthemostimportantel
ementofyourbusi
nessplan.Lendersandinv
est
ors
wil
lrevi
ewiti
ndetai
l.Devel
opingyourf
inanci
alpl
anhel
psy ousetfi
nanci
algoalsforyourst
art
upand
assessit
sfi
nanci
ngneeds.Includet
hefoll
owing:

1. 12-monthprofi
t&lossprojecti
on
Alsoknownasani ncomestatementorP&L, t
he12-mont hprofitandlossproj
ect i
onisthe
centerpieceofy ourbusinessplan.Downloadthe12-Mont hProfitandLossProjectionandfi
ll
in
yourpr ojectedsales,costofgoodssoldandgr ossprof
it.(
Refert otheSal
esFor ecastyou
createdinSect ionIV).Thenli
styourexpenses,netprof
itbeforetaxes,est
imatedt axesandnet
operatingi ncome.

Besur
etoexplai
ntheassumpt
ionsbehi
ndt
henumbersi
ny ourP&L.Keepdet
ail
ednotesabout
howyoucameupwi tht
hesefi
gures;
youmayneedt
hisi
nformati
ontoanswerquest
ionsf
rom
pot
ent
ial
financi
ngsour
ces.

2. Opti
onal:3-y
earpr of
it&lossproj
ecti
on
Athr
ee-yearprof
itandlossprojecti
onisnotessenti
altoabusi
nessplan.However,
y oumaywant
tocr
eateoneifyouexpecty ourbusiness’
sfinanci
alst
ochangesubst
ant i
all
yaf
tert
hef i
rstyear,
ori
finv
estorsorlendersrequir
eit.Downloadthe3-YearPr
ofi
tandLossPr oj
ect
iontemplate,and
usei
ttocreateyourproject
ion.

3. Cashf l
owpr ojecti
on
Thecashf l
owst atementt rackshowmuchcashy ourbusinesshasonhandatanygi v
ent i
me.
Oncey ourbusinessi supandr unni
ng,you’llwantt okeepcloset absony ourcashf l
owst atement.
Fornow, howev er,you’recreatingacashf owpr
l ojecti
on.Thinkoft hecashflowpr ojecti
onasa
forecastf oryourbusi nesschecki ngaccount .Itdetail
swheny ouneedt ospendmoneyont hings
suchasi nventory,rentandpay rol
l,
andwheny ouexpectt orecei
v epaymentsf rom customers
andcl i
ent s.Forexampl e,y
oumaymakeasal e,havetobuyi nventorytoful
fi
llthesale,andnot
collectpay mentf r
om t hecust omerf or30,60or90day s.Thecashf lowprojecti
ontakest hese
factorsintoaccount ,helpi
ngy oubudgetf orupcomi ngexpensessoy ourbusinessdoesn’trunout
ofmoney .

Downl
oadt
he12-
Mont
h CashFl
owSt
atementandusei
ttocr
eat
eyourpr
oject
ions.

4. Opti
onal
:3-yearcashf l
owst at
ement
Dependi
ngony ourneedsandt hepurposeofy ourbusinesspl
an,youmayalsowanttoincl
udea
3-y
earcashflowstatement
.Ifso,downl oadthe3-YearCashFlowStatement
 anduseitt
ocreat
e
yourpr
oject
ions.Thisi
samuchsi mplerdocumentt hanthe12-mont
hcashflowstat
ement,but
cansti
ll
beusef uli
nmakingplans.

5. Proj ect
edbal ancesheet
Abal ancesheetsubt r
actsthecompany ’sli
abi
li
ti
esf r
om itsassetstoarri
veattheowner ’sequit
y.
Youal readycreat
edanopeni ngdaybal ancesheetinSect i
on1.Now, downloadtheBal anceSheet
(Projected),
andcr eat
eapr ojectedbalancesheetshowi ngtheestimatedfi
nancialconditi
onof
yourbusi nessattheendofi tsfirsty
ear.Themaj ordiff
erencebetweenthetwoi sthatthe
projectedbalancesheetincludesanyowner ’
sequityresult
ingfr
om thebusiness’sfi
rstyearin
oper at
ion.Lendersandinvest or
smaywantt oseet hi
spr oj
ecti
on.

29
30
 6. Break-evencalculation
Thebreak-evenanaly
sisprojectsthesalesv olumey ouneedinordert
ocoveryourcosts.I
nother
words,whenwi l
lthebusinessbreakev en?Downl oadt heBr
eak-EvenAnal
ysi
stemplateand,
usi
ngy ourprofi
tandlossprojecti
ons,entery ourexpectedf
ixedandvari
abl
ecosts.Adjustt
he
cat
egoriestorefl
ectyourownbusi ness.

Youcanev encr
eateacoupleofdif
ferentbreak-ev
enanaly
sesfordi
ffer
entscenari
os.For
example,
yourpayrol
lcost
swi l
lvar
ydependi ngonwhetheryouhi
refull
-t
imeemployeesoruse
i
ndependentcontr
actor
s.Creat
ingdif
ferentbreak-
evenanal
ysescanhelpyoudeterminet
hebest
opti
on.

7. Useofcapi
tal
I
fyou’
reusi
ngthebusinesspl
antoseekfinanci
ngfrom lendersorinvest
ors,
provi
deabreakdown
ofhowyouwil
lthecapit
alandwhatresul
tsyouexpect.Forexampl e,
perhapsyouwil
lusethe
moneytobuynewequipmentandexpectthattodoubl
ey ourproduct
ioncapaci
ty.

Aft
erreadi
ngtheFinanci
alPl
ansect
ion,
ther
eadershoul
dunderstandt
heassumpti
onsbehi
ndy
our
fi
nanci
alproj
ect
ionsandbeabletoj
udgewhethert
heseproj
ect
ionsarereal
i
sti
c.

31
I
X.I
nst
ruct
ions:Appendi
ces
Don’tslowy ourreader
sdownbycl utt
eri
ngyourbusi
nessplanwit
hsuppor
ti
ngdocument
s,suchas
contractsorli
censes.I
nstead,putt
hesedocumentsintheAppendi
ces,
andref
ert
othem i
nthebodyof
theplansor eaderscanfi
ndt hem i
fneeded.

Bel
owar
esomeel
ement
smanybusi
nessowner
sincl
udei
nthei
rAppendi
ces.

1. Agr
eements(Leases,contracts,purchaseor ders,lett
ersofintent,
etc.
)
2. I
ntel
lect
ualpropert
y( trademar ks, l
icenses, patent
s,etc.)
3. Resumesofowner s/keyempl oyees
4. Adver
tising/mar ketingmat eri
als
5. Publicrelat
ions/ publicity
6. Bluepri
nt s/plans
7. Listofequi pment
8. Mar ketresear chst udies
9. Li
stofassetst hatcanbeusedascol later
al

Youcanal soincl
udeanyothermateri
alst
hatwil
lgi
vereadersaf ul
lerpi
ctureofyourbusinessorsuppor
t
theprojectionsandassumptionsyoumakeinyourpl
an.Forinstance,youmi ghtwanttoincl
udephotos
ofyourpr oposedlocati
on,i
ll
ustr
ati
onsorphot
osofapr oductyouar epatent
ing,orchar
tsshowingthe
proj
ectedgr owt
hofy ourmarket
.

Af
terr
evi
ewingtheAppendi
ces,
thereadershouldfeel
sat
isf
iedt
hatt
heassumpt
ionst
hroughoutt
he
pl
anarebackedupbydocumentat
ionandevidence.

32
X.I
nst
ruct
ions:Ref
ini
ngt
hePl
an
Modif
yyourbusi
nesspl
anf
ory
ourspeci
fi
cneeds,
audi
enceandi
ndust
ry.Her
ear
esomegui
del
i
nest
o
hel
p:

ForRai
singCapi
talf
rom Banker
s

Bankerswanttoknowt hatyou’l
lbeabletorepaytheloan.Ift
hebusi
nesspl
anisforbanker
sorot
her
l
enders,i
ncl
ude:
 Howmuchmoneyy ou’r
eseeking
 Howy ou’l
lusethemoney
 Howt hatwi ll
makey ourbusi
nessstronger
 Request edrepay mentterms(numberofy earstorepay)
 Anycol l
ateralyouhav eandalistofallexi
sti
ngliensagai
nsty
ourcol
l
ateral

ForRai
singCapi
talf
rom I
nvest
ors

I
nvest
orsarelooki ngfordramat icgrowth,andtheyexpectt oshareint
herewar
ds.I
fthebusi
nesspl
ani
s
f
orinv
estors,i
ncl ude:
 Invest
mentamounty ouneedshor t-t
erm
 Invest
mentamounty ou’l
lneedint wotof i
vey ears
 Howy ou’llusethemoneyandhowt hatwillhelpyourbusi
nessgrow
 Estimat edr et
urnoni nvestment
 Exitstrategyforinvestors(buyback,saleorI PO)
 Percent ageofowner shi
py ouwillgiv
einvest ors
 Mi l
estonesorcondi tionsy ouwil
laccept
 Financial r
eporti
ngy ouwi l
l pr
ovi
det oinvestors
 Howi nv olvedinvestorswillbeont heboardori nmanagement

ForaManuf
act
uri
ngBusi
ness

 Explai
nt heoper at
ionsi nv ol
v edinmanuf acturi
ngy ourproduct/s.
 Whatequi pmenti sneeded?Whatar etheproduction/
capacitylimi
tsoftheequipment?
 Whatar et hepr oduction/ capacitylimitsoftheproposedphy sicalpl
ant?
 Isspecializedlaborneeded?
 Whatr awmat erial
sdoy ouneedf ormanuf actur
ing?Ar ether
eanyspeci alr
equirement
sfor
stor
ingt hese?
 Whatqual it
ycont r
ol procedur eswillyouuse?
 Howwi l
l youmanagei nvent orylevels?
 Whatisy oursuppl ychai n?
 Explai
nanynewpr oduct sy ou’redev el
oping,orproductsyoupl antobegindevel
opingaft
er
star
tup.

ForaSer
viceBusi
ness

 Expl
ainyourpri
cesandthemethodsusedt osett
hem.
 Whatsyst
emsandpr ocesseswil
lyouuseforensur
ingconsi
stentdel
i
ver
yofser
vices?
 Whatqual
it
ycontr
ol pr
ocedureswil
lyouuse?
33
  Howwi l
lyoumeasureempl oyeeproduct i
vi
ty?
 Willyousubcontr
actanywor ktoot herbusinesses?Ifso,whatper cent
ageofwor
kwil
lbe
subcontract
ed?Willyoumakeapr ofitonsubcont r
acti
ng?
 Explainyourcr
edit
,paymentandcol l
ecti
onspol ici
esandpr ocedures.
 Howwi l
lyoumaintai
ny ourcl
ientbaseandgetl ong-t
erm contract
s?
 Explainanynewser v
icesyou’
redev elopi
ngorser v
icesyouplant oaddaft
erst
art
up.
ForaRet
ailBusiness

 Listspecif
icbrandsy oupl ant ocarrythatwi ll
giveyouacompet it
iveadv antage.
 Howwi l
lyoumanagei nvent ory?Whati nventorymanagementsof twar ewillyouuse?
 Whatf ormsofpay mentwi llyouaccept ?Whatpay mentprocessingser v i
cewi l
lyouuse?
 Whatpoi nt-of
-salesoftwareandhar dwar ewi l
lyouuse?
 Explainyourmar kuppol i
cies.Yourpr icesshoul dbeprofi
tabl
e, compet it
iveandi nli
newithy our
brand.
 Init
iali
nventorylevel:
Findt heindustryav erageannualinvent
oryt urnoverrate(av ai
l
ableinthe
RMAbook) .Mul t
iplyyouriniti
alinv
ent oryinvestmentbytheav eraget urnoverrate.Theresult
shouldbeatl eastequal toy ourprojectedf i
rstyear
'scostofgoodssol d.Ifnot,youmayneedt o
budgetmor eforstart
upinv entory.
 Whatar ey ourcustomerser vi
cepol i
cies?
 Howwi l
lyouhandl ereturnsandex changes?
 Wi l
lyourretai
lstorealsohav eanecommer cesite,
orisoneplannedf orthef ut
ure?

ForanEcommer
ceBusi
ness


Wil
lyousel laphy sical product ,aserv ice,adi gi
tal product(suchaseBooks)orsomecombi nat
ion
ofthese?
 Ifyou’reselli
ngphy sical products,howwi l
l y
oubr andandpackaget hem?

Wil
lyousel lony ourownwebsi te,onlinemar ketplaces( suchasAmazon)orbot h?

Whattechnol ogypr ovidersandpl at
formswi l
lyouuset or unyourecommer cesi
te?
o Webhost i
ngser vice
o Webdesi gnser vi
ce
o Shoppingcar tprovider
o Pay mentpr ocessi ngser v i
ce
o Ful fi
ll
ment&shi ppingser v i
ces
o Emai l
mar ket i
ngser v i
ces
 Cant hesolutionsy ou’vechosenqui cklyscal eupordownasneeded?

Wherewi lly
ougety ourpr oduct s?Wi l
l youmanuf act urethem in-
house, buythem f
rom
manuf acturersorusedr opshi ppers?
 Howwi l
l youhandl er eturnsandexchanges?
 Whatar ey ourcust omerser vi
cepol icies?Howwi llyouprovidecustomerser vi
ce?

Wil
lyouuseanypr oprietar ytechnologyofy ourownandi fso,whatadv antagesdoesthatgi
veyou?

ForaSof
twar
eorSaaSbusi
ness

 Whati
sy ourpri
cingstructure?Wi l
l y
ouuseaf reetri
al,
“fr
eemium”orpai dbusinessmodel
?
 I
fyouofferfr
eeservicesoraf reetri
alopti
on, howwi l
lyouupsellcust
omerst oapaymentmodel
?
Whatpercent
ageofcust omersar eexpectedt obecomepay i
ngcustomers?
 Haveyoutestedyoursof tware?Areany“ earlyadopters”alr
eadyusingtheproduct?
 Howwi l
lyouencouragel ong-term contr
actsinor dert
ocr eat
erecurri
ngrevenues?
 Howwi l
lyoumanager apidl
ychangi ngmar kets,t
echnologiesandcosts?
 Howwi l
lyoukeepy ourcompanycompet it
ive?
34
  Wil
lyouusei n-housedev elopersoroutsour
cet hi
sfuncti
on?
 Howwi l
lyoupr ovidecustomersuppor t
?
 Howwi l
lyour etai
nkeyper sonnel?
 Ar
ey ouusinganypr opr
ietaryorexclusi
vesoftwarethatwil
lgi
veyouacompetit
iveedge?
 Howwi l
lyoupr otectyourintell
ect
ual pr
opert
y?
 Whatadditi
onal productsorupdat estocurr
entproductsareyouplanni
ngaf
terl
aunch?

NowThatYou’
re(
Almost
)Fi
nished...
Remembert
ogoback,
andcompl
etet
heExecut
iveSummar
y.

35